As the largest country in the world in terms of territory and one of the most important in terms of economy, culture and politics, Russia has been overgrown with myths and legends for centuries. Some of them have emerged "since the time of the king of the Peas", others appeared relatively recently, in the 20th century.
Here are the top 10 myths about Russia and Russians thatm many foreigners still believe.
It's always cold in Russia
IN our country has very cold areas. For example, 5 out of 10coldest cities in the world are located in Russia.
butmost cities are at least no colder than Europe. And even warmer. For example, in Sochi, in the coldest month, the temperature does not drop below6 degrees Celsius, in Makhachkala - below1,2 degrees, and in Anapa - below2,4 degrees.
And in the hottest cities of Russia - Volgograd, Astrakhan and Krasnodar - the temperature in summer rises to 40 degrees Celsius and even more. So the rumors about the eternal Russian cold are greatly exaggerated.
Russians never smile
This is one of the most enduring myths about Russia.from foreigners. there is even a joke that in America, not the faces of passers-by are fake smiles, but in Russia - sincere hatred. However, in reality, our people are simply not used to smiling for no reason.
Some blamein thatcombination of bad weather (at least in winter), troubled historyand, totalhim mistrustI to strangers and difficultx conditionsth life for most Russians.
There is another volumeclarification: Russians consider a person who constantly smilingit seems like a village idiot. So eif you came to Russia, but passers-by do not smile at you - nothing personal. But if they smilethen be sure - youmade a favorable impression.
Russia is a very dangerous country, the mafia is everywhere
Stories about the legendary Russian mafiawhich can show the Italian "GoatNostra»Where crayfish hibernate can scare refined Europeans. HThe days of broad daylight gunfights and blown-up booths are long gone, and in reality they were greatly exaggerated.
Now many ex-mafiosi spend their time not thinking about villainous plans, butand running a legal business. And the chance to face a bandit in Russia will be high only if you yourself are doing something illegal.
Undoubtedlythere are many criminals in Russian cities, but the same situation is relevant for any city in the world.
The most frequent crimes in Russia, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the first three months of 2019, are thefts (33,7% cases) and fraud (12,7%).
Russia is the most reading country in the world
Alas, no longer. This very flattering the title could be boasted by the Soviet Union, in which by 1939 87% of citizens could read and write.
However, despite the title most reading people in the world, Soviet people were limited in their choice of literature. And the demand for entertainment fiction significantly exceeded the supply.
But in the “blessed” (“dashing”, “black” - as you like) 90s, a new book market was formed in the country. Now people have no problems with the selection of a book suitable for the genre.... But they read less.
According to research carried out by the companyGfKThe Chinese read more than the Russians (70% of the daily reading public versus 59%, respectively). Spain closes the top three with 57%.
Russians are ill-mannered people
Judgethe whole Russian people for some and far from the best representatives - wrong. Yes, when going on vacation to another country, some Russians behave disgustingly: rude, scandalousdrinking without knowing the measure and start fights.They give rise to the misconception that all Russians behave in this way at home.
However, most of the Russians are very well-mannered people, and are in no way inferior in culture of behavior to the British, Germans, Americans and representatives of other nations.
Disasters and terrorist attacks constantly occur in Russia
No more than in other countries. Given the vast territory (17 125 191 km²) of the country, it is not surprising that negative events take place in one or another point of it.
Bythe secretaryThe Security CouncilRF Nikolay Patrushev, in 2018 inOf Russia there was one terrorist attack (in Kizlyar, during Maslenitsa) and 9 terrorist crimes.
For comparison: in France over the past year, there were three terrorist attacks (in Strasbourg, in Paris andin Treb), and one terrorist attack in the United States. But these states are smaller in area than Russia.
Or take the sad statistics of plane crashes with fatalities from 1945 to 2018. And we see that the first place is taken not by Russia, although it is included in the top three of the "black list".
IN Rossiand a lot of police officers, and they are always ready to put you behind bars... Especially if you say or write badly about Putin.
Russia with its914 500 people in the staff of the Ministry of Internal Affairs ranks third in the world in terms of the number of police officers (after China with its1.6 million. person) and India (1.5 million people). And oftenRussianpolice treat people much softer than in other countries.
For example, in affluent countries such as Canada, Hong Kong and France, police use tear gas with might and main against protesters.
In the United States, an attack on a police officer is likely to end in death or injury.m the attacker. According to statistics collectedThe guardian, in the United States, police kill more people per day than in other countries - over several years.
All of the above does not negate the fact that corruption and negligence in their duties are the main troubles of the Russian police, which have long since deprived police officers of the aura of “defenders of respectable citizens”.
But the words that if you write badly about Putin on the Internet, you can go to jail - it's true. Indeed, in 2019, Vladimir Putin signed a law providing for a fine (from 30 thousand to 100 thousand rubles) for insulting the authorities on the Internet. And repeat offenders will be punished with a fine of up to 300 thousand rubles and arrest for up to 15 days.
However, Russia is not alone in such measures. In Italy and France, such offenses are punishable by a fine of 5 thousand euros and 12 thousand euros, respectively.
Russians are racists and homophobes
Racism is not typical of most Russian people, and even recentlyui The FIFA World Cup passed without racist incidents.
However, to say that there is no racism at all in Russia would be a lie. This is largely due to the influx of migrants from the former Soviet republics, and the consequences, such as a worsening crime situation, and the reluctance of migrants to assimilate into Russian society.
There is no uniform attitude towards sexual minorities in Russia.According to a poll conducted back in 2006 by the Public Opinion Foundation, 47% of Russians condemn homosexuals and lesbians. And 40% treat them without judgment. Another 13% of the respondents found it difficult to answer about their attitude towards people of non-traditional sexual orientation.
Russians bad with feelingsohm humor
In many Western films, Russians are portrayed as harsh people who do not like to laugh and do not understand jokes. Well, movies are movies, but in real life pUssians like to laugh just like everyone else people on earth.
They love to celebrate, have a good time with friends and family, and celebrate happy occasions and events in their lives. Of course, the sense of humor in Russia is very different from the sense of humor that you can find in China, the USA or the UK.
Russiansvery willingly laugh at themselves, at their problems and at the things that make them a life not comfortable. Perhaps Russian humor is not as subtle and sarcastic as the British, but itextremely relevant and urgent. It has a pronounced effect of surprise and unpredictability.
Many foreigners find it difficult to understand Russian humor, because in itjokeand often areplay on words or are associated with characters from Soviet films.
Came to Russia - get ready to drink a lot
Vodka, bear, balalaika - these are stable associations with Russia. However, company researchersGfKby conducting a surveyfrom April 2017 to March 2018, found out that the most popular drink among Russians is not vodka, but wine. The average Russian buys wine 7 times a year, the average purchase volume is 1.4 liters.
And according to the WHO for 2018, Russia is not even in the top ten most drinking countries in the world... The leader of the list is Moldova, followed by Lithuania and the Czech Republic, and Germany and Nigeria close the top five.