Ruslan Senichkin tells how easy it is to switch to Ukrainian
Ruslan Senichkin, host of Breakfast with 1+1, which airs daily from 6:30 to 9:30 a.m. on 1+1 Ukraine, gave an interview as part of the free autumn Ukrainian language courses created by the United project.
Ruslan, together with the head of the All-Ukrainian Movement “United” Natalia Fedechko, discussed the decades-long Russification, language position, and shared his own story of how the Carpathians inspired him to learn Ukrainian.
Ruslan Senichkin is originally from Dnipro, where he admits he grew up in a Russian-speaking environment. The presenter is not ashamed of this and accepts it as an experience he had in his life. Ruslan admits that he started learning Ukrainian at a fairly mature age because of his job, as everyone had to speak the state language on the radio and television.
Later, the host of “Breakfast with 1+1” began to surround himself with Ukrainian-language content and environment, constantly practicing Ukrainian. Ruslan recalls that although he liked the way he sounded in Ukrainian, it was still not perfect. It was then that a trip to the Carpathians came to the rescue.
“I began to absorb the Ukrainian-speaking space more through the Carpathians. When I went there in the mid-noughties, I plunged into the real taste of the Ukrainian language of western Ukraine and the Carpathian space. At the time, I was very fascinated by it. It was after that that everything went better,” Senichkin recalls.
By the way, Ruslan Senichkin emphasizes that language is a security issue. Proof of this is Ukrainians abroad who can separate themselves from the enemy and those who represent the Russian Federation only in language. “If we had all started thinking bigger earlier, then at least the Kremlin would not have promoted its narratives about the oppression of the Russian-speaking population, which they allegedly came to liberate.”
Fortunately, most Ukrainians still understand the importance of the state language and its significance. That is why many people from different parts of the country, even sitting under rocket fire, continue to improve their knowledge. The presenter expressed his admiration for the indomitable spirit and thirst for learning and emphasized that his hometown still suffers daily from the Russian military:
“There were two arrivals at the house in Dnipro, where I was born and raised. My neighbor was killed by a Russian missile. The school I went to was damaged…”
To learn Ukrainian better and more effectively, the host shared his own tips:
- Repeat some words to yourself in order to hear yourself. Record yourself on a voice recorder. Speak Ukrainian all the time and practice your pronunciation.
- Create Ukrainian-language content around you. Follow cool bloggers. Find people you like to hear from. You will then want to repeat after them.
Another way to improve your Ukrainian is through various projects, trainings, and educational platforms. One of them is the 1+1 media project “Plus Ukrainian”, where Ruslan Senichkin is an ambassador.
Photo: 1+1 press service
