Orc (slang)

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Orc (Cyrillic: орк, romanised: ork), plural orcs (Russian and Ukrainian: орки, Russian romanisation: orki, Ukrainian: orky), is a pejorative commonly used by many Ukrainians[1] to refer to a Russian soldier[2][3] participating in the Russian-Ukrainian War and Russian citizens who support the aggression of Russia against Ukraine. The pejorative serves to symbolize inhuman wickedness of the invading enemy and comes from the name of the fictional humanoid monsters of the same name from J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings.[4]

Usage

Comparisons of Vladimir Putin's Russian regime and its security services to the evil necromancer Sauron, his domain of Mordor, and orcs were made at least as early as 2009 by a Russian-American blogger and 2012 by Russian journalist Leonid Bershidsky.[5]

Since the beginning of the Russo-Ukrainian War in 2014, Ukrainians have used the term to as a pejorative for Russian forces.[5][6] During the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Ukrainians began to massively use the term "orcs" in relation to Russian military personnel and their war crimes.[7] Al Jazeera English and Politico included the term as an example of the "new language of war in Ukraine".[8][9]

According to the Courthouse News Service, the nickname is used by Ukrainian propaganda.[10] The term is used by Ukrainian senior officials, the military and the media.[11] For example, in early March 2022, in the Russian-occupied city of Melitopol, demonstrators protested against "orc looting". On April 8, the chairman of the Sumy Regional State Administration, Dmytro Zhyvytskyi, announced that his region was now "free of orcs". The Mayor of Makariv Vadym Tokar [uk] followed him the next day, he stated that the bodies of 132 civilians were found and that they were "killed by Russian orcs".[12]

In January 2024, some Twitter users stated that The New York Times had been reproducing Russian propaganda and mocked it as the "New Orc Times" in memes.[13][14]

Analysis

An article for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation authored by retired Australian Army major general and writer Mick Ryan stated that Ukrainians calling Russian soldiers "orcs" engage in dehumanization. He added as well that the "impulse" to do so provokes dilemmas related to "a post-war Ukraine that will still have Russian minority populations".[15] Meduza, a Russian language internet publication, has detailed the same opinion.[16] Meduza's news department specified that when it comes to coverage of the invasion and related stories, the use of argumentative clichés including "nazis" or "orks" should be alarming, with the terminology giving meanings that "in any case sets up a certain emotion, and not on the perception of information".[17]

According to the head of the Ukrainian Commission on Journalistic Ethics and co-founder of Hromadske Radio, Andriy Kulykov, calling the Russian military "orcs" is a step towards dehumanization and "plunges us into a world of fantasy, and war is real".[18] The Lithuanian scientist and public figure Tomas Venclova said in an interview: "I will not call Russians rushists or orcs - that's dehumanising".[19]

The Spectator compared the "brutality and chaos" of the Russian troops to Tolkien's orcs and noted that the use of this term may not be just an accidental insult, but the result of drawing an analogy between the Middle-earth conflict and the geopolitics of the real world.[20]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Что такое Украина? Репортаж писателя Джонатана Литтелла. Он съездил в Бучу и другие города под Киевом — и своими глазами увидел последствия российской оккупации". Meduza (in Russian). Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  2. ^ "In 'Ukrainian military Oscars,' Ukraine promotes army and mocks Russia". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  3. ^ "Life Under Russian Occupation: Hunger, Fear and Abductions". VOA. 2022-03-21. Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  4. ^ "Ukrainian man tracks 'looted' AirPods to follow Russian troops". euronews. 2022-04-22. Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  5. ^ a b "Orknash: Supporting the Home Team (Russia's Alien Nations)". NYU Jordan Center. 2019-09-30. Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  6. ^ Borenstein 2023.
  7. ^ Cohen, Eliot A. (2022-10-22). "The Words About Ukraine That Americans Need to Hear". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  8. ^ Mirovalev, Mansur. "'Orcs' and 'Rashists': Ukraine's new language of war". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  9. ^ "The Rashists from Mordor vs. the Tractor Troops: Ukraine's new language of war". POLITICO. 2022-06-21. Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  10. ^ Burdeau, Cain (26 April 2022). "Russia warns of World War III, West boosts arms to Ukraine". Courthouse News Service. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  11. ^ Macias, Holly Ellyatt,Amanda. "Zelenskyy speaks to Macron as fears over nuclear plant mount; explosions hit Russian ammo depot in Crimea". CNBC. Retrieved 2023-06-21.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  12. ^ "Ukrainian and Russian Tolkien fans battle over the legacy of 'The Lord of the Rings'". Le Monde.fr. 2022-04-23. Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  13. ^ Pohorilko, Maryna (2024-01-04). "'The New Orc Times': відоме видання захейтили в мережі за позицію щодо України і нагадали про злочини Кремля". Obozrevatel (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2024-01-08.
  14. ^ Kushpit, Anastasiia (2024-01-05). "'The New Orc Times': мережа захейтила відоме ЗМІ через підігрування пропаганді Кремля". 24 Kanal.
  15. ^ "While the war in Ukraine rages these three issues must be addressed now". ABC News. 2022-09-26. Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  16. ^ "Мобики". Meduza (in Russian). Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  17. ^ "Не можете больше видеть все эти ужасные новости? Или, наоборот, не можете перестать читать? Инструкция "Медузы" — как сохранить себя". Meduza (in Russian). Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  18. ^ "Многие украинские журналисты после 24 февраля говорят, что участвуют в "информационной войне", помогая своей стране победить Россию. Как это изменило их профессию?". Meduza (in Russian). Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  19. ^ "'I will not call Russians rushists or orcs – that's dehumanising' – interview". lrt.lt. 2022-10-29. Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  20. ^ MacLachlan, Christopher (2022-04-10). "Why are Ukrainians calling Russian invaders 'orcs'?". The Spectator. Retrieved 2023-06-21.

Further reading

  • Borenstein, Eliot (2023). "Russian Orc: The Evil Empire Strikes Back". Soviet self-hatred: the secret identities of postsocialism in contemporary Russia. Ithaca London: Cornell University Press. ISBN 978-1-5017-6987-0.

External links

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