13 Ways to Identify a Native Muscovite

Paul Goble

            Staunton, September 27 – Only about one resident of the Russian capital in 20 is a native Muscovite, a figure that continues to fall with the influx of people from other parts of Russia and from Central Asia and the Caucasus.  But according to Tatyana Kolyuchkina, there are 13 ways to identify who is a native Muscovite and who is only a new arrival.

            In a comment for the Russian7.ru portal, the journalist provides the following list of differences (russian7.ru/2015/09/kak-opoznat-korennogo-moskvicha/):

1.      The native Muscovite divides the history of his city according to who was mayor and knows precisely under whose administration this or that building was put up or torn down.

2.      The native Muscovite can get around quickly by cutting through back alleys but he often cannot tell a visitor how best to get to a well-known place.

3.      “The native Muscovite may earn 20,000 rubles (300 US dollars) a month, but he lives in the center of the city because he inherited his apartment from his grandmother.”

4.      “The native Muscovite most likely has not been in the Mausoleum even once.”

5.      “The native Muscovite has his own opinion on every issue,” and he will express it whenever asked.

6.      The native Muscovite has a clearly defined view of the authorities: he may love them or hate them, but he is not indifferent.

7.      The native Muscovite knows how to get around in the Metro without the problems others have.

8.      The native Muscovite has a specific way of speaking and can be identified by the long vowels in his speech.

9.      The native Muscovite “sincerely believes that Moscow is a small town because everywhere he goes, he meets people he knows.”

10.  The native Muscovite is hospitable and ready to help but only up to a point.

11.  The native Muscovite “remembers the old names of streets and often uses them, leading visitors into confusion.”

12.  The native Muscovite is “often less ambitious than the arrivals.” He’s been in the capital for generations, has an apartment, and doesn’t feel “any sharp need to struggle for his place in the sun.”

13.  “The native Muscovite loves Moscow but not today’s version. Rather he loves the city of his childhood when ‘the air was cleaner, there were more trees and fewer cars.’”