First, I am a 70yo boomer from the USA. I stumbled upon your clips when you and bald were touring Russia. I have been watching you for several years. So, DO NOT change a thing about your English. I understand most everything you discuss, and bad words do not upset me. I lived in Germany for five years, and I had great difficulty with the language. You have done well. You speak in complete sentences. Go forth and conquer. BTW, I like accents. Makes life more interesting.
What’s interesting is my son started looking at German and naturally understood it. He’s been teaching himself and it’s going quite well. He speaks English quite well including grammar, homonyms, homophones, spelling and sentence structure. Now he’s doing the same thing with German. He’s a junior in college and has been taking French but he sucks at it. So he’s changing to German so he can graduate. English is Germanic language and French is a Romance language. I think that’s the real difference.
@@aspenenglish4976 French is weird where if you speak German or English there are a crap ton of words that are similar to the Germanic tree. Because in the 7th century Germanic Franks settled in the area and created the Frankish Empire. But as someone who speaks also Italian. There are a lot of similar Romance language words between Spanish & Italian to French. And a few Celt words similar to Scottish and Irish. In a nutshell. French is a mixed language which is very complicated
As an American I have always been impressed about your English. You get the satire, and the speed you can speak is amazing. You would completely blend into the population in the US.
It sounds like Queens, NYC. People think they know the New York/New Jersey accent but it has subdivisions like Queens. Go listen to Joey or Johnny Ramone, have you heard them talk? Tell me this TH-camr doesn't have the same accent as the Ramones. He clearly learned Queens, NY English in Russia somehow.
@@chrisrus1965roman said he played gta iv on his Xbox with English subtitles when he was a kid with no internet, and the game is set in a fictional New York
I’m also an English teacher and he is 100% right - there are maybe second language English speakers that have less of an accent, but you speak the language naturally and organically like a native speaker. It’s obvious that you really do feel the language, thanks to your deep interest in English language culture. All of my best students have that in common - they are into English language films, shows or literature. They are always the best speakers and much better than those who studied English for years.
"Feeling the language" wtf does that mean? telling you, he wants to feel Roman's breath on his lips and neck, call it a, gut..... ✌"FEELING"✌ bet this is a way to get Roman's attention and a way to, slide into this private messenger
Roman has an almost Long Island accent from near New York City. i feel like he would be a guy who would say "cawffee" instead of "coffee". there's nothing wrong with the accent at all, its extremely rare for non native speakers to completely drop their accent and they will nearly always pronounce some words in a slightly strange manner. Oh and by the way roman if you read this, I've been teaching English for five years and even I can't answer my students grammar questions so don't worry about it. If you do open an English learning channel you should focus on feeling the language rather than speaking the language ;)
@@rsweeneydhlHave you heard of Lex Fridman? He's a perfect example of a Russian who sounds like they're from New York. Seems to be a natural tendency for them.
The fact that he rolled his eyes when saying "to whom it may concern" and "best regards" shows he feels the language. Understanding what is cringe is probably one of the last things you get when you are learning another language because it requires so much experience and cultural knowledge
Roman, as an American, I can say your English has always amazed me. Your accent is very slight and the whole manner in which you speak is just like an American. You speak like someone in the U.S. whose parents came from Russia or who himself came from Russia when he was 8 years old or something, seriously. You do absolutely feel and speak the language very naturally.
I actually like his english, because it‘s not perfect. Because it keeps a litte twang, so his russian is also recognizable at him. I think I wouldn‘t guess where he is coming from - at least as long as he doesnt have a rolling r. Roman, dont fix your accent
I met an international student from Korea several years ago. His accent was unlike any other Korean student I have ever experienced. Note: I have met international students with *zero* accent that would normally be associated with their country of origin, but his was notably unique. One day we were drinking (heavily) with friends and someone asked him the origin of this way of speaking. His answer was that he learned English by watching Sylvester Stallone films... In that frame, everything made sense, he nailed that accent perfectly.
Omg. Lol. See. This is when a language teacher can actually be really helpful. They can at least point out when your language immersion material might be a little bit contorted. I've heard Japanese people say similar things about Americans who learned Japanese from anime, which apparently has a very exaggerated style with it's own idioms. Lol.
Roman, as an English tutor, I've been bragging about you to my students forever 😅 I've always been so impressed by your feel for the language, but also extremely jealous as a language learner myself. I just hope one day I can speak my second and third languages as well as you speak English! (Also, even though I'm a native speaker, I learn English slang from you, lol)
As a native English speaker who is by all accounts the Roman of Portuguese-learning, I am so glad you're getting this recognition. People fall over themselves to tell me how great my Portuguese is because the fact that an English-speaker is learning a language at all is shocking to many, but to be actually good at it is almost unheard of. But we're only doing what non-English-speakers do all the time with English and you guys never get anything like the credit we do, so to see you getting your dues is awesome. Roman, you fucking own this English shit, it is your bitch. Well done mate!
Can I test you? You only become a true Portuguese speaker when you know what "Portugal Caralho!" truly means and the power of it. E claro, eu estou apenas a brincar.
@@tiagooliveira95 haha, pois tenho más notícias pra você então - aprendi aquela maldita forma corrupta* da língua portuguesa que se fala lá no Brasil. Mas graças aos meus amigos e colegas portugueses já ouvi a famosa frase (e vi que até tem meme). *falo com carinho, e com cuidado, não quero apanhar dos brasileiros, que povo de sangue quente!
I would in fact be very interested in see a video of you speaking in Portuguese. As a native Portuguese speaker from Brazil who has been a dick about the Portuguese language, correct grammar and pronunciation throughout my life in fact I almost never have seen a "gringo" (word for foreigner, here we do not use it offensively or as a slur) who I would consider that great in Portuguese pronunciation...but maybe I would be surprised. I am very curious to see if that would be the case 🥺
@@dedhart Hmmmm there are many good channels on TH-cam but, as a life tip I've been using through my whole life to learn new languages...if you want to have great pronunciation, accent and conversational skills, focus first on learning the phonemes, the SOUNDS of the language...and I think there is no better way to do this than the classic: watch movies, series and listen to music you may like with both the audio and lyrics in the SAME language, the one you wanna learn. So first always watch and listen to stuff in Portuguese with PORTUGUESE lyrics (sorry for the upper case haha). First get used to the sounds of the language, the ways Brazilian "sing" when talking, the pronunciation, the rhythms and tone, you should pause every so often and try to imitate the pronunciation, the sounds, the singing, even look to yourself in the mirror and try to imitate the acting...just after you go for grammar and watch/listen to the same material with lyrics in your language. It's slower than going immediately for grammar, but I am sure you will like the results much better, because instead of you learning Portuguese with English (or your native language's) phoenetics, you first learn with the Portuguese phoenetics. Just be sure of whether you wanna learn Brazilian Portuguese or...Portuguese Portuguese haha, because despite being the same language they sound very far apart (I, myself, as a Brazilian, I have a lot of difficulty listening and understanding some Portuguese friends lol)
I’ve always thought you speak English very naturally, basically like a native. It’s not just accent, grammar, etc, but the sum total of the way you express yourself in the language. Props! Edit: As the video alludes to language is primarily cultural and no set of rules or book can substitute for that. Your immersive approach to consuming cultural content is key
You do have a superior command of the language for someone who was not born a native English speaker. You even know all the slang and nuances everything else in between. ESPECIALLY considering you’ve never even LIVED in the west. It is without a doubt an impressive and rare feat to accomplish Roman.
As a kid, I'm sure I watched waaay too much television. At the age of 14, I could easily perform 60-70 different voice impersonations...everything from cartoon characters to U.S. presidents, celebrities and even international dialects. As an adult, I simply don't have the time to practice but can still do a mean Scooby Doo, Yoda and several dialects. So I feel like I'm a unofficial expert. Your understanding of English probably hasn't improved that much because you already had a strong foundation. But the way you pronounce words is significantly better than the early days. Based on the way you speak now, I bet if you came to the USA no one would know unless they already knew who you were or you told them.
Sounds like that you are better than others is not because you studied English but more like because you immersed yourself in English. Good job, Roman.
You can immerse all you want but it will only train your listening and understanding skills. To train your speaking skills you need to constantly talk nd that's where the problems lie if you're not an extroverted talkative person. Those kind of people become fluent much faster while I struggle to keep the conversation even in my native language, let alone foreign language. Most of the time I just don't know what to say next and feel like I'm panicking trying to quickly come up with a next thing to say. It's very tiring.
Hey @HaohmaruHL, I believe you will improve over time. To become proficient in speaking English, I suggest you listen to at least 2000 hours of English and read as well. Learning a language like a kid learns their first language is the best way to become highly proficient. Keep at it! By the way, it's important to remember that English is simply a tool for communication. Your other skills may be more valuable, particularly if you're living in a foreign country. Consider exploring new areas of interest and expanding your knowledge.
I’m a British guy who taught English in Russia (Moscow) for a few years. I never heard anyone speak as well as you when I was there. Also better than most people in my native country haha. Молодец братуха, поздравляю тебя You are a bit of a natural like Dave said a bit like a songwriter who can just write amazing songs without knowing anything about music or a great football player. Most people wont get to your level.
@@xenialove2032 спасибо, московская улица меня научила пить, курить и самому главному - говорить по русски. yeah I know but it’s really messed up in the uk to the point that British people can’t understand each other sometimes
Kudos to you, Roman. Mastering a language is a long and arduous task, but you did it. You may not see the details of the path you've traversed, but you certainly have reached a level of fluency many would envy.
I’m a native English speaker (Scottish) and your English is definitely first class. Amazing you’ve learned it without visiting an English speaking country. He’s correct that you speak like a native English speaker.
he without a doubt has an accent that I'd recognize within a sentence or two, but he talks like an English speaking native and I think that's alot more important. I'd definitely prefer that over the girl that had a better accent but didn't talk like a native English speaker.
I had a Russian friend that moved to America when he was 17. In 2002 I went to Russia with him for 3 weeks. He had lived in America for 5 years at that point. We were at a museum in Moscow looking at art. The description talking about the art was written in Russian and English. He read the description to us in English. He read some big words that I didn’t understand (in english) I asked him what that meant without thinking and he told me what the English words meant. Afterwards I was like ‘damn’ you have gotten good at English.
Russian language does not have the same amount of words the English language does. Most translations wouldn’t make sense in English or there is no direct translation so most likely just made up
As a French native speaker from Quebec, I really have to thank video games (those with huge amount of texts) for teaching me English very early on. I still wasn't perfect at it, but it did make my first English school in my 20s a much better experience than if I hadn't known the language.
I'm from the other side of Canada, maybe I should do what you did, but in reverse. In B.C. our French Immersion schools are few and far between, and the fact that they exist at all is really telling about how unused French is here. I hear ten times more Hindi, Mandarin or Japanese on a daily basis than French here. And basically, the only exposure anyone has to French here are the alternate labels on packaging that they don't look at anyway. Basically, unless people here want to work in the government or travel to Quebec, France or Belgium, they have no reason to learn it.
i would have to agree with Dave that you are one of the best non native English speakers i've ever heard. The fact you've never been to an english speaking country is incredible and really you're a poster child for the internet generation.
The most shocking part for me is that Roman still hasn't been to an English-speaking country yet. But has already mastered English at an almost native level.
The fact that you speak so well despite never even going to an English speaking country is extremely impressive. From personal experience, I’m an English speaking Canadian who took French immersion throughout grade school and even I could not become truly fluent in French until I moved to Montreal 3 years ago (the largest city in French-speaking Canada for those who don’t know)
@@malapertfourohfour2112 most of the people who get this good don't start practicing output until they already know the language People who try to learn by moving to the country end up having bad habits because they are forced to speak and they can't afford to slow down
"Feeling the language" wtf does that mean? telling you, he wants to feel Roman's breath on his lips and neck, call it a, gut..... ✌"FEELING"✌ bet this is a way to get Roman's attention and a way to, slide into this private messenger
He already (kind of) does. TH-cam is a far greater (social) media than any TV broadcaster in any country. It can just reach a far bigger audience. It would be a downgrade to move to a traditional TV channel imo.
I'm Bulgarian and I'm fluent in english with practically no accent and I learned it the exact same way as Roman. From video games and movies plus being on the internet since I was very, very young. I've not yet been to any majority english speaking country either. This video has been very relatable and cool to see people who've learned the language the way we did get some more recognition.
i was similar but since i actually live in ireland too and have since i was like 3 or so, i have also been taught english in school since the age of six but my initial knowledge was entirely radio, tv, internet and video games
Ma dude, I am a professional ESL teacher and a linguist with over 18 years of experience. I discovered your channel while trying to cope with depression brought about by the war (THE war, you know which one I’m talking about), and I was stunned with your level of fluency and natural sounding (not talking about the accent but more the feeling for the language thank most foreigners I know and work with can only dream of). Kudos to you and thank you for your stance on the current political nightmare that Russia has become ❤
depression brought about by the war? Toughen up snowflake. There is NO time for that now innocents are dying. It is because of snowflakes rhetoric the war happened. Its the blatant display weakness that always invites bandits. Toughen up snowflakes. Bandits would just forget about it if free societies are always at the ready and known to be tough!
I stumbled upon his channel the same way and for the same reasons! Roman speaks with the remarkable fluency of a native speaker. I feel like his accent is not necessarily that of someone who is learning English as a second language, but a mosaic of different native English speaker accents. Maybe different regions of the US with some additional twists from native English speakers from other parts of the world? Any thoughts on this, from a linguist perspective? I know that being a linguist is pretty broad. You may not be a speech and language pathologist or accent coach, but I would love to hear someone with that specific knowledge chime in. And I do not say this to try to make Roman self conscious - only because he asked us to share what we notice about his 'accent'. We love you Roman!
Hey РОМАН, I've followed you for years and always love your content. I'm mid 30's from California and a native English speaker. You definitely have a moderate accent and it's apparent immediately (to me). Regardless, everything that guy said about your skills was correct - you are 100% C2 level and practically a native. I expect anything I said to you in a verbal English conversation would be absolutely captured. What you said about knowing the rules for English or Russian is 100% true - I've been learning Russian for a year and I've had this conversation with native speakers of both languages. Natives generally don't know the grammar rules for their own language - they've developed an intuition for the language instead. It's so cool that you achieved this for a second language! I pondered if it was possible or what the maximum age for this method to work might be. You pointed out, correctly, how much your accent has improved by showing some old video-game footage. But if we are trying to be objective, perhaps imagine that your current accent is right in the middle of where it was before in the example and where you "believe" it is now. You got rid of the Russian X sound in your h's and your Z doesn't sound like the Russian З anymore. Your accent is most apparent to me in a few ways: 1. I know English speakers do this also (hello Tennessee!) but you drop so many g's in words endin' with ing. Natives do this with some words more than others (ie I was runnin' or I was shoppin' or I was washin') often with verbs - but we don't do it often with nouns. We might say "I was buildin' something" but we would never say "I went into the buildin" (unless you're from Tennessee). We say 100% "I went into the building." and you have to land on that G. 2. Your Th and T sounds have an accent. In my journey to learn Russian I've noticed how the consonant Д can sort of sound like an English T and D blended together (I guess like В it can have a hard V sound or soft F sound). Sometimes (to me) your Th sounds like this. You aren't saying "THat" you are saying "Дat" 6:18 3. You speak with a Russian 'breath'. I'm still terrible at Russian a year in, but I really had to change the pressure coming from my lungs and force a more 'nasal' presence from my voice in order to pronounce things properly in Russian. (Literally the sounds originate from a higher position within my mouth). I speak English and I feel half of it all coming off the back of my tongue. But to make Russian sounds properly I'm concentrating more on the roof of my mouth and nasal area to generate sound. You're still using you're Russian breath to make English sounds. It's why the other woman being critiqued in the video sounds more like a native than you do. You fixed 98% of your vowel/consonant sounds but not your 'breath'. She fixed her breath but as many vowel/consonant sounds as you did so you were able to pick them out. 3. cont. At 16:24 when you say the word "friends" there is quite an accent. Notice how sounding out the Russian Ж for a couple seconds that the front of your face kinda vibrates? 3. cont. When you say "friends" the eeee sound you are making is coming from the front of your mouth just like Ж. But when I say it the eeee sound comes from the back of my throat down where my tongue attaches. Same with the word 'ending' or 'end'. Nothing coming from up front. It's all the back of my tongue bouncing around. I suppose in the southern US or if speaking 'proper' UK English they sound it out more like you. But to my US west coast ears it sticks out. 3. cont. But honestly? In my opinion this change is only necessary for the English speaker to make Russian sounds properly. I think the other way around isn't required and it just makes you sound a bit like a Chad with a booming voice or something. Honestly I wouldn't even try to 'fix' this part if I was you cause it sounds kinda boss. Anyways, this comment is basically me sitting in the bleachers criticizing, you know, an Olympic athlete explaining to them how they can go from a 9.8 to a 9.9 like I'm some sort of expert... plus which 'accent' is proper anyways? Do we go by the natives in England? Or how the most number of people speak it (USA)? It's not even fucking consistent in the USA. There's no right answer and you're going to keep sounding more and more 'native' as time goes. I'd much rather have your understand of a foreign language than that of the other woman who was being critiqued in the video. It's like you said; most native speakers (including myself) are not even ourselves equipped to teach English grammar rules - so if you want to sound like the average native how could it be a goal to be able to explain all the grammar rules? You're amazing bro and I hope so much that my Russian is as strong as your English someday. Keep it up.
I honestly think a lot of your points are specific to certain English accents. I'm a Scottish person living in London who speaks UK English, and I can't really relate to what you're saying. For example, when I say "friends", I say it with the "eh" sound from the front like Roman does (although mine has a more Scottish tint ofc); that sound coming from the back of the throat as you describe is definitely more typical of a Californian accent. I do think this raises an interesting issue though, which might be relevant. I've noticed over the years that when non-native speakers of English get to such an incredibly high level as Roman has (living in London has meant I've met quite a few of these amazing people), the thing that stops them from having an accent that sounds 100% perfectly native is that their influences are mixed. What that means is that, although they largely speak with one specific accent that they've focused on while learning, they have the odd consonant or vowel sound that they've subconsciously taken from a different English accent. Because English is so widely spoken across the world, there must be thousands of different accents spread among the different large subgroups of accents, so it's pretty much impossible to learn English as a non-native speaker and not do this, unless you get hothoused in one specific environment from a relatively young age (e.g. going to a boarding school when you're 10 or something). Native English speakers are very good at spotting when someone's speaking an inconsistent accent of English, even if it's just in the tiny details. So I think this is where Roman is at now. I guess what I'm basically arguing is that he doesn't actually have a Russian accent - he has a slight international accent. He's largely focused on learning gamer/rapper US-style English, but I bet he's watched some UK TV shows too. Over time, that means he's developed an accent that is pretty US-English focused but has influences from other areas. Personally, I think he's come far enough, and shouldn't worry about trying to tweak his accent any further. Unless he decides he wants to master one very specific English language accent, of course. But who has time for that in these crazy days? :)
Interesting analysis. I do want to mention that your first point dabbles into Ebonics, which is a sensitive topic of its own, and I just don't think it matters all that much. People don't usually notice someone getting rid of the g's at the end of words unless it's in a super professional setting and everyone has to talk in standard English.
I’m a middle- aged American mom and my daughter is 20 and this video was so great because since we first stumbled onto your channel (also after seeing you on Bald’s), we have been amazed at how well you speak English and in such an easy feeling way. It is amazing. Your “turns-of-phrase” and how and when you use them are truly amazing for someone who has never lived here in the U.S. His critique of your “feeling” the language put a label on what we have been so amazed about, and was really “right on” in describing how native sounding your English is. Now, you do have an accent but it doesn’t matter and is actually fun to listen to. But compared to the hard Russian accent you demonstrated, then your accent is not so pronounced certainly. We love you- 😊
Native New Yorker here and you would fit in there without question. In Little Odessa, the accents can be much stronger, let alone anywhere else in B’klyn or Queens. I went to school with several kids whose families emigrated from the USSR, and their accents were all over the place. That you have never set foot in a native English-speaking country is downright amazing.
I had a friend in Abu Dhabi who had never been to an English-speaking country but he sounded completely American. When I asked him how he learned such a perfect (American) English accent, he said "I had the best possible teachers. Brad Pitt, Robert DeNiro..."
@@pomtubes1205It’s not really that unbelievable. I have the same exact experience like he mentioned, I’ve never been outside my home country and grew up watching stuff in English and now I speak and write English like a native.
I'm English and must say your English is very good though you have what I would call a Mid-Atlantic accent which is a slightly Americanised English accent. My adopted daughter is Kazakh and couldn't speak a word of English up to the age of 12, her first language being Kazakh and second Russian. She now speaks accentless English and people believe she's English born. She studied as a Bio Physicist, earned a degree in the UK and then her Masters. She's now doing her Doctorate at Oxford. One smart cookie
As an English teacher myself, I'm so glad your skills are recognized. I just wish it wasn't through a native speaker criticizing someone whose mother tongue isn't English. Keep it up Roman, you're amazing
Here's a critique from an actual EFL (English As A Foreign Language) teacher: your English is damned good. Sure, you have an accent but it's very mild and could be mistaken for a native New Yorker by Americans not from New York. If my French were as good as your English, i would be very happy. You have managed to incorporate immersion techniques into your study of the language without actually going to an English-speaking country. Quite an accomplishment!
"damned good"? Is that really the way how it should be writen and spoken because i have never seen that. I could imagine the guy from the video wouldn't find that native^^
@@holgerlinke98damn if you do, damned if you don't. Joke aside, nobody writes the present of "damn" "damned", that's the first time I seen it like that, if that the correct way 99%of us are damn bad at English.
I've always been impressed with your English. Your accent is almost flawless. The only time that English throws you off is if you use a word you're not used to. Your hip-hop background gives you a New Jersey accent.
I don't get what he meant by has a strong accent because every one has an accent. like he has an American accent because he's American. As an Englishman I could say that this English teacher's English is not that good because his American accent is to strong. Don't make sense.
I was thinking more Long Island- ISH but most definitely he has a New York metro accent. He would be happy in New York within commuting distance of the City or in the City proper.
His accent is thick, but his English skills are awesome for his region of birth. Eastern Europeans and Russians are known for their basic English skills. But I should not compare or discredit it, I am from Germany, the top country where English is not a native language but around 60% of people speak it like their mother tongue, so Roman is really having great vocab and grammar skills
As a Russian myself, I'll be completely honest - I was NOT expecting that kind of English when I clicked on this video. Your english is way too good for me to actually process that you're a russian quickly - I usually understand the native russian accent in around 2 seconds, but you definitely kept me going and feeling your english-speaking abilities. Being honest, I also was the English-speaking kid in my family and I believe you are actually better than me at it! Back in school, I was one of the 5,000 fifth-graders in Moscow who did an English test without any mistakes AND the only one in my class. You are so good lol, keep up your great work!
I’d actually be down to see Roman doing a kind of Russian-English comparison or tutorial videos, using a mix of both throughout to create a resource anyone could use to “practice” Russian and English. He’d definitely need a bi-lingual editor who’d be willing to help him for free or dirt cheap to make this possible, but I think it could be an awesome premise to bridge the perceived cultural gap.
"Feeling the language" wtf does that mean? telling you, he wants to feel Roman's breath on his lips and neck, call it a, gut..... ✌"FEELING"✌ bet this is a way to get Roman's attention and a way to, slide into this private messenger
I am 72. I have a BSBA and a MFA in liberal arts. I live in a area with a lot of Spanish speaking people who don't know English, and not being able to talk to so many people eventually got to me so I started learning Spanish. That has taught me that I hardly know any English grammar rules at all yet I normally have no issues at all using proper English grammar. As a matter of fact, I generally write at a level that gives a lot of English speakers trouble understanding what i write, so years ago I used a text analysis software program to teach myself how to write consistently at the eighth grade level for business purposes. So I found it quite interesting that Roman doesn't know English grammar rules either.
As an ethnic Russian born in Sweden having consumed as much international content in English as you have: if it isn’t your first language since birth it is likely people will notice some kind of accent, for me that is Russian AND English. Love your content btw братан
Yeah, same. I moved from Russia at 11 to the Netherlands and still speak both English and Russian well. Roman is doing epic work connecting the two worlds. Ps. Наш братан
So true dude, so true. I have always been literally blown away by your English and how incredibly fluently you speak it. Also love your spontaniety and from the heart style in general.
Roman, I am a Hungarian EU migrant living in the UK for almost 17 years now. I have been studying English for many years before we came over here but I had to realize the English I was studying accent wise was very US based. Many words I have learnt was pronounced differently, even the fraise to say "Have a good day" made me look silly. People in the UK say "Have a nice day" instead. It was a slap in the face. Then came the realisation of spelling differences and the accent. I have learnt not only from school but from movies and music lyrics and most of them was US English. Fast forward to today I am still speaking a type of English everyone can understand but cannot place it anywhere. It is one part British one part US and probably I have picked up some slang from Manchester and London too. Your accent to a British person will never go away entirely because you or me cannot hear the very small details what sell us out. They can literally determine just by the accent where the person is from within the UK! A language coach (what actors use) can do some miracles but they're not cheap. You just stay as you are and if people don't watch your vids because of your (to me not very noticeable) accent, f*ck them. 1.17M of us will do.
As a naitive Br'iish I like hearing other non native english speakers speak. It's no shame to have an accent really. Like you've put the effort in to learn another language and as long as your understandable most people don't care what you sound like. I've been learning Spanish and I'm pretty sure my Spanish accent sounds wack to native Spanish speakers but I don't think I'll be able to change that really. Even then the way I've been learning is probably closer to south american spanish rather than castilian.
@@IdiotRace You are very kind and thanks for your comment. It is still somehow bothering me sometimes because I wanted nothing less than fitting in and develop my language skill to a level when no native can pick up a sign I am from abroad. It was probably for reasons why Brexit came by. I work in construction as a civil engineer (a very inner facing part of society) and I am expected to express myself on a high level in meetings and if I feel my language skill cannot deliver the message adequately my opinion will be taken as of less value. Often thought the people I was talking to had a first thought I didn't want them to have: "all right here is another bloke from the EU why the heck is he here doing what a British bloke should be doing". In the canteens there were always The Sun and Daily Mail laying around. Over many years I've stepped over this barrier by proving that what I say is what I do and the concerns I raise about engineering are worthy to consider. My daughter who was born here is my best language coach I can wish for. She is always keen to correct me when my Mancunian is incorrect because over 9 years in London I took quite a bit of Cockney (perhaps?) and the Queen's English mixture with me. In Greater Manchester were we live these are very distinguishable. :D
I've taught English to many Russian students over the years and I'm very impressed by your usage of articles. It's the biggest challenge my students had. I'd love to know how you overcame that challenge.
I totally agree, as a slavic language native speaker it's freaking hard to use the correct article sometimes. Because we just don't have them lmao. God, i wish i was born in an english speaking family so i wouldn't have to learn all this shit. Also, i was struggling with perfect forms of tenses, but recently i got it. We even have kind of a prototype to it. Like adding in the start of a word "про". For example: работал - проработал. But articles is still the hardest thing to learn.
It probably has to do with the way he learned English. The way he learned is like how we learn our mother tongue basically. I learned English the same way as him (not with exactly the same content but still through games, English TH-cam videos, generally reading, watching stuff on the Internet etc. I also had private tutors though for some time (2, one at like 10 for 2 months I think and another one that prepared me for the English exam which I passed at like 92%).
I'm Russian and tbh I think what did it for me is just hearing the words used with articles and remembering which ones go with what words, I would never be able to tell you what groups of words use the definite article and what don't, but I would use the article correctly like 98% of the time I think that genuinely, for a lot of Russians from my social circle, and me included, it was interacting with various English media that did the trick, just encountering the same constructions over and over again and remembering them bc of frequent use
I started following Russian TH-camrs last year after the war in Ukraine began. I had a little problem with the way ZAC or NIKKI or DEPRESSED RUSSIAN or CRAZY RUSSIAN articulated their thoughts in English, but not so with NFKRZ. ROMAN talks fast but his diction is clear and understandable. He is also very articulate and funny. He is a lot more incisive and bold in his commentaries too. I like this guy.
As someone who attempted to learn Russian for a few years (and also taught English for a while) the "broken" English that many Russian and Slavic language speakers display is largely due to how different the grammar systems are - rather than Russians somehow being less willing to learn English. For example - there are no definite or indefinite articles in Russian, instead you have 6 cases that "transform" words to convey the same meaning. This makes it very difficult for Russian speakers to correctly use English grammar and adds a significant amount to the learning curve. It goes both ways - it is also very difficult for English speakers to properly grasp Russian and use Russian grammar correctly.
You have given me the answers to my questions. I'm good at speaking and understanding English, but grammar is a living hell that I don't have the strength to understand.
You’ve achieved real fluency in English. You can express humor that native speakers understand, the flow of your speech is natural, you use slang perfectly….I can only aspire to achieve that kind of fluency in Russian! 😅
Also, let’s look at how children acquire language. It’s entirely by feeling. It makes sense to approach learning a language that way. Grammar doesn’t mean shit in the real world 😂😂😂😂
Sorry one more comment as I watch the video; one of the greatest backhanded compliments I’ve ever received about how I speak Russian came from this older Russian guy who was like “you speak Russian so well! Very academic.” 😂😢
That English teacher said exactly what I've been thinking since I discovered your channel. Yes, you have a Russian accent, but your grasp of English is beyond excellent. It's obvious that the words just roll off your tongue naturally without internal translation. I've been amazed by your English proficiency since day one. Your English grammar and vocabulary are superior to roughly 50% of Americans - yes, that's a sad commentary, but true nevertheless. Don't lose your Russian accent completely - it's so charming and endearing 😊.
his accent isn't russian. maybe i'm just used to it because i'm a slav too but i can only agree if you say he has a slight russian accent. like look you wouldn't say he's american but you wouldn't say he's russian you know what i mean
@@craftah exactly, I'd have never guessed he's Russian based on his accent. Then again I'm easter european myself, I live in the UK and my favourite game when people ask me where am I from is to ask them to guess. Based on my accent, it usually takes them a few attempts, for some reason I often get German or nordic countries lol. Like Roman I also did study English at uni but in all honesty, I'm pretty sure my English wasn't quite as good as his before coming to the UK. If I was to play my own game and try to guess his accent I'd have failed miserably.
It is a mix of a lot of accents, but the most distinctive is definitely still Russian. Saying that, it isn't that distinctive that you could gather he was born in Russia...
@@annar6294 americans (and maybe other native English speakers) often think that any foreign accent is russian. some americans even confuse spanish accent with russian accent. and yeah i've noticed when we eastern europeans kinda hide our accent (trying to pronounce words more like a native speaker) foreigners often think we are nordic or german
Roman, I just wanted to say thank you. I'm a brazilian young guy and apart from being a young dude from an "emergent" country trying to get more in touch with the outside world and with an avid heart for languages (and also being super nerd and terminally online), I've been also seeing myself getting more and more related to you in general. If I said it here it would be quite long, and it's already long as it is, but today I was having a pretty shitty day and had no hopes for myself prior to watching this video. This kind of comment may come off as over dramatic and weird I get it, but you elicited a lot of points in this video that are special about yourself and I'm proud for you because I can say I had a very similar upbringing. My interest in languages suddenly evolved to me being fluent in English in a way I didn't really feel it. I thought that was nothing special but your video made me realize we can capitalize with this and become more worldly citizens. I can become successful as well, I just gotta know where to channel off this language ability. I may also do that with my Japanese knowledge as well, which is getting closer and closer to fluent every month, but anyway. What we've got, it's special, and it made me realize people like us with a special relationship with languages can get our nice corner in the world if we strive for it.
Capitalize *on* this And now I'm going to shut up because you can speak three languages and I can barely hobble along in ones other than English (Even my Spanish is terrible, and that was my easiest language)
@@pamelajaye Thanks! Well I knew something was missing, and we're always learning. I was sleepy as well so we may let a few grammar mistakes slip by 😅 Also hopefully I'll be mastering Russian in no time. Roman's content really propped me up to Russian studies. Good luck to your studies as well!
I also very much love languages lol there's definitely a club here of lifelong love for education and communication. I don't doubt you guys will be successful. I have used my abilities to land very good jobs here in the US because I have a good command of the English language. That actually goes very far where I live. For example when I apply for a job in my area I compose a cover letter detailing my extensive experiences in international communication for film, tv, and lyrical projects. Just making that cover letter has advanced my career in banking and financial contracts. As a result my income has doubled in 3 years and will be doubling or tripling again later this year. Communication is a key priority for jobs in human relations and business in general. Continue with your journey and trust me, use these skills every opportunity to make your life better. It's worked for me for a long time now. Learn it all young ones, 🤣🤣, go forth and manifest your destiny. Seriously though these are marketable skills in the US so don't downplay your talents to be modest for anyone, you guys are skilled and respect is earned so don't feel like it's a form of bragging bc it's not it's a fair assessment of your learning process and talents. Be proud of your accomplishments 😊
@@GuinWeaver Thanks a lot, it's nice to see such a set of skills getting recognized and valued in a marketable way as well. Thanks for your tips 😁 I hope I can build something out of this and here's to hope AI also doesn't take our jobs lmao
I'm a russian student living in Germany, and the Way you learnt English almost paralleled mine. I consumed content and played games, and always "felt" the language without knowing the grammar, upsetting my teacher. There are many people that learn English this way and it's (imo) the best way to master it. Keep up the Great videos and have a good day!
American who studied in Germany- don’t let the teachers tell you how to English. School English is hardly respected in day to day speak. You wrote well and were understandable that’s all that matters
The most remarkable thing about your english Roman, is your extensive vocabulary and it's impressive. It gives you a comprehensive conversational advantage and a 'command of the english language' that even a lot of native english speakers wish they had. The bitch for everyone else is that you make it look so easy that honestly, no one would believe it's your second language. Accents don't matter because everyone has one.
Perhaps in international contexts, but in English speaking countries it is the easiest way for others to put you in the "dem people" box. t. someone in dem people box
A lot of Russian kids growing up in the late eighties and early nineties learned to speak almost perfect English. Top that with copious amounts of influence from the internet through the early 2000s....and VOILA!!....you have someone with an outstanding Americanized accent. A lot of Germans living in Bavaria developed the same skills because of the American military presence there. But indeed, Roman is a cut above the rest when comparing the English language skills among educated Russians.
I can relate to the "feeling English" phrase too. Even though I barely know English grammar, speaking the language and expressing my thoughts in it comes off very naturally. I also used to consume a lot of English content as a kid.
It feels like this is the way a lot of people in Eastern Europe get really good with English: they consume English media from a young age, so they just naturally learn it as a matter of practicality. This especially goes for the people that spent time online from a young age. I think it is a big reason why people learn Japanese as well. You know. For cultural enlightenment. :^)
I once worked in a major multinational computer company and once needed some help with a computer issue I was having. I posted a question, in English, on our internal technical forums and soon got a very helpful answer from a colleague in Switzerland. He wrote English like a native speaker with no hint of an accent (people who speak a language with an accent also write it with an accent) so I asked him if he'd had a parent who was a native English-speaker or if he had grown up in an English-speaking country. He said he'd grown up in Switzerland to two Swiss parents and they'd spoken Swiss German at home. They'd had a bit of English at school but he didn't really gain any proficiency until he started watching British and American rock videos. He and his friends REALLY wanted to understand the lyrics of those songs so they started learning English from the rock videos!
Just about every European will tell you that they've had English in school for 8-10 years before attending college Uni or other kinds of educational institutions. American entertainment and social media are great supplements and helps a lot 😊
Facts. I’m Latvian. My cousin learned English… to this level that Roman has, through Cartoon Network. Unfortunately (or fortunately?) Johnny Bravo was the show for Edgars. I would’ve chosen SpongeBob, but hey. To each their own lol
I took a spanish class in college, having known a little bit from reggaeton music, which I listen to quite a bit of, and as a result I could tell my spanish was a lot better than the rest of the people in that class who didn't really ever consume Spanish media much. My teacher, who was a native English speaker who lived in Guatamala for like a decade, would often criticize my Spanish because I didn't speak 'textbook' Spanish, but instead I had accidentally acquired a goofy-ahhh over-the-top Puerto Rican ghetto accent from all the reggae music. Consuming media in the language without any help from the outside is very frustrating and mentally taxing in the beginning, but it makes it so worth it in the long term pay off.
I just wanna say that I've watched your channel back when pyro was still doing commentaries, and I'm honestly glad I've stuck around. Keep up the great content, Roman.
I taught ESL when I traveled and there's no benefit to speaking perfect broadcast English if you're not native to it. The touch of accent is what people like.
Yes exactly. As a French who's looking to date in some English speaking environments, I'm apreciating the praising comments on my fairly strong French accent I'm getting now ahah 😂
The only thing about having that perfect American broadcast (sometimes I just call it the "Midwestern") English accent is the surprise when it comes out of somebody you don't expect. I had met a Japanese guy that spoke English and sounded, accent wise, exactly like an American but with that TV or movie broadcast accent. It was quite surprising to hear because you don't expect it, but it had no real benefit. His ability to speak the language is most important, the accent doesn't truly matter. Also, as an American, I kinda dig accents.
@@PierreMiniggio ESPECIALLY French. I'm Canadian, Quebecois is considered local, but still hearing chics from Quebec speaking English is kinda exotic and sexy. Even moreso from European French.
As a American I can confirm this even some of my teachers couldn't even point Afghanistan on a Map and these was my history teachers I'm like Jesus this is where my Taxes going
I really really enjoyed this video, it was cool to hear that guys thoughts and also the backstory as well as just language learning in general, and how different people learn languages and speak them differently. I would like more kind of like this, going over just a random subject that relates to Roman.
As a Latin American, I had a similar experience in English where I just started consuming content I was interested in, and I did also have a certain fascination regarding English and how ideas were equivalently expressed in that language. It's a thing that happened and developed over time, so there was never any pressure of *learning* the language, like in terms of rules or structures (though I'm kinda nerdy about that too 😅) I think that, in linguistics, this is called *acquisition* ; we basically learn in a similar way as people learn their native language, but as adults with plenty of input and internal motivation. That's why we sort of internalize the language and use it more naturally in spite of not knowing grammar rules and so on. We're emulating the language we've been exposed to, much like how children start speaking and producing because they've been in touch with their language through their parents and people around them.
Anyone who speaks a "second language" at native level (or above) can appreciate both the ease and the effort that were involved in your arriving at this level of English. I hope it remains fun for you as well!
Roman nfkrz to my ear your speech patterns remind me of Americans that live in the upper mid Atlantic to New York City Now a little bit about my background I had immigrant Jewish grandparents from what was that in Russia coming in 1900 I would visit my grandparents in New York City, and several other neighbors were coming from Russia as small children They would visit with my grandparents and speak for hours with my grandparents In Queensboro They learn to speak English fluently The way you speak, English is very similar to the way they spoke English. Tonal quality the phrasing, the subtle phones pronunciation
Yes Roman your accent is, somewhat, "Slavic." You speak amazing English, of course, it boils down _Regional Accents,_ honestly. It's, like, how a Person from *California* and their accent would be different than, let's say, *New York,* for example. So, it's okay, it'll be gone with time, no worries brother!
I never studied English but just by consuming media after some years now in my head I just translate everything from Spanish to English without even being concious. The same with thinking in English, im sure the same happens to Roman Edit: Yeah absolutely. Its about feeling the lenguage. Sometimes I write something in english and I can tell that there is something wrong but I just dont know what. Also kinda crazy how I can even understand at 100% a song from Eminem but I cant tell the time in English. Just feel the lenguage without actually knowing it.
The sentence “there is a difference between to know a language and to feel it” : I just can relate it! As an Austrian and (obviously) german native speaker I don’t know German, I just feel it. It’s the same when it comes to my English (which I have improved a lot in the last 2-3 years). Anyway, it’s so impressive, Roman, how you acquired such a high level of English! Real talk, you are one of my role-models, when it’s about to improve my English-skills (and there is always something to improve). Keep it up, bro! 💪🏼
As a native English speaker who also feels the language rather than memorising the playbook by rote, this was a brilliant video (collaboration?) that put to words a few things I'd been wordlessly considering myself. It just goes to show how important genuine interest is. The fact that you speak fluent, native-level English rather than conversational and easy to understand English despite never visiting an English-speaking country is a testament to that. As for accents! It's worth considering that English is somewhat unique among languages in that its evolution is that of a merchant language; people who barely understand it can happily butcher it and a careful listener can still understand the gist of what's going on. An extension of this is that, with English, hearing an accent from a fluent speaker isn't necessarily a negative. In fact, it becomes a way of recognising someone's identity or history with just a few words. Most languages have this to a degree of course, but with English, I'd say that, excluding outright mispronunciation of words, it's part of the broader culture of the language and can be something beautiful. When you ask what you might need "correcting" on to ditch the Russian accent, I'd suggest that you've instead reached a point where the accent is there, but nothing is incorrect, so it's more of a flavour profile than "wow this guy is definitely Russian what is he even saying". Accents are beautiful, and there's even a yearly vote (by whom I have no idea) as to which accent in English is the most attractive. Somehow New Zealand has been voted several times. As a New Zealander...HOW. HOW DID THAT HAPPEN. I'll take it but JESUS CHRIST, we barely open our mouths when we speak and every vowel is either an 'i' or a 'u'.
As someone who moved from Ukraine to live in the US before transferring over to the Philippines, your English is much better than a lot of people I have come across. Would be so cool to chat with you while switching between Russian and English on the fly!
Holy shit, I don't think I've ever laughed at one of Roman's videos as much as I did during the first minute of this one. Babe Ruth, Michael Jordan, Tom Brady, Wayne Gretzky, Tiger Woods, Pele, and now Roman.
Yeah I’m Mexican and French and when I went to college I tried to take an English course to get easy credits. But after taken the placement exam they literally sent me to see the chair of the English department and said that the only faire English course that would be available to me would be some type of extremely technical terminology class for academia which I had absolutely no interest in pursuing 😂. And just like you, I still have an accent but eloquence makes it so people don’t really notice it until much later during the conversation.
As an American who as lived in Puerto Rico on and off as a child I've met numerous people who learned English through tv, music, reading and videos games without ever being in the United States and they where fluent in English and sounded American. Some would have a slight accent while other you would assume where American but they never been to America so I'm not surprised how he learned English. Especially cuz we have the internet now
I'm a professional ESL teacher with 10 years experience. Also living in Japan and learning Japanese. I gotta say, I agree with him. I also appreciate how hard it is to become fluent in a second language.
I'm an ESL teacher, and your English is fantastic. You have an accent, sure -- but it's not super obviously Russian, though I can tell it's Slavic -- but you really command your English speaking. Your cadence is also more American-sounding than Marina's; your get the musicality of English. If neither of you had an accent, I think she'd still stand out a bit because your flow sounds more American. And given that you've never lived in an English-speaking county, DAMN, it's beyond impressive. (I mean, I lived in Russia for a year, and I barely could speak the language, though I can speak other languages.🤷🏻♀) So, yeah, pat yourself on the back for your top-notch English; hell, rub one out for your killer skills. 🙃 (And I think the phrase your were looking for was "lay down the law".)
I'm actually also an English professor (as of this year but still) who regularly watches your videos, and he actually picked a great clip of yours to show your English ability rather than a clip where you are speaking more eloquently. You are starting and stopping, changing what you're saying partway through, and of course using the slang and such. Being able to do things like that and still speak so naturally is much more impressive than hearing a non-native speaker speak eloquently. You definitely feel and seem to think in the language. That's something I find important when I speak my second language as well. He really gets it right when he says you are feeling the language, but I disagree that you have a strong Russian accent. At least with the clip of Marina, my comparison would be that your accent is more consistent than hers. She produced the majority of the words in a very standard American way but then a few select words in a quite Russian way. You on the other hand don't do that. Your pronunciation isn't as close to the standard "correct" American English, but you also don't really lapse into a different pronunciation.
@@ronaldoago-go5907 I completely agree. In the end, the goal of language is communication, so if your accent doesn't impede communication, there isn't really much reason to try to get rid of it.
Yeah, hiphop and video games. I know a Colombian who learned English that way, and although he has a heavy accent and his grammar isn’t the best, he’s totally fluent in English and has no trouble keeping up a rapid conversation.
I really enjoyed the video keep up the great work Roman You're my favorite TH-camr i been watching for 3 or 4 years man time flying I'm so glad I found your channel
I'm an American boomer who listens to most of your streams since the "Special Military Operation". I listen to a lot of Russian content.All I really have to say is that having been a blue collar worker my whole life, swearing is normal in my life. It's how a lot of us speak. Keep doing what you do. It's easy to listen to you. The accents and searching for words on most other channels show you do feel the language.
This American ' Boomer' has followed your channel for years Great admiration for the way you speak English. Your ability to use colloquialisms as naturally as you do is amazing. Cussing is real life. I usually don't trust people who dont cuss. Thank you, and stay safe.
Also; the fact you don't speak as formally as other second language English speakers helps the perception that you've masted English. I've been trying to learn a couple languages for a long time, and you gave me a lot of insight on how to improve and where I knew I was going right- I only wish I saw this video much much younger. :)
As an English speaker from an English speaking country with lots of Ukrainians and Russians around I can hear the accent, but you're about 100x more understandable than people who have lived here for years.
It only takes a couple words to be pronounced differently for the accent to form an impression in our minds. I noticed it with Roman saying the word "natural". He uses the same "a" as in the word "nature" which is a common mistake that Russians make.
Roman has an accent but it's not a Russian accent. Similar to how Pewdiepie has an accent but it's not a Swedish accent. Both of them have unlearned their native accents, but they still have some type of accent, and to be fair, so does everyone else in the world
I hear his accent and if he were in an English speaking country it would melt away. Which would be a shame because, his accent is incredibly sexy (sorry Irina, just stating facts) keep the accent please....😊
2:20 feeling a foreign language the same way that you're feeling your native language is the goal It's not about translate them back to your native languages to understand it , but to understand it the same way that you understood your native languages To feel the connections in your mind between the words and its concepts not words then translate then another words then concepts Edits: I forgor
That was the point I realised I'm pretty decent at speaking english, when I no longer had to translate back to my native tongue. Now I sometimes get into situations where I forget a word in my own language and just throw in the english one.
same here. been translating for a little and it was fucking hard. one chapter took me 8 hours straight. made me understand how tough it is to a)translate b)write books. i translated this manhua (?????) and its just sad how my work in which i put hours of hard work is being read for like 20 min
When I was still learning Russian I used to do the very same thing - I’d watch Russian movies and series and hardly understand a thing, and I just kept doing that over and over every day, and eventually I was able to understand everything. That, plus living with Russian speaking people that didn’t speak English, taught me more than all of the Russian classes I took in university.
@@rkan2 yeah but despite the fact that he communicates fine, he does speak really badly with lots of mistakes. I don’t agree with him that you shouldn’t care about that… and that was his main point in that video. You shouldn’t be so scared of making mistakes that you don’t speak, of course, but to hear someone like him who has spoken the language for decades and can’t properly use even the accusative or genitive cases is incomprehensible for me. But I guess all he cares about is communicating enough to manipulate women into sleeping with him, so his “interest” in the language is probably quite a bit different…
In 1980s I used to travel Aeroflot with a layover in Moscow. It was amazing how brilliantly so many Russians spoke English! I think students of English were targeting tourists to get some conversation.😅As a language teacher, I wondered which techniques they were using in the classroom in those days with no internet to help as they spoke so well. Thanks for this Roman. Your English is a marvel, (especially for a Chinese major) but you have a fine mind which always helps in acquiring any knowledge…..and a great sense of cynical humor too!
I’m French and everything you said reminded me of my own experience. I never made spelling mistakes in French (probably because i spent my time reading as a child), i also learned English through constant consumption of music and yt content, and I’m basically known to be the one that’s fluent in English in my family as well as at school. Actually, I’ve always had a certain fascination for it. On the other hand, German is supposed to be my second language (while English is third), but despite having studied it for over 6 years, I don’t really speak it. Now I’m trying to learn more languages this way, starting with Russian, because I’ve recently discovered a Kazakh artist who sings in Russian quite a lot and I like learning new alphabets. I’ll really have to motivate myself for German one day… PS. About your accent it’s actually really good, there is an obvious accent but if i didn’t know where you came from i probably wouldn’t be able to guess it on the first try. You just don’t elude consonants, especially t’s, as much as a native speaker would. Your vowels are also very open. But none of this is shocking to me
Having an accent doesn't necessarily mean you have to work to erase it. You just have a very deep & distinct voice. Sometimes it reminds me of Arnold Swarzenegger, and there is certainly nothing wrong with the way Arnold speaks English.
Здарова, Рома! Ты очень вдохновляющий пример для всей молодежи, спасибо за видосы, позицию, юмор и вайб твоего контента. Привет из солнечной Якутии, желаю тебе реализации всех приколдэсов и чтобы вдохновение не покидало!
My Russian wife has been in the USA since 96, she came at 23. She speaks perfect English. However, she still has an accent. And, so humerus she makes up words. But the words make sense. Love her so much. 😂❤
Hello there I can’t put into words how much I relate to your experience with learning English and the “feeling” of speaking English. I’m from Costa Rica, and I learned English from content just like you did (mostly from yu gi oh cards and video games first and reading novels in English later in life). I’ve had to work in a bilingual environment all my professional life and I always get comments on how good my English, even tho I don’t know any of the actually rules like you. I mostly play it by ear and just try to mimic native speakers as much as I can. One time at work I had an exchange with an English professor who also commented on my speech and use of the language. I will never forget the advise he gave me: he explained how the tempo or rhythm of my speech pattern should put emphasis in the important words of each sentence by dragging them a bit and by speeding by the less important words (articles, pronouns for example). Spanish puts the same tempo on each syllable, regardless of the word, so it was a hard change to make at first but it has helped all these years lol
Roman, as a fellow Russian linguistic graduate, I totally get where you're coming from. Honestly, we probably studied from the same Blokh textbook. Basically, in most linguistic faculties in Russia you have old Soviet-era grammar text books which put in a heavy emphasis on the structure of language rather than its practical use. So stuff like idioms is either neglected or strongly outdated. Infact when I was university there was a massive split in terms of older teachers that got their English through academia and the little Western media that was around in the USSR (Kind of how every old Russian teacher's English sounds like Margaret Thatcher) and the younger millennial teachers that watch media from native speakers. Grammar and spelling is important, but that approach to language neglects the fact that most humans absorb language like a sponge through their media and social interaction. Sort of why constructed languages are really niche or never take off, since you need a critical mass for them to become actual living entities. And yeah, the hardest part of teaching English is to get older people to understand idioms and slang, which teenagers just unconsciously pick up through Tiktok or whatnot. I had this teaching gig at an online school back during the pandemic and there were two students I had to work with. One was a kid that had near-perfect spoken English due to his parents putting him in front of English-language Cartoon Network for hours unattended and the other one was this girl from a strict household that was a straight A student. The first kid used the language to express what he was thinking about the task at hand, even if he made quite a lot of mistakes in his written tasks. The second kid actually was slower in her development since she avoided making mistakes rather than experimenting with new grammas constructs or idioms. Basically the way I approach any language is that it's ultimately a took for communication first and a set of defined rules second, which unfortunately doesn't fit into our kind of education system.
I have never once thought you speak English weirdly! As someone who loves learning languages but is very bad at it I’ve always thought your English is just plain impressive and an inspiration. Keep up the great content!
As an American who only speaks English I have to say that I’ve always been impressed with the fact you can speak English so well. I didn’t know you’d never been to an English speaking country either that’s amazing to me because you sound like you were raised here in California or something. I think what people are talking about with your “accent” is the sound of the words you say them in a very low register and it gives the vibe of a Russian speaker. To Americans that’s all we hear when we hear Russians speak Russian to each other it’s very monotone very low range. That’s just my personal opinion you don’t need to change a single thing you’re doing great. I’ve been watching you since last year when this whole thing happened in Ukraine and I feel for you having to leave your native country and having to move to Georgia due to the political instability that’s going on in Russia right now and you’ve always been positive and laughing about your troubles and I admire that. Keep up the good work Roman!
I’m an Aussie with Scottish parents. I was also an exchange student in Germany. I did an online test and would probably be a C1 German speaker, but can’t read or write at that level. I also speak German with an accent, but people think I’m Dutch. There are many different accents around the world, and I love how everyone is different. If I could speak German the way you speak English I would be so happy!
An accent isn't really something you make better or worse. Enunciation is and yours is fine. The thing is no matter how good you are, when a native English speaker hears you talk, they can guess your native language is probably Russian. It's not really a skill to language, it's a color or flavor; and being able to enunciate clearly with a strong accent is a compliment -- I believe he was complimenting you
As a Polish person who grew up in the UK with English at school and Polish at home. Speaking with what I'd consider a proper Polish accent like Roman with Russian is very difficult.
As somebody who has worked retail in the UK, your English is genuinely better than the vast majority of the general british public.
British people don’t speak English
Especially scousers
you dont even need to work in the uk just go to a town center
💯💯💯
especially cockney
First, I am a 70yo boomer from the USA. I stumbled upon your clips when you and bald were touring Russia. I have been watching you for several years. So, DO NOT change a thing about your English. I understand most everything you discuss, and bad words do not upset me. I lived in Germany for five years, and I had great difficulty with the language. You have done well. You speak in complete sentences. Go forth and conquer. BTW, I like accents. Makes life more interesting.
What’s interesting is my son started looking at German and naturally understood it. He’s been teaching himself and it’s going quite well. He speaks English quite well including grammar, homonyms, homophones, spelling and sentence structure. Now he’s doing the same thing with German. He’s a junior in college and has been taking French but he sucks at it. So he’s changing to German so he can graduate. English is Germanic language and French is a Romance language. I think that’s the real difference.
yup accents are cool we shouldnt try to assimilate accents and dialects like some do
@@aspenenglish4976 French is weird where if you speak German or English there are a crap ton of words that are similar to the Germanic tree. Because in the 7th century Germanic Franks settled in the area and created the Frankish Empire. But as someone who speaks also Italian. There are a lot of similar Romance language words between Spanish & Italian to French. And a few Celt words similar to Scottish and Irish. In a nutshell. French is a mixed language which is very complicated
@@elsiehuppoh I hadn’t considered this!
@@stupidstudiosproductions2179hey,Mann,previously you were good,but then spoilt
As an American I have always been impressed about your English. You get the satire, and the speed you can speak is amazing. You would completely blend into the population in the US.
It sounds like Queens, NYC.
People think they know the New York/New Jersey accent but it has subdivisions like Queens. Go listen to Joey or Johnny Ramone, have you heard them talk?
Tell me this TH-camr doesn't have the same accent as the Ramones.
He clearly learned Queens, NY English in Russia somehow.
@@chrisrus1965look up Lex Fridman
not really, his fake american accent is so obvious
@@chrisrus1965roman said he played gta iv on his Xbox with English subtitles when he was a kid with no internet, and the game is set in a fictional New York
@@TheGamingChad. besides english, nfkrz knows russian and chinese. and you know none, but english
I’m also an English teacher and he is 100% right - there are maybe second language English speakers that have less of an accent, but you speak the language naturally and organically like a native speaker. It’s obvious that you really do feel the language, thanks to your deep interest in English language culture. All of my best students have that in common - they are into English language films, shows or literature. They are always the best speakers and much better than those who studied English for years.
as a Russian speaker I can confidently say that Roman speak English so good that even his Russian is now English-accented lmao
He is the Messi of Russian TH-camrs who speak English.
"Feeling the language" wtf does that mean?
telling you, he wants to feel Roman's breath on his lips and neck, call it a, gut.....
✌"FEELING"✌
bet this is a way to get Roman's attention and a way to, slide into this private messenger
are you gonna start feeling the need to slide into his DMs too?
@@PresidentElectA1-Abrams tf u on about, why are you spamming this all over the comment section
Your accent is you. Don't lose it. If you fake it then it's not you. It is whatever it is. Please let it develop naturally.
Roman has an almost Long Island accent from near New York City. i feel like he would be a guy who would say
"cawffee" instead of "coffee". there's nothing wrong with the accent at all, its extremely rare for non native speakers to completely drop their accent and they will nearly always pronounce some words in a slightly strange manner. Oh and by the way roman if you read this, I've been teaching English for five years and even I can't answer my students grammar questions so don't worry about it. If you do open an English learning channel you should focus on feeling the language rather than speaking the language ;)
@@rsweeneydhl Roman becoming a Long Islander would possibly be the greatest thing ever
@@rsweeneydhlHave you heard of Lex Fridman? He's a perfect example of a Russian who sounds like they're from New York. Seems to be a natural tendency for them.
100% agreed. Don’t fake your accent
The fact that he rolled his eyes when saying "to whom it may concern" and "best regards" shows he feels the language. Understanding what is cringe is probably one of the last things you get when you are learning another language because it requires so much experience and cultural knowledge
Roman, as an American, I can say your English has always amazed me. Your accent is very slight and the whole manner in which you speak is just like an American. You speak like someone in the U.S. whose parents came from Russia or who himself came from Russia when he was 8 years old or something, seriously. You do absolutely feel and speak the language very naturally.
Agreed!
Also agree, better than everyone south of the Mason Dixon line and west of the Mississippi river.
I actually like his english, because it‘s not perfect. Because it keeps a litte twang, so his russian is also recognizable at him. I think I wouldn‘t guess where he is coming from - at least as long as he doesnt have a rolling r.
Roman, dont fix your accent
@@AWildTWOcard That is not a very high standard but I totally agree!
Dude…he has a deep Russian accent 😂😂but speaks English perfect.
I literally almost thought you were from Boston when I first discovered your channel
I met an international student from Korea several years ago. His accent was unlike any other Korean student I have ever experienced. Note: I have met international students with *zero* accent that would normally be associated with their country of origin, but his was notably unique.
One day we were drinking (heavily) with friends and someone asked him the origin of this way of speaking. His answer was that he learned English by watching Sylvester Stallone films...
In that frame, everything made sense, he nailed that accent perfectly.
Omg. Lol. See. This is when a language teacher can actually be really helpful. They can at least point out when your language immersion material might be a little bit contorted.
I've heard Japanese people say similar things about Americans who learned Japanese from anime, which apparently has a very exaggerated style with it's own idioms. Lol.
lmao, as a Korean, we must ban Sylvester Stallone movies (and Arnie Schwarzenegger) 🤣
POOT THAT COOKIE DOWN!!!! NOW!!!!
like a tiger at the zoo
This sorta reminds me of a story I heard about an American who spoke Japanese with a Russian accent because his Japanese teacher was Russian lmao
Roman, as an English tutor, I've been bragging about you to my students forever 😅 I've always been so impressed by your feel for the language, but also extremely jealous as a language learner myself. I just hope one day I can speak my second and third languages as well as you speak English! (Also, even though I'm a native speaker, I learn English slang from you, lol)
As a native English speaker who is by all accounts the Roman of Portuguese-learning, I am so glad you're getting this recognition. People fall over themselves to tell me how great my Portuguese is because the fact that an English-speaker is learning a language at all is shocking to many, but to be actually good at it is almost unheard of. But we're only doing what non-English-speakers do all the time with English and you guys never get anything like the credit we do, so to see you getting your dues is awesome. Roman, you fucking own this English shit, it is your bitch. Well done mate!
Can I test you? You only become a true Portuguese speaker when you know what "Portugal Caralho!" truly means and the power of it.
E claro, eu estou apenas a brincar.
Can you please give me some pointers or let me know some good content for learning brazillian portuguese
@@tiagooliveira95 haha, pois tenho más notícias pra você então - aprendi aquela maldita forma corrupta* da língua portuguesa que se fala lá no Brasil. Mas graças aos meus amigos e colegas portugueses já ouvi a famosa frase (e vi que até tem meme).
*falo com carinho, e com cuidado, não quero apanhar dos brasileiros, que povo de sangue quente!
I would in fact be very interested in see a video of you speaking in Portuguese. As a native Portuguese speaker from Brazil who has been a dick about the Portuguese language, correct grammar and pronunciation throughout my life in fact I almost never have seen a "gringo" (word for foreigner, here we do not use it offensively or as a slur) who I would consider that great in Portuguese pronunciation...but maybe I would be surprised. I am very curious to see if that would be the case 🥺
@@dedhart Hmmmm there are many good channels on TH-cam but, as a life tip I've been using through my whole life to learn new languages...if you want to have great pronunciation, accent and conversational skills, focus first on learning the phonemes, the SOUNDS of the language...and I think there is no better way to do this than the classic: watch movies, series and listen to music you may like with both the audio and lyrics in the SAME language, the one you wanna learn. So first always watch and listen to stuff in Portuguese with PORTUGUESE lyrics (sorry for the upper case haha). First get used to the sounds of the language, the ways Brazilian "sing" when talking, the pronunciation, the rhythms and tone, you should pause every so often and try to imitate the pronunciation, the sounds, the singing, even look to yourself in the mirror and try to imitate the acting...just after you go for grammar and watch/listen to the same material with lyrics in your language. It's slower than going immediately for grammar, but I am sure you will like the results much better, because instead of you learning Portuguese with English (or your native language's) phoenetics, you first learn with the Portuguese phoenetics. Just be sure of whether you wanna learn Brazilian Portuguese or...Portuguese Portuguese haha, because despite being the same language they sound very far apart (I, myself, as a Brazilian, I have a lot of difficulty listening and understanding some Portuguese friends lol)
I’ve always thought you speak English very naturally, basically like a native. It’s not just accent, grammar, etc, but the sum total of the way you express yourself in the language. Props!
Edit: As the video alludes to language is primarily cultural and no set of rules or book can substitute for that. Your immersive approach to consuming cultural content is key
It’s your happy laugh that I love.
You do have a superior command of the language for someone who was not born a native English speaker. You even know all the slang and nuances everything else in between. ESPECIALLY considering you’ve never even LIVED in the west. It is without a doubt an impressive and rare feat to accomplish Roman.
I feel like Roman has basically lived in the English-Speaking internet for most of his life.
Most foreginers that learned english on the internet and trough media know english like roman
To be fair, we live in the age of the internet.
English slang is the first anyone can learn just by being online.
As a kid, I'm sure I watched waaay too much television. At the age of 14, I could easily perform 60-70 different voice impersonations...everything from cartoon characters to U.S. presidents, celebrities and even international dialects. As an adult, I simply don't have the time to practice but can still do a mean Scooby Doo, Yoda and several dialects. So I feel like I'm a unofficial expert. Your understanding of English probably hasn't improved that much because you already had a strong foundation. But the way you pronounce words is significantly better than the early days. Based on the way you speak now, I bet if you came to the USA no one would know unless they already knew who you were or you told them.
Indubitably
Sounds like that you are better than others is not because you studied English but more like because you immersed yourself in English. Good job, Roman.
You can immerse all you want but it will only train your listening and understanding skills. To train your speaking skills you need to constantly talk nd that's where the problems lie if you're not an extroverted talkative person. Those kind of people become fluent much faster while I struggle to keep the conversation even in my native language, let alone foreign language. Most of the time I just don't know what to say next and feel like I'm panicking trying to quickly come up with a next thing to say. It's very tiring.
Hey @HaohmaruHL, I believe you will improve over time. To become proficient in speaking English, I suggest you listen to at least 2000 hours of English and read as well. Learning a language like a kid learns their first language is the best way to become highly proficient. Keep at it! By the way, it's important to remember that English is simply a tool for communication. Your other skills may be more valuable, particularly if you're living in a foreign country. Consider exploring new areas of interest and expanding your knowledge.
@@HaohmaruHL try to reproduce things, repeat phrases from movies, sing songs and etc, that's the only way to sound natural and that's a loooong road.
I’m a British guy who taught English in Russia (Moscow) for a few years. I never heard anyone speak as well as you when I was there. Also better than most people in my native country haha. Молодец братуха, поздравляю тебя
You are a bit of a natural like Dave said a bit like a songwriter who can just write amazing songs without knowing anything about music or a great football player. Most people wont get to your level.
A lot of people do, just by consuming content, that was his point, i think . By the way, that братуха was on point haha
@@xenialove2032 спасибо, московская улица меня научила пить, курить и самому главному - говорить по русски. yeah I know but it’s really messed up in the uk to the point that British people can’t understand each other sometimes
Here's a Russian who speaks much better English than this guy, and without a thick Russian accent.
youtube.com/@RussianPlus
@@SirKeirStarmtrooper some british accents are полный пиздец
@@german_novotiable большинство
Kudos to you, Roman.
Mastering a language is a long and arduous task, but you did it. You may not see the details of the path you've traversed, but you certainly have reached a level of fluency many would envy.
Love the way Roman speaks. It's perfect English but with a slight Russian touch which makes it unique
most people who try to pronounce words correctly and hide the accent sound like that
I’m a native English speaker (Scottish) and your English is definitely first class. Amazing you’ve learned it without visiting an English speaking country. He’s correct that you speak like a native English speaker.
he without a doubt has an accent that I'd recognize within a sentence or two, but he talks like an English speaking native and I think that's alot more important. I'd definitely prefer that over the girl that had a better accent but didn't talk like a native English speaker.
I had a Russian friend that moved to America when he was 17. In 2002 I went to Russia with him for 3 weeks. He had lived in America for 5 years at that point. We were at a museum in Moscow looking at art. The description talking about the art was written in Russian and English. He read the description to us in English. He read some big words that I didn’t understand (in english) I asked him what that meant without thinking and he told me what the English words meant. Afterwards I was like ‘damn’ you have gotten good at English.
Russian language does not have the same amount of words the English language does. Most translations wouldn’t make sense in English or there is no direct translation so most likely just made up
Or maybe he just read the translation in Russian and then explained it
As a French native speaker from Quebec, I really have to thank video games (those with huge amount of texts) for teaching me English very early on. I still wasn't perfect at it, but it did make my first English school in my 20s a much better experience than if I hadn't known the language.
Games in English really helped me imrpove my English skills as well. Also early days illegal movie downloads without subtitles.
Same, now i play games with only english subtitles+dialogues. Really helps me keep up while not having an active contact with any native speakers.
I'm from the other side of Canada, maybe I should do what you did, but in reverse. In B.C. our French Immersion schools are few and far between, and the fact that they exist at all is really telling about how unused French is here. I hear ten times more Hindi, Mandarin or Japanese on a daily basis than French here. And basically, the only exposure anyone has to French here are the alternate labels on packaging that they don't look at anyway.
Basically, unless people here want to work in the government or travel to Quebec, France or Belgium, they have no reason to learn it.
Would watching Netflix shows in the native language help to learn Spanish, French, etc.?
Les échanges verbaux peu pacifiques avec les joueurs de mon équipe dans League of Legends ont bâti les fondations de mon anglais lol
i would have to agree with Dave that you are one of the best non native English speakers i've ever heard. The fact you've never been to an english speaking country is incredible and really you're a poster child for the internet generation.
The most shocking part for me is that Roman still hasn't been to an English-speaking country yet. But has already mastered English at an almost native level.
The fact that you speak so well despite never even going to an English speaking country is extremely impressive. From personal experience, I’m an English speaking Canadian who took French immersion throughout grade school and even I could not become truly fluent in French until I moved to Montreal 3 years ago (the largest city in French-speaking Canada for those who don’t know)
I think it don't actually matter if you go to the target language country. It matter's how much content in that language you consume per day.
@alexkozliayev9902 you gotta practice output too unless your goals are strictly consumption of art and entertainment
@@malapertfourohfour2112 most of the people who get this good don't start practicing output until they already know the language
People who try to learn by moving to the country end up having bad habits because they are forced to speak and they can't afford to slow down
"Feeling the language" wtf does that mean?
telling you, he wants to feel Roman's breath on his lips and neck, call it a, gut.....
✌"FEELING"✌
"Feeling the language" wtf does that mean?
telling you, he wants to feel Roman's breath on his lips and neck, call it a, gut.....
✌"FEELING"✌
bet this is a way to get Roman's attention and a way to, slide into this private messenger
Roman, I swear to god you’ve got to get a career in the media at some point. You’re a great communicator
He already (kind of) does. TH-cam is a far greater (social) media than any TV broadcaster in any country. It can just reach a far bigger audience. It would be a downgrade to move to a traditional TV channel imo.
Agreed, but since he's watched Dave's video, I've been having a little trouble fitting 'Roman Messi's' head on my screen!
@@rossevans1774 I've watched his intro now where he's 'flexing' 3 times...soooo damn funny!
He would be good on British TV channel "Channel Four". It focuses on liberal, youth content.
he basically is already doing that. Consider this video as an example, it entertainment and information
I'm Bulgarian and I'm fluent in english with practically no accent and I learned it the exact same way as Roman. From video games and movies plus being on the internet since I was very, very young. I've not yet been to any majority english speaking country either. This video has been very relatable and cool to see people who've learned the language the way we did get some more recognition.
i was similar but since i actually live in ireland too and have since i was like 3 or so, i have also been taught english in school since the age of six
but my initial knowledge was entirely radio, tv, internet and video games
Same, but as a Macedonian citizen. 🇲🇰 (Как е времето сега?)
@@jovan-noble-guy749ти си Българин
Everyone has an accent
@@krwnik8419 Леле колку сте вие биле инаетливи, за инает го повторувате тоа бреј. 😒😟
Ma dude, I am a professional ESL teacher and a linguist with over 18 years of experience. I discovered your channel while trying to cope with depression brought about by the war (THE war, you know which one I’m talking about), and I was stunned with your level of fluency and natural sounding (not talking about the accent but more the feeling for the language thank most foreigners I know and work with can only dream of). Kudos to you and thank you for your stance on the current political nightmare that Russia has become ❤
depression brought about by the war?
Toughen up snowflake. There is NO time for that now innocents are dying.
It is because of snowflakes rhetoric the war happened. Its the blatant display weakness that always invites bandits. Toughen up snowflakes.
Bandits would just forget about it if free societies are always at the ready and known to be tough!
There are a lot of wars, like the one in Syria.^^
@@tomswan3401 i think she is ACTUALLY referring to the "special military operation" (but i think you probably already knew that?)
I stumbled upon his channel the same way and for the same reasons! Roman speaks with the remarkable fluency of a native speaker. I feel like his accent is not necessarily that of someone who is learning English as a second language, but a mosaic of different native English speaker accents. Maybe different regions of the US with some additional twists from native English speakers from other parts of the world? Any thoughts on this, from a linguist perspective? I know that being a linguist is pretty broad. You may not be a speech and language pathologist or accent coach, but I would love to hear someone with that specific knowledge chime in.
And I do not say this to try to make Roman self conscious - only because he asked us to share what we notice about his 'accent'. We love you Roman!
@@mr_seth I am actually a phonetician hahah and you are right, his accent is a mix of several accent norms :)
Hey РОМАН, I've followed you for years and always love your content. I'm mid 30's from California and a native English speaker.
You definitely have a moderate accent and it's apparent immediately (to me). Regardless, everything that guy said about your skills was correct - you are 100% C2 level and practically a native. I expect anything I said to you in a verbal English conversation would be absolutely captured.
What you said about knowing the rules for English or Russian is 100% true - I've been learning Russian for a year and I've had this conversation with native speakers of both languages. Natives generally don't know the grammar rules for their own language - they've developed an intuition for the language instead. It's so cool that you achieved this for a second language! I pondered if it was possible or what the maximum age for this method to work might be.
You pointed out, correctly, how much your accent has improved by showing some old video-game footage. But if we are trying to be objective, perhaps imagine that your current accent is right in the middle of where it was before in the example and where you "believe" it is now.
You got rid of the Russian X sound in your h's and your Z doesn't sound like the Russian З anymore. Your accent is most apparent to me in a few ways:
1. I know English speakers do this also (hello Tennessee!) but you drop so many g's in words endin' with ing. Natives do this with some words more than others (ie I was runnin' or I was shoppin' or I was washin') often with verbs - but we don't do it often with nouns. We might say "I was buildin' something" but we would never say "I went into the buildin" (unless you're from Tennessee). We say 100% "I went into the building." and you have to land on that G.
2. Your Th and T sounds have an accent. In my journey to learn Russian I've noticed how the consonant Д can sort of sound like an English T and D blended together (I guess like В it can have a hard V sound or soft F sound). Sometimes (to me) your Th sounds like this. You aren't saying "THat" you are saying "Дat" 6:18
3. You speak with a Russian 'breath'. I'm still terrible at Russian a year in, but I really had to change the pressure coming from my lungs and force a more 'nasal' presence from my voice in order to pronounce things properly in Russian. (Literally the sounds originate from a higher position within my mouth). I speak English and I feel half of it all coming off the back of my tongue. But to make Russian sounds properly I'm concentrating more on the roof of my mouth and nasal area to generate sound. You're still using you're Russian breath to make English sounds. It's why the other woman being critiqued in the video sounds more like a native than you do. You fixed 98% of your vowel/consonant sounds but not your 'breath'. She fixed her breath but as many vowel/consonant sounds as you did so you were able to pick them out.
3. cont. At 16:24 when you say the word "friends" there is quite an accent. Notice how sounding out the Russian Ж for a couple seconds that the front of your face kinda vibrates?
3. cont. When you say "friends" the eeee sound you are making is coming from the front of your mouth just like Ж. But when I say it the eeee sound comes from the back of my throat down where my tongue attaches. Same with the word 'ending' or 'end'. Nothing coming from up front. It's all the back of my tongue bouncing around. I suppose in the southern US or if speaking 'proper' UK English they sound it out more like you. But to my US west coast ears it sticks out.
3. cont. But honestly? In my opinion this change is only necessary for the English speaker to make Russian sounds properly. I think the other way around isn't required and it just makes you sound a bit like a Chad with a booming voice or something. Honestly I wouldn't even try to 'fix' this part if I was you cause it sounds kinda boss.
Anyways, this comment is basically me sitting in the bleachers criticizing, you know, an Olympic athlete explaining to them how they can go from a 9.8 to a 9.9 like I'm some sort of expert... plus which 'accent' is proper anyways? Do we go by the natives in England? Or how the most number of people speak it (USA)? It's not even fucking consistent in the USA. There's no right answer and you're going to keep sounding more and more 'native' as time goes.
I'd much rather have your understand of a foreign language than that of the other woman who was being critiqued in the video. It's like you said; most native speakers (including myself) are not even ourselves equipped to teach English grammar rules - so if you want to sound like the average native how could it be a goal to be able to explain all the grammar rules?
You're amazing bro and I hope so much that my Russian is as strong as your English someday. Keep it up.
This is brilliant analysis, and summarizes some of the same stuff I was going to point out!
Oh let's teach each other, I am russian speaking studying English for a long, long time!.. :)
I honestly think a lot of your points are specific to certain English accents. I'm a Scottish person living in London who speaks UK English, and I can't really relate to what you're saying. For example, when I say "friends", I say it with the "eh" sound from the front like Roman does (although mine has a more Scottish tint ofc); that sound coming from the back of the throat as you describe is definitely more typical of a Californian accent.
I do think this raises an interesting issue though, which might be relevant. I've noticed over the years that when non-native speakers of English get to such an incredibly high level as Roman has (living in London has meant I've met quite a few of these amazing people), the thing that stops them from having an accent that sounds 100% perfectly native is that their influences are mixed.
What that means is that, although they largely speak with one specific accent that they've focused on while learning, they have the odd consonant or vowel sound that they've subconsciously taken from a different English accent. Because English is so widely spoken across the world, there must be thousands of different accents spread among the different large subgroups of accents, so it's pretty much impossible to learn English as a non-native speaker and not do this, unless you get hothoused in one specific environment from a relatively young age (e.g. going to a boarding school when you're 10 or something). Native English speakers are very good at spotting when someone's speaking an inconsistent accent of English, even if it's just in the tiny details.
So I think this is where Roman is at now. I guess what I'm basically arguing is that he doesn't actually have a Russian accent - he has a slight international accent. He's largely focused on learning gamer/rapper US-style English, but I bet he's watched some UK TV shows too. Over time, that means he's developed an accent that is pretty US-English focused but has influences from other areas. Personally, I think he's come far enough, and shouldn't worry about trying to tweak his accent any further. Unless he decides he wants to master one very specific English language accent, of course. But who has time for that in these crazy days? :)
Interesting analysis. I do want to mention that your first point dabbles into Ebonics, which is a sensitive topic of its own, and I just don't think it matters all that much. People don't usually notice someone getting rid of the g's at the end of words unless it's in a super professional setting and everyone has to talk in standard English.
Great analysis!
I’m a middle- aged American mom and my daughter is 20 and this video was so great because since we first stumbled onto your channel (also after seeing you on Bald’s), we have been amazed at how well you speak English and in such an easy feeling way. It is amazing. Your “turns-of-phrase” and how and when you use them are truly amazing for someone who has never lived here in the U.S. His critique of your “feeling” the language put a label on what we have been so amazed about, and was really “right on” in describing how native sounding your English is. Now, you do have an accent but it doesn’t matter and is actually fun to listen to. But compared to the hard Russian accent you demonstrated, then your accent is not so pronounced certainly. We love you- 😊
Thanks!
You also have an accent compared to an actual English person.
Native New Yorker here and you would fit in there without question. In Little Odessa, the accents can be much stronger, let alone anywhere else in B’klyn or Queens. I went to school with several kids whose families emigrated from the USSR, and their accents were all over the place. That you have never set foot in a native English-speaking country is downright amazing.
I had a friend in Abu Dhabi who had never been to an English-speaking country but he sounded completely American. When I asked him how he learned such a perfect (American) English accent, he said "I had the best possible teachers. Brad Pitt, Robert DeNiro..."
And them everybody clapped
And then they clapped me
@@pomtubes1205 and then i came in and then i clapping when the came in and then when the😃yea
@@pomtubes1205It’s not really that unbelievable. I have the same exact experience like he mentioned, I’ve never been outside my home country and grew up watching stuff in English and now I speak and write English like a native.
I'm English and must say your English is very good though you have what I would call a Mid-Atlantic accent which is a slightly Americanised English accent.
My adopted daughter is Kazakh and couldn't speak a word of English up to the age of 12, her first language being Kazakh and second Russian. She now speaks accentless English and people believe she's English born. She studied as a Bio Physicist, earned a degree in the UK and then her Masters. She's now doing her Doctorate at Oxford.
One smart cookie
As an English teacher myself, I'm so glad your skills are recognized. I just wish it wasn't through a native speaker criticizing someone whose mother tongue isn't English. Keep it up Roman, you're amazing
Here's a critique from an actual EFL (English As A Foreign Language) teacher: your English is damned good. Sure, you have an accent but it's very mild and could be mistaken for a native New Yorker by Americans not from New York. If my French were as good as your English, i would be very happy. You have managed to incorporate immersion techniques into your study of the language without actually going to an English-speaking country. Quite an accomplishment!
That's what I always hear, New-Yawkah !
Yep, when I first hear him, I thought he must have spent a significant amount of time in New York (or at least around New Yorkers.)
"damned good"? Is that really the way how it should be writen and spoken because i have never seen that. I could imagine the guy from the video wouldn't find that native^^
@@holgerlinke98damn if you do, damned if you don't. Joke aside, nobody writes the present of "damn" "damned", that's the first time I seen it like that, if that the correct way 99%of us are damn bad at English.
@@grandsome1 @holgerlinke98 It's correct, as in "having been damned (cursed)".
I've always been impressed with your English. Your accent is almost flawless. The only time that English throws you off is if you use a word you're not used to. Your hip-hop background gives you a New Jersey accent.
Well he says "anything" quite a bit and the "n" is always botched
I don't get what he meant by has a strong accent because every one has an accent. like he has an American accent because he's American. As an Englishman I could say that this English teacher's English is not that good because his American accent is to strong. Don't make sense.
@@unohoo214 and "p" is never aspirates
I was thinking more Long Island- ISH but most definitely he has a New York metro accent. He would be happy in New York within commuting distance of the City or in the City proper.
His accent is thick, but his English skills are awesome for his region of birth. Eastern Europeans and Russians are known for their basic English skills. But I should not compare or discredit it, I am from Germany, the top country where English is not a native language but around 60% of people speak it like their mother tongue, so Roman is really having great vocab and grammar skills
As a Russian myself, I'll be completely honest - I was NOT expecting that kind of English when I clicked on this video. Your english is way too good for me to actually process that you're a russian quickly - I usually understand the native russian accent in around 2 seconds, but you definitely kept me going and feeling your english-speaking abilities. Being honest, I also was the English-speaking kid in my family and I believe you are actually better than me at it! Back in school, I was one of the 5,000 fifth-graders in Moscow who did an English test without any mistakes AND the only one in my class. You are so good lol, keep up your great work!
I’d actually be down to see Roman doing a kind of Russian-English comparison or tutorial videos, using a mix of both throughout to create a resource anyone could use to “practice” Russian and English. He’d definitely need a bi-lingual editor who’d be willing to help him for free or dirt cheap to make this possible, but I think it could be an awesome premise to bridge the perceived cultural gap.
"Feeling the language" wtf does that mean?
telling you, he wants to feel Roman's breath on his lips and neck, call it a, gut.....
✌"FEELING"✌
bet this is a way to get Roman's attention and a way to, slide into this private messenger
Your reaction is hilarious. Good for you Roman. Bask in the glory
Accents and personal speech quirks are my favorite thing ever. As unique as your fingerprint
I am 72. I have a BSBA and a MFA in liberal arts. I live in a area with a lot of Spanish speaking people who don't know English, and not being able to talk to so many people eventually got to me so I started learning Spanish. That has taught me that I hardly know any English grammar rules at all yet I normally have no issues at all using proper English grammar. As a matter of fact, I generally write at a level that gives a lot of English speakers trouble understanding what i write, so years ago I used a text analysis software program to teach myself how to write consistently at the eighth grade level for business purposes. So I found it quite interesting that Roman doesn't know English grammar rules either.
As an ethnic Russian born in Sweden having consumed as much international content in English as you have: if it isn’t your first language since birth it is likely people will notice some kind of accent, for me that is Russian AND English. Love your content btw братан
Yeah, same. I moved from Russia at 11 to the Netherlands and still speak both English and Russian well. Roman is doing epic work connecting the two worlds.
Ps. Наш братан
So true dude, so true. I have always been literally blown away by your English and how incredibly fluently you speak it. Also love your spontaniety and from the heart style in general.
Roman, I am a Hungarian EU migrant living in the UK for almost 17 years now. I have been studying English for many years before we came over here but I had to realize the English I was studying accent wise was very US based. Many words I have learnt was pronounced differently, even the fraise to say "Have a good day" made me look silly. People in the UK say "Have a nice day" instead. It was a slap in the face. Then came the realisation of spelling differences and the accent. I have learnt not only from school but from movies and music lyrics and most of them was US English. Fast forward to today I am still speaking a type of English everyone can understand but cannot place it anywhere. It is one part British one part US and probably I have picked up some slang from Manchester and London too. Your accent to a British person will never go away entirely because you or me cannot hear the very small details what sell us out. They can literally determine just by the accent where the person is from within the UK! A language coach (what actors use) can do some miracles but they're not cheap. You just stay as you are and if people don't watch your vids because of your (to me not very noticeable) accent, f*ck them. 1.17M of us will do.
As a naitive Br'iish I like hearing other non native english speakers speak. It's no shame to have an accent really. Like you've put the effort in to learn another language and as long as your understandable most people don't care what you sound like.
I've been learning Spanish and I'm pretty sure my Spanish accent sounds wack to native Spanish speakers but I don't think I'll be able to change that really. Even then the way I've been learning is probably closer to south american spanish rather than castilian.
@@IdiotRace You are very kind and thanks for your comment. It is still somehow bothering me sometimes because I wanted nothing less than fitting in and develop my language skill to a level when no native can pick up a sign I am from abroad. It was probably for reasons why Brexit came by. I work in construction as a civil engineer (a very inner facing part of society) and I am expected to express myself on a high level in meetings and if I feel my language skill cannot deliver the message adequately my opinion will be taken as of less value. Often thought the people I was talking to had a first thought I didn't want them to have: "all right here is another bloke from the EU why the heck is he here doing what a British bloke should be doing". In the canteens there were always The Sun and Daily Mail laying around. Over many years I've stepped over this barrier by proving that what I say is what I do and the concerns I raise about engineering are worthy to consider. My daughter who was born here is my best language coach I can wish for. She is always keen to correct me when my Mancunian is incorrect because over 9 years in London I took quite a bit of Cockney (perhaps?) and the Queen's English mixture with me. In Greater Manchester were we live these are very distinguishable. :D
hey man after reading all this your english is fine typing wise better than alot of americans
hedz ap fraise shuld be phrase
I've taught English to many Russian students over the years and I'm very impressed by your usage of articles. It's the biggest challenge my students had. I'd love to know how you overcame that challenge.
I totally agree, as a slavic language native speaker it's freaking hard to use the correct article sometimes. Because we just don't have them lmao. God, i wish i was born in an english speaking family so i wouldn't have to learn all this shit. Also, i was struggling with perfect forms of tenses, but recently i got it. We even have kind of a prototype to it. Like adding in the start of a word "про". For example: работал - проработал. But articles is still the hardest thing to learn.
I'm a native English speaker and don't even remember what an article is.
It probably has to do with the way he learned English. The way he learned is like how we learn our mother tongue basically. I learned English the same way as him (not with exactly the same content but still through games, English TH-cam videos, generally reading, watching stuff on the Internet etc. I also had private tutors though for some time (2, one at like 10 for 2 months I think and another one that prepared me for the English exam which I passed at like 92%).
I'm Russian and tbh I think what did it for me is just hearing the words used with articles and remembering which ones go with what words, I would never be able to tell you what groups of words use the definite article and what don't, but I would use the article correctly like 98% of the time
I think that genuinely, for a lot of Russians from my social circle, and me included, it was interacting with various English media that did the trick, just encountering the same constructions over and over again and remembering them bc of frequent use
@@RT-qd8yl "the" and "a"
Roman you are amazing. I am a native English speaker who taught foreign languages. Your English is truly fantastic and you do “feel” the language.
I started following Russian TH-camrs last year after the war in Ukraine began. I had a little problem with the way ZAC or NIKKI or DEPRESSED RUSSIAN or CRAZY RUSSIAN articulated their thoughts in English, but not so with NFKRZ. ROMAN talks fast but his diction is clear and understandable. He is also very articulate and funny. He is a lot more incisive and bold in his commentaries too. I like this guy.
He's great, articulate and funny is the perfect way to describe him
This is getting more mental every time and i love it😂😂😂😂😂😂
As someone who attempted to learn Russian for a few years (and also taught English for a while) the "broken" English that many Russian and Slavic language speakers display is largely due to how different the grammar systems are - rather than Russians somehow being less willing to learn English.
For example - there are no definite or indefinite articles in Russian, instead you have 6 cases that "transform" words to convey the same meaning. This makes it very difficult for Russian speakers to correctly use English grammar and adds a significant amount to the learning curve.
It goes both ways - it is also very difficult for English speakers to properly grasp Russian and use Russian grammar correctly.
You have given me the answers to my questions. I'm good at speaking and understanding English, but grammar is a living hell that I don't have the strength to understand.
You’ve achieved real fluency in English. You can express humor that native speakers understand, the flow of your speech is natural, you use slang perfectly….I can only aspire to achieve that kind of fluency in Russian! 😅
Also, let’s look at how children acquire language. It’s entirely by feeling. It makes sense to approach learning a language that way. Grammar doesn’t mean shit in the real world 😂😂😂😂
Sorry one more comment as I watch the video; one of the greatest backhanded compliments I’ve ever received about how I speak Russian came from this older Russian guy who was like “you speak Russian so well! Very academic.” 😂😢
That English teacher said exactly what I've been thinking since I discovered your channel. Yes, you have a Russian accent, but your grasp of English is beyond excellent. It's obvious that the words just roll off your tongue naturally without internal translation. I've been amazed by your English proficiency since day one. Your English grammar and vocabulary are superior to roughly 50% of Americans - yes, that's a sad commentary, but true nevertheless. Don't lose your Russian accent completely - it's so charming and endearing 😊.
his accent isn't russian. maybe i'm just used to it because i'm a slav too but i can only agree if you say he has a slight russian accent. like look you wouldn't say he's american but you wouldn't say he's russian you know what i mean
@@craftah exactly, I'd have never guessed he's Russian based on his accent. Then again I'm easter european myself, I live in the UK and my favourite game when people ask me where am I from is to ask them to guess. Based on my accent, it usually takes them a few attempts, for some reason I often get German or nordic countries lol. Like Roman I also did study English at uni but in all honesty, I'm pretty sure my English wasn't quite as good as his before coming to the UK. If I was to play my own game and try to guess his accent I'd have failed miserably.
It is a mix of a lot of accents, but the most distinctive is definitely still Russian. Saying that, it isn't that distinctive that you could gather he was born in Russia...
@melissawilliamson8871 there's no such thing as grammatical fluency in one's native language, so comparing secondary learners to natives is a farce.
@@annar6294 americans (and maybe other native English speakers) often think that any foreign accent is russian. some americans even confuse spanish accent with russian accent. and yeah i've noticed when we eastern europeans kinda hide our accent (trying to pronounce words more like a native speaker) foreigners often think we are nordic or german
Since watching you, I have seen your English improve greatly. Good work Roman! :)
Roman, I just wanted to say thank you. I'm a brazilian young guy and apart from being a young dude from an "emergent" country trying to get more in touch with the outside world and with an avid heart for languages (and also being super nerd and terminally online), I've been also seeing myself getting more and more related to you in general. If I said it here it would be quite long, and it's already long as it is, but today I was having a pretty shitty day and had no hopes for myself prior to watching this video. This kind of comment may come off as over dramatic and weird I get it, but you elicited a lot of points in this video that are special about yourself and I'm proud for you because I can say I had a very similar upbringing. My interest in languages suddenly evolved to me being fluent in English in a way I didn't really feel it. I thought that was nothing special but your video made me realize we can capitalize with this and become more worldly citizens. I can become successful as well, I just gotta know where to channel off this language ability.
I may also do that with my Japanese knowledge as well, which is getting closer and closer to fluent every month, but anyway. What we've got, it's special, and it made me realize people like us with a special relationship with languages can get our nice corner in the world if we strive for it.
Capitalize *on* this
And now I'm going to shut up because you can speak three languages and I can barely hobble along in ones other than English (Even my Spanish is terrible, and that was my easiest language)
@@pamelajaye Thanks! Well I knew something was missing, and we're always learning. I was sleepy as well so we may let a few grammar mistakes slip by 😅
Also hopefully I'll be mastering Russian in no time. Roman's content really propped me up to Russian studies.
Good luck to your studies as well!
I also very much love languages lol there's definitely a club here of lifelong love for education and communication. I don't doubt you guys will be successful. I have used my abilities to land very good jobs here in the US because I have a good command of the English language. That actually goes very far where I live. For example when I apply for a job in my area I compose a cover letter detailing my extensive experiences in international communication for film, tv, and lyrical projects. Just making that cover letter has advanced my career in banking and financial contracts. As a result my income has doubled in 3 years and will be doubling or tripling again later this year. Communication is a key priority for jobs in human relations and business in general. Continue with your journey and trust me, use these skills every opportunity to make your life better. It's worked for me for a long time now. Learn it all young ones, 🤣🤣, go forth and manifest your destiny. Seriously though these are marketable skills in the US so don't downplay your talents to be modest for anyone, you guys are skilled and respect is earned so don't feel like it's a form of bragging bc it's not it's a fair assessment of your learning process and talents. Be proud of your accomplishments 😊
@@GuinWeaver Thanks a lot, it's nice to see such a set of skills getting recognized and valued in a marketable way as well.
Thanks for your tips 😁 I hope I can build something out of this and here's to hope AI also doesn't take our jobs lmao
@@matheuss886 ♥️ when I'm sleepy I can't remember words in English. And it's my first language.
I'm a russian student living in Germany, and the Way you learnt English almost paralleled mine. I consumed content and played games, and always "felt" the language without knowing the grammar, upsetting my teacher. There are many people that learn English this way and it's (imo) the best way to master it. Keep up the Great videos and have a good day!
Even as a native English speaker, I don't always pay attention to the rules.
@@geoffreyherrick298That is how language, especially spoken usually is.
American who studied in Germany- don’t let the teachers tell you how to English. School English is hardly respected in day to day speak. You wrote well and were understandable that’s all that matters
The most remarkable thing about your english Roman, is your extensive vocabulary and it's impressive. It gives you a comprehensive conversational advantage and a 'command of the english language' that even a lot of native english speakers wish they had. The bitch for everyone else is that you make it look so easy that honestly, no one would believe it's your second language. Accents don't matter because everyone has one.
Perhaps in international contexts, but in English speaking countries it is the easiest way for others to put you in the "dem people" box.
t. someone in dem people box
A lot of Russian kids growing up in the late eighties and early nineties learned to speak almost perfect English. Top that with copious amounts of influence from the internet through the early 2000s....and VOILA!!....you have someone with an outstanding Americanized accent. A lot of Germans living in Bavaria developed the same skills because of the American military presence there. But indeed, Roman is a cut above the rest when comparing the English language skills among educated Russians.
Наконец, мы узнаем эту страшную тайну невероятного английского парня из Челябинска😇💪🤝🏻
His accent is more American ~Jersey Shore. 😊
он как-то давно уже записывал видео, где рассказывал то же самое, что и сейчас; просто сейчас его еще похвалили)
I've never studied Russian, but love to hear it spoken. I think just liking the sound of a particular language helps a lot in feeling it.
I can relate to the "feeling English" phrase too. Even though I barely know English grammar, speaking the language and expressing my thoughts in it comes off very naturally. I also used to consume a lot of English content as a kid.
It feels like this is the way a lot of people in Eastern Europe get really good with English: they consume English media from a young age, so they just naturally learn it as a matter of practicality. This especially goes for the people that spent time online from a young age. I think it is a big reason why people learn Japanese as well. You know. For cultural enlightenment. :^)
I once worked in a major multinational computer company and once needed some help with a computer issue I was having. I posted a question, in English, on our internal technical forums and soon got a very helpful answer from a colleague in Switzerland. He wrote English like a native speaker with no hint of an accent (people who speak a language with an accent also write it with an accent) so I asked him if he'd had a parent who was a native English-speaker or if he had grown up in an English-speaking country. He said he'd grown up in Switzerland to two Swiss parents and they'd spoken Swiss German at home. They'd had a bit of English at school but he didn't really gain any proficiency until he started watching British and American rock videos. He and his friends REALLY wanted to understand the lyrics of those songs so they started learning English from the rock videos!
Just about every European will tell you that they've had English in school for 8-10 years before attending college Uni or other kinds of educational institutions. American entertainment and social media are great supplements and helps a lot 😊
Facts.
I’m Latvian. My cousin learned English… to this level that Roman has, through Cartoon Network.
Unfortunately (or fortunately?) Johnny Bravo was the show for Edgars. I would’ve chosen SpongeBob, but hey. To each their own lol
I took a spanish class in college, having known a little bit from reggaeton music, which I listen to quite a bit of, and as a result I could tell my spanish was a lot better than the rest of the people in that class who didn't really ever consume Spanish media much. My teacher, who was a native English speaker who lived in Guatamala for like a decade, would often criticize my Spanish because I didn't speak 'textbook' Spanish, but instead I had accidentally acquired a goofy-ahhh over-the-top Puerto Rican ghetto accent from all the reggae music. Consuming media in the language without any help from the outside is very frustrating and mentally taxing in the beginning, but it makes it so worth it in the long term pay off.
I just wanna say that I've watched your channel back when pyro was still doing commentaries, and I'm honestly glad I've stuck around. Keep up the great content, Roman.
I taught ESL when I traveled and there's no benefit to speaking perfect broadcast English if you're not native to it. The touch of accent is what people like.
Yes exactly. As a French who's looking to date in some English speaking environments, I'm apreciating the praising comments on my fairly strong French accent I'm getting now ahah 😂
The only thing about having that perfect American broadcast (sometimes I just call it the "Midwestern") English accent is the surprise when it comes out of somebody you don't expect. I had met a Japanese guy that spoke English and sounded, accent wise, exactly like an American but with that TV or movie broadcast accent. It was quite surprising to hear because you don't expect it, but it had no real benefit. His ability to speak the language is most important, the accent doesn't truly matter. Also, as an American, I kinda dig accents.
@@DrownInLysergic Totally agreed.
I am from Connecticut. we speak like newscasters here, and there is absolutley no fan fair about it. I always wish I had a bit of an accent
@@PierreMiniggio ESPECIALLY French. I'm Canadian, Quebecois is considered local, but still hearing chics from Quebec speaking English is kinda exotic and sexy. Even moreso from European French.
He speaks English better than some Americans
he is more comprehensible than Australians, Northern English, and Scottish combined
As a American I can confirm this even some of my teachers couldn't even point Afghanistan on a Map and these was my history teachers I'm like Jesus this is where my Taxes going
And many English. As in from England. Have you HEARD some Londoners? :^)
@@bighillraft I live in North England and there are several different accents. It's probably the same for Scotland and Australia too.
*than most
I really really enjoyed this video, it was cool to hear that guys thoughts and also the backstory as well as just language learning in general, and how different people learn languages and speak them differently. I would like more kind of like this, going over just a random subject that relates to Roman.
As a Latin American, I had a similar experience in English where I just started consuming content I was interested in, and I did also have a certain fascination regarding English and how ideas were equivalently expressed in that language. It's a thing that happened and developed over time, so there was never any pressure of *learning* the language, like in terms of rules or structures (though I'm kinda nerdy about that too 😅)
I think that, in linguistics, this is called *acquisition* ; we basically learn in a similar way as people learn their native language, but as adults with plenty of input and internal motivation. That's why we sort of internalize the language and use it more naturally in spite of not knowing grammar rules and so on. We're emulating the language we've been exposed to, much like how children start speaking and producing because they've been in touch with their language through their parents and people around them.
Anyone who speaks a "second language" at native level (or above) can appreciate both the ease and the effort that were involved in your arriving at this level of English. I hope it remains fun for you as well!
Roman nfkrz to my ear your speech patterns remind me of Americans that live in the upper mid Atlantic to New York City
Now a little bit about my background
I had immigrant Jewish grandparents from what was that in Russia coming in 1900
I would visit my grandparents in New York City, and several other neighbors were coming from Russia as small children
They would visit with my grandparents and speak for hours with my grandparents In Queensboro
They learn to speak English fluently
The way you speak, English is very similar to the way they spoke English. Tonal quality the phrasing, the subtle phones pronunciation
Fascinating stuff, thanks for sharing :)
Yes Roman your accent is, somewhat, "Slavic." You speak amazing English, of course, it boils down _Regional Accents,_ honestly.
It's, like, how a Person from *California* and their accent would be different than, let's say, *New York,* for example. So, it's okay, it'll be gone with time, no worries brother!
It’s not Perfect, it’s getting there, though.
i love your accent, i don't think you should "improve" it, embrace it, native english speakers have so so so many different accents:)
yea native english speakers have so many accents it surprises me when americans are surprised when they don't hear an american accent
I never studied English but just by consuming media after some years now in my head I just translate everything from Spanish to English without even being concious. The same with thinking in English, im sure the same happens to Roman
Edit: Yeah absolutely. Its about feeling the lenguage. Sometimes I write something in english and I can tell that there is something wrong but I just dont know what. Also kinda crazy how I can even understand at 100% a song from Eminem but I cant tell the time in English. Just feel the lenguage without actually knowing it.
same
I think your keyboard autocorrect thinks that "lEnguage" is the correct spelling
The sentence “there is a difference between to know a language and to feel it” : I just can relate it! As an Austrian and (obviously) german native speaker I don’t know German, I just feel it. It’s the same when it comes to my English (which I have improved a lot in the last 2-3 years).
Anyway, it’s so impressive, Roman, how you acquired such a high level of English! Real talk, you are one of my role-models, when it’s about to improve my English-skills (and there is always something to improve). Keep it up, bro! 💪🏼
As a native English speaker who also feels the language rather than memorising the playbook by rote, this was a brilliant video (collaboration?) that put to words a few things I'd been wordlessly considering myself.
It just goes to show how important genuine interest is. The fact that you speak fluent, native-level English rather than conversational and easy to understand English despite never visiting an English-speaking country is a testament to that.
As for accents! It's worth considering that English is somewhat unique among languages in that its evolution is that of a merchant language; people who barely understand it can happily butcher it and a careful listener can still understand the gist of what's going on. An extension of this is that, with English, hearing an accent from a fluent speaker isn't necessarily a negative. In fact, it becomes a way of recognising someone's identity or history with just a few words. Most languages have this to a degree of course, but with English, I'd say that, excluding outright mispronunciation of words, it's part of the broader culture of the language and can be something beautiful.
When you ask what you might need "correcting" on to ditch the Russian accent, I'd suggest that you've instead reached a point where the accent is there, but nothing is incorrect, so it's more of a flavour profile than "wow this guy is definitely Russian what is he even saying". Accents are beautiful, and there's even a yearly vote (by whom I have no idea) as to which accent in English is the most attractive. Somehow New Zealand has been voted several times. As a New Zealander...HOW. HOW DID THAT HAPPEN. I'll take it but JESUS CHRIST, we barely open our mouths when we speak and every vowel is either an 'i' or a 'u'.
Thank you Roman. This video was wholesome as hell. You deserve to feel proud of your level of English.🙌
As someone who moved from Ukraine to live in the US before transferring over to the Philippines, your English is much better than a lot of people I have come across.
Would be so cool to chat with you while switching between Russian and English on the fly!
Ruslish.?..as how many of Americans speak Spanglish version of Mexican Spanish!
@@ronaldoago-go5907I believe it's called "Runglish"
Holy shit, I don't think I've ever laughed at one of Roman's videos as much as I did during the first minute of this one. Babe Ruth, Michael Jordan, Tom Brady, Wayne Gretzky, Tiger Woods, Pele, and now Roman.
Yeah I’m Mexican and French and when I went to college I tried to take an English course to get easy credits. But after taken the placement exam they literally sent me to see the chair of the English department and said that the only faire English course that would be available to me would be some type of extremely technical terminology class for academia which I had absolutely no interest in pursuing 😂.
And just like you, I still have an accent but eloquence makes it so people don’t really notice it until much later during the conversation.
Excellent job! Wow!
As an American who as lived in Puerto Rico on and off as a child I've met numerous people who learned English through tv, music, reading and videos games without ever being in the United States and they where fluent in English and sounded American. Some would have a slight accent while other you would assume where American but they never been to America so I'm not surprised how he learned English. Especially cuz we have the internet now
*they were
I'm a professional ESL teacher with 10 years experience. Also living in Japan and learning Japanese.
I gotta say, I agree with him. I also appreciate how hard it is to become fluent in a second language.
Enjoy Japan; I lived there '84-'87 and loved it, will never forget those wonderful people.
@@hovanti Living there during that time sounds like an amazing experience
@@AngelGarcia-oy3yj It really was, those were good times.
Exactly who are you agree with in this video? With that fatso that doesn’t respect people and who organised cyberbulling or with Roman?
I'm an ESL teacher, and your English is fantastic. You have an accent, sure -- but it's not super obviously Russian, though I can tell it's Slavic -- but you really command your English speaking. Your cadence is also more American-sounding than Marina's; your get the musicality of English. If neither of you had an accent, I think she'd still stand out a bit because your flow sounds more American. And given that you've never lived in an English-speaking county, DAMN, it's beyond impressive. (I mean, I lived in Russia for a year, and I barely could speak the language, though I can speak other languages.🤷🏻♀) So, yeah, pat yourself on the back for your top-notch English; hell, rub one out for your killer skills. 🙃 (And I think the phrase your were looking for was "lay down the law".)
Not much of a Russian accent coming through, but his English accent is New York to me
I'm actually also an English professor (as of this year but still) who regularly watches your videos, and he actually picked a great clip of yours to show your English ability rather than a clip where you are speaking more eloquently. You are starting and stopping, changing what you're saying partway through, and of course using the slang and such. Being able to do things like that and still speak so naturally is much more impressive than hearing a non-native speaker speak eloquently. You definitely feel and seem to think in the language. That's something I find important when I speak my second language as well. He really gets it right when he says you are feeling the language, but I disagree that you have a strong Russian accent. At least with the clip of Marina, my comparison would be that your accent is more consistent than hers. She produced the majority of the words in a very standard American way but then a few select words in a quite Russian way. You on the other hand don't do that. Your pronunciation isn't as close to the standard "correct" American English, but you also don't really lapse into a different pronunciation.
I hope he never loses the traces of accent. Imo that should not be a main goal.
@@ronaldoago-go5907 I completely agree. In the end, the goal of language is communication, so if your accent doesn't impede communication, there isn't really much reason to try to get rid of it.
Hiphop total immersion is how most young people around the world learn english. Roman, your English is better than most native speakers. Keep it up!
And since you have such a smooth flow you're always have a open invitation to the cook out.
Yeah, hiphop and video games. I know a Colombian who learned English that way, and although he has a heavy accent and his grammar isn’t the best, he’s totally fluent in English and has no trouble keeping up a rapid conversation.
I really enjoyed the video keep up the great work Roman You're my favorite TH-camr i been watching for 3 or 4 years man time flying I'm so glad I found your channel
I'm an American boomer who listens to most of your streams since the "Special Military Operation". I listen to a lot of Russian content.All I really have to say is that having been a blue collar worker my whole life, swearing is normal in my life. It's how a lot of us speak. Keep doing what you do. It's easy to listen to you. The accents and searching for words on most other channels show you do feel the language.
This American ' Boomer' has followed your channel for years
Great admiration for the way you speak English. Your ability to use colloquialisms as naturally as you do is amazing. Cussing is real life. I usually don't trust people who dont cuss. Thank you, and stay safe.
Also; the fact you don't speak as formally as other second language English speakers helps the perception that you've masted English. I've been trying to learn a couple languages for a long time, and you gave me a lot of insight on how to improve and where I knew I was going right- I only wish I saw this video much much younger. :)
As an English speaker from an English speaking country with lots of Ukrainians and Russians around I can hear the accent, but you're about 100x more understandable than people who have lived here for years.
It only takes a couple words to be pronounced differently for the accent to form an impression in our minds. I noticed it with Roman saying the word "natural". He uses the same "a" as in the word "nature" which is a common mistake that Russians make.
As a Native Englishman i can definitely hear his accent but he's still very good
Roman has an accent but it's not a Russian accent. Similar to how Pewdiepie has an accent but it's not a Swedish accent. Both of them have unlearned their native accents, but they still have some type of accent, and to be fair, so does everyone else in the world
I hear his accent and if he were in an English speaking country it would melt away. Which would be a shame because, his accent is incredibly sexy (sorry Irina, just stating facts) keep the accent please....😊
@@AuroraNora3 to me Roman sounds like he's from like how a lot of young people talk in Long Island.
2:20 feeling a foreign language the same way that you're feeling your native language is the goal
It's not about translate them back to your native languages to understand it , but to understand it the same way that you understood your native languages
To feel the connections in your mind between the words and its concepts not words then translate then another words then concepts
Edits: I forgor
That was the point I realised I'm pretty decent at speaking english, when I no longer had to translate back to my native tongue. Now I sometimes get into situations where I forget a word in my own language and just throw in the english one.
@@MrKj202 I get it sometime
I remember the concept in both languages, the only problems is that I just don't remember the words
@@TrickZ_Retz no problems
same here. been translating for a little and it was fucking hard. one chapter took me 8 hours straight. made me understand how tough it is to a)translate b)write books. i translated this manhua (?????) and its just sad how my work in which i put hours of hard work is being read for like 20 min
I grew up in the states and you can express yourself better than 90 percent of the population in my city
When I was still learning Russian I used to do the very same thing - I’d watch Russian movies and series and hardly understand a thing, and I just kept doing that over and over every day, and eventually I was able to understand everything. That, plus living with Russian speaking people that didn’t speak English, taught me more than all of the Russian classes I took in university.
That is how bald and bankrupt recommended to learn the language lol
@@rkan2 yeah but despite the fact that he communicates fine, he does speak really badly with lots of mistakes. I don’t agree with him that you shouldn’t care about that… and that was his main point in that video. You shouldn’t be so scared of making mistakes that you don’t speak, of course, but to hear someone like him who has spoken the language for decades and can’t properly use even the accusative or genitive cases is incomprehensible for me. But I guess all he cares about is communicating enough to manipulate women into sleeping with him, so his “interest” in the language is probably quite a bit different…
In 1980s I used to travel Aeroflot with a layover in Moscow. It was amazing how brilliantly so many Russians spoke English! I think students of English were targeting tourists to get some conversation.😅As a language teacher, I wondered which techniques they were using in the classroom in those days with no internet to help as they spoke so well.
Thanks for this Roman. Your English is a marvel, (especially for a Chinese major) but you have a fine mind which always helps in acquiring any knowledge…..and a great sense of cynical humor too!
I’m French and everything you said reminded me of my own experience. I never made spelling mistakes in French (probably because i spent my time reading as a child), i also learned English through constant consumption of music and yt content, and I’m basically known to be the one that’s fluent in English in my family as well as at school. Actually, I’ve always had a certain fascination for it.
On the other hand, German is supposed to be my second language (while English is third), but despite having studied it for over 6 years, I don’t really speak it. Now I’m trying to learn more languages this way, starting with Russian, because I’ve recently discovered a Kazakh artist who sings in Russian quite a lot and I like learning new alphabets. I’ll really have to motivate myself for German one day…
PS. About your accent it’s actually really good, there is an obvious accent but if i didn’t know where you came from i probably wouldn’t be able to guess it on the first try. You just don’t elude consonants, especially t’s, as much as a native speaker would. Your vowels are also very open. But none of this is shocking to me
Having an accent doesn't necessarily mean you have to work to erase it. You just have a very deep & distinct voice. Sometimes it reminds me of Arnold Swarzenegger, and there is certainly nothing wrong with the way Arnold speaks English.
Arnold's English is fab! It's really advanced and flawless grammarwise, isn't it?
Edit: asking as a non native speaker.
@beorlingo yes! His English is flawless! He does have that unmistakable Arnold accent, but it's endearing and part of his brand at this point. ☺️
@@DollyMcEntire totally agree on the accent. He speaks an English with a huge amount of personality!
Здарова, Рома!
Ты очень вдохновляющий пример для всей молодежи, спасибо за видосы, позицию, юмор и вайб твоего контента.
Привет из солнечной Якутии, желаю тебе реализации всех приколдэсов и чтобы вдохновение не покидало!
That Rimmer salute at the end is great.
Smeeeeegheeeed
My Russian wife has been in the USA since 96, she came at 23. She speaks perfect English. However, she still has an accent. And, so humerus she makes up words. But the words make sense. Love her so much. 😂❤
Lingua marina speaks like that to be understandable for people who learn english
I too was greatly suprised when i fell on your channel the first time. "Speak from the heart", way to go bro.
Hello there
I can’t put into words how much I relate to your experience with learning English and the “feeling” of speaking English. I’m from Costa Rica, and I learned English from content just like you did (mostly from yu gi oh cards and video games first and reading novels in English later in life).
I’ve had to work in a bilingual environment all my professional life and I always get comments on how good my English, even tho I don’t know any of the actually rules like you. I mostly play it by ear and just try to mimic native speakers as much as I can.
One time at work I had an exchange with an English professor who also commented on my speech and use of the language. I will never forget the advise he gave me: he explained how the tempo or rhythm of my speech pattern should put emphasis in the important words of each sentence by dragging them a bit and by speeding by the less important words (articles, pronouns for example). Spanish puts the same tempo on each syllable, regardless of the word, so it was a hard change to make at first but it has helped all these years lol
Roman, as a fellow Russian linguistic graduate, I totally get where you're coming from. Honestly, we probably studied from the same Blokh textbook. Basically, in most linguistic faculties in Russia you have old Soviet-era grammar text books which put in a heavy emphasis on the structure of language rather than its practical use. So stuff like idioms is either neglected or strongly outdated. Infact when I was university there was a massive split in terms of older teachers that got their English through academia and the little Western media that was around in the USSR (Kind of how every old Russian teacher's English sounds like Margaret Thatcher) and the younger millennial teachers that watch media from native speakers.
Grammar and spelling is important, but that approach to language neglects the fact that most humans absorb language like a sponge through their media and social interaction. Sort of why constructed languages are really niche or never take off, since you need a critical mass for them to become actual living entities. And yeah, the hardest part of teaching English is to get older people to understand idioms and slang, which teenagers just unconsciously pick up through Tiktok or whatnot.
I had this teaching gig at an online school back during the pandemic and there were two students I had to work with. One was a kid that had near-perfect spoken English due to his parents putting him in front of English-language Cartoon Network for hours unattended and the other one was this girl from a strict household that was a straight A student. The first kid used the language to express what he was thinking about the task at hand, even if he made quite a lot of mistakes in his written tasks. The second kid actually was slower in her development since she avoided making mistakes rather than experimenting with new grammas constructs or idioms.
Basically the way I approach any language is that it's ultimately a took for communication first and a set of defined rules second, which unfortunately doesn't fit into our kind of education system.
Interesting. Our textbooks actually had idioms in them
I have never once thought you speak English weirdly! As someone who loves learning languages but is very bad at it I’ve always thought your English is just plain impressive and an inspiration.
Keep up the great content!
As an American who only speaks English I have to say that I’ve always been impressed with the fact you can speak English so well. I didn’t know you’d never been to an English speaking country either that’s amazing to me because you sound like you were raised here in California or something. I think what people are talking about with your “accent” is the sound of the words you say them in a very low register and it gives the vibe of a Russian speaker. To Americans that’s all we hear when we hear Russians speak Russian to each other it’s very monotone very low range. That’s just my personal opinion you don’t need to change a single thing you’re doing great. I’ve been watching you since last year when this whole thing happened in Ukraine and I feel for you having to leave your native country and having to move to Georgia due to the political instability that’s going on in Russia right now and you’ve always been positive and laughing about your troubles and I admire that. Keep up the good work Roman!
I’m an Aussie with Scottish parents. I was also an exchange student in Germany. I did an online test and would probably be a C1 German speaker, but can’t read or write at that level. I also speak German with an accent, but people think I’m Dutch. There are many different accents around the world, and I love how everyone is different. If I could speak German the way you speak English I would be so happy!
It was great to see you happy in this vid Roman. Your English is great, keep up the good content.
An accent isn't really something you make better or worse. Enunciation is and yours is fine. The thing is no matter how good you are, when a native English speaker hears you talk, they can guess your native language is probably Russian. It's not really a skill to language, it's a color or flavor; and being able to enunciate clearly with a strong accent is a compliment -- I believe he was complimenting you
As a Polish person who grew up in the UK with English at school and Polish at home. Speaking with what I'd consider a proper Polish accent like Roman with Russian is very difficult.