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“Where are you from?” is one of the first questions Russians will ask you. To become an excellent conversationalist, learn the names of countries and nationalities in Russian.
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The Names of Countries in Russian
Let’s start with the word “country.” In Russian it’s “страна” (strana):
В какую страну ты бы хотел поехать? (V kakuiu stranu ty by khotel poekhat’?) Which country would you like to visit?
“Where are you from?” in Russian is “Откуда ты?” (otkuda ty?). The answer will be “Я из…” (Ya iz… – I am from…).
So, if someone asks you “Откуда ты?” you would answer as follows:
Я из Австралии. (Ya iz Avstralii) – I am from Australia.
Я из Великобритании. (Ya iz Velikobritanii.) – I am from Great Britain.
Я из Канады. (Ya iz Kanady.) – I am from Canada.
Я из Новой Зеландии. (Ya iz Novoi Zelandii.) – I am from New Zealand.
Я из Америки/Я из США. (Ya iz Ameriki/Ya iz SSHA) – I am from America/I am from the USA.
These were the names of English-speaking countries. Now take a look at the names of European countries in Russian.
Германия (Germaniya) – Germany
Бельгия (Bel’giya) – Belgium
Испания (Ispaniya) – Spain
Италия (Italiya) – Italy
Франция (Frantsiya) – France
Финляндия (Finlyandiya) – Finland
Швеция (Shvetsiya) – Sweden
Норвегия (Norvegiya) – Norway
Хорватия (Khorvatiya) – Croatia
Нидерланды (Niderlandy) – the Netherlands
Португалия (Portugaliya) – Portugal
Some non-European countries:
Китай (Kitai) – China
Япония (Yaponiya) – Japan
Аргентина (Argentina) – Argentina
Бразилия (Braziliya) – Brazil
Nationality Adjectives in Russian
According to the United Nations, there are 195 countries in the world. We’re not going to list them all. Instead, let’s focus on a selection of nationality adjectives in Russian.
In response to the question “Откуда ты?” (Otkuda ty? – Where are you from?), men would say
Я из Австралии. Я австралиец. (Ya iz Avstralii. Ya avstraliets.) – I am from Australia. I’m Australian.
Я канадец. (Ya kanadets.) – I’m Canadian.
Я новозеландец. (Ya novozelandets.) – I’m a New Zealander.
Я американец. (Ya amerikanets.) – I’m American.
Я англичанин/Я шотландец/Я ирландец. (Ya anglichanin/Ya shotlandets/Ya irlandets.) – I’m English/I’m Scottish/I’m Irish.
Я немец. (Ya nemets.) – I’m German.
Я испанец. (Ya ispanets.) – I’m Spanish.
Я француз. (Ya frantsuz.) – I’m French.
Я финн. (Ya finn.) – I’m Finnish.
Я швед. (Ya shved.) – I’m Swedish.
Я голландец. (Ya gollandets.) – I’m Dutch.
Я китаец. (Ya kitaets.) – I’m Chinese.
Я японец. (Ya yaponets.) – I’m Japanese.
For women, the endings of words will be different because we must decline the adjective:
Я канадка. (Ya kanadka.) – I’m Canadian.
Я англичанка. (Ya anglichanka) – I’m English.
Я американка. (Ya amerikanka.) – I’m American.
Я немка. (Ya nemka.) – I’m German.
Я француженка. (Ya frantsuzhenka.) – I’m French.
Я китаянка. (Ya kitayanka.) – I’m Chinese.
Learn the Names of Countries in Russian
If you’d like to learn more country names in Russian, you have two options: You can use a Russian map and struggle with pronunciation, or you can take a lesson with a Russian native and practice the correct pronunciation. Choose the easier option, and learn Russian with us.