Уро́к 6
6.3 Grammar: Dative Case: Age (год, го́да, лет)
Люби́мая Грамма́тика
Introduction to AGE
That question up there has a lot packed into it. It means ‘How old are you?’ You finally get to say how old you are in Russian! To give your age in Russian, you use the Dative Case + the number of years you are.
The Dative Case? Right, this is a NEW case!
Watch the following slideshow video to learn about it and then read the examples that follow.
[VIDEO] ??? Not in Canvas
I. Ско́лько вам лет?
How old are you?
Мне со́рок шесть.
I’m forty six.
Те́бе два́дцать оди́н!
You are twenty one.
Ему́ оди́ннадцать.
He is eleven.
Ей де́вять.
She is nine.
Нам два́дцать.
We are twenty.
Вам восемна́дцать?
Are you eighteen?
Им девяно́сто.
They are ninety.
Notice the pronouns in Russian are in the Dative case. The translation is something like ‘to me are 46 years’. Learn the following Dative case forms:
| Singular | Plural | |
| First person | Я (Nominative) >>> Мне (Dative) | Мы (Nominative) >>> Нам (Dative) |
| Second person | Ты (Nominative) >>> Тебе (Dative) | Вы (Nominative) >>> Вам (Dative) |
| Third person | Он (Nominative) >>> Ему́ / (Dative) Она (Nominative) >>> Ей (Dative) |
Они (Nominative) >>> Им (Dative) |
II. Dative Case endings for NOUNS
Take a look at the highlighted endings. What can you deduce about how masculine and feminine nouns change in Dative case?
Све́те 23.
Sveta is 23.
Мари́не 24.
Marina is 24.
Та́не 19.
Tanya is 19.
Ива́ну 22.
Ivan is 22.
Анто́ну 30.
Anton is 30.
Серге́ю 25.
Sergei is 25.
Андре́ю 20.
Andrei is 20.
The RULES
1. Nouns ending in -а and -я take -е in the Dative case. This applies to all feminine nouns and any masculine nouns that end in -а or -я.
- Све́та > Све́те
- Та́ня > Та́не
- Па́па > Па́пе
- Ко́ля > Ко́ле
2. If a feminine noun ends in -ь or -ия, the Dative ending is -и.
- крова́ть > крова́ти
- Мари́я > Мари́и
3. Masculine nouns ending in a consonant take -у in the Dative case.
- Ива́н > Ива́ну
- сын > сы́ну
4. Masculine nouns ending in a soft sign -ь OR the consonant -й take -ю in the Dative case.
- слова́рь > словарю́
- Андре́й > Андре́ю
5. Neuter nouns ending -о, take -у, like masculine, in the Dative. MOST neuter nouns ending in the soft -е take -ю in the Dative. If a neuter noun ends in -е because of the 5 letter spelling rule, the ending will be -у (but this is just something to keep in the back of your mind as passive knowledge right now).
- окно́ > окну́
- по́ле > по́лю
- со́лнце > со́лнцу
As always, refer to your grammar tables.
