# Ukrainian:  Hello



## Donski1

Hi all. I am english and learning Ukrainian.  My boyfriend is Ukrainian descent but has not the patience to teach me so I am doing this on line with a speaking program.

I have been given the Ukrainian word (phoenetic spelling as I have only heard it, not seen it written) *zdras twoy te* - or something like this, as meaning hello - but my chap says that he thinks this is actually Russian meaning OK or similar.

I would appreciate it if someone could clear this up for me, or give me a Ukrainian word that would be better for 'hello'.

Thanks
D


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## yoku

I think it's russian здравствуйте, but I wouldn't say that to my friends, it's too formal. Maybe you'll tell us what speaking program you use? 
And let's see what the natives will say. 


_ -----------------------
Please, correct me if I made any mistakes!_


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## Maroseika

Donski1 said:


> I have been given the Ukrainian word (phoenetic spelling as I have only heard it, not seen it written) *zdras twoy te* - or something like this, as meaning hello - but my chap says that he thinks this is actually Russian meaning OK or similar.
> Thanks
> D


Ukrainian analog of russian zdrastwuyte are:
zdrastuy (singular)
zdrastuyte (plural and polite)
But these forms are rather formal.
The better one for "hello" I guess would be:
привіт! (pryvit) (y and i - different sounds)
здоров! (zdorov)


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## Elena83

Hello
Yes I would say ; pruvit, it is less formal!


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## Anatoli

Elena83 said:


> Hello
> Yes I would say ; pruvit, it is less formal!



What's this funny romanisation?  If you want to say "привiт", it's romanised as "pryvit", English letter "u" stands for Russian "у", e.g. zub - зуб.


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## body-snatch-her

Hi all, I'm new here (signed up for this reply in fact) and encountered this word also.
 I'm using the Pimsleur audiobook series (Ukrainian I) and in the second segment the word (pronounced as "zdrahs-too-ee-tay") is presented to mean generically "hello", with a literal translation of "be well" or "prosper".
 Since I am attempting to learn how to not only speak, but also read in basic Ukrainian, I am creating lists of the words presented as part of a transcript kept for later review. I am including English translation, my own pronunciation (like that above) as well as a Cyrillic spelling of the word as best as I can determine.
 To find spelling I'm relying upon several of the online and offline translation dictionaries.
 This particular word was not found using any of the searches for "hello", "prosper", etc., but working in the opposite direction and searching for "здрастуйте" returned definitions ranging from simply "hallo" to "morning" and "good morning"! Obviously much translation between English and Ukrainian is fairly loose and colloquial usage likely varies a bit.
 I am aware that Ukraine has been substantially russified and there is much blending of the two languages (i.e. Surzhyk) also.


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## Anatoli

Not sure if your post is a question or a statement, Body-snatch-her, but your conversion is correct. Pimsleur has a lot of drawbacks, especially when you try to connect the written language to spoken.


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## body-snatch-her

Probably neither a question or statement so much as an observation, which you are kind enough to reinforce! Thanks!


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## Maroseika

body-snatch-her said:


> Hi all, I'm new here (signed up for this reply in fact) and encountered this word also.
> I'm using the Pimsleur audiobook series (Ukrainian I) and in the second segment the word (pronounced as "zdrahs-too-ee-tay")


I wonder is it really possible to study anything using such odd transcription?? Why cannot they use normal international trasncription?



body-snatch-her said:


> I am aware that Ukraine has been substantially russified and there is much blending of the two languages (i.e. Surzhyk) also.


Surzhyk is not result of russifuing Ukraine, this is ordinary contact colloquial language of low social status, without any standards, without litarary language (exactly like Trasyanka - Belorussian/Russian).
Real problem of russification of Ukraine is not Surzhyk at all, but some lack of contemporary vocabulary in different spheres of life - science, technique, politics, etc. This lack is being actively filled up nowadays.
By the way, maybe somebody knows:
Surzhik (суржик) - mangcorn, i.e. wheat contaminated with rye (or some similar mix).
Trasyanka (трасянка) - is this the same plants mix or not?


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## body-snatch-her

Maroseika said:


> I wonder is it really possible to study anything using such odd transcription?? Why cannot they use normal international trasncription?
> 
> Surzhyk is not result of russifuing Ukraine, this is ordinary contact colloquial language of low social status, without any standards, without litarary language (exactly like Trasyanka - Belorussian/Russian).
> Real problem of russification of Ukraine is not Surzhyk at all, but some lack of contemporary vocabulary in different spheres of life - science, technique, politics, etc. This lack is being actively filled up nowadays.
> By the way, maybe somebody knows:
> Surzhik (суржик) - mangcorn, i.e. wheat contaminated with rye (or some similar mix).
> Trasyanka (трасянка) - is this the same plants mix or not?



Hi,
 First, let me say that I'm not looking to initiate debate of any of these issues. I certainly am not in position to speak as an authority, as I am only beginning to learn about Ukraine and it's language(s), culture, history, etc. etc. etc.!
I think that your comment about the "odd transcription" refers to my own attempt to write pronunciation in a manner which is intuitive to me, while the standardized transliteration format(s) are not always intutitive (to me) and represent another layer of study which I am not inclined to tackle at this time. Pimsleur provides minimal reading related exercises which oddly do not seem to relate much to the speaking exercises, so I am attempting to dissect the speaking exercises in a manner which might allow maximum benefit.
 As far as my mention of russification and Surzhyk, I was merely trying to highlight the fact that there is much uncertainty for one trying to learn Ukrainian outside of Ukraine (arguably more so than the majority of other languages)!
 There is an interesting http://www.immi.se/intercultural/nr9/podolyan.htmpaper which seems to discuss the language situation in Ukraine with some authority. If anyone would care to review it and comment about it here I'd be interested in their perspectives!


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## Maroseika

body-snatch-her said:


> I think that your comment about the "odd transcription" refers to my own attempt to write pronunciation in a manner which is intuitive to me, while the standardized transliteration format(s) are not always intutitive (to me) and represent another layer of study which I am not inclined to tackle at this time. Pimsleur provides minimal reading related exercises which oddly do not seem to relate much to the speaking exercises, so I am attempting to dissect the speaking exercises in a manner which might allow maximum benefit.


Sorry, I really had no idea that foreign languages manuals without transcription might exist...
Well, our world is much more various than anybody might imagine. Thank you very much for clarification.


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## body-snatch-her

Maroseika said:


> Sorry, I really had no idea that foreign languages manuals without transcription might exist...
> Well, our world is much more various than anybody might imagine. Thank you very much for clarification.



Sorry for steering this thread away from the original topic!

So I've learned the plural form (здрастуйте) when I should have learned the singular form (perhaps здрастуй ?) used for (formal) greetings between two people?


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## Maroseika

body-snatch-her said:


> Sorry for steering this thread away from the original topic!
> 
> So I've learned the plural form (здрастуйте) when I should have learned the singular form (perhaps  ?) used for (formal) greetings between two people?


If I got your question right, yes, здрастуй is Singular, здрастуйте is Plural (or Singular polite).


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## body-snatch-her

Pardon my ignorance, but could you describe briefly how/why singular polite usage would be the same word as the plural, while different than (less polite?) singular? I'd assume that singular would be like the English "Hello Joe!" when greeting a single person named Joe (but the name could be dropped), while plural would be like "Hello everyone!" when greeting a group. Is "здрастуйте" pronounced with different stress points when directed at a single person in a more formal situation? Does the usage of a plural form always imply overt politeness when directed toward a single person? It's all the more confusing to me since "здрастуйте" is apparently already more formal than "привіт" and some other greeting phrases!

As a side note, I do have some textual grammar instruction available but since it uses native Ukrainian words (in Cyrillic) as examples I'm trying to get a bit of reading skill and vocabulary level established before trying to make sense of it! It's sort of a chicken-egg quandry for me right now!


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## Anatoli

Body-snatch-her, you need to get some decent, serious textbooks with audio, if you're really interested in languages. Pimsleur will give you some sounds, which you can utter in some situations but as I said it's disconnected from the written language and you won't make sense of the grammar.

As Maroseika said, "здр*а*стуйте" literally means "be healthy" where "-те" is the ending of the 2nd person plural, which is also a polite form. "здр*а*стуй" is the singular form of the same, I highlighted the stressed syllabel. "привіт" is an informal "hi" or "hello" and doesn't have any other form.

If you're still not sure, which language to learn for Ukraine, it is a hard question still but consider that Russian has much more scope and used in daily lives by half of Ukraine and understood by the other half. Ukrainian is limited to Ukraine only (+overseas Ukrainians where Russian immigrants now exceed). The situation is slowly changing towards more usage of Ukrainian. Don't consider me chauvinist, I thought you might want to know.


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## body-snatch-her

Thanks for your comments Anatoli!
 Yes, I recognize both the limited utility and the difficulties involved in trying to self study such a language which has been to a fair extent subordinated within it's own sphere. I agree that learning Russian or several of the other Slavic languages would be more practical. In time I hope to learn more of them, but for now, and to start I've chosen Ukrainian.
 There apparently exists only limited, often expensive materials available in the commercial space for learning Ukrainian. Formal (classroom) offerings appear to be nonexistent in my area (not considering Berlitz), besides which I'm already enrolled in a full time program to become a Registered Nurse! However, I do possess an assortment of different computer lessons, digital English-Ukrainian-English dictionaries, the Pimsleur stuff, and a Peace Corps Ukrainian language text in digital form. With these, perhaps coupled with some guidance from a native Ukrainian acquaintance (who returns from overseas in a couple weeks) I feel that I stand a reasonable chance of _eventually_ developing a usable grasp of the language. I don't expect to become fluent without full immersion, which is unlikely.
 I chose to start with the audio lessons mostly for the convenience of being able to learn pronunciation and some basic vocabulary in a variety of environments. I can listen to them on the CD player while I drive, as well as other times using my iPod. Perhaps I am attempting the impossible in trying pull more out of them than there is!
 I assumed this site would welcoming to beginners, rather than existing just for advanced speakers to debate obscure grammatical idiosyncrasies of a given tongue. If I'm mistaken then I apologize and will vacate the premises and not disturb anyone further. If I've jumped in prematurely or awkwardly, I again apologize and will resist posting until I can present a firmer grasp of the topic. But don't take this to mean you've offended me in any way! You haven't and I hope to not offend you!
 However, the bottom line is one has to start somewhere, using what is at his disposal, and do the best he can if he's to achieve anything, regardless of perceived value!
 Of course no one is obligated to respond to my postings...


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## Anatoli

Body-snatch-her, you ARE welcome to this board and aske questions, sorry if I sounded harsh, it's only my opinion
that you need to choose the right stuff to learn the language. Pimsleur has its, since you can listen
while driving and you don't have to read while you listen.

Whatever you choose, good luck with your learning! 

A simple and a cheap textbook with audio CD's:
"Teach Yourself Ukrainian", Olena Bekh.

Check resources sticky in this forum.


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## body-snatch-her

Thanks, Anatoli!
 I'll look into the book you mention. Did go through the sticky (as well as a number of other online resource lists) though! Another book I've seen available is "Colloquial Ukrainian" by Ian Press. Can anyone recommend it?


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## Anatoli

body-snatch-her said:


> Thanks, Anatoli!
> I'll look into the book you mention. Did go through the sticky (as well as a number of other online resource lists) though! Another book I've seen available is "Colloquial Ukrainian" by Ian Press. Can anyone recommend it?


I've seen both, far from perfect but they are OK and similar, well for perfection you need to go to Uni or better live in the country of your language. Trouble is with Ukrainian you may find it easier to practice it in Canada than in Ukraine LOL, even in Kiev you'll hear a lot of Russian instead. West Ukrainian cities are better for that purpose.


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## body-snatch-her

Thanks Anatoli,

 Ordered the book, should arrive in a week or two. So, if throwing money into a project shows serious intent then I guess I'm getting there...
  Similar to what you say, it appears that it's easier to learn Ukrainian in Canada than here in the States! This is even though there is a larger overall population of expats (though probably lower as percentage) here than there! Go figure! Just implies that sadly the U.S. is perhaps less tolerant and accommodating than our northern neighbor!

Beyond this I'd like to again encourage anyone who might be interested to read the paper I mentioned earlier in this thread. It kind of got blended in as a hyperlink under the word "paper". The title is actually "How Do Ukrainians Communicate". It's kind of long but I found it informative and well written.


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