A non-spam translation question!

I am working with an autistic 5 year old who lives in a home where English, Russian and Yugoslav are all spoken regularly. Many times a day he says something that sounds like "nikkichu." I am quite sure it is negative from the way he says it, but I wonder if anyone has any idea what it means?

Norma

I don't know any russian personally, but found this link that might help. It kinda resembles the phrase for 'nothing much' in response to 'what's going on?'. There's a few other sites that might have it too from googling 'russian common phrases', if nobody else recognizes it.

Thanks, I bookmarked that. At least it confirms my perception that it is an expression of negativity. It is hard to find a translation of something you do not know how to spell.

Norma

Hi Norma,

I learnt Russian many years ago for O level as a schoolboy A fat lot of use it has been as well!

The Russian alphabet has sounds that don't figure at all in ours which makes it difficult to write down in our alphabet. I can't be absolutely certain of what is being said but have an idea.

It could be "не хочу" which sounds like "nye kuchoo (or huchoo)" as opposed to ni kichoo?

There is a Russian sound at the beginning of the second word which is a bit like our h but pronounced much more harshly from the back of the throat. The closest we could get would be to say a k followed immediately by an h.

If this is what is being said, "nye" means "don't" and "(k)huchoo" means "I want". So put together would mean "I don't want". If the child puts "Ya" before these 2 words it would confirm things as they are forming a more formal sentence with putting "I" at the beginning".

Are you sure he's not just sneezing? ;-)

John, your translation makes a lot of sense.

Very funny, Leslie! "I don't want" fits what he seems to be trying to communicate. I figured it was something along those lines. He also says "Nyet,' 'No," and "Nada." You get the idea of what my day is like. But I am having so much fun. I had forgotten what kindergarten was like.

Norma

I might be mistaken, but from the context, and the way you describe it it might be
"nie-hochoou" which means "I don't want to" in Russian.

When he does this next time ask him "nie hochesh?" with accent on the the middle syllable (which means "you do not want...") If he answers "nie-hochoou" we got the right translation.

Also "niet" means "no" in Russian
and "da" means "yes"
I hope this is of some help

Senna

Thank you everyone. I will try the response suggested just to see what happens. I feel pretty OK about responding in English if I know what he is saying. His Mom speaks English in the home, and even though he is autistic, there is no reason to think that he does not understand words.

I knew that "Nyet" was "No." I guess just from movies, etc. I looked at the sites with common phrases and saw some of the sounds he makes in some of those phrases, so I am going to look more closely. I think that a few of the school folks had really thought that he was just babbling made up words, but I don't think so.

It is so neat to be doing something different after so long. Nothing like a change to energize.

Norma

Something else occured to me later.
If this little boy is not very clear when he talks, there is another words which he might be using, which sounds vaguely similar, and this word is: "neetchevo"

the word "neetchevo" exactly means "nothing", but it is also used like a figure of speech, like in answer to a question:
"Is there anything you want" - he would say "neetchevo" without elaborating, literally I want nothing, I am fine, sometimes, I am fine leave me alone.

The expression often will be used, when you hurt yourself, or are upset and people ask you what is wrong:
you can just mumble "neetchevo" when you do not want to discuss the subject any more.

"Neetchevo" often means one thing, let me be, leave me alone which might be what this boy is feeling when he is uncomfortable in any situation.

Also if he is ever angry, or hurts you unintentionally, you can say to him "Neetchevo" - it is nothing.

Autistic children are attached to repetions, and therefore they might feel more comfortable when they hear some of the familiar phrases, in more stressful circumstances.

Senna

What would be the phonetic pronunciation of "It is nothing," or I guess, in our vernacular "No problem." I might need that some time. I am pretty sure now that he is, in fact, saying "I don't want." It makes perfect sense in terms of the way he uses it. There is also something like "Da moya" that apparently means "I am going home," at least roughly.

This little guy is so much fun. But even though I think his parents hoped to do him a favor by exposing him to more than one language, i wish that they had done it differently. they just switch back and forth, even within the same sentence, as if it is all one language. For a kid who is struggling with even figuring out how language works and why people would want to use it, that is hard.

When he gets really upset (several times a day) he just starts screaming at me, and I can understand very little of what he is saying. This is a small, neighborhood school, and they are tired of the disruption. They just want him moved out to a special ed. program somewhere. It is sad, because if he had been given some intervention early on,he might be OK in a regular classroom. Unfortunately, the parents are convinced it is just a behavioral thing, we just need to be strict with him, they say. I am here to tell you that is not so.

The bright side is that it is a fun and rewarding job for me, and it is just 7 hours a day on school days. What a different life I have now. I will never go back to being used by some big company that sucks the life out of you for 12 to 15 hours a day and then throws you out like garbage when you have the audacity to complain.

Norma

"Domoy" is one word and you are right it means "I am going home" or" I want to go home" depending on context.
"Dom" is a "Home".
It is nothing in Russian is "Neetchevo" like in "it does'nt matter".

I think this little guy is doing great job teaching you some Russian. I am sure it is a two way street, though.

If there is something that is difficult to undrstand you can also ask:
"Pokazhoo menya" which means "show me".
Or, just "Pokazhoo" is fine as well. (to show you what he wants)
"Nye poneemayou"
means "I do not understand"(what you are saying)
"Poneemayou"
means "I understand"
Good luck with that lovely boy - he is in a hard place right now, good thing he has found somone who tries to understand his predicament.

Russian, and many European children are brought up to obey their parents, any grown ups in fact, so any poor behaviour might seem a deep embaressment for them, like they have not done their job properly (in their own minds) and they act like this,out of embarassment I guess to show you that they are doing their best.

Sorry, must go- early start tomorrow. Seing my neuro in London.
Senna

Something else occured to me later:
I absolutely agree that jumping from one language to another in one sentence is not a good idea in his case (even if I admit, that do it all the time myself sometimes in 3 languages but this is a different story).

The reason I totally agree with you is that if he has autistic syndrome of any kind. the most vital thing to know about this condition is that children, as well as adults affected by autism can only function by a sort of sets mental of code of behaviour which is often very repeticious, and firmly set by a sort of unspoken rules - very fixed behaviour.

They cannot deal with change, or spontaneity - they just cannot cope with it.
Have you seen the Rain Man? Everything needs to be "just so".
They need to know where they are (mentally), what is happening, what is about to happen, EXATCLY.
This is the only way they feel some kind of control (of their world).

So, I can see how this boy finds it impossibly difficult to cope with so much happening arpund him, he feels confused and out of control. It scares him.

You are right - he does need special needs school. It is definitely not as simple as behavioural tantrums.

Someone needs to tell his parents (they might bey unaware of these issues, or in denial over their child's condition). They need to ne told that the best thing they can do for this little boy, is to give him a chance to develop in a right place FOR HIM.

Ordinary school is not the right place. Maybe you need to draw attention to this, by talking to the principal of your school.
It is not good for the boy, it is not good for other children, either.
The situation needs to be resolved, and sooner is better then later, in such cases.

Senna

Good luck, you are doing great.
Senna

Thanks for the help with Russian language particularities. Alex understands quite a lot of English, but when he is upset, in meltdown mode, or tired, he reverts to Russian. Mostly I just want to know what he is saying so I can respond appropriately.

It is an odd situation. The grandparents live with them, and they speak only Yugoslav. Language is very difficult for kids with autism under the best of circumstances. He is the 3rd of 4 kids, and the oldest brother is severely autistic. Number 2 has mild ADHD type symptoms, but does OK with a little help. School officials, psychologists, and so forth have advised the parents that Alex would benefit from a special program, but they insist that he is not autistic, just stubborn.

I am a person who has great respect for the rights of parents, and I understand their reluctance to have him categorized. But the things I see after just a few weeks tell me that a regular first grade classroom is not realistic. The slightest change in routine, or deviation from what he expects, results in a tantrum of epic proportions. It is just a simple fact of life that a whole class of children cannot be disrupted several times daily because he cannot tolerate a change in the menu, or the fact that his red folder as a torn place.

He is quite bright, just in need of an expert in his particular challenges. I hope they will come to that realization. But the way the system works, he cannot be place in a special class without his parent's permission. So I will just keep doing what I can for the time being. One good thing is that he is very loving and most of the time he likes being hugged and touched.

Norma