According to one version, the roots of this expression go back to ancient times, to the days of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. In front of his palace in Kolomenskoye stood a long box, in which any person could put his or her complaint.
There were many people willing to do so, but these notes were considered slowly. First, boyars waited until the box was filled, then they began to study the petitions. Not surprisingly, some of them remained unanswered. While waiting for a decision, people would often forget what they were complaining about.
The box was dealt with, but why is it long and not lengthy? Well, the words ‘long’ and ‘lengthy’ are, of course, synonyms.
There is another version, according to which the expression "to put in a long box" appeared in the middle of the 18th century. And it came to the Russian language from German. But, we will also be talking about furniture: in German courts, cases were put in long bench boxes. The complaints of those who were poorer were considered last, sending them to a... long box. So, perhaps, the expression migrated into the Russian language together with the habit of postponing everything insignificant for later.
That's how the expression came to be, which means "to put something off for an indefinite period of time".
Dear readers,
Our website and social media accounts are under threat of being restricted or banned, due to the current circumstances. So, to keep up with our latest content, simply do the following:
If using any of Russia Beyond's content, partly or in full, always provide an active hyperlink to the original material.
Subscribe
to our newsletter!
Get the week's best stories straight to your inbox
