Russian in the 21st Century

  • Russian is a language with deep literary and intellectual tradition, and an influential sense of innovation. Learn Russian to read Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, and Chekhov. Russian is a native language of Tchaikovsky and Mussorgsky, Rachmaninoff and Stravinsky, Mendeleev and Kovalevskaya, Tsiolkovsky and Gagarin, Stanislavsky and Eisenstein, Kandinsky and Chagall, Pavlova and Balanchin, Akhmatova and Nabokov…
  • Russia is an incredible land of contrasts, and a great place to visit, from the unique architecture of its capital cities Moscow and St. Petersburg to the beauty of its northern nature along the Volga River and across Siberia. Study abroad and make Russian friends!
  • In a complex ethnic, linguistic, cultural, political and economic environment, Russian will be of great importance in the twenty-first century.
  • Russian is BEAUTIFUL to hear and speak. Study Russian from your first semester at ECU!
  • The Cyrillic alphabet is unique and exciting to learn.
  • Russian is one of the most frequently spoken languages in the world, and one of the six official languages of the United Nations, UNESCO, and UNISEF.
  • Russian ranks with English, Chinese, Hindi/Urdu and Spanish as a major world language.
  • Russian is the language of the largest country in the world.
  • Russia is one of the richest countries in natural resources such as gas, oil, diamonds, gold, and water.
  • Russia is among a few nuclear and space-research superpowers and will stay as a country of strategic importance to the global security.
  • Russian is an increasingly important language for business and trade as Russian, East European and Central Asian institutions integrate with their American counterparts.