Yelena McCafferty asked:




My husband now has a habit of asking me what this or that Russian surname means every time he hears a new one. Indeed, they can be so funny! Boar, Cat, Goat – I’ve never come across them in English, yet they do exist in Russian – Kabanov, Koshkin, Kozlov.

Some surnames are universal, of course. White would have a Russian equivalent of “Belov”, Peters – “Petrov”. The ending -ov, -ev or -in would refer to “son of” and -ova, -eva and -ina presuppose “daughter of”. Blinov is another awkward one, it means a “pancake”. I guess someone would have been given this last name because they looked somewhat tubby or flat. This last example demonstrates another way of how surnames were coined – they started as nicknames! Someone with the last name of Boytsov would have been a brave fighter! This one is more to do with personal qualities, rather than looks. Medvedev, the surname of the current Russian president, refers to a “bear”, I am really not sure whether his ancestors were called that for their looks or clumsiness!

How about Putin? What does his name mean? My guess is it comes from put’- the way – a very suitable surname for a leader!

The most common Russian surname is Smirnov, with Ivanov (Jones in English) coming up second.

You can track down the origin of quite a few Russian surnames easily and many are obvious. Yet, if you hear the Irish McCafferty, my married name, you wouldn’t know it means daughter of a horse-rider, so in Russian, I should be Vsadnikova, I suppose!

All Things Adventure

Sarah Freeland asked:




Russian culture is rich is style and variety, reflecting their love of education, arts and humanities. Russians prize success in almost every field of endeavor and intellectual or creative accomplishments rank equal to athletic, economic and political achievements.

In a country where an estimated 4 of 10 people have university degrees, it’s no surprise that chess is a spectator sport or that the country has produced many world champions in recent decades. Reading ranks among the most popular pastimes, and why not, when Dostoyevski is a national hero.

Tchaikovsky’s ballets, Prokofiev’s symphonies, Pasternak’s poetry, Chekov’s plays, Chagall’s paintings are just a few of the most famous names in their arts. Russians of every class speak of operas and art galleries as easily as most Americans speak of last weekend’s scorebox and with just as much enthusiasm.

The vastness of the Russian Federation means that it is home to numerous ethnic groups, many of which have contributed to the variety and designs of Russian clothing. Regional attire styles are beautiful, as well as convenient, as they were designed with practicality as well as beauty in mind.

Perhaps the premier folk art of the country, embroidery and woven patterns reflecting their place of origin. Colorful skirts and shawls highlight women’s clothing, while the simple side-button men’s shirt with belted waist is a world-renowned Russian icon.

Adding a sample of Russian culture or dress to your home will make it certain that you don’t get tagged as a “nekulturney” or “uncultured person”, which, in Russia, is as bad an insult as you are likely to hear.

Anita Satin Choudhary asked:




There are so very few kinds of culturally intertwined material dimensions that carries such a strong fascination as the brilliantly outstanding silver and enamel works of art long produced by Russia. For those that collect the Russian Silver and Enamel pieces of art from the past, it is so very important to know the best ways to collect only “real” valuable collectible Russian Silver and Enamel artistic pieces, so to never be wrongfully taken advantage of.

There are a good number of very popular antique collections shows such as the “Decorating Cents” and the Antiques Roadshow” that really gives the average collector and all the rest of us a bird’s eye view of how items are truly considered to be of the valuable antique line, and what is not truly worthy in monitorial value. When you think that there is a highly valuable Russian Silver and Enamel antique within your family, there are a few points to consider:

–When questioning what you may think is antique, there must first be the consideration of the piece being original or not. Most all-original pieces are numbered or signed. If this is not the case, there may not be originally of the family piece.

–Is the original artist identifiable or are they anonymous. There are several ways to identify an artist of an antique piece. First you must check for signatures, inscriptions, initials, and any other formations of markings that would correctly identify the original artist. This may also take some help with the collaborations of Internet research and the family explorations of where and how the artistic piece was originally brought into your family.

–The consideration of all the other large or small details that you know to be fact about the Russian Silver and Enamel art piece that is now in your possession truly can lead you to many valuable discoveries with most any susceptible piece of antique artworks. Make sure you are taking note of the details of date, title, dimensions, and the overall material details, and the history of the acquired piece. If there are any sort of documents, a positive time period of creation, and absolutely anything else that can be discovered.

After you have enough provable information and data upon your believed to be antique piece of Russian Silver and Enamel, there are many ways to take the next step with an antique professional to find the approximate to exact value of that magnificent item that has found its way into your home.

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Anita Satin Choudhary asked:




No matter the good number of historically talented cultures that have made silver and enamel a part of their culture, there have yet to be any of them to truly be able to cultivate the exquisiteness and talents that makes up the Russian Silver And Enamel artistic works the way Russian artists can do. One of the Russian Silver And Enamel secrets of the Russian silversmith artists was to best utilize the Filigree method in uniquely handcrafting pieces of art. With so many exquisitely fascinating ways to work with the Filigree method of Silver and Enamel craftsmanship, Russian Silver and Enamel jewelry has been only one of so many extravagant Russian works of art.

Filigree actually comes from the technical Latin meaning known as ‘Filum’, which also translates into the word of ‘Thread’. When looking a little closer to what Filigree actually is, this a method of artistic design to specifically the thin wiry curling, curving, twisting of the long thin precious metals to be laid and permanently designed in the most uniquely known fascinating designs and designing processes derived from historical times. These thinly delicate pieces of silver and golden wires are gently laid upon and all around the numerous amounts of many variations of other artistically handcrafted Russian Silver designed precious pieces of art.

Not much has changed between yesterday’s and today’s Russian Silver and Enamel artists when it comes to the hand crafted Filigree silver working process. This is especially true for the exquisite artistic pieces of Russian Silver and Enamel jewelry no matter if it was crafted within the past or present. When it comes to the artistic works of Filigree, it is still an artistic art that is 100% crafted by hand. When the Russian Silver and Enamel Russian artists do Filigree, they have always closely followed the most stringent rules of secretly in how the Russian artists specifically do their most unique Filigree pieces of silver and enamel.

When it comes to the specifics of the Russian tastes of decorating with jewels and enamel inlay, there are many various choices of fine precious jewels and uniquely colorful enamel that is thinly applied or cut into many variations of shapes, sides, colors and styles for specific beautification and application to the precious metals of silver or gold. Whether you are a collector of those most precious Russian Silver and Enamel artworks that is from the past or even the most current present times, there is nothing like having a piece or two of the fine artworks that could only come from the Russian Silver and Enamel collections.

C. Blake asked:




Through minimal research, data provided being pictures, I have brought forth a few of the many management criteria that will be vital to the reconstruction of the Russian Federal Highway. This is strictly theoretical and is only an idea for those who would possibly research this highway’s reconstruction. To go in depth would require many resources of information that are currently unavailable. The economic and financial benefit of the reconstruction of the Russian Federal Highway are vast. This highway is very long, reaching from Moskow to Yakuts, an estimated 9000 kilometers. It is extremely abused because of the foundation. The highway is simply a dirt road that has been rutted out by traveling across it during wet conditions. This travel is unavoidable due to the fact that there are no other highways that run as far as this one in the same direction.

Some of the economic benefits of the reconstruction of the Russian Federal Highway are more access to areas with prospective living and business conditions and more access to resources that are normally unacquirable without extensive expenses. To accelerate the growth of the economy through this reconstruction would be a great benefit to all regions involved in the process. The reconstruction of the Russian Federal Highway would provide revenue for all industries utilized as well as new jobs for the people across Russia. For these reasons, it is a relevant project to put under construction.

Along with the great possibilities of improving current conditions, many problems will also have to be confronted. There will be many layers of bureaucracy for the management of this project alone. Positions will include a head manager, regional managers for each territorial, project managers, and crew managers. These are just a few to avoid going in depth with each different department. The reconstruction of the Russian Federal Highway will also result in the necessity for extensive cohessiveness between territories of Russia. Along with the bureaucracy required, the resources provided, land acquirement, and labor usage for each area will require much attention. This a simple overview of the ideas and requirements of a reconstruction project of this magnitude.