Introduction:

Russian is a language that belongs to the Indo-European family of languages. Russian is native to the Russians in Eastern Europe. It is one of the four living members of the East Slavic languages, which are a part of the larger Balto-Slavic branch. 

• Russian is the second-most widespread language on the internet, after English.
• It is the seventh-most spoken language in the world by the number of native speakers.
• Russian is also the eighth-most spoken language in the world by the total number of speakers.
• It is an official language in Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan, and is used widely throughout the Caucasus, Central Asia, and to some extent in the Baltic States. The Russian language is one of the six official languages of the United Nations.
• Residents of other countries like Israel and Mongolia also form a large proportion of the population speaking the Russian language.

Upon reading the above, you must have definitely realized how wide the scope of the Russian language is!

There are many career options that you may choose from, upon developing Russian speaking skills.

Opportunities in the below fields are open for you once you are a fluent Russian speaker:

• Russian language teaching
• Translation, interpretation
• Writing/editing
• Proofreading
• Blogging
• Broadcast journalism
• Media reporting
• International Business analysis
• Oversees Trade operations
• Globally functioning NGOs
• International organisations / bodies
• Joint defense operations
• Marketing, advertising
• Cultural exchange programmes administration / management / volunteering/ guidance
• Career / academic counseling

For being a fluent Russian speaker, only getting acquainted with Russian grammar, and learning basic vocabulary is just not enough! You need to learn to pronounce Russian words and syllables correctly. Citing the fact that Russian pronunciations are completely different from English word pronunciations, one needs to learn them with complete attention and sincerity so as not to make mistakes that make one’s speech sound unimpressive.

Even the letters in the Russian alphabet look different to a great extent from letters in the English alphabet.

• Here is the way: the ultimate guide for Russian pronunciations!

By learning Russian using the method described below, or by following the steps given below, you are sure to get correct pronunciations of Russian words.

• Getting acquainted with the Russian letters and numbers

Russian is written using the Cyrillic script. There are a total of 33 letters in the Russian alphabet. They consist of 11 vowels, 20 consonants, and 2 pronunciation signs (ъ, ь) that have no vocal sound.

• Learning Sounds of Russian vowels

An important feature of the Russian script is the reduction of unstressed vowels. Stress which is unpredictable is not normally indicated orthographically, though an optional acute accent may be used to mark stress – such as to distinguish between homographic words or to indicate the proper pronunciation of uncommon words or names. Some of the vowels in Russian sound differently when they’re stressed versus unstressed. This process is known as ‘vowel reduction.

• Learning sounds of Russian consonants

Just like Russian vowels, Russian consonants are also voiced and unvoiced.

Russian distinguishes between consonant phonemes with palatal secondary articulation and those without the so-called soft and hard sounds. Almost every consonant has a hard or a soft counterpart, and the distinction is a prominent feature of the language.

• Pronunciation of R in Russian

If you wish to make correct sounds of Rs in Russian, you need to learn to roll your tongue effortlessly in the mouth. To be precise, I can say you need to learn the difference between the sounds of R in English and Russian.

• Palatalisation

In Russian, every consonant has the property of being either soft or hard.

With palatalized consonants, the middle of the tongue is raised towards the palate (upper portion in the mouth) during and after the articulation of the consonant.

Palatalized consonants are pronounced with a palatal secondary articulation, making the consonant sound like it is followed by a “y” sound.

• Practice reading a piece written in the Russian language, loudly

It is so correctly said that practice makes a man perfect. Even if you learn sounds of syllables correctly, you need to practice them regularly and vigorously until you master them.

• Find a Russian speaking partner

You can practice speaking Russian with a conversation partner. It is better to speak with someone than to speak alone.

• Lastly, join an excellent course for learning Russian.

You can learn to speak Russian on your own to some extent, but this does not guarantee perfection. Instead, if you learn Russian from a professional Russian language trainer or a thorough Russian expert, you will benefit more. An online Russian learning course can be taken from one’s home, without having to travel to any place to avail lessons in Russian. Via online audio-visual learning classes, one can learn Russian grammar concepts, Russian vocabulary, pronunciations correctly from a trustworthy source.

A smartphone or a laptop, internet connectivity, and passion for mastering the Russian language are all that you will need to take an online course in Russian!