Fartsovka

Fartsovka (Russian: Фарцовка) is the slang name for the illegal purchase / resale ( speculation ) of hard-to-reach or inaccessible scarce imported goods for an ordinary Soviet inhabitant, prohibited in the USSR . Clothing and accessories were the overwhelming majority of items of supply and demand for black markings . Also popular were sound carriers ( vinyl records , audiotapes , reels ), cosmetics, household items , books, etc. Fartsov items, or the phenomenon itself was generally called "fartsa".

Etymology

"Fartsovka"'s exact origin is uncertain, but one account suggests that it was derived from an archaic word from the Odessa dialect of Russian, "forets" (форец). A "forets" was a man who bought cheap items and sold them in dishonestly expensive prices.

Another origin for the term was the English phrase "for sale", distorted into "forser", referring to the fartsovkas' approach towards foreign, English-speaking tourists.

Description

The bullies were mainly young people ( students ), as well as persons who, by the nature of their work, have the opportunity to closely communicate with foreigners: guides , translators , taxi drivers , prostitutes , etc.

The majority of buyers on the market for the goods in the 1950s - 1960s were hipsters. Later, in the 1970s - 1980s years all those who had the money and wanted a different clothes, cosmetics, equipment, books or music, had to use services of black marketeers. During these years, the sources of fartsovy also changed, and the concept itself acquired a broader meaning. Now, the main occupation of most of those who were called black-marketeers was buying through acquaintances who had connections or the ability to travel abroad.

See also
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