Learn Italian: Il vicino russo è molto simpatico. - The Russian neighbor is very nice.

No, it is a false friend! In Italian, simpatico means nice, friendly, or likable. If you want to say someone is sympathetic or understanding, you would use a different word like comprensivo.

Why is russo written with a lowercase letter?

In Italian, adjectives for nationalities like russo (Russian) or italiano (Italian) are not capitalized. You only capitalize them in English!

I thought vicino meant "near". Does it also mean "neighbor"?

Yes! As an adjective, vicino means "near" or "close". But when used as a noun with an article, like il vicino, it means "the male neighbor". A female neighbor would be la vicina.

Why does russo come after vicino?

In Italian, most descriptive adjectives, especially nationalities, come directly after the noun they describe. Instead of saying "the Russian neighbor", you say "the neighbor Russian" (il vicino russo).

How would this sentence change if the neighbor were a woman?