SOCIETY
The latest SlovoNovo forum of Russian language and culture, which took place in Montenegro, hosted a display of the artist and cartoonist Andrey Bilzho’s newest cycle: Azbuka 2022 (The 2022 Alphabet), a manifest against the war and tyranny that spells out today's harsh reality – letter by letter. The Insider presents the second of its three installments.
Й [j] KhuY voyne. F*ck war
In Russian, “Kh.V.” is commonly understood as the abbreviated Easter greeting: “Christ is Risen!” Hence the red Easter egg.
К [ka] Kozly. Goats
Apart from being an animal name, kozly is also a derogatory term in Russian.
Л [l] Lozh. Lies
“Your mother is here, and has brought some milk.” A reference to “The Wolf and Seven Young Kids” fairy tale, in which the Wolf poses as Mama Goat.
M [em] Mobilizatsia. Mobilization
Cheburashka says: “Gena, they are taking me to the army.”
М [em] (2) Molchaniye. Silence
The red captions read “Mumu” – a reference to the short story by Russian classic author Ivan Turgenev, in which the protagonist, a deaf and mute serf, is forced to drown his dog, Mumu. The story is a vocal criticism of serfdom in Russia.
Н [en] Narod. The People
Н [en] (2) Nikogo Net. No One Home
“There are no grownups. I’m at home alone.”
О [o] Obnuleniye. Zeroing-Out
“Only noughts left.”
O [o] (2) Odnoznachno. Unambiguous
“It’s not all black and white.” Translated literally from Russian as “It's not so unambiguous”, the phrase has become proverbial, illustrating a passive and escapist attitude to war, sometimes even its implicit endorsement.
П [pe] Plan, Padeniye, Pamyat. The Plan, the Fall, Memory
“All as planned!”
П [pe] (2) Polny Pizdets Priletel. We Are All F*cked
Р [er] Referendum. Referendum
Р [er] (2) Rodina, Rossiya. Homeland, Russia.
С [es] Svin’yi, Spetsoperatsia. Swine, Special Operation
The pig says: “Swine! You’re all swine!”
С [es] (2) Smert. Death
“He is always late.” The Russian president is known for making his high-level partners wait.
С [es] (3) Sudba. Fate
Shtopany gondon (or gondon shtopany), which literally translates as “stitched-up condom”, is criminal slang for a contemptible, useless person.
Т [te] Televideniye. Television
“Has anyone seen Judas?”
“He’s downstairs, watching Solovyov.”
Vladimir Solovyov is the central figure of Russian TV propaganda.