Who Are the East Slavs? | Russians, Ukrainians & Belarusians

Russians, Ukrainians and Belarusians are all East Slavs. But what does “Slavic” actually mean? Where did the Slavs come from? And how did people who once came from the same broad world end up becoming separate peoples? We start with the early Slavs and how they spread across Europe, creating the West, South and East Slavic branches. Then we follow the history of the East Slavs through Rus’ and Kievan Rus, and see how Russians, Ukrainians and Belarusians gradually developed in different directions. Then things get a little messier. Can you actually tell a Russian, Ukrainian and Belarusian apart? How different are their languages? Does speaking Russian make someone ethnically Russian? And why does English use the same word — “Russian” — for things that Russian itself separates? We also follow how Russians spread from European Russia across the Urals, through Siberia and all the way to the Pacific. And finally: is Russia actually Slavic? Russians are Slavic. Russia is not just Slavic. 00:00 What Does “Slavic” Actually Mean? 01:04 Where Did the Slavs Come From? 02:08 The Three Slavic Branches 03:32 Who Were the East Slavs? 06:12 Russians, Ukrainians & Belarusians 08:40 What Does “Russian” Actually Mean? 09:52 How Russians Spread Across Siberia to the Pacific 11:43 Is Russia Slavic? Cultural overlap is not an argument for changing borders, invading countries or settling historical disputes at the cost of actual human lives.