"Дженни, где багаж?"
Translation:Jenny, where is the luggage?
146 CommentsThis discussion is locked.
As someone utterly new to the Russian language, I'm curious - in the absence of any article, how do we distinguish between "your luggage" and "the luggage" in this sentence?
If it was about "your luggage", the question would be "Дженни, где твои багаж"
1019
Maybe I am just unexperienced in english, but why it can't be just "Where is luggage?" It sounds natural to me, as my native language is czech. And cannot it be also "Where is a luggage" If not, why?
"Where is luggage?" in English would mean that you are looking for luggage. Not any specific luggage, just any piece of luggage. It could be used but it would almost never be asked because you generally are looking for your own luggage. Technically I think this would be a correct direct translation and might be used in Russian but I don't think it's the best option. "Where is a luggage?" would be incorrect in English because as Raspberry-shake said it would be a mass noun or uncountable noun. You don't have 0 luggage, 1 luggage, or 2 luggage, you either have luggage or you do not. Therefore by process of elimination, you would go with "Where is the luggage?" since there is also no Russian possessive word attached.
Hope this wasn't too confusing :]
You would never say 'where is luggage' in English. It's not a complete sentence because it lacks a definitive. Russian has no definitives (along with many slavic languages) and so 'where is luggage' is just the direct translation. But if you were translating it into English you require a definitive.
In my mind, as a native English speaker who works retail, if someone asks "where is luggage" you are asking for a department/section in a store.
It sounds unusual, but are you sure it is not a complete sentence? My native language uses articles very similarly as English, and to me, the sentence sounds correct, albeit unusually general and unspecific - as if asking for any places in the world where luggage can typically be found. "Where is luggage?" - "In trains, planes, in stations and airports, everywhere where there are people travelling."
- 1018
As an British English speaker, the sentence "Where is luggage?" sounds wrong, but perhaps it would be acceptable to put it in context. I might hear "Where is luggage found?" or "Does anyone have luggage?" and you wouldn't necessarily use the article. But these are general sentences that don't specify that there should be luggage. For example "Does anyone have THE luggage?" would suggest that there is luggage that is known to the people involved in the conversation. I hope that makes sense.
but why the russian translate not "Дженни, где ЭТОТ багаж"? If in english part used "the".
Because "этот" means "this". There are no words meaning "a" or "the" in Russian. And saying "Where is this luggage" is incorrect because in order to call something "this" you have to be in its vicinity and directing attention to it. It doesn't make sense when used in combination with "where"
I speak American English. Raspberry-shake is correct that luggage is uncountable. However, we would ask "where is the luggage" , which is the answer I put for this sentence :) You can't say "Where is luggage?", at least in American English and I'm pretty sure in most other types of English.
Actually, that sound too formal in my taste, it'd be more like "Where's the luggage?"
This my sound a bit contrived, but I think the only time an English speaker would say "where is luggage?" is in a situation in which "luggage" is being used as a name for a physical space, such as a baggage compartment in a vehicle or an area of a department store that sold luggage. So, although not typical usage, it is possible.
The situation you decribed is what I imagined, too, so that's the reason we accept it amongst other answers.
Exactly! Just like we could also ask, "Could you show me where jewelry/luggage/electronics/etc. is?" Can I assume then that this works universally in Russian as well when referring to departments? Например - Где багаж? Где драгоценности? Где кухонные приборы?
- 32
Well, Russian doesn't use articles (a, an, the) either way, so "Where is luggage?" and "Where is the luggage?" are both "Где багаж?".
We would literally never say 'where is luggage', we would say 'where is THE luggage' or 'where is our/your/her/my luggage'
It can be just "luggage", I think, though "a luggage" is impossible since luggage is uncountable. English is also not my native language, but I'm more or less sure about this point. :)
Yep, luggage is a mass noun or uncountable noun. Saying "I have luggage" could mean you have 1 piece of luggage or 802.
In english it would be said as "where is the luggage?". "Where is luggage" is broken English.
Dang me being a native English speaker This made sense too me English has a lot of words that arent neccessary to use but if we do not use them it doesn't make sense-
This sounds hilarious for native portuguese speakers. "Jenny, cadê bagagem?"
Is the дж at the beginning of the name made only for it to sound like the English J? Because the Russian Жениа starts right with the ZHE sound... Or am I missing something?
I don't seem to be able to get the hang of the alphabet. Has anyone got any good resources for this? The ones I found are a just confusing.
I think using western (and common) names is so that people can match letters with sounds.
- 1166
As you'll learn later on, Russian names decline and foreign names don't. That's why all the early examples are foreign. This includes the words, too
I agree i would like to know more names in Russian. Although western names are easier for the sounds and letters.
The closest sound English has is "s" in "pleasure" or "g" in "regime".
The Russian ш and ж are different from sounds in "shop" and "measure", though. They are pronounced with a tongue slightly farther in and bent backwards, so they are less noisy.
I hear ж pronounced unvoiced here, more similar to the English SH (eg ship) than the S in "pleasure". Is it just me?
It should also accept "Where's the luggage, Jenny?", which I believe is the idiomatic equivalent.
- 507
And again the tip about the sound Ж: it's the same as the first sound in the word "genre" or the last sound in "garage"
Yes. Final consonants are devoiced, i.e. в, г, д, ж, б, з will be pronounced like ф, к, т, ш, с at the end of the word (unless immediately followed by a voiced consonant except м, н, л, р, в, й).
There is no difference in pronunciation between "кот" and "код", "рок" and "рог" or "мышь" and "мы ж" (in these exact forms).
Just curious, is Jenny an actual name in Russia? If so, what is its full form?
Yup, that's for sure. I met a girl from Russia though who introduced herself as Jen, and therefore was wondering if any Russian female name abbreviates to Jenny, or was it more of a nickname for her. Thanks for the answer btw.
Russian words usually do not end in и in the singular. Typical "Russian" girl's names do not end in a consonant either. They rather end in а or я (with the exception of Любовь).
However, a number of names of foreign origin are also used—simply because Russians are not the only ethnicity in Russia. To give you an example, Чулпан Хаматова is a famous actress born in Kazan—and her name does end in a consonant. Russian is widely spoken in Kazakhstan, too, where yet more non-Slavic and non-Christian names are used (e.g., Гаухар, Айгерим, Гульназ, Жансая, Эрмине, Асель).
Regarding the real name of your friend, Женя is a possibility. It is a diminutive form of Евгений or Евгения.
Thank you for such a detailed explanation, Igor.
I'd only assume that Jenny was an abbreviation. All Polish female names end with "a" as well, and since it is so similar to Russian, I wouldn't expect it to be much different.
Женя makes a perfect sense. I believe that's what I've been looking for. Thanks again.
In general, a suitcase is a specific type of luggage. Maybe Jenny has a duffle bag instead. Therefore, luggage is probably a better term and it would be why DuoLingo will not accept suitcase. But I agree with you that the terms are almost interchangeable in actual usage.
thanks! I thought my ears were going crazy :D the course should have Russian names like Olga to reduce the confusion.
Why would it be pronounced differently? As far a modern Russian is concerned, Dzhenni is a closest match you have. It is somewhat different because the "zh" is not quite the same as in the English word "pleasure".
The correct answer says "Jenny, where is the luggage?" I entered "Where's the baggage, Jenny?" and got the answer wrong.
In Russian, is there a difference in how I'd say "where's the baggage, Jenny" and "Jenny, where is the luggage"?
You should translate in original order) Because after you will feel a little confused about Russian words' order :)
It's not strictly. But here moderators are expect Jenny on top
In English, to me, the terms are equivalent. I went to Google Translate and first put in baggage then put in luggage. I got the same for both - багаж
Anyone knows the difference between куда and где? Or is it just the same?
"Куда?" is a question about direction ("where to?"), "где?" is about location.
No difference in translation. Багаж. Где багаж? is right and for 'Where is the luggage?' and for 'Where is a luggage?'.
We don't use articles. Only in context :)
How am I supposed to type Russian letters with an American-English keyboard?
If you are using Windows 10, go to settings, Time and Language, Region and Language, Add a language and select Russian. That is what I did. Now I can switch between English and Russian keyboards by pressing Windows key + Spacebar. You can also switch by using Control + Shift. Then I went to Google Images and searched "Russian keyboard layout." I printed it out and keep it with me while typing in Russian. Be careful, there are several Russian keyboard layouts so be sure to get the correct one.
Windows 10 also has a "Russian mnemonic" keyboard. Several letters require a combination of symbols to be typed but otherwise it should be pretty intuitive for English speakers.
Pojaluysta :)
My friend write so) Because he doesn't have Russian keyboard :) It's funny)
It's like: Хелло, май енглиш фриендс :)
Pojaluysta :)
My friend write so) Because he doesn't have Russian keyboard :) It's funny)
It's like: Хелло, май енглиш фриендс :)
Why are names with J written with 'Д' at the beginning? First I noticed that with Джой, and now Дженни
Because Russian doesn't have an equivalent sound to English "J", so it's traditionally substituted with "дж", which is as close to "J" as Russian can get.
Sometimes not only J pronounced as 'Дж'. Georgian pronounced like 'джорджиан'
- 1396
How do you guys write the sentences in Russia with the keyboard? I use the transliteration into the latin alphabet but DL doesn't always accept my answers. I write "Jenny gde bagash/bagaj/bagaz/bagash" but I always get this answer wrong
Luggage and baggage are mass nouns:
- I have an apple / a coat / a phone / a cat.
- I have water / rice / luggage.
The explanation why a indefinite article ("a") does not work with "luggage" is correct and clear, but it is confusing that you used examples of mass nouns without article instead of examples with a definite article (which is the case of this English translation).
Для этого надо учить Английский на Русском, а не наоборот))
Потому что 'a' - неопределенная форма (мы не будем говорить "какой-то" багаж, потому что это не имеет смысла) 'The' - определенная форма, т.е. тот, у кого спрашивают или кому говорят имеет представление, о каком именно предмете идет речь.
В данном случае - о конкретном багаже, за которым следила Джени. Или который они ждут с самолета, или который принесут, или о котором они говорили раньше.
В общем, тот, о котором знает Джени (а не какой-то абстрактный багаж)
I answered " Where is the suit case?" Why can't I translate багаж as suitcase?
Because Russian, as English, has different words for "luggage" and "suitcase". багаж is only the former.
I'm having trouble telling the difference between В/в and Б/б. Do they sound the same?
They are different sounds. It may depend on your native language—for example, it may be hard for you if [b] and [v] are more or less the same consonants in your language OR if you lack one of them.
Б, б [b] is a sound produced by pressing your lips together and blocking the stream of air. For the next sound, you accumulate some air inside your mouth and then let it burst out. It is abrupt. The voicing is a bit more pronounced that in English or German ("boring", "Baum").
В, в [v] is a fricative sound produced by touching your upper teeth with your lower lip, blowing the air through. The articulation is similar to English ("vet", "give"), only a bit weaker
Could "где" be a cognate with the portuguese "cadê"? They both ask "where is". They're Probably not, but the pronunciation and meaning are so similar that i couldn't help but notice.
In jenny, ж is used differently... In багаж, it is different.... I mean the sound... Can anyone explain?
Russian consonants experience devoicing at the end of a word (unless immediately followed by a voiced consonants). For example, кот and код are pronounced the same.
Ж at the end of багаж or гараж sounds like sh (well, similar). At least, when you say the words in isolation.
I get so used to russian just bei g like "Jenny, where luggage??" That i forget to add stuff like "the" and "is" and therefore get a strike. OOF
Surely if we are translating to English, then 'where is the luggage, Jenny' should be correct!
Should i be pronouncing (где) with a V at the beginning? On my phone it sound very much like a v when she says it
Где is "where" (location). Куда is "where" (direction).
Там is "there" (at that place).
Здесь or тут are "here" (at this place).
XD
Only "медовый" means "made of honey". "Honey" as a form of addressing one's wife would be something like "милая", or "дорогая". I don't remember what they used in the official dub, though.
On the mobile app it doesn't matter whether I spell Jenny with a capital "J" or use punctuation. I can write "jenny where is the luggage" and it won't correct it, but when I write the same thing on my computer it turns out wrong because "jenny" isn't "Jenny"?
Um, I answered something like "Jenny, where is the luggage" and it didnt accept it, and it said the answer was "Jenny, where is the luggage" so help lol
