Unit 1 2007 09 06 Outline Handwriting problems

Unit 1 2007 -09 -06

Outline • • Handwriting problems Practice new vocabulary Review names Forming о тчество Gender Male and female surnames Gender and nationalities мо й

Handwriting problems • ш connects at the bottom (not like English w): • о cannot connect to a following hooked letter: • Hooked letters (л, м, я): • л and к are short:

Businessman бизнесмeн

Friend (two words: male and female) друг подруга

Brother брат

(First) name имя

Forming отчество • Patronymic adds –ович/–евич (for men) or – овна/–евна (for women) to the father’s first name Иванович, Ивановна (Иван) Павлович, Павловна (Павел) Васильевич, Васильевна (Василий) • Note that the masculine ends in a consonant sound and the feminine ends in an –а sound

Use of patronymics Address adults (e. g. , Russian teachers) by имя-отчество • Use patronymic only with full first name Yes: Владимирович No: Володя Владимирович • Foreigners do not have patronymics

Gender • Russian nouns, like English nouns, are masculine, feminine or neuter (he, she, it) • In Russian, grammatical gender is not tied as closely to natural gender as in English – Objects may have any gender • Gender means – Adjectives agree – Verbs agree – Pronouns agree

How to predict gender • Personal names and kinship terms: grammatical gender = natural gender Александр, Александра, Саша • Otherwise – Masculine words end in consonant sounds лимон, музей, коктейль – Feminine words end in an a sound (spelled –а or –я) or in a soft sign • лампа, демократия, любовь ‘love’ – Neuter words end in an o or e sound (spelled –о, –ё, or –е), and occasionally in –я слово, имя

мой • Possessive pronouns (my, your, etc. ) • мой, моя, моё • Structure: moj, moj+a, moj+o – Note the m/f/n endings • As with nouns, masculine ends in a consonant sound, feminine ends in an –а sound, neuter ends in an –о sound