Breakdown of Перед экзаменом мама сказала: «Ни пуха ни пера!»
мама
mom
сказать
to tell, to say
экзамен
exam
перед
in front of / of (with fear) / before (in time)
Questions & Answers about Перед экзаменом мама сказала: «Ни пуха ни пера!»
What does the phrase Ни пуха ни пера literally mean?
It literally translates to "Neither down nor feather!" Historically, it was used to wish hunters good luck. People believed that directly wishing for a successful hunt ("down" or fur from beasts, "feathers" from birds) would jinx it because evil forest spirits were listening. So, they wished for the exact opposite to trick the spirits. Today, it is the standard Russian equivalent of "Break a leg!"
If someone says Ни пуха ни пера! to me, how should I reply?
You must reply К чёрту! (literally, "To the devil!"). Because the original phrase is meant to trick evil spirits, saying Спасибо (Thank you) ruins the trick and is actually considered bad luck. You have to play along by sending the well-wisher "to the devil" to ensure the good luck works.
Why are the words пух (down) and перо (feather) in the genitive case (пуха, пера) here?
The phrase uses the repeated negative particle ни... ни... (neither... nor...). In Russian, expressing the complete absence of something requires the genitive case. Since the phrase literally wishes you an absence of down and feathers, both nouns take their genitive forms.
Could I use До экзамена instead of Перед экзаменом to mean "Before the exam"?