Although I came to Ukraine with some experience with Russian, I have long wanted to become fluent in the language of the country that is so deeply part of me, and now I have taken some real steps on my journey to becoming a Ukrainian speaker.
Apparently, I’m not the only one who wants or needs to speak Ukrainian.
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In the Russian territories of Kursk and Belgorod in Donbas, including areas controlled by the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), the use of the Ukrainian language is being revived. I have heard anecdotes from Ukrainian friends who have acquaintances or relatives from these territories in Russia about people switching from the Moscow or St. Petersburg language to the language of Kiev, Lviv or nearby Sumy.
A Kyiv Post correspondent recently returned from Kursk and said that when he spoke to Ukrainian soldiers in Ukrainian, the soldiers from eastern Ukraine often responded in Russian, while locals in their 70s and 80s who had lived in the Russian region all their lives spoke Ukrainian with both our American correspondent and the AFU staff.
[Incidentally, the locals were interested in humanitarian aid from the AFU, most commonly asking for potable water.]
My Experience with Slavic Languages
I bought Rosetta Stone for $600 and taught myself a little bit of Russian, and then I came to Ukraine and I switched from Polish to Russian because that Slavic language is useful in Poland and in some parts of Chicago.
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The first Slavic language I started learning was Polish. I was an instructor pilot at the International Military Training (IMT) Center for F-16 pilots from all over the world, including new pilots from Holland, Denmark, Norway, Greece, Portugal, Italy, Singapore, Chile, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Poland, and more.
My unit, the 152nd Fighter Squadron, trained all of the Polish Air Force's F-16 pilots and is currently also training the Ukrainian F-16 “Viper” pilots. The pilot trainees from Poland, a country recently integrated into the Western world as a NATO member, inspired me to start learning the Polish native language.
The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) is home to one of the premier language institutes, the Defense Language Institute (DLI), which is widely respected by linguists around the world. The facility, located in Monterey, California, trains Americans serving in certain overseas postings, such as embassies, in intensive courses in Arabic, French, Chinese, Polish, and many other languages, and also teaches English to foreign students participating in training programs and exchange tours with U.S. military units.
The DLI has a four-category rating system for language difficulty for native speakers of American English, with category 1 being the easiest (e.g. Spanish) and category 4 being the most difficult (e.g. Japanese).
Category 1 includes the Romance languages (French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, and Romanian). English belongs to the Germanic family, while category 2 includes Danish, German, Norwegian, and Indonesian.
Slavic languages are classified in category 3 in the DLI, along with Hebrew, Hindi, Tagalog, Thai, and others.
The first thing that seems difficult is the alphabet. Some Tier 4 languages use pictograms, such as Chinese characters adapted from Japanese kanji, but many Slavic languages use the Greek alphabet, introduced and modified by the monk St. Cyril in the 9th century. Some West Slavic languages are a modification of the Latin alphabet, adding certain symbols.
However, many East Slavic languages use the Cyrillic alphabet, in which the Cyrillic Ж resembles the French J, and the Ukrainian И is like saying ee or i while swallowing your tongue.
But it's a simple step. In these languages, not only do verbs change depending on the subject, but all nouns, adjectives, and quantifiers change as well. The cases of these nouns in English are mostly limited to personal pronouns like I and me, he and him, she and her, etc. But in Ukrainian there are seven cases depending on how the word is used and where it appears in the sentence.
After a long time spent fumbling around in Ukraine, I (finally) decided to formally learn the local language. At the recent Big Meet event in Kyiv, I found out about Language Lab, where I could get real-life training from qualified teachers at the school.
After studying for over a month, I can say that choosing Language Lab was a great choice, and after learning some background about this organization, I felt really glad that I chose it, as they customize their programs to fit each individual's needs, interests, and goals.
I spoke with founder Ksenia Golubitska about the school's operations, approach to education, and entrepreneurship that has made it such a great resource for Ukraine lovers, Ukrainian adoptees (i.e. expats like me), and Ukrainian immigrants.
An interview with Ksenia Golubitska, Founder and Director of Language Lab
Hello Ksenia, what is Language Lab?
Hi Chris, Language Lab is a language school that teaches Ukrainian to foreigners, both face-to-face and online, for individuals and companies.
Why a lab and not just a school? What makes your school different from others?
I believe the added value we offer to our student community is something we have built through the family atmosphere, support, cultural experiences, and various language events and other social events.
What does this offer an expat living in Ukraine like me?
Yes, foreigners living in Ukraine without knowing Ukrainian face difficulties in daily communication, work, social interaction and feel isolated – even going shopping can be difficult, right?
Yes, I agree. If you have difficulty simply pointing and asking “one kilo please” first ask the waiter if they speak English.
Kyiv Post has a large readership in the US and Canada. Demographically speaking, we are more prevalent in Canada, proportionally. I believe this is due to the Ukrainian immigrant population. What services do you offer to immigrants, their descendants, and other foreigners interested in learning Ukrainian?
We have quite a few of these online students. Foreigners abroad, mainly from the US and Canada, especially those with Ukrainian roots, feel isolated by not knowing the native language of their ancestors. And of course, they are looking for ways to express their solidarity and support for Ukraine.
I understand that your business is expanding opportunities for women in Ukraine.
Yes, Language Lab is a female-founded company and our team members are all female. It's just a part of who we are.
Our overall goal is to become a benchmark for Ukrainian language education in Ukraine, Canada and the United States and to promote Ukraine internationally.
We want to contribute to the development and reconstruction of Ukraine and create more job opportunities for Ukrainian women.
How did this school get started?
I started Language Lab as an English school in 2016 with just a $3,800 investment. Demand quickly grew and I began teaching Russian and Ukrainian, with a particular focus on Ukrainian as the real invasion began.
I understand from the discussions we've had so far that this is attracting a certain amount of international attention.
Yes, a recent achievement was that our project won an award in Portugal's AWE (Academy for Women Entrepreneurs) program. [where Ksenia currently resides] And we got a $3,000 grant to develop it.
This is the only Ukrainian project among the four awarded projects; all the others are Portuguese. AWE is a program that has been held in about 100 countries around the world since 2019 and is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State to support women's entrepreneurship.
The third edition of the 2023-2024 program in Portugal saw the participation of 46 projects (Portuguese and Ukrainian), 24 projects advanced to the final pitch and 4 projects received awards, one of which is Language Lab.
What excites you about this language lab that you've created? Ksenia, what achievements are you proud of?
Perhaps my main accomplishment at this point is that despite having zero knowledge of business, marketing, or economics in general, I was able to launch my business with an initial investment of $3,800, with 100% dedication and hard work.
Or remember that we never stopped working for a single day, even during the COVID-19 pandemic and throughout the full-scale invasion. Our physical office in central Kyiv has been up and running for all these years.
I think it's important to highlight that Language Lab has survived for almost eight years without any marketing or PR, relying solely on quality service, the tenacity of our team and word-of-mouth recommendations from our students.
Now, starting from spring 2024, we will focus on marketing and PR, expanding our business and achieving our ambitious goal of becoming a benchmark for Ukrainian language education in Ukraine, Canada and the USA, promoting Ukraine on an international level.
Our teachers adopt a modern communicative approach to language teaching, prioritizing real-life communication over memorization. However, to ensure a systematic and holistic approach, our courses integrate vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation and the four language skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing), as well as cultural elements where appropriate in the context.
Our carefully curated study materials combine the latest textbooks with custom-designed resources to ensure a comprehensive, modern learning experience. Tailored to each student's proficiency level and learning style, these materials are selected to optimize language acquisition and proficiency.
What are the qualifications of the staff? What is the level of education of the teachers? What is the track record?
Firstly, all our teachers are professional linguists with degrees in linguistics, some with PhDs, others with Masters or Bachelors degrees.
With over 7 years of operation, we have a strong track record: actual statistics show that we have satisfied over 800 students, conducted over 50,000 lessons, and successfully hosted over 100 language, cultural and other events.
How can readers contact Language Lab if they want to find out more?
Readers can find more information on our website: https://languagelab.ua/about-us
You can also find us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lngglab/
Thank you so much for your time, Ksenia, and for helping me become a better Ukrainian-American!