How many speak their significant others Language?

[b_fowler 0]

That is true just before you drink up, say it and everyone will be happy, lol!!

[slim 1,530]

I'm under the impression that if you know how to say "hi" and "thank you" in any language, you're half way there. "Cheers!" is the other half! Knowing how to say those three things will get you by in just about any country in the world.

[amberdima 6]

I'm with Slim. My Russian improves exponentially with each ounce of vodka I consume. Nasdarovye means good conversation - right?

when i met my fiance, i said 'Nasdarovye' when we took a shot of absynthe cos it was the only word in russian i ever knew. he seemed fine with it. then, when telling other russians in my community the story of how we met, they said no one uses that phrase as 'cheers.' however, my fiance says it is commonly used. whatever.

[eekee 182]

на здоровье--to health

It is more common to just say за + acc--за дружбу and so on. I've never heard anyone say it except as a joke.

Edited April 21, 2009 by eekee

[chili74 0]

eekee! I spent a while trying to figure out what за + асс--за дружбу meant! Now I realize "za plus accusative case!"

It's funny about "nasdarovye." I think somehow long ago, somebody decided it was a Russian toast and it got into a film and no one seems to know how it happened (maybe it is a toast in another Slavic language?)! I usually hear the word in 2 contexts:

When I say спасибо, someone may say, наздоровье! (you're welcome) (I read a theory that this could be where it came from: the foreigner says "spasibo" when his glass is filled, the Russian says "nasdorovye", and the foreigner thinks that was the toast!)

or they may say, "кушай наздоровье" (so after a command, it means (to me) "to your heart's content")

For a toast, among a million other things, one may say, Ваше здоровье (за is implied, за Ваше здоровье)...

[eekee 182]

Heh, I googled "nastrovye," which is what my dad says when he is trying to speak Russian with me for some odd reason, to see if I could find the origin, and I got a dictionary entry for настровые as stockings with a seam running up the back. I think that's a different kind of toast.

There's a Soviet Kitsch restaurant in Petersburg called На здоровье!, I guess playing on that stereotype.

Edited April 22, 2009 by eekee

[slim 1,530]

Nazdroviye is Polish, right?

They say it in the movies for Russian but as said above, it's not real. I've said it 1,000,000 times and been corrected every single one. "you don't say na-zdroviye... you can say like vasha zdroviye but NA zdroviye it's not correct. Tolka govarit - 'davai! pyooom! Peet peeva!'"

We usually keep it real simple around here and say it Korean style - "Kon beh!"

One thing that's always been funny to me is the Brits say "cheers" to mean "thanks" not "raise your pint, mate."

[Brad and Vika 129]

"Good health," actually. But have a couple more shots and nobody will care.

Kidding dude