Back in 1939, Winston Churchill famously remarked that Russia was "a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma."
For most people, his words ring true to this day.
Although Russia is the largest country in the world and has the eighth-largest GDP, little is widely known about the nation and its culture.
Because Russia has increasingly made international headlines, it's a good idea to know a few things about the country.
To help you out, we've compiled a list of some of the craziest facts about the Russian language, culture, politics, and statistics.
Beer wasn't considered an alcoholic drink in Russia until 2011.
In 2011, then-President Dmitry Medvedev officially signed into law that beer was in fact an alcoholic beverage.
This law finally put limitations on where beer could be sold.
Source: Christian Science Monitor
One out of four Russian men die before their 55th birthday.
The life expectancy for men in Russia is 64 years old, a total among that of the 50 lowest countries in the world.
Only 10% of men in the US die before their 55th birthday, and 7% of men in the UK do.
And the risk of dying before 55 is exacerbated by those "who said they drank three or more half-liter bottles of vodka a week."
Source: The Guardian
There is no word for "fun" in Russian.
There is the word "веселье," which translates to "joy" or "merriment," and there's also the verb form "веселиться." One huge difference between the words "веселье" and "fun" is that you can have fun at work, but you can't "веселиться" at work.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider