* A game in which players toss a round, heavy piece of metal (called a bita) at a stack of coins, in order to hit or knock it over, and then take turns using the bita to try to flip the coins over. If you flip a coin, it’s yours to keep. —Trans.
* The title of an eponymous story by Ivan Bunin.
* Trans. Mary Barnard, 1962.
* “The Sparrow. From Catullus” by Francis Fawkes (1761).
* Trans. Waclaw Lednicki, 1955.
* At Russian wedding parties, it is customary for guests to cry out “It’s bitter!” when they drink. This is a cue for the bride and groom to kiss and make the wine sweet, a call-and-response ritual repeated throughout the wedding party. —Trans.
* Baikal–Amur Railroad.
* See the full translation of Voloshin’s poem in the Translator’s Note on here.