я не в курсе

Kak ya ponyal eto vyrazhenie znachit: I don't understand.
What is the reasoning behind this structure? Kurs means direction of a ship correct?

Я не в курсе means that I don't know anything about that. It doesn't mean that you don't understand just don't know anything about that, because nobody kept you posted on something or you had been out of the loop or never heard of that etc

Example:

- Почему наш босс такой злой сегодня?
- Я не в курсе = я не знаю

- Что Татьяна делает завтра?
- Я не в курсе

And blah blah blah

Hope it helps

Курс - course, right it's course of a ship, or in this specific case 'course of actions, how the situation evolves'.

Я не в курсе дела - I don't have knowledge of the situation, я не в курсе по поводу деталей ситуации - I don't know the details of the situation.
Hence, the shortened version - я не в курсе (I don't know about the situation, about it). Я не был в курсе - I didn't know about it, I was not informed, Noone told me.

I think in this meaning it is used mostly in work environment, or when they have to plan something, or discuss a past or current event.

Also:

ввести (кого-то) в курс дела — to acquaint (smb) with the facts of the matter; to put (smb) in the way of things

держать (кого-то) в курсе (дела) — to keep (smb) informed of the matter

Как переводится это выражение: Европа сейчас пытается идти курсом на энергетическую независимость от России.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by alexsms

Hence, the shortened version - я не в курсе (I don't know about the situation, about it). Я не был в курсе - I didn't know about it, I was not informed, No one told me.

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Note that "no one" is always written with a space, as two words, unlike "nobody".

Anyway, "not up to speed" (followed by "with/on/about this topic") is another good English colloquialism with the same basic meaning as не в курсе:

"We hired him because he's an absolute expert in cryptography, but it turns out he's not up to speed on PowerPoint, so we need to find him a secretary/assistant who can help him get up to speed (ввести его в курс)"

P.S. Don't confuse быть (не) в курсе -- "to be (not) up to speed" -- with быть в теме, which can be a sort of code-phrase for saying that a person is a member of the ЛГБТ-сообщество. "Он в теме" ≈ "He is a friend of Dorothy."

Быть в теме and быть в курсе can be used interchangeably.

Ты знаешь что-нибудь насчет ситуации на Украине?
- Нет, я не в курсе.
- Нет, я не в теме.
Both mean the same.

Though "быть в теме" can also mean "to be engaged in a project" like:

Эй, мы на природу собрались, на тебя пиво брать?
- Да, я в теме.
- Да, я в деле.
Both mean the same too.

- Да, я в курсе (I know) что вы собрались по пиву вдарить, но я сегодня не в теме, у меня родственники из Уфы приехали, не могу пойти.

Quote:

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Европа сейчас пытается идти курсом на энергетическую независимость от России.

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Sort of: Europe is now trying to follow the course of gaining energetical independence from Russia.

Here "идти курсом" is about ships which follow a course as a physical path across the ocean...