Belarus (ベラルーシ, Berarūshi) is a supporting character in the series Hetalia. She is the personification of Belarus.
In 2007, Himaruya gave human names to some of the characters, and she received the name Natallia Arloŭskaja (ナターリヤ・アルロフスカヤ, Natāriya Arurofusukaya, Belarusian: Наталля Арлоўская).
Appearance[]
Chibi Belarus from Axis Powers Volume 4
Belarus has waist-length, straight platinum blonde hair with bangs parted in the middle, and indigo eyes. In Meeting of the World[5] as well as early concept art,[6] her hair used to be light brown.
She is described on multiple accounts as being very pretty (in Russia's Big and Little Sister[7] adapted in Episode 42 as well as in Hetalia☆Collezione[8]), and shown to be physically strong. She's also been noted to have large breasts.[9]
Personality And Interests[]
She is an intimidating, harsh young woman who has a deep infatuation with her older brother Russia, to the point where she wants to get married to him. However, he doesn't feel the same way and feels disturbed by her very presence.
Belarus is shown to carry around a knife at points, most notably in the Meeting of the World strip where she's holding it to a traumatized Latvia's back as her brother scares him.
Alongside that, she doesn't hesitate to use violence and can be quite the sadist as shown when Lithuania asked her out for a date and she breaks all of his fingers.
According to a footnote at the end of Russia's Big and Little Sisters in Hetalia volume 2, Belarus briefly became a sort of adoptive younger sister to America after the fall of the Soviet Union. Her appearance as a Hetalia desktop buddy also reveals that she loves the occult, and that her favorite reading material was the Soviet newspaper Pravda. Also, from her appearance as a desktop buddy it is revealed that she can see ghosts and is quite fond of her traditional clothes.
It also has been stated that Belarus is a good acrobat and knows a lot of useless trivia like the name of Paris Hilton's dog. Belarus is also quite vulgar in her speech, usually using profanity calmly.
According to her, she's skilled in cooking potatoes and she always eats them due to inflation. She thinks that as long as we have something to eat, it's fine and works hard on her agriculture due to her bad economy. She said that Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs labeled her as unsafe, and she has travel warnings against her.
Upon being asked by Latvia, she said that the higher ups in Belarus used to speak Polish, somewhat implying that she can, as well.
At five in the morning, she said she would go watch the sun rise. She calls eight AM torture and four PM the devil. At nine, she decided to watch some state-run TV to be poisoned by propaganda. According to her, ten in the morning is the most thrilling time in Belarus. She seems to get nervous around 11 and 12 for some reason, and calms down (saying you've forgotten) at one and that it's alright and you have to start moving on at two.
She said that the shadow on the moon was, according to Netherlands or Denmark (she couldn't recall which,) someone who had been imprisoned there for some crime. She wondered how long he had to stare at the earth powerlessly until he was forgiven and that she wasn't much better off than him.
Relationships[]
America[]
- Main article: America
Due to her older brother, Russia's disliking towards America, Belarus also despises America, even though it's shown to be heading towards hate. In the Christmas 2011 Event, everyone's questioning why America is late to the party and Belarus growls that he's probably too enthusiastic about the setup and is too exhausted to come.
Even so, America becomes a sort of big brother to her after she attempted to separate herself from her brother after the fall of the Soviet Union. However, she tired him out a lot in doing so, and he tried to get rid of her the same as Russia did. She's annoyed by American ghosts (as they're very conspicuous) and going to America's house, though she seems to enjoy the famous haunted mansion, the Winchester mystery house, and went there with Russia despite being irritated at having to visit America.
Latvia[]
- Main article: Latvia
Belarus and Latvia talked a little bit in the Sealand and Latvia mascots. One of her diary's possible entries included her dropping potatoes on Latvia's house, or having "played around with" him, though it also could have been replaced with several other names. He was a bit surprised when Belarus began to get philosophical, wondering why she was alive and how much longer she would be that way. They also shared mutual marvel at the shape of Belarus' National Library, talked about various stories about the moon, and spoke about the Mary Celeste. During Halloween, as Belarusian children do not go door to door to ask for candy, Belarus told Latvia, as she apparently did every year, that she had no candy at her house for him.
Lithuania[]
- Main article: Lithuania
Lithuania talking about his date with Belarus in Episode 37
Lithuania and Belarus have known each other since childhood, as evidenced by a scrapped strip[10] from Comic Diary Summary Part 11. Adult Lithuania has shown to have a crush on her dating back to the interwar period at least[Note 7] (going by Pact of Steel[11] and Episode 37 where he says to have a date planned with her). A strip from Comic Diary Summary Part 11[12] also shows Lithuania returning home from a (only 3 minutes long) date with Belarus, to Poland's annoyance then shock as he notices that not only are all of Lithuania's fingers broken, but that Belarus is still there actively breaking them further. Lithuania remains oblivious, claiming that he just has the ability to bend his fingers to such extremes.
In Japanese, Lithuania refers to Belarus as Belarus-chan, a cutesy way of addressing her.
Manhandling Lithuania has been a habit of hers since they were young,[10] but she doesn't seem to feel genuine hatred towards him, if the dates she accepted are anything to go by. Aside from physical harm, she doesn't act anymore menacingly towards Lithuania than she does with others (however Lithuania definitely sees her through rose-colored glasses, refusing to acknowledge the way she treats him). In a strip from the Halloween 2013/2014 Event,[13][14] she even offers Lithuania her help to save Poland from Russia's rough cuddling (by substituting herself for Poland).
Many fans tend to speculate that Belarus acted that way because she feels jealous of Lithuania's privileged position in Russia's household, but all interactions quoted above disprove it. Given her general tendency to intimidate others, it is more likely that Lithuania's blinding crush merely makes him an easy target for her. It is also worth noting that in spite of their dates, Himaruya confirmed Lithuania's feelings to be unrequited.[15]
Poland[]
- Main article: Poland
While their relationship has yet to be shown in the comics, Belarus talks about him a few times in the Sealand and Latvia mascots and he was listed in the relationship section of her face chart along with Lithuania, both of which are said to be annoying. She asked why those cat shit bastards Poland and Lithuania often bother her (though the word used can also mean be concerned about or care about,) to which Latvia said they were at that age, the word used to mean adult age or marriageable age. One of her diary entries' options was that she made silent calls to Poland's house in the evening. Latvia also asked if Belarus could speak Polish at one time, however she said it was only the officials who could and that she'd always spoken Belarusian.
Russia[]
- Main article: Russia
Belarus' older brother. Her love for him is as obsessive as it is unrequited, though much to Russia's dismay, the latter does not deter her. She is shown to stalk after him, as well as stick by his side to intimidate those who she feels might stand in their way. In one episode, all the countries were shown to have left the Soviet Union and left Russia by himself. Belarus came back and said to Russia Even if you don't want me to stay, I'll stay, to which Russia said, That's nice...But kinda creepy.
In the Hetalia desktop buddies created by Himaruya, Belarus' obsession for Russia is elaborated on even more, with her stating her desire to get suggestive photos of her brother. Despite their relation, Belarus had made repeated requests/demands for Russia to marry her.
Ukraine[]
- Main article: Ukraine
Belarus's older sister. Their relationship is not shown very much, except for the fact that she, Russia, and Belarus were all siblings back in the days. However, Belarus can be seen glaring at Ukraine in some of Himaruya's pictures, possibly out of jealousy of Russia's attention towards her and now Belarus. Even when they were little, when Ukraine gave Russia her scarf, Belarus tried to resist Russia's acceptance of the scarf.
However, there are also implications that Belarus has an attachment to Ukraine. In her appearance in the Sealand and Latvia desktop mascots, a possible entry of her diary she'll read for you involves her spending three hours massaging Ukraine's breasts or stretching her headband. It also contained an entry in which she went through her garbage bags. There was also an intimidating shadow resembling Belarus creeping up behind Ukraine when Italy tried flirting with her.
Human Name[]
Hidekaz Himaruya provided Belarus with the name "Natallia Arloŭskaja" (ナターリヤ·アルロフスカヤ, Natāriya Arurofusukaya), with "Natasha" (ナターシャ, Natāsha) given as a nickname.[2] In Belarusian her name is spelled "Наталля Арлоўская", and her nickname is spelled "Наташа". In the International Phonetic Alphabet, the exact pronunciation of her name is written as [naˈtalʲːa arˈɫou̯skaʲa], with her nickname being written as [nɐˈtaʂə]. For more information on using the IPA to learn how to pronounce a word, see the IPA help page for Belarusian on Wikipedia.
Her given name is most accurately rendered as Natallia in the Latin alphabet. Though some fans have romanized her name as Natalya (Наталья) or Natalia (Наталия), these are Russian spellings, and Belarusian fans have expressed discomfort at her name being spelled this way due to historical suppression of the Belarusian language by the Russian government. Thus, it is both preferred and more accurate to render her name as Natallia. The name Natallia derives from the Latin name Natalia, which itself is derived from the phrase natale domini ("birth of the Lord"). The nickname Natasha is a diminutive of the name Natallia.
Her surname is most accurately rendered as Arloŭskaja, though Arlouskaya and Arlowskaya are also romanizations that are used. Arlovskaya is not entirely wrong, but is not entirely accurate either because there is not a “v” sound in the name. Her surname was often rendered as Alfroskaya in the early days of the fandom, but this surname does not exist and does not match the katakana Himaruya wrote. It is most likely due to people accidentally misreading the katakana. The name Arloŭskaja derives from the Proto-Slavic word for eagle, orьlъ. A possible inspiration for her having this name could be Andrei Arlovski, a Belarusian-born MMA fighter.
Like Russia and Ukraine, Belarus was not given a patronymic in her name. Belarusian names traditionally have a patronymic, following the same naming customs as other east Slavic languages.
Appearances[]
Manga[]
- Comic Diary Summary Part 11[12]
- Fly, Mr. Canada, Fly![16]
- Halloween 2013/2014 Event[14]
- Russia and Friends
Anime[]
Belarus' debut in Episode 42
Her anime design originally had a color scheme similar to the one that she had in the manga version of the Meeting of the World strip, with her hair being darker and her dress-colored black, rather than her hair being light blonde and her dress being navy. The only difference between the designs is that an apron was added, and her hair was lengthened to match her later manga design. However, when she reappeared in Episode 42, the colors of her dress and bow were corrected, though her hair still remained dark blonde.
- Episode 01 (cameo)
- Episode 37 (cameo)
- Episode 42
- Episode 43
- Episode 82
- Russia and Friends
- Surprise Halloween!
- The Weirdos・Part 1
Songs[]
Character Image Songs[]
- "Carrot and Stick" (featured)
Trivia[]
- According to notes in 2009 by Himaruya, Belarus was originally designed as a shy, more reserved character. An early headshot sketch shows her to have a plain headband, while her hair is colored light brown.[6]
- Additional notes in the special edition of Axis Powers volume 3 revealed that Himaruya had also considered an angrier character that was more reflective of the "tsundere" archetype, who would always be complaining and frustrated.
Notes[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Though this has not been directly depicted, it is shown in Russia and Friendsthat Belarus was alive during the time when Russia represented the Novgorod Republic. Therefore, it is known that she was alive during later time periods.
- ↑ In Russia and Friends, Belarus is shown to be alive during the time when Russia represented the Novgorod Republic and fought in the Battle on the Ice against Teutonic Knights in 1242. Therefore, she was likely alive for a bit of time before this, during when Kyivan Rus' existed.
- ↑ This is the exact pronunciation of Belarus' human name (and below, her nickname) written in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). For more information on using the IPA to learn how to pronounce a word, see the IPA help page for Belarusian on Wikipedia. For more information on Belarus' human name, see the Human Name subheading on this page.
- ↑ Notably towards Lithuania (whom she went on a date with).
- ↑ The date in 1991 when Belarus gained independence from the Soviet Union. Click here for more information.
- ↑ The national flower of Belarus. Click here for more information.
- ↑ Since the events of the strip from Comic Diary Summary Part 11 are hard to situate on the timeline and that the scrapped version of it doesn't mention any sort of crush during their childhood years, it can only be assumed that Lithuania developped romantic feelings towards her in adulthood.
References[]
- ↑ Himaruya, Hidekaz. June 30, 2011. "ロシアとおともだち [Russia and Friends]" Axis Powers ヘタリア 4 [Hetalia: Axis Powers 4]. Page 71. Gentosha. ISBN: 978-4-3448-2233-7(JPN), 978-1-5703-2150-4(ENG). English.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Himaruya, Hidekaz. April 2, 2008. "ベラルーシさん [Miss Belarus]". Japanese & English.
- ↑ Himaruya, Hidekaz. January 19, 2011. "すっごい！シーランド君とラトビアちゃんデスクトップマスコット [Sealand and Latvia Desktop Mascots]". Original blog post with download link (now defunct). The same blog post on Hetarchive.
- ↑ Himaruya, Hidekaz. December 10, 2008. "ヘタリアと愉快な仲間たち [Hetalia and Funny Friends]" Axis Powers ヘタリア 2 [Hetalia: Axis Powers 2]. Page 18. Gentosha. ISBN: 978-4-3448-1514-8(JPN), 978-1-4278-1887-4(ENG). English.
- ↑ Himaruya, Hidekaz. March 28, 2008. "Meeting Of the World" Axis Powers ヘタリア 1 [Hetalia: Axis Powers 1]. Page 3. Gentosha. ISBN: 978-4-3448-1275-8(JPN), 978-1-427-818-768(ENG). English.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Himaruya, Hidekaz. April 5, 2009. "ちびべら [Chibi Bela]" Japanese. English.
- ↑ Himaruya, Hidekaz. December 10, 2008. "ロシアの姉さんと妹君 [Russia's Big and Little Sister]" Axis Powers ヘタリア 2 [Hetalia: Axis Powers 2]. Gentosha. ISBN: 978-4-3448-1514-8(JPN), 978-1-4278-1887-4(ENG).
- ↑ Himaruya, Hidekaz. November 4, 2021. ヘタリア☆Collezione [Hetalia☆Collezione]. Page 113. Shueisha. ISBN: 978-4-0888-2870-1(JPN). English.
- ↑ Himaruya, Hidekaz. May 27, 2008. "幸せ人間 [Happy people]". Japanese. English.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Himaruya, Hidekaz. October 19, 2008. "没ったコマUP" Japanese.
- ↑ Himaruya, Hidekaz. August 13, 2006. "ヘタレ４ 鋼鉄協約 [Hetare 4: Pact of Steel]" Japanese. English.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Himaruya, Hidekaz. October 5, 2008. "日記漫画まとめ その１１ [Comic Diary Summary Part 11]" Japanese. English.
- ↑ Himaruya, Hidekaz. November 5, 2014. "おまけ６ [Extra 6]" Japanese. English.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Himaruya, Hidekaz. November 8, 2014. "おまけ９ [Extra 9]" Japanese. English.
- ↑ Himaruya, Hidekaz. June 3, 2008. "ロケット団がいつか勝てますように [I Hope Team Rocket Can Win Someday]" Japanese. English.
- ↑ Himaruya, Hidekaz. January 26, 2008. "飛び越せ！カナダさん [Fly, Mr. Canada, Fly!]" Japanese. English.