Runglish

Back in May, Russian Bazaar took a look at the Russian spoken in Brighton Beach heavily mixed with English, called Runglish or Runglisky (The inevitable birth of Runlgish – When Russian and English merge). The New York Times folowed up in June with Brighton Beach's Runglish-Speaking Immigrants.

Runglish is essentially Russian with a large number of words replaced with Russified English ones. Words for foods rare in Russia but common here are among the most widespread English bits in the Runglish lexicon. So are terms related to technological advances made after the immigrants left their homeland.

Russian Bazaar rightly points out that Runglish is not just taking place in Brighton Beach among the immigrants in America - it is also widespread among Moscow media who use Russified English words like manazher (managers), metroseksualy (metrosexuals), khipstery (hipsters), rekruting (recruiting) and benefiti (benefits).

The Times article also points out that certain Russian words have entered the English language, such as apparatchik, intelligentsia, commissar and samovar. The English influence on Russian among recent immigrants, however, is clearly greater.

Short Runglish lexicon:

Appointments: Appointmyenti
Cross-Bronx Expressway: Cress Bonx Exprezvey
Driving Upstate on the Highways: Draivuyem v Apsteit po Haiveyam
Hamburgers: Hyam-boorgoors
Ice Cream: Ize Cream
Iced Coffee: Ized Cyawfeh
Know-How: Nou-Hau
Potatoes: Potyaytoaz
Sim Cards: Syim Karti
Sliced Cheese: Slaysayushiy Chiz
Turkey: Tyurki

(Photo from http://www.russnet.org/why/p8.html)