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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. Below, you will find several useful phrases and words. To the left is the English and to the far right is the Serbian translation in both Latin and […]
Kyrgyz cuisine reflects the country’s heritage of pastoral nomadism. Life was spent moving livestock from pasture to pasture and living in collapsible, transportable yurts. The livestock themselves were the primary, sustainable food source. Everything else was either gathered from the land or traded for. The Kyrgyz did not engage in intensive settled agriculture until forced […]
Below, Tajik blogger Roxana Burkhanova describes, in Russian, the place of St. Petersburg in Russian culture. She discusses the city’s history as well as its literary heritage, its nightlife, and even how people from Petersburg speak their own, slightly different dialect of Russian. The text was originally written in 2015 and thus references times before […]
Polish food is hearty, flavorful, and deeply rooted in tradition. It is also experiencing a revival, re-inventing itself in major Polish cities as the country celebrates its heritage and embraces the latest trends and inspirations from world cuisines. Today, while dishes like pierogi, kielbasa, and bigos (hunter’s stew) are one you must try while visiting […]
Rites of welcoming spring and saying goodbye to winter are some of the oldest holidays preserved across Slavic cultures. In the Baltics, the celebrations were nearly lost after being suppressed by Catholic and imperial dominance. Today, Russia’s Maslenitsa is by the far the best-known, but multiple versions exist across the diverse Slavic landscape. In the […]
The dumplings and pastries of Europe’s northeastern flank have a story to tell. Their recipes, etymologies, and related traditions are intertwined in a complex historical knot. There are so many ancient connections that it is almost impossible to say which influenced the next. And yet, each dish is held up as a unique and integral […]
There are few essential things to know about Kyrgyzstan. One of these is the country’s folkloric hero, Manas. You’ll find nearly everything in Krygyzstan is named after him: the main airport, national parks, major streets in nearly every city and town, and even karate clubs and movie theaters, not to mention the statues of him […]
What shapes Uzbek national identity? The answer is complex and personal, but one key element is the Uzbek national narrative. This includes the heroes and pivotal events taught in schools, the places central to the nation’s collective memory, and the language and beliefs that frame its worldview. A national narrative goes beyond history: it is […]
What shapes Kyrgyz national identity? The answer is complex and personal, but one key element is the Kyrgyz national narrative. This includes the heroes and pivotal events taught in schools, the places central to the nation’s collective memory, and the language and beliefs that frame its worldview. A national narrative goes beyond history: it is […]
Russia’s Olivier Salad (Салат «Оливье») and Latvia’s rasols are well-known staples of their respective cuisines and common additions to holiday tables. Today, the recipes for both are quite similar, with chopped vegetables, egg, and meat dressed with mayonnaise. Olivier is now eaten throughout the former USSR and has even become common as “Russian Salad” in […]
In this text, Tajik blogger Roxana Burkhanova describes, in Russian, the place of holidays in Russian culture. She focuses on the two major holiday seasons: the New Year’s holidays and the May Holidays. The text was originally written in 2015 and thus references times before the current war. However, the vocabulary and the general cultural […]
What shapes Latvian national identity? The answer is complex and personal, but one key element is the Latvian national narrative. This includes the heroes and pivotal events taught in schools, the places central to the nation’s collective memory, and the language and beliefs that frame its worldview. A national narrative goes beyond history: it is […]