# How do you say "Iron Lantern" in Russian? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 3, 2004, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-say-iron-lantern-in-russian/227307 "2004-02-03T10:56:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-say-iron-lantern-in-russian/227307/1 "2004-02-03T10:56:26Z")
As in a lantern, made out of Iron? Babelfish isn’t quite able to handle this one yet, I’m afraid. Thanks for your patience, Ranchoth ---
**Author:** ![Brutus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Brutus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brutus)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-say-iron-lantern-in-russian/227307/2 "2004-02-03T12:43:17Z")
My Russian is pretty bad, and influenced by Croatian, but I think I can at least point you in the right direction. Also, kinda Englisherized, since I never learned (well, remembered) the Cyrillic alphabet: Zhelzno Lampa Technically, ‘Iron Lamp’ in Russian. Perhaps substitute '‘Tzvjecha’ (candle) or Ljeto (light)? ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-say-iron-lantern-in-russian/227307/3 "2004-02-03T13:01:59Z")
Zheleznyi fonar’. (Accent on the second syllable of the first word. The apostrophe on the end of the second word stands for the “soft sign,” which has no equivalent in English, but which means that you slightly palatalize the previous letter.) Just curious, but this phrase seems kind of random. Why do you ask? ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-say-iron-lantern-in-russian/227307/4 "2004-02-03T13:05:28Z")
Oh, and **Brutus,** that’s indeed some mighty South Slavicized Russian you’re got going there. For one thing, “light” would be _svet;_ [Svecha\* (accent on the second syllable) is “candle.” _Leto_ (second syllable pronounced more like “a” than “o” when de-emphasized) means “summer.” ---
**Author:** ![Brutus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Brutus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brutus)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-say-iron-lantern-in-russian/227307/5 "2004-02-03T13:21:39Z")
My God, what have you Reds done to the beautiful Slavic tongue? 🙂 Hey, I _did_ warn him. I didn’t take Russian since my classes about 19 years ago! Not that my Croat is is such good shape these days…We use ‘Leto’ for summer as well, but for some reason, I thought that was Rus for ‘light’. Ah well. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-say-iron-lantern-in-russian/227307/6 "2004-02-03T13:38:56Z")
Amalgam “Red Son” fanfic? ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-say-iron-lantern-in-russian/227307/7 "2004-02-03T14:46:11Z")
> [@Brutus](#): > > My God, what have you Reds done to the beautiful Slavic tongue? 🙂 “You Reds”? Both of my parents and I were born in New Jersey. I’m just a language nut. Or are you referring to my perceived political leanings? Oh, and I have nothing against the South Slavs. One of my oldest and closest friends is a half-Croat, half-Bosnian. And boy, is he stubborn. I’ve certainly learned a lot of passive Croatian by listening to him and his mom screaming at each other for, oh, almost 20 years now. I think I understand it better than he does at this point. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-say-iron-lantern-in-russian/227307/8 "2004-02-03T16:20:08Z")
> [@Eva Luna](#): > > Zheleznyi fonar’. (Accent on the second syllable of the first word. The apostrophe on the end of the second word stands for the “soft sign,” which has no equivalent in English, but which means that you slightly palatalize the previous letter.) Slight hijack: What is the difference between the palatized “r” (_slovar’, teper’, tsar’_) and the non-palatized “r” in Russian (_samovar_) when they occur at the end of words? I took Russian in college, but never really learned this distinction. One instructor, who was American and learned Russian in the military, used to do the palatization so heavily that it influenced the vowel previous to the soft “r” – ex. _slovar’_ pronounced “sluh-VIRE” (to nearly rhyme with English “wire”). None of the other instructors – one of which was a native Russian – did it quite like that. ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-say-iron-lantern-in-russian/227307/9 "2004-02-03T17:04:57Z")
It’s hard to explain in writing; if you’re ever in the neighborhood, stop by for a nice cup of tea, and I’ll invite over some Russian friends. It’s something that varies to a certain extent even among native speakers (which I’m not, although I’ve had some pretty hardcore phonetics instructors and I’m told my phonetics are pretty good for a non-native speaker). I’ll give it a shot. though; the non-palatalized R at the end of a word is more or a trill (albeit a very short one). The palatalized R is softer, almost like a very short S after the R. Your military instructor wasn’t a Southerner, was he? We had a girl from Tennessee in our group in Russia the first time, and it came through quite clearly even in Russian. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-say-iron-lantern-in-russian/227307/10 "2004-02-03T17:50:02Z")
> [@Eva Luna](#): > > I’ll give it a shot. though; the non-palatalized R at the end of a word is more or a trill (albeit a very short one). The palatalized R is softer, almost like a very short S after the R. Interesting … the military instructor mentioned above used to do that “short S” palatization (prominently) with other soft consonants in final position, like _ploshchad’_ and _brat’_. Just not with final _-r’_. … I don’t think the instructor was a Southerner, FWIW. He didn’t sound like it. … From one language nut to another – your explation made perfect sense. To produce a trill or a prominent tap, the tip of the tongue must be more or less free to move rapidly. Palatization causes the body of the tongue to be raised, which in turn inhibits the tongue tip’s movement. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 7:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-say-iron-lantern-in-russian/227307/11 "2004-02-04T07:41:52Z")
> [@Eva Luna](#): > > Just curious, but this phrase seems kind of random. Why do you ask? I was curious, for very highly esoteric reasons, what [this fella’s](http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix/ironlant.htm) title would translate as. But, _K sozhaleniyu, ya poka ne govoryu po russki._ ---
**Author:** ![Brutus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Brutus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brutus)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-say-iron-lantern-in-russian/227307/12 "2004-02-04T09:17:23Z")
> [@Eva Luna](#): > > “You Reds”? Both of my parents and I were born in New Jersey. I’m just a language nut. Or are you referring to my perceived political leanings?.. Your political leanings? Net, tovarisch. I was under the assumption that you were born in Russia, but the broad steppes of New Jersey aren’t too far off the mark!