Breakdown of У тёти Анны есть белая собака.
собака
dog
белый
white
у
at, by
есть
is, there is, to have
Анна
Anna
тётя
aunt
Questions & Answers about У тёти Анны есть белая собака.
Why doesn't the sentence start with the Russian word for "Aunt Anna" in its normal form?
In Russian, to say someone "has" something, you don't use a verb like "to have". Instead, you use the preposition У (by/at) + the owner in the Genitive case + есть (is/exists) + the object owned. Literally, this sentence translates to "At Aunt Anna there is a white dog."
Why does the name Анна change to Анны?
Because Aunt Anna is the owner in this "has" construction, her name must be in the Genitive case. For feminine nouns ending in -а like Анна, the Genitive ending is -ы.
Why does тётя (aunt) change to тёти instead of taking an -ы ending?
Тётя also needs to be in the Genitive case because it describes the owner. However, feminine nouns that end in the soft vowel -я change to the soft vowel -и in the Genitive case, not -ы. Therefore, тётя becomes тёти.
Why is белая собака (white dog) in the Nominative case? Isn't it the object of the sentence?
In English, the dog is the object. But remember the literal translation of this Russian structure: "At Aunt Anna, a white dog exists." Because the dog is technically the subject doing the "existing" in Russian, белая собака stays in the Nominative (dictionary) case.
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