Russian alphabet
Template:Short description Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Script error: No such module "Infobox".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
The Russian alphabet (Template:Langx,Template:Efn or Template:Langx,Template:Efn more traditionally) is the script used to write the Russian language.
The modern Russian alphabet consists of 33 letters: twenty consonants (Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr), ten vowels (Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr), a semivowel / consonant (<templatestyles src="Template:Tooltip/styles.css" />Template:AngbrScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".), and two modifier letters or "signs" (Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr) that alter pronunciation of a preceding consonant or a following vowel.
Script error: No such module "Listen".
<templatestyles src="Template:TOC limit/styles.css" />
History
Russian alphabet is derived from the Cyrillic script, which was invented in the 9th century to capture accurately the phonology of the first Slavic literary language, Old Church Slavonic. The early Cyrillic alphabet was adapted to Old East Slavic from Old Church Slavonic and was used in Kievan Rus' from the 10th century onward to write what would become the modern Russian language. The last major reform of Russian orthography took place in 1917–1918.[1]
Letters
| Letter | Cursive | Italics | Name | Old Church Slavonic word-name | IPA | Common transliteration | Approximate English equivalent | Examples | No. | Unicode (Hex) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:01-Russian alphabet-А а.svg | А а | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink | a | father | Script error: No such module "Lang". dva "two" |
1 | U+0410 / U+0430 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:02-Russian alphabet-Б б.svg | Б б | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA". | b | bad | Script error: No such module "Lang". óba "both" |
— | U+0411 / U+0431 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:03-Russian alphabet-В в.svg | В в | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA". | v | vine | Script error: No such module "Lang". vodá "water" |
2 | U+0412 / U+0432 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:04-Russian alphabet-Г г.svg | Г г | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA". | g | go | Script error: No such module "Lang". god "year" |
3 | U+0413 / U+0433 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang".† | File:05-Russian alphabet-Д д.svg | Д д | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA". | d | do | Script error: No such module "Lang". da "yes" |
4 | U+0414 / U+0434 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:06-Russian alphabet-Е е.svg | Е е | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". or Template:IPAblink | ye, je, e | yes | Script error: No such module "Lang". ne "not" |
5 | U+0415 / U+0435 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:07-Russian alphabet-Ё ё.svg | Ё ё | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
– | Script error: No such module "IPA". or Script error: No such module "IPA". | yo, jo, ë | yota | Script error: No such module "Lang". yozh "hedgehog" |
— | U+0401 / U+0451 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:08-Russian alphabet-Ж ж.svg | Ж ж | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA".Template:Refn |
Template:IPAblink | zh, ž | measure | Script error: No such module "Lang". zhuk "beetle" |
— | U+0416 / U+0436 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:09-Russian alphabet-З з.svg | З з | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA". | z | zoo | Script error: No such module "Lang". znoy "heat" |
7 | U+0417 / U+0437 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:10-Russian alphabet-И и.svg | И и | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink, Script error: No such module "IPA"., or Script error: No such module "IPA". | i | police | Script error: No such module "Lang". íli "or" |
8 | U+0418 / U+0438 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:11-Russian alphabet-Й й.svg | Й й | Script error: No such module "Lang".Script error: No such module "string".'short i' Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink | y, i, j | you or toy | Script error: No such module "Lang". moy "my, mine" |
— | U+0419 / U+0439 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:12-Russian alphabet-К к.svg | К к | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA". | k | kept | Script error: No such module "Lang". kto "who" |
20 | U+041A / U+043A |
| Script error: No such module "Lang".‡ | File:13-Russian alphabet-Л л.svg | Л л | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "IPA". or Script error: No such module "IPA". | l | feel or lamp | Script error: No such module "Lang". luch "ray" |
30 | U+041B / U+043B |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:14-Russian alphabet-М м.svg | М м | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA".[2] |
Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA". | m | map | Script error: No such module "Lang". mech "sword" |
40 | U+041C / U+043C |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:15-Russian alphabet-Н н.svg | Н н | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA". | n | not | Script error: No such module "Lang". no "but" |
50 | U+041D / U+043D |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:16-Russian alphabet-О о.svg | О о | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink | o | more | Script error: No such module "Lang". on "he" |
70 | U+041E / U+043E |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:17-Russian alphabet-П п.svg | П п | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA". | p | pet | Script error: No such module "Lang". pod "under" |
80 | U+041F / U+043F |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:18-Russian alphabet-Р р.svg | Р р | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA". | r | rolled r | Script error: No such module "Lang". reká "river" |
100 | U+0420 / U+0440 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:19-Russian alphabet-С с.svg | С с | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA". | s | set | Script error: No such module "Lang". yésli "if" |
200 | U+0421 / U+0441 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:20-Russian alphabet-Т т.svg | Т т | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA". | t | top | Script error: No such module "Lang". tot "that" |
300 | U+0422 / U+0442 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:21-Russian alphabet-У у.svg | У у | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink | u | tool | Script error: No such module "Lang". kust "bush" |
400 | U+0423 / U+0443 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:22-Russian alphabet-Ф ф.svg | Ф ф | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA". | f | face | Script error: No such module "Lang". féya "fairy" |
500 | U+0424 / U+0444 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:23-Russian alphabet-Х х.svg | Х х | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA". | kh, h | like Scottish "loch", ugh | Script error: No such module "Lang". dukh "spirit" |
600 | U+0425 / U+0445 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:24-Russian alphabet-Ц ц.svg | Ц ц | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink | ts, c | sits | Script error: No such module "Lang". konéts "end" |
900 | U+0426 / U+0446 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:25-Russian alphabet-Ч ч.svg | Ч ч | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink | ch, č | check | Script error: No such module "Lang". chas "hour" |
90 | U+0427 / U+0447 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:26-Russian alphabet-Ш ш.svg | Ш ш | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink | sh, š | similar to "sh" in hush | Script error: No such module "Lang". vash "yours" |
— | U+0428 / U+0448 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:27-Russian alphabet-Щ щ.svg | Щ щ | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink, Script error: No such module "IPA". | shch, sch, šč, śś | similar to a long "sh" as in push ships or a short "sh" as in sheep | Script error: No such module "Lang". śeká "cheek" |
— | U+0429 / U+0449 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:28-Russian alphabet-ъ.svg | Ъ ъ | Script error: No such module "Lang".Script error: No such module "string".'hard sign' Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink | ʺ | silent, prevents palatalization of the preceding consonant | Script error: No such module "Lang". obʺyékt "object" |
— | U+042A / U+044A |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:29-Russian alphabet-ы.svg | Ы ы | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA". | y | General American roses (rough equivalent) | Script error: No such module "Lang". ty "you" |
— | U+042B / U+044B |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:30-Russian alphabet-ь.svg | Ь ь | Script error: No such module "Lang".Script error: No such module "string".'soft sign' Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "IPA". | ʹ | silent, palatalizes the preceding consonant (if phonologically possible) | Script error: No such module "Lang". gusʹ "goose" |
— | U+042C / U+044C |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:31-Russian alphabet-Э э.svg | Э э | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang".Script error: No such module "string".'rotated «э»' Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAblink or Template:IPAblink | e, è | met | Script error: No such module "Lang". èto "this" |
— | U+042D / U+044D |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:32-Russian alphabet-Ю ю.svg | Ю ю | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". Script error: No such module "Respell". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "IPA". or Script error: No such module "IPA". | yu, ju | use | Script error: No such module "Lang". yug "south" |
— | U+042E / U+044E |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:33-Russian alphabet-Я я.svg | Я я | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "IPA". or Script error: No such module "IPA". | ya, ja | yard | Script error: No such module "Lang". ryad "row" |
— | U+042F / U+044F |
- <templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>^† An alternative form of the letter De (Д д) closely resembles the Greek letter delta (Δ δ).
- <templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>^‡ An alternative form of the letter El (Л л) closely resembles the Greek letter lambda (Λ λ).
Historic letters
Letters eliminated in 1917–18
Script error: No such module "Labelled list hatnote".
| Letter | Cursive | Italics | Old name | IPA | Common transliteration | Similar Russian letter | Examples | No. | Unicode (Hex) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:1-Imperial Russian-І і.svg | Template:Serif | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". | i | Like Script error: No such module "Lang". or Script error: No such module "Lang". | стихотворенія (now стихотворения) stikhotvoréniya "poems, (of) poem" |
10 | U+0406 / U+0456 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:3-Imperial Russian-Ѣ ѣ.svg | Template:Serif | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Template:IPAslink, Script error: No such module "IPA". | ě | Like Script error: No such module "Lang". | Алексѣй (now Алексей) Aleksěy Alexey |
— | U+0462 / U+0463 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:2-Imperial Russian-Ѳ ѳ.svg | Template:Serif | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA"., /θ/ | f | Like Script error: No such module "Lang". | орѳографія (now орфография) orfográfiya "orthography, spelling" |
9 | U+0472 / U+0473 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:4-Imperial Russian-Ѵ ѵ.svg | Template:Serif | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". | y or í | Usually like Script error: No such module "Lang"., see below | мѵро (now миро) myro or míro "chrism (myrrh)" |
400 | U+0474 / U+0475 |
- Script error: No such module "Lang". — Identical in pronunciation to Template:Angbr, it was used exclusively immediately before other vowels and the Template:Angbr ("Short I") (for example, Template:Angbr Script error: No such module "IPA"., 'patriarch') and in the word Template:Angbr Script error: No such module "IPA". ('world') and its derivatives, to distinguish it from the word Template:Angbr Script error: No such module "IPA". ('peace') (the two words are actually etymologically cognateScript error: No such module "Footnotes".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".[3] and not arbitrarily homonyms).Script error: No such module "Footnotes".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- ѣ — Originally had a distinct sound, but by the middle of the eighteenth century, it had become identical in pronunciation to Template:Angbr in the standard language. Since its elimination in 1918, it has remained a political symbol of the old orthography.
- ѳ — From the Greek theta, it was identical to Template:Angbr in pronunciation, but it was used etymologically (for example, Template:Angbr "Theodore" became Template:Angbr "Fyodor").
- ѵ — From the Greek upsilon, usually identical to Template:Angbr in pronunciation, as in Byzantine Greek, it was used etymologically for Greek loanwords, like Latin Y (as in synod, myrrh); by 1918, it had become very rare. In spellings of the eighteenth century, it was also used after some vowels, where it has since been replaced with Template:Angbr or (rarely) Template:Angbr. For example, a Greek prefix originally spelled Template:Angbr (equivalent to English Template:Wikt-lang) is now spelled Template:Angbr in most cases and Template:Angbr as a component in some compound words.
- 19th century Russian Cyrillic alphabet
-
(Körner, 1895)
-
(Motti, 1890)
-
(Fuchs, 1888)
-
(Moser, 1888)
-
(Reiff, 1883)
-
(Boltz, 1880)
Letters eliminated before 1750
| Letter | Cursive | Italics | Old name | IPA | Common transliteration | Similar Russian letter | Examples | No. | Unicode (Hex) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | – | Ѕ ѕ | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA".[4] |
Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". | z | Script error: No such module "Lang". | Script error: No such module "Lang". (obsolete stem, now Script error: No such module "Lang".) "very" |
6 | U+0405, U+0455 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | – | Ѯ ѯ | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". | x, ks | кс | Алеѯандръ (now Александр) "Alexander" |
60 | U+046E, U+046F |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | – | Ѱ ѱ | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". | ps | пс | ѱаломъ (now псалом) "psalm" |
700 | U+0470, U+0471 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | – | Ѡ ѡ | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "IPA". | o, w | Script error: No such module "Lang". | ѡбразъ (now образ) "image, icon" |
800 | U+0460, U+0461 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:Большой юс.svg | Ѫ ѫ | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". | ą | Script error: No such module "Lang"., Script error: No such module "Lang". | пѫть (now путь) "way" |
— | U+046A, U+046B |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | File:Малый юс.svg | Ѧ ѧ | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "IPA". | ę | Script error: No such module "Lang". | пѧть (now пять) "five" |
900 | U+0466, U+0467 |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | – | Ѭ ѭ | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "IPA". | yą | Script error: No such module "Lang". | знаѭ (now знаю) "(I) know" |
— | U+046C, U+046D |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | – | Ѩ ѩ | Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Script error: No such module "IPA". | yę | Script error: No such module "Lang". | ѩзыкъ (now язык) "tongue, language" |
— | U+0468, U+0469 |
- Template:Angbr corresponded to a more archaic Script error: No such module "IPA". pronunciation, already absent in East Slavic at the start of the historical period, but kept by tradition in certain words until the eighteenth century in secular writing and in Church Slavonic and Macedonian to the present day.
- Template:Angbr and Template:Angbr derived from Greek letters xi and psi. It was used etymologically, though inconsistently, in secular writing until the eighteenth century and more consistently to the present day in Church Slavonic.
- Template:Angbr is the Greek letter omega, identical in pronunciation to Template:Angbr. It was used in secular writing until the eighteenth century, but in the present day in Church Slavonic, it was mostly used to distinguish inflexional forms otherwise written identically.
- Two "yuses", "big" Template:Angbr and "small" Template:Angbr, used to stand for nasalized vowels Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA".. According to linguistic reconstruction, both became irrelevant for East Slavic phonology at the beginning of the historical periodScript error: No such module "Unsubst". but were introduced along with the rest of the Cyrillic script. The iotated yuses, Template:Angbr and Template:Angbr, had largely vanished by the twelfth century. The uniotated Template:Angbr continued to be used, etymologically, until the sixteenth century. Thereafter it was restricted to being a dominical letter in the Paschal tables. The seventeenth-century usage of Template:Angbr and Template:Angbr survives in contemporary Church Slavonic, and the sounds (but not the letters) in Polish.
- The letter Template:Angbr was adapted to represent the iotated Script error: No such module "IPA". Template:Angbr in the middle or end of a word; the modern letter Template:Angbr is an adaptation of its cursive form of the seventeenth century, enshrined by the typographical reform of 1708.
- Until 1708, the iotated Script error: No such module "IPA". was written [[Iotified A|Template:Angbr]] at the beginning of a word. This distinction between Template:Angbr and Template:Angbr survives in Church Slavonic.
Although it is usually stated that the letters in the table above were eliminated in the typographical reform of 1708, reality is somewhat more complex. The letters were indeed originally omitted from the sample alphabet, printed in a western-style serif font, presented in Peter's edict, along with the letters Template:Angbr (replaced by Template:Angbr), Template:Angbr and Template:Angbr (the diacriticized letter Template:Angbr was also removed), but were reinstated except Template:Angbr and Template:Angbr under pressure from the Russian Orthodox Church in a later variant of the modern typeface (1710). Nonetheless, since 1735, the Russian Academy of Sciences began to use fonts without Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr and Template:Angbr; however, Template:Angbr was sometimes used again since 1758.
Although praised by Western scholars and philosophers, it was criticized by clergy and many conservative scholars, who found the new standard too "Russified". Some even went as far as to refer to Peter as the Anti-Christ.[5]
Consonants
| Either hard (default) or soft |
Б, В, Г, Д, З, К, Л, М, Н, П, Р, С, Т, Ф, Х |
|---|---|
| Always hard | Ж, Ш, Ц |
| Always soft | Й, Ч, Щ |
Script error: No such module "Labelled list hatnote". Most consonants can represent both "soft" (palatalized, represented in the IPA with a Template:Angbr IPA) and "hard" consonant phonemes.[6] If consonant letters are followed by vowel letters, the soft/hard quality of the consonant depends on whether the vowel is meant to follow "hard" consonants Template:Angbr or "soft" consonants Template:Angbr. A soft sign Template:Angbr indicates palatalization of the preceding consonant without adding a vowel.
However, in modern Russian, six consonant phonemes do not have phonemically distinct "soft" and "hard" variants (except in foreign proper names) and do not change "softness" in the presence of other letters: Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA". are always hard; Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA". are always soft. (Before 1950, Russian linguists considered Script error: No such module "IPA". a semivowel rather than a consonant.)
Vowels
| Hard | А | Э | Ы | О | У |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soft | Я | Е | И | Ё | Ю |
| Each row is roughly analogous to the Latin A, E, I, O, U. | |||||
The Russian alphabet contains 10 vowel letters. They are grouped into soft and hard vowels.[7] The soft vowels, Template:Angbr, either indicate a preceding palatalized consonant, or (with the exception of Template:Angbr) are iotated (pronounced with a preceding Script error: No such module "IPA".) in all other cases. The IPA vowels shown are a guideline only and sometimes are realized as different sounds, particularly when unstressed. However, Template:Angbr may be used in words of foreign origin without palatalization (Script error: No such module "IPA".), and Template:Angbr is often realized as Template:IPAblink between soft consonants, such as in Script error: No such module "Lang". ('toy ball').
Individual vowels
Template:Angbr is an old Proto-Slavic close central vowel, thought to have been preserved better in modern Russian than in other Slavic languages. It was originally nasalized in certain positions: Old Russian Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA".; Modern Russian Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". ('rock'). Its written form developed as follows: Template:Angbr + Template:Angbr → Template:Angbr → Template:Angbr.
Template:Angbr was introduced in 1708 to distinguish the non-iotated/non-palatalizing Script error: No such module "IPA". from the iotated/palatalizing one. The original usage had been Template:Angbr for the uniotated Script error: No such module "IPA"., Template:Angbr or Template:Angbr for the iotated, but Template:Angbr had dropped out of use by the sixteenth century. In native Russian words, Template:Angbr is found only at the beginnings of a few words Script error: No such module "Lang". 'this (is) (m./f./n.)', Script error: No such module "Lang". 'these', Script error: No such module "Lang". 'what a', Script error: No such module "Lang". 'that way', Script error: No such module "Lang". 'sort of', and interjections like Script error: No such module "Lang". 'hey') or in compound words (e.g., Script error: No such module "Lang". 'therefore' = Script error: No such module "Lang". + Script error: No such module "Lang"., where Script error: No such module "Lang". is the dative case of Script error: No such module "Lang".). In words that come from foreign languages in which iotated Script error: No such module "IPA". is uncommon or nonexistent (such as English), Template:Angbr is usually written in the beginning of words and after vowels except Template:Angbr (e.g., Script error: No such module "Lang"., 'poet'), and Template:Angbr after Template:Angbr and consonants. However, the pronunciation is inconsistent. Many of these borrowed words, especially monosyllables, words ending in Template:Angbr and many words where Template:Angbr follows Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr, Template:Angbr or Template:Angbr, are pronounced with Script error: No such module "IPA". without palatalization or iotation: Script error: No such module "Lang". (seks — 'sex'), Script error: No such module "Lang". (model' — 'model'), Script error: No such module "Lang". (kafe — 'café'), Script error: No such module "Lang". (proekt — 'project'; here, the spelling is etymological: German Projekt was adopted from Latin proiectum, so the word is spelled with Template:Angbr to reflect the original Script error: No such module "IPA". and not with Template:Angbr as usual after vowels; but the pronunciation is counter-etymological: a hypercorrection that has become standard). But many other words are pronounced with Script error: No such module "IPA".: Script error: No such module "Lang". (syekta — 'sect'), Script error: No such module "Lang". (dyebyut — 'debut').
Proper names are sometimes written with Template:Angbr after consonants: Script error: No such module "Lang". — 'Sam', Script error: No such module "Lang". — 'Mary', Script error: No such module "Lang". — 'Mao Zedong'; the use of Template:Angbr after consonants is common in East Asian names and in English names with the sounds Script error: No such module "IPAc-en". and Script error: No such module "IPAc-en"., with some exceptions such as Script error: No such module "Lang". ('Jack') and Script error: No such module "Lang". ('Shannon'), since both Template:Angbr and Template:Angbr, in cases of Script error: No such module "Lang". ("zhe"), Script error: No such module "Lang". ("she") and Script error: No such module "Lang". ("tse"), follow consonants that are always hard (non-palatalized), yet Template:Angbr usually prevails in writing. However, English names with the sounds Script error: No such module "IPAc-en"., Script error: No such module "IPAc-en". (if spelled Template:Angbr in English) and Script error: No such module "IPAc-en". after consonants are normally spelled with Template:Angbr in Russian: Script error: No such module "Lang". — 'Betty', Script error: No such module "Lang". — 'Peter', Script error: No such module "Lang". — 'Lake Placid'. Pronunciation mostly remains unpalatalized, so Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". — Russian rendering of the English name 'Peter' is pronounced differently from Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". — is a colloquial Russian name of Saint Petersburg.
Template:Angbr, introduced by Karamzin in 1797 and made official in 1943 by the Soviet Ministry of Education,Script error: No such module "Footnotes".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". marks a Script error: No such module "IPA". sound that historically developed from stressed Script error: No such module "IPA".. The written letter Template:Angbr is optional; it is formally correct to write Template:Angbr for both Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA".. None of the several attempts in the twentieth century to mandate the use of Template:Angbr have stuck.
Non-vocalized letters
Hard sign
The hard sign (Template:Angbr) acts like a "silent back vowel" that separates a succeeding "soft vowel" (Template:Angbr, but not Template:Angbr) from a preceding consonant, invoking implicit iotation of the vowel with a distinct Script error: No such module "IPA". glide. Today it is used mostly to separate a prefix ending with a hard consonant from the following root. Its original pronunciation, lost by 1400 at the latest, was that of a very short middle schwa-like sound, likely pronounced Template:IPAblink or Template:IPAblink. Until the 1918 reform, no written word could end in a consonant: those that end in a "hard" consonant in modern orthography then had a final Template:Angbr.
While Template:Angbr is also a soft vowel, root-initial Script error: No such module "IPA". following a hard consonant is typically pronounced as Script error: No such module "IPA".. This is normally spelled Template:Angbr (the hard counterpart to Template:Angbr) unless this vowel occurs at the beginning of a word, in which case it remains Template:Angbr. An alternation between the two letters (but not the sounds) can be seen with the pair Script error: No such module "Lang". ('without name', which is pronounced Script error: No such module "IPA".) and Script error: No such module "Lang". ('nameless', which is pronounced Script error: No such module "IPA".). This spelling convention, however, is not applied with certain loaned prefixes such as in the word Script error: No such module "Lang". — Script error: No such module "IPA"., 'Pan-Islamism') and compound words (e.g., Script error: No such module "Lang". — Script error: No such module "IPA"., 'high treason').
Soft sign
The soft sign, Template:Angbr, in most positions acts like a "silent front vowel" and indicates that the preceding consonant is palatalized (except for always-hard Script error: No such module "Lang".) and the following vowel (if present) is iotated (including Template:Angbr in loans). This is important as palatalization is phonemic in Russian. For example, Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". ('brother') contrasts with Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". ('to take'). The original pronunciation of the soft sign, lost by 1400 at the latest, was that of a very short fronted reduced vowel Script error: No such module "IPA". but likely pronounced Template:IPAblink or Script error: No such module "IPA".. There are still some remnants of this ancient reading in modern Russian, e.g., in co-existing versions of the same name, read and written differently, such as Script error: No such module "Lang". and Script error: No such module "Lang". ('Mary').[8]
When applied after stem-final always-soft (Script error: No such module "Lang"., but not Script error: No such module "Lang".) or always-hard (Script error: No such module "Lang"., but not Script error: No such module "Lang".) consonants, the soft sign does not alter pronunciation, but has grammatical significance:[9]
- the feminine marker for singular nouns in the nominative and accusative; e.g., Script error: No such module "Lang". ('India ink', feminine) cf. Script error: No such module "Lang". ('flourish after a toast', masculine) — both pronounced Script error: No such module "IPA".;
- the imperative mood for some verbs;
- the infinitives of some verbs (with Script error: No such module "Lang". ending);
- the second person for non-past verbs (with Script error: No such module "Lang". ending); and
- some adverbs and particles.
Treatment of foreign sounds
Because Russian borrows terms from other languages, there are various conventions for sounds not present in Russian. For example, while Russian has no Template:IPAblink, there are a number of common words (particularly proper nouns) borrowed from languages like English and German that contain such a sound in the original language. In well-established terms, such as Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". ('hallucination'), this is written with Template:Angbr and pronounced with Script error: No such module "IPA"., while newer terms use Template:Angbr, pronounced with Script error: No such module "IPA"., such as Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "IPA". ('hobby').Script error: No such module "Footnotes".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". Similarly, words originally with Template:IPAblink in their source language are either pronounced with Script error: No such module "IPA"., as in the name Script error: No such module "Lang". ('Thelma') or, if borrowed early enough, with Script error: No such module "IPA". or Script error: No such module "IPA"., as in the names Script error: No such module "Lang". ('Theodore') and Script error: No such module "Lang". ('Matthew').[10]
For the Template:IPAblink affricate, which is common in the Asian countries that were part of the Russian Empire and the USSR, the letter combination Template:Angbr is used: this is often transliterated into English either as Template:Angbr or the Dutch form Template:Angbr.
Numeric values
The numerical values correspond to the Greek numerals, with Template:Angbr being used for digamma, Template:Angbr for koppa, and Template:Angbr for sampi. The system was abandoned for secular purposes in 1708, after a transitional period of a century or so; it continues to be used in Church Slavonic, while general Russian texts use Indo-Arabic numerals and Roman numerals.
Diacritics
The Cyrillic alphabet and Russian spelling generally employ fewer diacritics than those used in other European languages written with the Latin alphabet. The only diacritic, in the proper sense, is the acute accent Template:Angbr (Russian: Script error: No such module "Lang". 'mark of stress'), which marks stress on a vowel, as it is done in Spanish and Greek. (Unicode has no code points for the accented letters; they are instead produced by suffixing the unaccented letter with Template:Unichar.) Although Russian word stress is often unpredictable and can fall on different syllables in different forms of the same word, the diacritic accent is used only in dictionaries, children's books, resources for foreign-language learners, the defining entry (in bold) in articles on Russian Wikipedia, or on minimal pairs distinguished only by stress (for instance, Script error: No such module "Lang". 'castle' vs. Script error: No such module "Lang". 'lock'). Rarely, it is also used to specify the stress in uncommon foreign words, and in poems with unusual stress used to fit the meter.
The letter Template:Angbr is a special variant of the letter Template:Angbr, which is not always distinguished in written Russian, but the umlaut-like sign has no other uses. Stress on this letter is never marked with a diacritic, as it is always stressed (except in some compounds and loanwords).
Both Template:Angbr and the letter Template:Angbr have completely separated from Template:Angbr and Template:Angbr. Template:Angbr has been used since the 16th century (except that it was removed in 1708, but reinstated in 1735). Since then, its usage has been mandatory. It was formerly considered a diacriticized letter, but in the 20th century, it came to be considered a separate letter of the Russian alphabet. It was classified as a "semivowel" by 19th- and 20th-century grammarians, but since the 1970s, it has been considered a consonant letter.
Frequency
Script error: No such module "Unsubst". The frequency of characters in a corpus of written Russian was found to be as follows:[11]
| Rank | Letter | Frequency | Other information | English comparison |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 11.18% | By comparison, 'e' in English appears about 13% in texts. | |
| 2 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 8.75% | Foreign words sometimes use Script error: No such module "Lang". rather than Script error: No such module "Lang"., even if it is pronounced e instead of ye. In addition, Script error: No such module "Lang". is often replaced by Script error: No such module "Lang".; this makes Script error: No such module "Lang". even more common. | 'T' appears about 9.1% |
| 3 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 7.64% | 'A' appears about 8.2% | |
| 4 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 7.09% | 'O' appears about 7.5% | |
| 5 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 6.78% | The most common consonant in the Russian alphabet. | 'I' appears about 7% |
| 6 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 6.09% | ||
| 7 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 4.97% | ||
| 8 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 4.96% | ||
| 9 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 4.38% | ||
| 10 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 4.23% | ||
| 11 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 3.30% | ||
| 12 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 3.17% | ||
| 13 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 3.09% | ||
| 14 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 2.47% | ||
| 15 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 2.36% | ||
| 16 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 2.22% | ||
| 17 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 2.01% | ||
| 18 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 1.96% | ||
| 19 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 1.84% | ||
| 20 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 1.72% | ||
| 21 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 1.48% | ||
| 22 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 1.40% | ||
| 23 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 1.21% | ||
| 24 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 1.01% | ||
| 25 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 0.95% | ||
| 26 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 0.72% | ||
| 27 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 0.47% | ||
| 28 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 0.39% | ||
| 29 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 0.36% | Foreign words sometimes use Script error: No such module "Lang". rather than Script error: No such module "Lang"., even if it is pronounced e instead of ye. In addition, Script error: No such module "Lang". is often replaced by Script error: No such module "Lang".; this makes Script error: No such module "Lang". even more common. | K : 0.77% |
| 30 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 0.30% | J : 0.15% | |
| 31 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 0.21% | The least common consonant in the Russian alphabet. | X : 0.15% |
| 32 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 0.20% | In written Russian, Template:Angbr is often replaced by Template:Angbr. | Q : 0.095% |
| 33 | Script error: No such module "Lang". | 0.02% | Template:Angbr used to be a very common letter in the Russian alphabet. This is because before the 1918 reform, any word ending with a non-palatalized consonant was written with a final Script error: No such module "Lang". — e.g., pre-1918 Script error: No such module "Lang". vs. post-reform Script error: No such module "Lang".. The reform eliminated the use of Script error: No such module "Lang". in this context, leaving it the least common letter in the Russian alphabet. | 'Z' : 0.074% |
Keyboard layout
Script error: No such module "Labelled list hatnote".
Microsoft Windows keyboard layout for personal computers is as follows:
However, there are several variations of so-called "phonetic keyboards" that are often used by non-Russians, where pressing an English letter key will type the Russian letter with a similar sound (A → А, S → С, D → Д, F → Ф, etc.).
Letter names
Until approximately the year 1900, mnemonic names inherited from Church Slavonic were used for the letters. They are given here in the pre-1918 orthography of the post-1708 civil alphabet.
The Russian poet Alexander Pushkin wrote: "The [names of the] letters that make up the Slavonic alphabet don't represent a meaning at all. Script error: No such module "Lang"., Script error: No such module "Lang"., Script error: No such module "Lang"., Script error: No such module "Lang"., Script error: No such module "Lang". etc. are individual words, chosen just for their initial sound". However, since the names of the first few letters of the Slavonic alphabet seem to form readable text, attempts have been made to compose meaningful snippets of text from groups of consecutive letters for the rest of the alphabet.[12][13]
See also
Script error: No such module "Side box".
<templatestyles src="Div col/styles.css"/>
- Bulgarian alphabet
- Computer russification
- Cyrillic alphabets
- Cyrillic script
- Ukrainian Latin alphabet
- Greek alphabet
- Montenegrin alphabet
- List of Cyrillic digraphs and trigraphs
- Reforms of Russian orthography
- Romanization of Russian
- Russian Braille
- Russian cursive (handwritten letters)
- Russian manual alphabet
- Russian Morse code
- Russian orthography
- Russian phonology
- Scientific transliteration of Cyrillic
- Serbian Cyrillic alphabet
- Yoficator
Notes
<templatestyles src="Reflist/styles.css" />
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References
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- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1"..
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1"..
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Archived at GhostarchiveTemplate:Cbignore and the Wayback MachineTemplate:Cbignore: Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".Template:Cbignore
- ↑ Russian language course "Russo Sem Mestre" (Portuguese for Russian without Master), by Custódio Gomes Sobrinho
- ↑ Russian language course "Russo Sem Mestre" (Portuguese for Russian without Master), by Custódio Gomes Sobrinho
- ↑ See Polish Maria as a given name but Maryja in context of the Virgin Mary.
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "Citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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Bibliography
Script error: No such module "Side box".
- Ivan G. Iliev. "Kurze Geschichte des kyrillischen Alphabets". Plovdiv. 2015. Script error: No such module "webarchive".
- Ivan G. Iliev. "Short History of the Cyrillic Alphabet".
- Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
Script error: No such module "Navbox". Template:Cyrillic navbox Script error: No such module "Authority control".