Ksenia Turkova, linguist, journalist (Voice of America) will give a talk on “The Words of the Year (2021) in Russian Media“

Wednesday, Jan. 19, 3.30 – 4.45 pm via Zoom.

For the Zoom link, please write to Prof. Fedorova

“Foreign agent”, “excess deaths”, and “Grandpa in the bunker”. How the words of the year reflect the current situation in Russia? 

About the speaker: https://www.hermiona-education.com/Experts/ksenia?fbclid=IwAR30rV3dTG5W5Z0rBMOJE9gGWXpms3e61PuebmD3gvG7f-68e4Z7DdtDHl8 (new window)

Abstract

Each year different countries sum up the vocabulary of the year – they choose the words and expressions that reflect the political situation and social trends. 2021 was another COVID-heavy year, that’s why the word “vaccine” was one of the most popular words in different countries. However, the vocabulary of 2021 in Russia demonstrates some other trends. One of them is the ongoing repressions against opposition and independent media. Among the words of the year are пытки (torture); репрессия (repression); задержание (detention); иностранный агент (“foreign agent”); дворец Путина (Putin’s palace), and берлинский пациент (Berlin patient) aka Alexei Navalny. (in English, with examples in Russian).