| Russian Stereotypes |
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Russian stereotypes are the attributes commonly described as the main items of Russian Culture . To a certain extent, Russians maintain many of these Stereotype s themselves. Hence, Russian stereotypes can be classified as the ones widespread in the West and those advertised by Russians themselves. These classes partially intersect. WESTERN STEREOTYPES ABOUT RUSSIANS KGB ceased to exist in the early 90s, and it was replaced by FSB . However, the "KGB spy" remains a popular joke and has not been replaced by "FSB spy". STEREOTYPES MAINTAINED BY RUSSIANS THEMSELVES A set of Russian stereotypes is typified by the ironic song "Forever" by Vasiliy Shumov the leader of Rock Band ''Center'' (Центр): Матрёшка, балалайка, "волга", Борщ, самовар, блины - Все наше - навсегда... Пушкин и Евтушенко, Иванов, Петров, Курчатов, Калашников, Винтиков, Шпунтиков Навсегда ... все наше. which is translated as Borsch , Samovar , Russian Pancake s - This is all ours - forever ... Pushkin and Evtushenko , Ivanov, Petrov, Kurchatov Kalashnikov , Vintik ov, Shpuntik ov Forever... all ours Each of these Stereotypes has a long history. Here some of the main ones are overviewed to show why a particular item is Russian stereotype. Matreshka Matreshka , also known as a Russian doll, is perhaps the leading symbol of Russian culture. It can be bought at Arbat , Moscow for a high price, and much cheaper at other places unknown to foreigners. Balalayka A Balalayka is a traditional Russian stringed instrument. Volga Volga is not only the river, but also an automobile brand. Borsch Borsch is a soup enjoyed by many. Samovar Samovar is rarely used to heat water nowadays, mostly for decoration. Russian pancakes Russians eat pancakes with red caviar, red fish and many other additions. Pushkin Pushkin is not only a famous poet, but also a hero of Russian Jokes . Russians often say "Do you think that Pushkin will do this instead of you?", which means "You are lazy". Kurchatov Igor Kurchatov created the Soviet Atomic Bomb . Kalashnikov Kalashnikov is known all over the world for his Assault Rifle , AK-47 . Vintik and Shpuntik Not exactly stereotypes; just heroes of a polpular children's book '' Neznaika '', skillful mechanics. |