Guys, what does "Azaza" mean?

The editor of the English "Medusa" Kevin Rotrok - about Russian words and expressions that introduce the American stupor

The editor of the Anglo -speaking Medusa, American Kevin Rotrok is a master's degree in Soviet history and an active Twitter user with 14 thousand subscribers. There, Kevin writes about Russia for Western readers in English, but also communicates with Russian -speaking users. Every time he encounters incomprehensible expressions, he turns to subscribers for help (and they help him!). At the request of Medusa, Kevin spoke about Russian words and expressions that surprised him the most.

I began to study Russian 16 years ago. I was 18 - I just went to college and there I had to sign up for a foreign language courses. For no reason I chose Russian. So he stayed with him. Seven years later, I registered on Twitter and constantly consult with readers about the Russian language: I am often amazed by words or phrases that we were not taught at lectures in California.

All my calls about help begin with the word "guys". It itself, in my opinion, is not remarkable, but this is a tradition: it is immediately clear that I am turning to people for linguistic advice. Often these are rather stupid questions-for example, what simple Internet memes mean. Here are just a few examples.

Guys, what does "Azaza" mean?

Any American knows that laughter is written “Ahahaha” or “Lol”, or even “Lolol” (this is if you were especially ridiculed). In Russia , the letter “h” replaces “h” , so the Russians write to each other on the Internet: “Azaza”. This makes sense from the point of view of onomatopoeia - but for me this combination of letters looks psychopathically, as if it is the sound of a chainsaw. Why did the chicken cross the road? Because she needs to the other side! Azazaza.

Guys, what does it mean when funny people in TWI write “KEK”?

Another word about the meaning of which I could guess. You can react to a friendly “heh” in a joke - unless, of course, you are yelling from laughter. However, Russian-speaking Internet users instead write “KEK” . Why then not “Zes” if they write “Azaza”? Or why don't they write Akak instead of Azaza? Not to mention how the word "mars" in English sounds fallically.

Guys, it seems that Lisa Gondonovna is a condoing Rice. How did this happen?

The dangers of phallic connotations are in wait for from all sides - to take at least the former US Secretary of State Condolizes Rice. Apparently, some critics of condolizes in the Russian Internet renamed her to Lisa Gondonovna, using the rough game of the words: “ gondon ” (condom) and “Okol” (the first two syllables in the name of the Secretary of State). As a result, it turned out something like a “condom Rice”. Thank you, Russia. It was your greatest gift to America before Trump appeared.

Guys, how would you transfer to English “***- Undo-”?

The jokes below the belt, of course, do not end there. In May 2017, the computer network of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation was struck by the virus. In the screenshot of one of the infected machines that appeared “VKontakte”, it is clear that the user on the desktop had a folder with the name “*** floodplain” - this is an obscene phrase, which is deciphered as “not a damn thing”. It is literally translated as “you know a member”, which sounds like a rather serious threat to sexual violence.

Guys, how would you transfer to English the phrase “roll to ****”?

In July 2016, Medusa published a transcript of the conversation between the employees of the RBC publication and its new leaders who came after the departure of Elizabeth Ossetian and Roman Badanin (according to some reports, their resignation was associated with the discontent of the Kremlin about the publications of RBC). After the decryption of the secretly recorded conversation was released, the general director of RBC Nikolay Molibog called for the one who made the record. On Facebook, he wrote : “Those of our colleagues in RBC, who did it or who considers this act normal, they can roll to ****.”

The phrase used by Molibog literally means "rolling to the penis." Are you a reporter who distributed an audio recording? Yes, sir or madam, you can roll to the penis. Sounds like crazy fire instructions. Are you burning? Go to the ground immediately and roll to the penis!

Guys, how would you transfer to English the phrase “feel for the udder”? This is written in the threat to the journalist

However, not everything comes down to penis. A few months ago, Internet users began to threaten the Fontanka journalist, who spoke about Russian mercenaries fighting in Syria. People believed that his report could jeopardize some fighters and members of their families, and because of this, fierce disputes began on the Internet-in particular, he was promised to feel for the udder. The phrase "Tearish the udder" literally means "touch the udder." In fact, its meaning is closer to “grab someone by the eggs” or “mark”.

When I asked about this phrase on Twitter, people clearly decided that someone had sent this threat to me. The official account of the Russian Foreign Ministry even stuck a joke, asking people not to “feel the journalists for the udder” and attaching a photograph of an excited cow with the signature: “Vymia?” Funny! Except that the threat was actually addressed to a journalist in St. Petersburg, who exposed Russian mercenaries in Syria. Azaza?

Guys, what does it mean to “frighten a hedgehog with a naked ass”? Thanks in advance for the explanations.

When you work with the Russian language, it is important not to forget about the ass. And this pearl is in addition to the hedgehog. In Russian, “frightening a hedgehog with a naked asshole” means to threaten something completely not frightening-after all, hedgehogs have thorns, so they are not terrible at all (but exactly the opposite).

I saw a hedgehog only once in my life. It was in Jurmala, in Latvia; I shone on him with a flashlight and this tiny creature froze in horror. I did not have to apply the ass.

Guys, how to translate into the English phrase "Hey, what are you so daring, and ???"

I am not a fashionable dude and usually do not listen to popular music. Every month I donate five KCSM dollars, a jazz radio station in the California San Mateo-this is not far from the place where I grew up. When I wake up, my first words, usually “Alex, turn on KCSM on Tunein.” So you can imagine my confusion when in 2015 I met a video for the song “Hey, what are you so daring, and ???” Musicians of Nathan and Timati. This video is not much different from any other hip-hop track-with pumped up men, busty women and people dancing in the parking lot.

If you look at the translation of the word “impudent” into English, then the first is offered “impudent” (“shameless”) - a literary word that has no place in the song of Timati. Imagine how he winks on a sexy girl and says: “Listen, girl, why are you so shameless, huh?”

Since most Russians who speak English studied the British dialect, many of my Twitter subscribers offered the words “cheeky” (“cheeky”) or “saucy” (“impudent”). But in my American hearing, this is also complete nonsense. I believe that the most suitable option in American English will be “Sassy” (literally “brisk” and “cheeky”), but to be honest, I agree to anything, just not to hear this song again.

Guys, tell me - what's funny in the name of the zabivak? What the word “scoring” means to score and to roll [a joint]? I understand the slang correctly?

In October 2016, Russia introduced its mask to the 2018 World Cup: a cartoon wolf named Zabivak. In addition to the ski mask glued to the face (presumably, it should symbolize sunglasses), clogging in the eyes of foreigners is not noteworthy.

But it turns out that the name Zabivaka sounds rather funny for Russian -speaking people, since the verb “score” from which it is formed has several meanings at once. The obvious is “to score a goal”, but there is nothing particularly ridiculous here, because we are talking about a football mask. But “scoring” also means “beaten someone to death”, and on the slang-“to give up, faced with the problem,” and, most importantly, “fill the empty cigarette of marijuana”. Wow, how many subtexts are Maskot!

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I must say that my Russian (namely the appeal “guys”) also raised questions. Journalist Leonid Ragozin once told me that “Guys” is “the most disgusting word in the Russian language”. RTVI Dijital-director Ilya Klishin explained that this is not an analogue of the word “Guys”, and it sounds “as well as possible”. But when I asked the readers themselves to choose how to contact them, it turned out that “Guys” is the best of the four options I invented.

I must admit, this was a little disappointed: after all, it is understood that I ask such strange linguistic questions on Twitter, because I am a stupid, sagging American.

But I try to be better, ReByata.

From the editors of "Medusa". “Guys” is a normal word, you can safely use it.

Kevin Rotrok