About Darya

Darya Charkasyna, who goes by Dasha, is a Belarusian American student studying Business Administration at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo

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Hi, Dasha, tell me a little about yourself.
My full name is Darya Charkashyna, but I go by Dasha. I was born in Belarus in 1996, and my first words were in Russian. My family moved to the U.S. when I was five, but I went to preschool in Belarus.

Which languages do you speak, and how well do you speak them?
I'm fluent in English and Russian, proficient in French, and I understand the slavicanized version of Belarusian. Belarusian used to be very similar to Polish, but the Russians demanded that the language be changed to be more similar to Russian. Belarusian now uses the Cyrillic alphabet instead of the Latin alphabet. Oh and I can read other Slavic languages like Polish and Bosnian. 

Can Russians understand Belarusian?
No, They can't.

Which languages did your parents speak to you as a child?
My parents spoke only Russian to me. Learned Belarusian from visiting. I've spent six summers there and learned a lot of slang and some from books and some from family members speaking it. My mom tried to teach me Belarusian but it didn't really work. 

What is education like in Belarus?
I only went to preschool there so all I know is from my friends who still live there. They have to learn English. Grade school is like one through eleventh grade, and they graduate at age seventeen. But they start school later than in the U.S., like age seven. They learn English in school for more than six years, as well as Russian and Belarusian. 

How well do your Belarusian friends speak English?
Their English is pretty accented and they don't know any slang but they understand English well, and they form sentences pretty well.

Which languages do your parents speak? What do you know about their experiences with English in Belarus?
​My parents speak Russian, Belarusian, and English. I don't know much besides that. They were born in Belarus in 1968 and 9. I know they learned English in grade school.

Do you think that English has affected Belarus?
Definitely, especially in pop culture.

What is your opinion of President Plushenko? Do you agree with his pro-Russian agenda?
I like him, although he's not that classy. I don't have any problem with him being pro-Russia.

Have you seen evidence of American culture in Belarus?
Yeah I have. Levi jeans are all the rage there, I don't really like them but my friends there are obsessed. And some music too, I remember I saw some posters of Rihanna the last time I was there, which was two summers ago.

Is there anything else about Belarus you'd like to add?
We are a very peaceful people. People there are very nationalistic. So are my parents. My country is very familiar with Russian and friendly with Russian culture.

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