Loooong Russian words and names you have trouble remembering

[Превед]

I rather have problem when it comes to remembering  German words, like 'Schmetterlinge' or 'Mitfahrgelegenheit ', there are many. ;-)

Lol, athough my maternal language is a Germanic one, I'd also have problems remembering Mitfahrgelegenheit, because I'd never suspect this noun existed! Those who use it must be suffering from "noun sickness" as we say in Norwegian when something is written in a very German, chancery style (Kanzleistil).

Very emblematic Russian word I never truly understood untill know: Успенский < у + спать, be-/by + sleep.

[Georgiy]

Uspeniya is one of the 12 Major feasts of the Orthodox Church. In English it is usually called the Dormition, or, 'Falling Asleep' of the Virgin Mary, in reference to her death and subsequent bodily removal to Heaven. I can not recall the Catholic term for it. There are, I believe, a number of doctrinal differences. Thsu a number of cathedrals are called Uspenski.

[Превед]

Uspeniya is one of the 12 Major feasts of the Orthodox Church. In English it is usually called the Dormition, or, 'Falling Asleep' of the Virgin Mary, in reference to her death and subsequent bodily removal to Heaven. I can not recall the Catholic term for it.

In Catholicism it's more commonly called the Assumption of Mary. That's what obscured the word a bit for me, that the Uspenskiy cathedrals were referred to as Himmelfarts- / Himmelfärds-katedral in Germanic languages, when in fact assumption / ascension is вознесение in 'Russian.

Speaking of the Пресвятая Богородица, do you or anyone else know the eaxt difference between пресвятий, which I see is only used for the Holy Trinity and the Holy Virgin / Mary / Mother of God and mere святий for all ordinary saints? Something like sanctissimus and sanctus in Latin?

[Georgiy]

It is 'most holy'.
Voznesenie is of course only used for the Ascension of Christ.

[matushka]

Yes, exactly sanctissimus and sanctus, presviaty i sviaty.

[Превед]

Содружество Независимых Государств - Commonwealth of Independent States

Lol, this combined with Площадь Независимости (= Maidan) helped me understand that Crown Princess Mette-Marit's father suffered from алкогольную зависимость, alcoholic dependency. (Not that I didn't know, my brother saw him drinking on the train, which is ironic, considering that her daughter now speaks about this on her Литературный поезд - see link.

[Превед]

considering that her daughter now speaks about this on her Литературный поезд - see link.

Uff da, I meant his daughter, i.e. кронпринцесса Метте-Марит, не наследственная принцесса Ингрид Александра.

[Превед]

To those who have proved themselves knowledgeable in Orthodox terminology:

While writing about the recent baptism of Princess Cécilia of Bourbon-Parma I encountered two Russian words for baptism: Крестины and Крещение.
Are they synonyms, like English christening and baptism, or do they have different meanings? One is Church Slavic and the other Russian?

[Georgiy]

I think krestiny is just an older term for it. Not 100% sure though.

[Превед]

I think krestiny is just an older term for it. Not 100% sure though.

I have found out:
Крещение is the actual baptism and as such happens only once.
Крестины is the celebration afterwards and annually on that day. If the child is given the saint's name of the day it also becomes its name day (именины).

BTW speaking of patron saints and royal patrons, so fitting that it's покровитель, derived from покров!

[Превед]

In the title of the Russian Emperors there is a long and difficult word:
Божію Поспѣшествующею Милостію: Мы....(pre-Revolutionary spelling)
=Божиею поспешествующею милостью: Мы....
= By God's ? Grace: We.....

According to my 1915 Russian-Danish dictionary the word must mean something like increasing, omnipresent, speedy, fortunate, fruitious.

[Превед]

Slavic etymological goodie:

The name Plön, with it's lovely castle, so central in the history of the Holstein-Gottorps, allegedly comes from Polabian plun'a, ice-free water, referring to the lake. No trace of a such word either in Polish or Russian. (In Russian it's prorub', in German it's Wake, in Swedish vak, Norwegian råk) But then - in Ukrainian ice-free water or hole in the ice is opolonka. This gotta be the word, having gone through pleophony!

[Inok Nikolai]

In the title of the Russian Emperors there is a long and difficult word:
Божію Поспѣшествующею Милостію: Мы....(pre-Revolutionary spelling)
=Божиею поспешествующею милостью: Мы....
= By God's ? Grace: We.....

According to my 1915 Russian-Danish dictionary the word must mean something like increasing, omnipresent, speedy, fortunate, fruitious.

I put a response to this in Google Drive because I was not certain how the different language fonts would appear here in the window.
I. N.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0_u8gqAdHu7U1R1emFWS0pRMTA/edit?usp=sharing

Also see this related thread on the Forum:
http://forum.alexanderpalace.org/index.php?topic=6628.msg180953#msg180953

[Превед]

I put a response to this in Google Drive because I was not certain how the different language fonts would appear here in the window.
I. N.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0_u8gqAdHu7U1R1emFWS0pRMTA/edit?usp=sharing

Thank you! "Synergetic" sums it up quite nicely.

[Превед]

Another tricky verbal particle:

Вдовствующая - dowager, from вдовствовать, to be widowed, I guess.