Learn Hardcore Russian: Я люблю порядок на рабочем столе.

Literally, я люблю means I love. But with abstract nouns like порядок (order, tidiness), it usually feels more like I really like / I like having.

Я люблю порядок на рабочем столе ≈ I like having things in order on my desk / I like my desk to be tidy.
It sounds a bit stronger than a neutral I don’t mind it; it implies a clear preference or habit.

You could translate it as either I love order on my desk or more naturally I like my desk to be tidy, depending on context and style in English.

Why is порядок in this form? Why not порядка or something else?

Порядок is in the accusative case, because it is the direct object of the verb люблю:

Я (subject, nominative)
люблю (verb)
порядок (direct object, accusative)

For inanimate masculine nouns like порядок, the accusative form is the same as the nominative:

Nominative: порядок – order
Accusative: порядок – (I love) order

You would see a different ending (‑а) in accusative mainly with animate masculine nouns, e.g.
Я люблю брата – I love (my) brother.

What case is на рабочем столе, and why is it used?

На рабочем столе is in the prepositional case:

рабочем – prepositional singular of the adjective рабочий
столе – prepositional singular of стол

We use на + prepositional to talk about location (where something is):

на столе – on the table / on the desk
на рабочем столе – on the work desk / on the desktop

So the pattern is:
на + [noun in prepositional] → on [noun] as a place.

Why is it на рабочем столе and not на рабочий стол?

The choice depends on meaning:

на рабочем столе (prepositional) = on the desk as a place / location
- Мне нужен порядок на рабочем столе. – I need order on (my) desk.
на рабочий стол (accusative) = onto the desk (direction, movement to)
- Положи документы на рабочий стол. – Put the documents onto the desk.

In your sentence, you’re not talking about movement; you’re describing a state on the desk, so you use на рабочем столе.

Why do we use на and not в here?

Both на and в can mean something like in/on, but they’re used with different types of locations.

На is used for:

Surfaces: на столе – on the table
Flat areas / platforms: на полу – on the floor
Some abstract “spaces”: на работе – at work

В is used for:

Enclosed spaces: в шкафу – in the cupboard
Rooms / buildings: в комнате – in the room

A стол (table/desk) is perceived as a surface, so Russian uses на столе, not в столе, unless you actually mean inside the desk (like in a drawer): в столе.

Why is it рабочем and not рабочий?

Рабочем is the prepositional case form of the adjective рабочий.

Adjectives in Russian must agree with the noun in:

Gender
Number
Case

The noun стол in на рабочем столе is:

Masculine
Singular
Prepositional (because of на
- location)

So the adjective рабочий must also be:

Masculine, singular, prepositional → рабочем

Patterns (masculine singular):

Nominative: рабочий стол – work desk
Prepositional: на рабочем столе – on the work desk

What exactly does рабочий стол mean? Is it a physical desk or a computer desktop?

Рабочий стол can mean both, depending on context:

Physical work desk
- На моём рабочем столе всегда порядок. – There is always order on my desk.
Computer desktop (screen)
- На рабочем столе слишком много ярлыков. – There are too many icons on the desktop.

Your sentence Я люблю порядок на рабочем столе is ambiguous out of context. It might mean:

I like my (physical) desk to be tidy.
I like my computer desktop to be tidy.

In normal conversation, tone and context usually make it clear.

Can I change the word order? For example: На рабочем столе я люблю порядок?

Yes, Russian word order is fairly flexible. These are all possible:

Я люблю порядок на рабочем столе.
Порядок на рабочем столе я люблю.
На рабочем столе я люблю порядок.

They all mean the same basic thing, but the focus changes slightly:

Я люблю порядок на рабочем столе. – neutral; simple statement.
Порядок на рабочем столе я люблю. – highlights order on the desk (as opposed to mess).
На рабочем столе я люблю порядок. – contrasts the desk with other places (e.g. maybe you don’t care about order elsewhere).

For a typical, neutral sentence, the original word order is the most common.

Could I say Мне нравится порядок на рабочем столе instead of Я люблю порядок на рабочем столе?

Yes, and it sounds very natural.

Мне нравится порядок на рабочем столе.
– Literally: Order on the desk is pleasing to me.
– Feels like I like it when my desk is tidy / I like order on my desk.

Difference in nuance:

Я люблю... – more personal and a bit stronger, like “I love / I really like”.
Мне нравится... – a bit more neutral and descriptive: “I (find that I) like it.”

Both are perfectly correct; choose based on how strong you want the statement to sound.

Why is there no word for my in the Russian sentence?

Russian often omits possessive pronouns (мой, моя, моё, мои) when the owner is obvious from context, especially with:

Body parts: У меня болит голова. – My head hurts.
Close relationships: Я люблю маму. – I love my mom.
Personal objects: Я сижу за столом. – I am sitting at the (my) table.

In Я люблю порядок на рабочем столе, it’s naturally understood that you mean your own desk unless context says otherwise.

If you really want to emphasize my, you can say:

Я люблю порядок на моём рабочем столе. – I like order on my desk (as opposed to someone else’s).

Why do we use singular порядок and not a plural like порядки?

Порядок is usually an uncountable, abstract noun when it means “order / tidiness / organization” in general:

Я люблю порядок. – I like order / I like things to be in order.

The plural порядки exists, but it has more specific or different meanings, like:

старые порядки – old customs, old rules
новые порядки – new ways, new regulations

So for tidiness / being organized as a general concept, Russian uses singular порядок.

How would I say "I like it when my desk is tidy" using a similar structure in Russian?

There are a few natural ways:

Very close to your sentence:
- Мне нравится порядок на рабочем столе.
  → I like it when my desk is in order / tidy.
Emphasizing the situation when it’s tidy:
- Я люблю, когда на моём рабочем столе порядок.
  → I like it when there is order on my desk.
Slightly more action-focused:
- Я люблю, когда на рабочем столе всё аккуратно.
  → I like it when everything on my desk is neat.

Your original Я люблю порядок на рабочем столе is already a very natural way to express this idea.

How do you pronounce each word in Я люблю порядок на рабочем столе?

Approximate pronunciation with stress in caps:

Я – ya
люблю – lyub‑LYU (second syllable stressed)
порядок – pa‑RYA‑dak (stress on RYA)
на – na
рабочем – ra‑BO‑chem (stress on BO)
столе – sta‑LE (stress on LE)

All о in unstressed positions tend to sound closer to a in normal speech.