Blat (Russia)
Encyclopedia
Blat is a term which appeared in the Soviet Union
to denote the use of informal agreements, exchanges of services, connections, Party
contacts, or black market deals to achieve results or get ahead.
The system of blat led to formation of social network
s similar to Good ol' boy network
s in the United States
, Old boy network
s in the United Kingdom
and the former British Empire
,
or Guanxi
in China
.
Accordingly, blatnoy means a man who obtains a job or gets into a university using connections
, or sometimes bribes. In the Soviet republics, blatnoys were very much in demand as it was difficult to gain a post or enroll in some prestigious majors in universities without proper connections.
, the origin of the word blat is the Yiddish blatt, meaning a "blank note" or a "list".
However, according to both Vasmer and N. M. Shansky, blat may also have entered into Russian as the Polish
loanword
blat, a noun signifying "someone who provides an umbrella" or a "cover". The word became part of Imperial Russian
criminal slang in the early 20th century, where it signified relatively minor criminal activity such as petty theft.
Blatnoy originally meant "one possessing the correct paperwork", which, in the corrupt officialdom of Imperial Russia and the Soviet Union indicated that the blatnoy was well connected. The word blatnoy came to indicate career criminals because they had a blatnoy or special status in the Russian criminal underworld. The use of the word to indicate association with the criminal underworld (e.g. "blatnoy language"/Fenya
, "blatnoy behavior", "blatnoy outlook") is a relatively recent development and is technically incorrect, though it is increasingly prevalent.
The adverb
ial usage of the word is po blatu , meaning "by or via blat".
In the world of Russian prisons blatnoi or blatnoy (Cyrillic: блатной) (plural: blatnyie) is one of the criminal castes and is considered the highest one of four, others being muzhyk, kozel, and petukh. Blatnyie are professional criminals and do not call themselves blatnoi, instead they use words such as arestant (arrested), bratva (brother[hood]), bosyak (barefoot), zhulik (hooligan), putyovy (traveller), and others. Words such as zhygan and people has grown to be archaic.
Requirements
A life in prison is a stage requirement for every respected criminal. Doing a crime does not necessarily get a criminal accepted in the criminal underworld. Any relations with authorities even coincidental, particularly political affiliation (such as political parties, organizations), closes the door for a person to the "blatnoi" (criminal) world. Beside his/her "blank resume" the candidate to blatnoi must adhere to the "correct understandings" (ponyatiy) which may change with time.
wasn't able to calculate efficient or even feasible plans, enterprises often had to rely on people with connections, who could then use blat to help fulfill the quotas. Eventually most enterprises came to have a dedicated supply specialist - a tolkach (literally pusher) - to perform this task.
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
to denote the use of informal agreements, exchanges of services, connections, Party
Communist Party of the Soviet Union
The Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the only legal, ruling political party in the Soviet Union and one of the largest communist organizations in the world...
contacts, or black market deals to achieve results or get ahead.
The system of blat led to formation of social network
Social network
A social network is a social structure made up of individuals called "nodes", which are tied by one or more specific types of interdependency, such as friendship, kinship, common interest, financial exchange, dislike, sexual relationships, or relationships of beliefs, knowledge or prestige.Social...
s similar to Good ol' boy network
Good ol' boy network
Good ol' boy network, or "Good old boys", describes a system of social networking/cronyism perceived to exist among communities and social strata. These networks are perceived to be located throughout the world...
s in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Old boy network
Old boy network
An old boy network, or society, can refer to social and business connections among former pupils of male-only private schools. British public school students were traditionally called "boys", thus graduated students are "old boys"....
s in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and the former British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
,
or Guanxi
Guanxi
Guanxi describes the basic dynamic in personalized networks of influence, and is a central idea in Chinese society. In Western media, the pinyin romanization of this Chinese word is becoming more widely used instead of the two common translations—"connections" and "relationships"—as neither of...
in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
.
Accordingly, blatnoy means a man who obtains a job or gets into a university using connections
Cronyism
Cronyism is partiality to long-standing friends, especially by appointing them to positions of authority, regardless of their qualifications. Hence, cronyism is contrary in practice and principle to meritocracy....
, or sometimes bribes. In the Soviet republics, blatnoys were very much in demand as it was difficult to gain a post or enroll in some prestigious majors in universities without proper connections.
Origin
According to Max VasmerMax Vasmer
Max Vasmer was a Russian-born German linguist who studied problems of etymology of Indo-European, Finno-Ugric and Turkic languages and worked on history of Slavic, Baltic, Iranian, and Finno-Ugric peoples....
, the origin of the word blat is the Yiddish blatt, meaning a "blank note" or a "list".
However, according to both Vasmer and N. M. Shansky, blat may also have entered into Russian as the Polish
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
loanword
Loanword
A loanword is a word borrowed from a donor language and incorporated into a recipient language. By contrast, a calque or loan translation is a related concept where the meaning or idiom is borrowed rather than the lexical item itself. The word loanword is itself a calque of the German Lehnwort,...
blat, a noun signifying "someone who provides an umbrella" or a "cover". The word became part of Imperial Russian
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
criminal slang in the early 20th century, where it signified relatively minor criminal activity such as petty theft.
Blatnoy originally meant "one possessing the correct paperwork", which, in the corrupt officialdom of Imperial Russia and the Soviet Union indicated that the blatnoy was well connected. The word blatnoy came to indicate career criminals because they had a blatnoy or special status in the Russian criminal underworld. The use of the word to indicate association with the criminal underworld (e.g. "blatnoy language"/Fenya
Fenya
Fenya or fenka is a Russian cant language used among criminals. Originally it was a cryptolanguage of ofenyas or ofenes, old Russian peddlers, and had a number of names. There are no convincing explanations about the origins of the words "ofenya" and "fenya"...
, "blatnoy behavior", "blatnoy outlook") is a relatively recent development and is technically incorrect, though it is increasingly prevalent.
The adverb
Adverb
An adverb is a part of speech that modifies verbs or any part of speech other than a noun . Adverbs can modify verbs, adjectives , clauses, sentences, and other adverbs....
ial usage of the word is po blatu , meaning "by or via blat".
Russian prison
DefinitionIn the world of Russian prisons blatnoi or blatnoy (Cyrillic: блатной) (plural: blatnyie) is one of the criminal castes and is considered the highest one of four, others being muzhyk, kozel, and petukh. Blatnyie are professional criminals and do not call themselves blatnoi, instead they use words such as arestant (arrested), bratva (brother[hood]), bosyak (barefoot), zhulik (hooligan), putyovy (traveller), and others. Words such as zhygan and people has grown to be archaic.
Requirements
A life in prison is a stage requirement for every respected criminal. Doing a crime does not necessarily get a criminal accepted in the criminal underworld. Any relations with authorities even coincidental, particularly political affiliation (such as political parties, organizations), closes the door for a person to the "blatnoi" (criminal) world. Beside his/her "blank resume" the candidate to blatnoi must adhere to the "correct understandings" (ponyatiy) which may change with time.
Usage
The word was primarily used to describe business relationships, when people made each a favour in exchange for another favour. Because in the Soviet Union, the GosplanGosplan
Gosplan or State Planning Committee was the committee responsible for economic planning in the Soviet Union. The word "Gosplan" is an abbreviation for Gosudarstvenniy Komitet po Planirovaniyu...
wasn't able to calculate efficient or even feasible plans, enterprises often had to rely on people with connections, who could then use blat to help fulfill the quotas. Eventually most enterprises came to have a dedicated supply specialist - a tolkach (literally pusher) - to perform this task.
See also
- Social capitalSocial capitalSocial capital is a sociological concept, which refers to connections within and between social networks. The concept of social capital highlights the value of social relations and the role of cooperation and confidence to get collective or economic results. The term social capital is frequently...
- SociolismoSociolismoSociolismo also known as amiguismo meaning "partner-ism" or "friend-ism" is the informal term used in Cuba to describe the reciprocal exchange of favors by individuals, usually relating to circumventing bureaucratic restrictions or obtaining hard-to-find goods.It comes from the Spanish word socio...
- a similar phenomenon in Communist-run Cuba - Blatnaya pesnya - "criminals' song", Russian musical genre influenced by the criminal underworld
Further reading
- Shelia Fitzpatrick. Everyday Stalinism: ordinary life in extraordinary times; Soviet Russia in the 1930s. Oxford University PressOxford University PressOxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
2000. - Prison casts of Russia