Many American students of the Russian language take part in study abroad programs in such Russian-speaking countries such as Moldova, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, and Lithuania, to name a few. Kinginger (2009, p. 11) defines study abroad as “a temporary sojourn of pre-defined duration, undertaken for educational purposes.” After entering a new country and culture, these […]

Kattama is a traditional Turkic pastry. It is buttery, flaky, layered and fried or baked to perfection! The dough is rolled thin, slathered in butter and other filling, and then layered and folded, creating beautiful flaky layers that are both crisp and soft. It can be found throughout Mongol and Turkic cultures in various forms. […]

Ramadan is the Muslim holy month when followers are expected to fast, not drinking or eating from sunrise to sunset. During this month, daily life is molded around the fast. Ramadan ends with Eid al-Fitr, a feast and celebration. Kyrgyzstan is a majority Muslim nation and Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr are major parts of the […]

The Talking Phrasebook Series presents useful phrases and words in side-by-side translation and with audio files specifically geared to help students work on listening skills and pronunciation. Each entry below, divided by category, features an English word or phrase in the left column and its Russian translation in the right. The Russian is presented in […]