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Something I learned recently is that calling it "the Ukraine" rather than "Ukraine" is apparently using the Russian term for the country, rather than the countr
by m12k 5y ago
Something I learned recently is that calling it "the Ukraine" rather than "Ukraine" is apparently using the Russian term for the country, rather than the country's own term for themselves. Similarly the spelling Kyiv rather than Kiev is seemingly what the Ukrainians themselves prefer. This seems like a good time to switch to using non-colonial terms and spellings.
- jbay808 5y agoGood point. It can be a tough habit to break, because it seems to occupy the same part of my brain as "the UK".
- mckirk 5y agoI thought about it previously and found it kinda odd that it seems so natural to say 'the Ukraine' when usually that is only the case for 'acronym countries'. It sounds pretty ridiculous for example to say 'the Italy', and yet with Ukraine it's hard not to.
- native_samples 5y agoIt's because Ukraine means borderlands. So it's literally "the borderlands" which makes sense. This appears in lots of languages. In Germany Iran is "the Iran".
- jbay808 5y agoOh interesting. Like the Netherlands.
- unmole 5y ago> Something I learned recently is that calling it "the Ukraine" rather than "Ukraine" is apparently using the Russian term for the country Russian doesn't have articles: there is no the in Russian. The phrasing the Ukraine like the Netherlands has been used in English for well over a century. It's usually seen in cases where the name has a literal meaning in the original source language. Some like the Punjab have become archaic but some like the Deccan remain in use. However, it's just good form to respect the official Ukranian preference and avoid the the.
- m12k 5y agoThanks for the correction, I didn't realize the term went back that far (but good point about the lack of articles). But at any rate, you're right, no matter where the term originated, it's still good form to respect the Ukrainian preference instead.
- para_parolu 5y agoCan you give more details on this? I speak Russian and not sure I follow the idea here. There are no articles in Russian. Ukraine name in Russian is Украина. Is it because Russia use “the Ukraine” in English documents?
- splintercell 5y agoIt’s not related to the language. It’s related to culture. Ukraine in Russian means frontier or borderlands. Calling it Ukraine simply means calling it a name. Calling it the Ukraine implies they’re calling it the frontier (of Russia). It makes zero sense in the English language. But it’s just a micro resistance by a small country against a bigger dominant superpower and culture next to it.
- european314 5y ago