Putler (Russian:Путлер), sometimes extended toVladolf Putler[1] (Владольф Путлер[2][3]), is a derogatoryneologism andportmanteau formed by merging the names ofVladimir Putin andAdolf Hitler.[4][5][6] Often used in the slogan "Putler Kaput!" (German:Putler kaputt!;Russian:Путлер Капут!, literally, "Putler broken!") by people opposed to Putin,[7][8] the term has a negative connotation.[7]
According to Russian linguistBoris Sharifullin [ru], the word 'Putler' was coined in Russia.[9] According to French historianMarlène Laruelle, the word was coined by the Ukrainian press.[10]
The word "Putler" became common among the opposition inRussia and inUkraine.[11] The use of the German-sounding sloganPutler Kaputt byRussians represents a change of language as a special play position, thus creating the effect that these words are being used by a foreign observer, while still using words that are understandable for Russians.[12]
The slogan attracted fame—and legal problems in Russia in 2009. A participant at a rally organized by theCommunist Party of the Russian Federation on 31 January 2009 inVladivostok carried a placard reading "Putler kaput!" The rally was directed against new customs duties on the import of used cars. The Vladivostokprosecutor's office [Wikidata] issued a warning to the regional committee of the party regarding this placard.[13][14] The regional committee reacted by publishing the following text on its website:[7][15]
The author of this slogan had in mind a specific person engaged in the auto business by the name of Putler, who came to an end due to the increase in duties on foreign cars: due to this circumstance, he lost his job, and hence the income with which he supported his large family. He, like thousands of other residents of the region, intends to leave Primorye, where it is simply impossible to live and work.
In April 2009, the slogan was officially banned.[16] According to the Primorsky Laboratory of Forensic Expertise of theMinistry of Justice of the Russian Federation, the slogan has "a pronounced emotional assessment of the personality or activities ofPutin V.V. as a representative of state power and is offensive in nature."[15]
The popularity of thispejorative increased in 2014. It was nominated for the "Word of the Year 2014" competition[19] after theannexation of Crimea by Russia, which some politicians, publicists and journalists compared with theAnschluss of Austria in 1938, after whichNazi Germany unleashed theSecond World War.[4][14][20]The Washington Post cited a number of such statements and published photographs ofUkrainian protesters holding posters with the text "Putler — hands off Ukraine" and "Putler Kaput!" and caricatured drawings connecting the recognizable facial features ofVladimir Putin andAdolf Hitler.[20] SeveralRussian linguists regarded this publication as deliberately shaping a negative image of Putin among readers.[4][21][a]
According to journalist Rodger Jones, the "Putler" reference was "prominent" during the protests in 2014 in front of the Russian embassy inWashington.[23]
In July 2014, after the appearance of photos from theFIFA World Cup, where Vladimir Putin andGerman сhancellorAngela Merkel were sitting next to each other, watching its final match, comments appeared on this photo on social networks, which read "Thank you, Mrs. Putler" (German:Danke, Frau Putler). According toThe Guardian, the authors of these comments were Ukrainians who were dissatisfied with the position taken by the сhancellor regarding theRusso-Ukrainian War.[24]
The word "Putler" has frequently been used in academic and journalistic works when comparing insulting language used against Russians and Ukrainians. The word is generally used in combination with negative verbs, such as "attack" and "shits".[25]
^The phrase that forms the attitude towards Putin was, in particular, the saying "They call it 'Putler'. And yes, it looks a little creepy", in which the word "creepy" is intended to increase the reader's emotional response
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