Trade contacts between Russia and China commenced in the late 17th century, following the signing of the Treaty of Nerchinsk (1689); they were further regularized by the Treaty of Kyakhta (1727). These contacts served as the main vehicle for Chinese loans in Russian. Due to the fact that Russia geographically and historically had closer relations with the northeastern part of China, the majority of Chinese loans came into Russian from Northeast Mandarin.

Two main types of Chinese loanwords can be distinguished in Russian in regard to how they are perceived by nativ…