Hello, I am a 16 year-old high school student who speaks English natively. A couple of nights ago, I stumbled upon the Cyrillic alphabet and learned it without problem. Now I have embarked on the (apparently) draining journey of learning the Russian language. It is going VERY slowly. I can't seem to find a good, free (:P), well-organized course. I had planned to order Rosetta Stone Russian, but if I decide not to learn it, it will have been a waste of money.
1) How long did it take you to have good enough knowledge of Russian so that you could carry on a conversation?
2) I know this question is probably ALWAYS asked, but do you have a recommendation of an actual course online for learning Russian?
Thanks so much :)
Also, my apologies that this is all one big block; I'd intended on making indentions several places.
2006-12-23 07:00:04 · 8 answers · asked by моя звезда 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Languages
Keep in mind that I'm only 16, so I can't go off to St. Petersburg or join the military any time soon.
:)
2006-12-24 07:21:02 · update #1
All languages are difficult to master, and in my opinion Russian is moderately difficult (if you want extremely difficult try Japanese, Chinese or Thai).
I have been studying Russian for a year and know quite a few words, but my ability to have a conversation completely in Russian is limited to basics.
I haven't come across any online course that I would recommend. I'm trying to rectify this situation with a new website called http://listen2russian.com/ but it's still in development.
In terms of offline resources Rosetta Stone is ok, but it's not fun and is pretty draining (nothing is in English, and they don't explain any of the grammar rules).
Pimsleur is good in the sense that is goes through each phrase slowly, similar to my website. But it lacks reading elements which are essential, and translations of all the words and phrases that they use.
I agree it's expensive to fly off to St.Pete's, so hop onto my site, it's the next best thing :) although it's not quite as romantic as St.Pete's.... :)
Hope that helps,
Jon.
2006-12-25 16:24:22 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
I do not recommend Rosetta Stone; if you seriously want to learn Russian, I recommend Pimsleur Comprehensive I, II, & III. It is 90 lessons per disc. The problem with Russian is that it is a very difficult language to learn. I have studied numerous languages, and the only languages that I had a problem with was Russian and Chinese. These in my dictionary are the hardest languages in the world. The best way to learn Russian is through Pimsleur, and by listening to Russian music. It also would not hurt to watch some Russian television. That way you can see how they speak, etc.
Russian is truly a beautiful language, and once you are familiar with the sounds, it gets easier. I have not practiced Russian for a long time, but I do listen to the music and I am able to understand a few words.
2006-12-23 07:10:06 · answer #2 · answered by Ohay 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
As the others have stated, Russian is a difficult lang to master. I've lived in Ukraine for several years and learned Ukr'n first; Rus'n is a 2nd lang here and spoken by a large percent of the population. As you've discovered, learning the alphabet comes quickly and the rest is blood, sweat and tears!
As far as your questions:
1) (I'll refer to Ukr'n since I learned it first- the 2 are very similar- and having learned that, Rus'n came much faster, easier)- after 3 mos of studying with a teacher, I was able to 'hold my own' in conversations. The next 3 mos showed a lot more improvement. Sometime after that, it just happened and I was talking with no problem. (But, I was living in Ukr where I used it every day and spoke with natives who have 'perfect' Ukrn.) Rus'n came quickly- after a month or so of studying, I was OK...
2) I'm not sure you're going to find a good online course. If you can get the Pimsleur course (check in a good bookstore or online- they should be a box set of cd's), that is excellent. I used them in addition to studying with a teacher.
I'm including a link for a summer course in St Petersburg- if you can do that, I would highly recommend that! I think you'd find it a great learning experience, both language-wise and culturally. St Pete was an old European city (one of the 'oldies and goodies') before the days of the USSR and considered to be a center of culture. It is a fascinating city. Plus, you'd be in a setting where you use Rusn with native speakers- that is the ideal thing. You don't mention your age, but English speakers who know Rusn well are in demand in companies who are moving into the Rusn (and Ukrn) market.
2006-12-24 01:41:12 · answer #3 · answered by boots&hank 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Russian is an extremely difficult language to learn... but not impossible.
What you need to be able to devote to it is regular time and diciplined study. Those are the two most important components.
Rosetta Stone and Pimsleur are sold at airports for reasons... impulse buys. Invest in a quality university level text with audio package. You will spend much less (on Amazon.com and other similar sites...) The two that I recommend are Nachalo (includes much in video, computer, and audio exercises, as long as you get the added extras) and Golosa (good exercises, grammars).
If you keep your goal to work through 10 or less pages per week, that is very ambitious but definitely achievable. You absolutely MUST use the accompanying audio visual materials... and talk to yourself a lot until you can find a native speaker to become fast friends with.
Also, get used to watching movies in Russian from places like NetFlix, and to watching streaming Russian video and news on the internet regularly. Check out NTV, Perviy Kanal, and others. Good luck!
2006-12-24 19:03:02 · answer #4 · answered by bozsik 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If you are currently in college (especially in a large one) the best thing you can do is getting in touch with students who are native speakers of the Russian language. Another thing you can try is watching Russian movies, as that way you may learn some useful (and not so) common language idiomatic expressions that would complement what you have learned through your formal and more classical education in Russian literature and history. I believe you can also receive Russian TV programs in the U.S. via sattelite, but I do not really know how to do that. Good Luck.
2016-05-23 02:11:10 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I recommand listening to Russian music! Visit http://www.russmus.net they have Russian lyrics and English translations to tons of modern songs: pop, rock, whatever. When my bestfriend was learning Russian I made her listen to music and translated the lyrics for her. It's just a little tip amongst others but it helps a lot!
I wouldn't recommand online courses. It's always better to have a live teacher that you can practise with. Look for Russian classes in your area!
As for the learning speed, it depends so much on the person learning, on the stuff they used to learn, on the time they spend on it, etc. The more you're into the language (music, movies, reading) the faster you will learn!
2006-12-26 02:59:21 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The absolute best way to learn a language fairly fluently in to join the military as a linguist. You'd be in school in Monterey, Cali between 6 months to64 weeks depending on the language. I highly reccomend it.
2006-12-23 23:32:40 · answer #7 · answered by Ambrielle 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
russian language is very hard to master.i learned basic russian language in my country for 8 months and now studying in moscow.this is my 3rd year here but still im not good in this laguange.lol
2006-12-23 11:28:08 · answer #8 · answered by gerz 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
trust me russian language is VERY DIFFICULT.russian is my native language and i know how difficult it is.alphabet is nothing when u start learning spelling or grammar or even stress u will need help...if what just write me i will help with pleasure
2006-12-23 15:13:51 · answer #9 · answered by sin_talk 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋