Nevertheless, in 1979, Batulla completed literary courses in Moscow and continued writing. He also began teaching at the theater school and the Institute of Culture in Kazan. In 1953, he earned another diploma in higher education from Moscow University of Culture and Arts.

Batulla proved himself as a writer on an epic scale. In the story "Yul buyında zəñgər çəçək" ("A forget-me-not by the roadside", 1990) the problems of modern youth are raised. The novel "Söyembikə" (1992; translated into Russian in 2001) is based on the tragic fate of the last xanbikə (ruler) of Kazan.

Rabit Batulla is also notable for his translation of the Quran into the Tatar language (2000).

In more recent times, Batulla served as a television presenter, reading fairy tales and conducting dance lessons for children on air. In 2014, his novel "Biyü cene qağılğan yeget" served as the basis for the biographic movie "Rudolf Nuriyev. Rudik," portraying the childhood and youth of ballet dancer Rudolf Nuriyev. Batulla co-wrote the screenplay and made a brief appearance in the film, while his son Nurbək Batulla played the lead role.

In 2023, Rabit Batulla, Roza Xəyrullina, and Yunus Tairov starred in the leading roles of the movie "Yədəş! İstə!" (Beri da pomni) depicting village life involving a grandfather, grandmother, and grandson. The younger son of the writer, Baybulat, co-authored the screenplay and directed the film. Notably, Nurbək, the elder son, portrayed a secondary character.

The film, partially based on real-life experiences, Rabit and his wife Ruzia serving as prototypes for the grandparents, who grapple with the challenges of aging. Baybulat Batulla struggled to find an actor for the role of Rasim until he proposed his father to basically portray himself. The film was shot in the Tatar language and released in movie theaters with Russian dubbing or in the original with subtitles. Interestingly, the production took place in the same village where Roza Xəyrullina used to collect beetroots during her school days.

The movie is currently out, and if you live in Tatarstan or Bashqortostan, or any other region of Russia, I would definitely recommend you to watch it with your family or friends at the cinema. Get information from your local movie theater if you can watch it in Tatar and enjoy!

#tt_intermediate
Postpositions Governing the Dative

🕖 Postpositions meaning to, until, before:
qәdər
tikle
xətle
çaqlı

↔️ qarşı – against, opposite, in front of
yənəşə – beside, side by side, next to

idənnən tüşəmgə xәtle – from the floor to the ceiling
axırına qәdər – till the end
doşmanğa qarşı körәşәlәr – they fight against the enemy
zur kibetkə yənəşə ber yortqa kerdem – I entered a house next to a big shop

💭 qarağanda – judging by, according to
qaramastan – despite, in spite of
qarata – to, towards, with regard to
kilgəndə – when it comes to
kürə – according to, because of
taba / qarap – towards, to
yaqın – close to, nearly, about, approximately

Qıyəfətenə qarağanda, çınnan da mulla tösle ide ul. (Möxəmmət Bikbulatov, "Ğ. İbrahimov turında istəleklər")
Judging by his appearance, he really looked like a mulla.

Ul, yəş buluwına qaramastan, baytaq qına nərsəne belə ... (Fatix Xösni, "Utızınçı yıl")
Despite her being young, she knows quite a lot of things …

Könbatışqa qarap kitsəñ, qaya barıp çığasıñ? (Nurixan Fəttax, "Bala küñele dalada")
If you travel towards the west, where do you get?

Töşkə taba kük yöze açılıp, kön bötenləy ayazıp kitte ... (Fatix Xösni, "Awıl östendə yoldızlar")
Towards noon the sky brightened up, and the day became completely clear ...

#tt_advanced
Past Perfect (Pluperfect)

The past perfect (pluperfect) is formed by combining the past tense II stem (past participle) of the verb with idem, ideñ, ide, etc.

min yazğan idem
sin yazğan ideñ
ul yazğan ide
bez yazğan idek
sez yazğan idegez
alar yazğan ide(lər)

min kitkən idem
sin kitkən ideñ
ul kitkən ide
bez kitkən idek
sez kitkən idegez
alar kitkən ide(lər)

⏳ The past perfect (pluperfect) denotes:

🕐 A past action that preceded another past action and was completed before the latter occurred. The two (or more) actions may be expressed in one sentence, or each action may be conveyed in a separate sentence. The verb designating the second action may appear in a variety of forms.

Bez awılğa kergəndə qoyaş batkan ide inde. (Mirsəy Əmir, "Ağidel")
The sun had already set when we were entering the village.

❕Instead of following the verb designating the second action as it does in the above examples, the verb in the past perfect tense may also precede it, either in the same sentence or in the context. In this case, the action expressed by the verb in the latter part of the sentence or in the following sentence often interrupts the action expressed by the verb in the past perfect tense, or it contradicts the action.

Wasil aña bulğan xəlne söyləp birü öçen awızın ğına açqan ide. Nikitin anı şunda uq bülderde. (Söbbux Rafikov, "Tın yılğa buyında")
Wasil had just opened his mouth to tell him what happened. Nikitin interrupted him right there.

🕐 An action performed at some point in past time or the result of a past action or the state resulting from a past action.

Alarnıñ söylise süzləre küptən söyləngən, əytergə teləgənnəre küptən əytelgən ide inde. (Ğaziz Müxəmmətşin, "Yörəktəge ezlər")
The words they had had to say had been said already long ago; what they had wanted to tell had been told already long ago.

🕐 A past action that is in close connection with the moment of speaking. In this case, the past perfect may be replaced by the form ending in -dı, -de, -tı, -te.

- Monda başlıqlar barmı soñ? Miña berniçə kön şuşında yəşəp torırsız dip əytkənnər ide.
- Bar. Beatrisa tütəy. Yortlar idarəsenə kitkən ide. Xəzer qaytır. (Ğaziz Möxəmmətşin, "Yörəktəge ezlər")
- Are there any bosses here? I have been told that I would stay here for a couple of days.
- There is one. Aunt Beatrice. She has gone to the housing administration. She’ll return any moment.

#tt_newbie
What's your profession?

When you meet someone, one of the first questions may be about your work:

Sineñ hönəreñ nindi? – What's your profession?
Sin qayda eşliseñ? – Where do you work?
Sin kem bulıp eşliseñ? – Who do you work as?

You can answer with either:
Min eşsez. – I'm unemployed
Min pensiyədə / layıqlı yalda. – I’m retired
Eş ezlim. – I'm looking for a job.

Or if you do work, you may say:
Min…
tabib - doctor
şəfqət tutaşı - nurse
uqıtuçı - teacher
tərbiyəçe - nursery-school teacher
peşekçe - cook
IT belgeç - IT specialist
citəkçe - manager, boss
eşməkər - businessman / businesswoman
satuçı - seller
xisapçı - accountant
terkəwçe - receptionist
sərqatib - secretary
xoquqçı - lawyer
xakim - judge
saqçı - security guard
yörtüçe - driver
yanğın sünderüçe - firefighter
oçuçı - pilot
ğəskəri - soldier
möhəndis - engineer
miğmar - architect
rəssam - painter
sınçı - sculptor
zərkən - juweller
tegüçe - tailor
cırçı - singer
xəbərçe - reporter
səyəsətçe - politician
sportçı - sportsman
eşçe - worker
tözüçe - construction worker
tərceməçe - translator/interpreter
möxərrir - editor
yazuçı - writer
şağir - poet

...or:
Min ... bulıp eşlim.


A: Səlam, bez tanışmadıq buğay. Min Murat.
B: Səlam Murat, min Nailə. Tanışuwınızğa şatmın.
A: Min də. Sin qayda eşliseñ?
B: Min şəhər üzəgendəge texnologiyə şirkәtendə eşlim. Ə sin?
A: Min Sibğat Xәkim uramındağı marketing agentlığında eşli başladım. Texnik şirkәttə nərsə eşliseñ?
B: Min program möhəndise. Mobil quşımtalar әzerlәw belәn şöğellәnәm. Ə sin?
A: Min marketing belən şöğellənəm, şuña kürə minem eşem reklama şirkәtləren buldıru belən bəyle.
B: Qızıq! Bəlki bez qayçan da bulsa çəy eçep, ber-berebez belәn yaxşıraq tanışa alırbız.
A: Yaxşı fiker, Nailə. Tizdən küreşerbez!

____

A: Hi, I don't think we've met before. I'm Murat.
B: Hi Murat, I'm Nailə. Nice to meet you.
A: You too. Where do you work?
B: I work at the tech company downtown. How about you?
A: I just started working at the marketing agency on Sibğat Xakim Street. What do you do at the tech company?
B: I'm a software engineer. I work on developing mobile apps. And you?
A: I'm in marketing, so my job involves creating advertising campaigns.
B: Sounds interesting! Maybe we can grab tea sometime and get to know each other better.
A: Great idea, Nailə. Let's meet up soon!


Tell me who you work as in the comments 👇🏼
I’ll go first.
Minem isemem Aygöl həm min miğmar bulıp eşlim. Ə sez?

#tt_beginner
Locative

The locative is formed by means of the suffix -da, -də, -ta, -tə;

🔶 The suffix -da/-də is joined to stems ending in a vowel or a voiced consonant:

bakçada - in the garden/park
qulda - in the hand
uramda - in (on) the street

🔸 The suffix -ta/-tə is joined to stems ending in a voiceless consonant:
ağaçta – on the tree
waqıtta - in/at (the) time

🔸 Words (including proper names) with final b, g, d borrowed from or via Russian or other languages take -ta:
klubta - at the club
Madridta - in Madrid

🔸 If the stem has a possessive suffix in the third person singular or plural, -n- precedes the locative suffix:
unaltınçı ğasırnıñ başında - at the beginning of the 16th century

🔶 The locative indicates:
· Place or time of the action:
ul awılda yəşi - he lives in a village
küktə salawat küpere - there is a rainbow in the sky

· The indirect object of verbs governing this case:
bəygedə qatnaşabız - we participate in a contest

· Motion (with some adverbs of place):
kil monda - come here,
anda barma! - do not go there!

🔶 Dialog for dative and locative:

A: Ğafu itegez, muzeyğa niçek barırğa ikənen əytə alasızmı?
B: Әlbəttə! Parkka xətle barıp citkənçe turı barığız.
A: Annarı?
B: Parkta sulğa borılığız, zur binağa xətle barığız. Muzey anıñ qarşısında.
A: Bik yaxşı, rəxmət! Süz uñayınnan, anda bilet öçen 300 sum citərme, beləsezme?
B: Әye! Min uzğan atnada anda buldım, 200 sumğa kerə alasız. Әgər də sez student bulsağız, ul 50 sumğa arzanraq.
A: Yərdəmegez öçen rəxmət yawsın.
B: İsən bulığız! Şəhərdə waqıtığız küñelle ütsen!

_____________________

A: Excuse me, could you tell me how to get to the museum?
B: Of course! Walk straight until you get to the park.
A: And then?
B: Turn left at the park, and go until the big building. The museum is right across from it.
A: Great, thank you! By the way, do you know if 300 rubles would be enough for a ticket there?
B: Yes, sure! I was there last week, you can enter for 200 rubles. It’s 50 rubles cheaper if you're a student.
A: Thanks a lot for your help.
B: No problem! Enjoy your time in the city!

Time to catch up with our latest text and check your knowledge 👇🏼

#tt_intermediate
Let’s say your friend wants to know more about your work. Can you tell him or her, what exactly you do at your job?

👩🏻‍✈️ citəklim / idarə itəm – I lead / manage
bülekne citəklim – I manage the department
bülek başlığı – head of a department
proyektlar citəklim – I manage projects
büdjetnı alıp baram – I manage the budget
törkem əğzasına birem birəm – I assign tasks to team members
törkemne əzerlim – I train the team
proyektlar tözim – I create projects

🗣️ kliyentlar belən söyləşəm – I talk to customers
oçraşularğa yörim – I attend meetings
kliyentlarlğa yərdəm kürsətəm – I provide customer support

📈 məğlümatnı analizlıym – I analize data
köndəşlərne tikşerəm – I research competitors
texnologiyələrne qullanam – I use technologies


Here is some useful work-related vocabulary that you should know:

🔎 eş ölkəse – field of work
eş ezləw – job-hunting
rezüme – CV
künekmələr – skills
eş təcribəse – work experience
interview – interview
yallaw – hire

💸 xezmət xaqı – salary
tüləw – to pay
alasım kilə – I want to get
aqça eşləw – to earn money
wazifanı kütərü – promotion

😥 deadline'nı ütəw – to meet a deadline
eş küləme – workload
artıq səğət eşləw – to work overtime
artıq küp eşləgən – overworked
tiyeşençə tülənmi – underpaid

🙅🏻‍♀️ dekretqa çığu – maternity/paternity leave
awırıp eştən qalu – sick leave
yal – vacation
eştən kittem – I left my job, resigned
eştən çığardılar – I was fired

Share in the comments what you do at work 👇🏼

#tt_advanced
Eş ezləw kiñəşləre

🔍 Bügenge dinamik həm köndəşlekle eş bazarında eş ezləw awır bulırğa mömkin həm strategik qaraş taləp itə.

Karyera maqsatlarığıznı, omtılışlarığıznı bilgeləgez. Qızıqsınularığızğa turı kilgən ölkələrne yəki rollərne qarağız. Yaxşı bilgeləngən maqsat sezgə eş ezlərgə həm iğtibarığıznı tuplarğa yərdəm itəçək.

Ostalığığıznı həm təcribəgezne kürsətüçe rezüme həm xat yazığız. Törle cirlәrgә ğariza tapşırğanda bu dokumentlarnı hәr ayırım eş öçen yañartığız.

köndəşlekle - competitive
taləp itü – to demand
omtılış - aspiration
ğariza tapşıru – to apply

🔗 Sotsial çeltərlər – eş ezləw protsessında köçle qoral həm küp eş mömkinleklərenə işeklər aça ala. Professional oyışmalarğa yazılığız, LinkedIn kebek platformalardağı professionallar belən elemtəgə keregez. Potentsial eş birüçelərne tikşeregez, alarnıñ şirkət kulturasın həm qimmətləren öyrәnegez.

Interview’lər ütkərep qarap, çın interview’ğa əzerlənegez. Sezneñ qazanışlarığıznı, ostalığığıznı həm şirkətneñ üseşenә nindi öleş kertә aluwığıznı añlatırğa əzer bulığız.

Eş ezləw awır bulırğa mömkin. Sabır bulığız, pozitiv bulığız. Qabul itmәsәlәr dә, ul sabaq bulaçaq, hər təcribəneñ faydası bar.

elemtəgə kerü - to get in contact
qimmət - value
qazanış - achievement
sabaq - lesson

👨🏻‍🏫 Ostazlardan yəki karyera belgeçlərennən kiñəş ezləgez. Alar qimmətle məğlümat birə həm eş ezləw strategiyəsen añlarğa bulışa ala.

Ölkə tendentsiyələren küzətep torığız. Daimi uqu həm professional üseş sezneñ uñışnı tağın da arttıra ala.

öleş kertü - to contribute
küzətü - to observe, keep track of
daimi - constant

#tt_culture
Do you believe in superstitions?

Qayum Nasıyri, a Tatar ethnographer who wrote a book "Qazan tatarılarnıñ ışanuları həm ğoref-ğədətləre" on the beliefs of Tatars, traveled to different Tatar villages and spoke to local people. After a lot of interviewing and an extensive research, he discovered that by means of signs and superstitions, Tatars used to try to find out mainly the following:

🌦 predicting the weather, whether it will rain or snow, and the prospects for grain and vegetable harvest

🫖 anticipating the arrival of guests and when they might receive gifts

🧿 identifying potential zarar (harm or misfortune)


Here are the superstitions that Qayum Nasıyri collected over the years:

🌦 If a Tatar's right ear itches, they interpret it as a sign of warm weather, while an itch in the left ear suggests cold weather.

When a cat scratches itself, it is seen as an omen of an approaching blizzard.

If a woman lays the first foundation of a house under construction, Tatars believe the house will be warm in winter.

When the Volga is covered with heaps of ice in winter, it is seen as a sign of a good harvest in summer.


🫖 While a piercing cry from a raven is taken as an indication of worsening weather, the chirping of a magpie signifies an incoming guest, and Tatars pay attention to the direction the magpie is facing to determine where the guest will arrive from.

If a cat is grooming itself, it is believed that a guest is on their way.

When a Tatar's lip itches, they are sure that they will receive a gift.

The rolling up of a hem while getting dressed or clothing getting caught in a door can signal forthcoming treatment or joy.

If, by mistake, a Tatar puts their clothes inside out, they will see in this a sign that they will have some kind of joy.

An itchy palm is interpreted as a sign of receiving money.

When someone sneezes, it is believed to confirm the truth of what was just said.


🧿 If a Tatar throws a pointed stake into a fire without removing the point, they are cautioned about getting a boil (furuncle).

Children are warned not to spit in the fire to avoid getting boils in their mouths.

If there is a jackdaw bird near the house, then, according to Tatars, "zarar bulır" - there will be trouble.

Do you know more Tatar superstitions that maybe you were told about by your grandparents? Let me know in the comments!

October 15 is a notable date in Tatar history – Xәter köne (Memorial Day of the Defenders of Kazan). On this day, the Kazan Khanate was captured by Ivan the Terrible in 1552.

The confrontation between the Moscow kingdom and the Kazan Khanate in the 16th century was a feudal war for territories until the fall of Kazan. After the capture of Tatar capital and the accession of the liquidated khanate lands to the possessions of Moscow Tsar, relations for many centuries passed into the format of colonial dependence, enslavement, the use of Tatar lands and Tatar people as a resource for the growth of a cruel, strong and aggressive Russian state with its capital in Moscow.
After the capture of Kazan, the entire territory of the Middle Volga region was captured by the Moscow kingdom. In addition to Tatars, the power of Moscow Tsar was extended to many peoples who had previously been subject to the former Kazan Khanate: Chuvash, Udmurts, Mari, Bashkirs. For the first time, Moscow annexed a large neighboring state beyond the borders of the former principalities of Russia, to which it now refers itself in its historiography. Soon after, Astrakhan Khanate (1556) and Siberian Khanate (1582) were conquered and annexed. Kazan Khanate became a victim of the imperial ambitions of Ivan the Terrible, his occupation policy towards the conquered peoples, aimed at their destruction. The planned Russification and Christianization of Tatars began. In parallel, there was an operation to erase the memory of the people: about their heroes, outstanding personalities, exploits, successes and achievements. This operation is still ongoing.

The aspiration of Tatars to declare independence in the 90s of the last century was treated in Moscow as Tatar separatism, although the demands of Tatars were based, among other things, on the fact of the siege and liquidation of the Kazan Khanate. Tatars of the Republic of Tatarstan repeatedly went out on October 15 to rallies under the slogans “The goal is independence!” and “Freedom!” At the rallies, they talked about the problems of their people: the closure of Tatar schools, the translation of education into Russian, the curtailment of Tatar television and radio broadcasting, the liquidation of Tatar newspapers and magazines, and the oppression of cultural and religious identity.

🔗 https://idel-ural.org/en/archives/then-this-all-started/

#tt_newbie #tt_beginner #tt_intermediate #tt_advanced

Spelling rules – based partially on Neo-alif by @bababashqort and partially on the Zamanalif.

In our first post we introduced post, we introduced you to the Tatar alphabet. The Latin-based alphabet represents all the sounds that the Cyrillic-based one doesn’t. You can listen to each sound in that previous post and then come back to get acquainted with the rules for the correct spelling.

1️⃣ The Cyrillic "ц" is transliterated as “ts”:
цунами → tsunami

"Сц" is transliterated just as “s” in the Latin spelling, “це” and “ци” as “se” and “si” respectively in loanwords:
сценарий → senariy
цент → sent
цивилизация → sivilizasiya

2️⃣ Letters “я, е, ю” at the beginning of a syllable are transliterated as "ya, yı, yu" if the syllable has a back vowel (ел → yıl), and as "yə, ye, yü" if the syllable has a front vowel (егерме → yegerme).

3️⃣ “W” is written instead of the Cyrillic “в” and “y” as a semivowel at the end of the words:
авыл → awıl
тау → taw
сөйләү → söyləw
сайлау → saylaw

✔️ In Tatar, a vowel can not be followed by another vowel, except in the newest loanwords with the original spelling.

4️⃣ When the letter “u” or “ü” is followed by a vowel, a “w” is put between the vowels:
алуы → aluwı
уу → uwu
китүе → kitüwe
көлүе → kölüwe

✔️ Exception: the imperative verb “у” (to scrub) is written as “uw”, not “u”

5️⃣ Syllables "ка, га, ко, го, кый, гый, кы, гы, ку, гу" are spelled as "qa, ğa, qo, ğo, qıy, ğıy, qı, ğı, qu, ğu" if there are back vowels in the word:

бака → baqa
кояш → qoyaş
чокый → çoqıy
гына → ğına
агу → ağu

6️⃣ If the word has front vowels (in the Arabic and Persian loanwords), these syllables are spelled "qə, ğə, qö, ğö, qi, ği, qe, ğe, qü, ğü":

гомер → ğömer
кагыйдә → qəğidə
кыйммәт → qimmət
шөгыль → şöğel
куәт → qüwət

7️⃣ If at the end of a word with front vowels there is a "къ" or "гъ", "къ" transliterates as "q" and "гъ" as "ğ".
нәкъ → nəq

8️⃣ "Ь" is not transliterated in any way.

9️⃣ The apostrophe ( ' ) indicates the glottal stop in certain loanwords, such as “Qör'ən”, “tə'sir” or “ma'may”

✔️ If no available fonts support the letter “Əə”, it can be replaced by “Ää”

✔️ The dot is used to indicate ordinal numbers:
20. bittə – on page 20
8. bülektə – in section 8

✔️ The following type of quotation marks is used: “ ”.

#tt_info
We have a bot to navigate through our topics as of 14.10.2023. If you want to re-read some posts or you skipped some, you can use the bot to find them quickly!

#tt_newbie
I'm from...

Sin qaydan? – Where are you from?
Sin qayda tudıñ? – Where were you born?
Sin qayda yəşiseñ? – Where do you live?

Min ...dan/dən. – I’m from…
Min ...da/də tudım. – I was born in…
Tuğan ilem / cirem ... – My home country / homeland is…
Min ...da/də yəşim. – I live in…
Min ...dan/dən ....ğa/gə küçendem. – I moved from … to …

🇦🇿 Azərbaycan - Azerbaijan
🇩🇪 Almaniyə - Germany
🇺🇸 Amerika Quşma Ştatları (AQŞ) – United States of America (USA)
🇦🇺 Awstraliyə - Australia
🇩🇿 Əlcəzair – Algeria
🇦🇲 Ərmənstan – Armenia
🇦🇫 Əfğənstan – Afghanistan
💙🤍💚 Başqortstan – Bashkortostan
🇧🇭 Bəxrəyn – Bahrain
🇦🇪 Berləşkən Ğərəp Əmirlekləre – United Arab Emirates
🇬🇧 Böyekbritaniyə (Berləşkən patşalıq) – Great Britain (United Kingdom)
🇵🇸 Fəlestin – Palestine
🇬🇪 Görcistan – Georgia
🇮🇶 Ğiraq – Iraq
🇮🇳 Hindstan – India
🇿🇦 Könyaq Afrika Cömhüriyəte – Republic of South Africa
🇰🇷 Könyaq Koreya – South Korea
🇸🇸 Könyaq Sudan – South Sudan
🇰🇼 Küwəyt – Kuwait
🇵🇱 Ləxstan – Poland
🇱🇧 Lübnən – Lebanon
🇭🇺 Macarstan – Hungary
🇪🇬 Misır – Egypt
🇲🇪 Montenegro – Montenegro
🇳🇱 Niderlandlar - Netherlands
🇵🇰 Pakstan – Pakistan
🇰🇿 Qazaqstan – Kazakhstan
🇨🇾 Qıbrıs – Cyprus
🇰🇬 Qırğıstan – Kyrgyzstan
🇨🇳 Qıtay – China
🇷🇺 Rusiyə, Rəsəy – Russia
🇸🇦 Soğud Ğərəpstanı – Saudi Arabia
🇸🇧 Söləyman Utrawları – Solomon Islands
🇸🇾 Süriyə – Syria
💚🤍❤️ Tatarstan - Tatarstan
🇹🇯 Tacikstan – Tajikistan
🇰🇵 Tönyaq Koreya – North Korea
🇹🇲 Törekmənstan – Turkmenistan
🇹🇷 Törkiyə – Türkiye
🇺🇦 Ukrayina - Ukraine
🇨🇫 Üzək Afrika Cömhüriyəte – Central African Republic
🇺🇿 Üzbəkstan – Uzbekistan
🇯🇴 Ürdün – Jordan
🇪🇹 Xəbəşstan – Ethiopia
🇾🇪 Yəmən – Yemen
🇳🇿 Yaña Zelandiyə – New Zealand
🇬🇷 Yunanstan – Greece

These countries have names that differ from English or have a special spelling. Most other countries' names are quite close to English.

Let me know in the comments: sez qaydan? (where are you from?)
Qayda yəşisez? (Where do you live?)
If you’re from Tatarstan, feel free to mention the district (in Tatar, of course 😉)