Hacker News Reader

Comment by gggggg5 | Hacker News Reader

Nobody was called Russian. _throwawayaway correctly called it a Russian name, you incorrectly replied with "That's an Estonian name", which it isn't.

Most of the Estonians with Russian names do identify as Russian, even if they aren't necessarily Russian nationals. It's an ethnic group, these are ethnic Russians.

> The reason it looks different, is because they're Estonian, so the name will be different

This is false. It's spelled the way it is spelled because that's how Estonian government wants names spelled. Also, because it would be awkward to interact with a society where most people do not know the Cyrillic alphabet.

View on HN

> This is false. It's spelled the way it is spelled because that's how Estonian government wants names spelled.

He's quite literally an Estonian national, go check the FBI report that was released.

Yes, he is an ethnic Russian who happens to be an Estonian national. "Russian" does not refer to the nationality, it is an ethnicity. There are vast amounts of Russian nationals who are not Russian.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russians

In Estonia these people are referred to as Russians too, because that is what they are and what they identify as.

I've met plenty of Estonians who have a Russian ethnic background, however identify as Estonian, speak Estonian, and do not consider themselves Russian. Again, I think the point of what I was getting at should be clear.

And, to your point about them being called Russian in Estonia, I've heard them called "Russian speaking" more than Russian. Then, again, the Estonians I know take a pro-integration position on the matter. The "ethnic Russian" terminology is often used in pro-separatist circles to justify non-integration, or by anti-Russian Estonians.

The point you were getting at simply doesn't exist. Ask those ethnic Russians if that's an Estonian or Russian name, they will tell you it's a Russian name.

Writing Russian names in Estonian script does not make them Estonian names.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com