Russian Alphabet with Sound and Handwriting (https://www.russianforeveryone.com/RufeA/Lessons/Introduction/Alphabet/Alphabet.htm)    (https://www.russianforeveryone.com/)    (https://www.russianforeveryone.com/) Russian For Everyone Learn Russian Online                       (https://www.russianforeveryone.com/) Self study guide (https://www.russianforeveryone.com/AboutUs.htm) About us (http://www.sputniktextbook.org/About?ref=rufealpmenu) New  Russian Textbook Russian Alphabet There are 33 letters in the Russian Alphabet: 10 vowels, 21 consonants, and 2 signs (ь, ъ). Russian is an Eastern Slavonic language closely related to Ukrainian and Belorussian with about 277 million speakers in Russia and 30 other countries. The Cyrillic alphabet was introduced into Russia (Kievan Rus' ) at the time of its conversion to Christianity (988 AD). The alphabet, the Cyrillic script is named in honor of the Byzantine scholar and monk, Cyril (827-869 AD), who, together with his brother Methodius (826-885 AD), created the first Slavic writing system in the second half of the ninth century in order to translate the Bible and other Christian texts into the Slavic languages. Click each letter to listen , then click again and repeat after speaker imitating the pronunciation as closely as you can. Click "Play" to watch how to handwrite letters and words.  (http://www.sputniktextbook.org/About?ref=rufe)      Letter  Handwriting Name of Letter Similar English Sound Sample Handwriting  (Download sound)    А а       Play  a like ar in far   (Download sound)   а́том       Play   (Download sound)    Б б       Play  be like b in b ox  (Download sound)   бато́н       Play   (Download sound)    В в       Play  ve like v  in v oice  (Download sound)   ва́режки       Play   (Download sound)    Г г       Play  ge like g in g o  (Download sound)   гру́ша       Play   (Download sound)    Д д       Play  de like d in d ay  (Download sound)   ды́ня       Play   (Download sound)    Е е       Play  ye like ye in ye t or e in e xit  (Download sound)   ежеви́ка       Play   (Download sound)    Ё ё       Play  yo like yo in yo ur  (Download sound)   ёж       Play   (Download sound)    Ж ж       Play  zhe like s in pleas ure  (Download sound)   жук       Play   (Download sound)    З з       Play  ze like z in z oo  (Download sound)   замо́к       Play   (Download sound)    И и       Play  ee like ee in meet   (Download sound)   икра́       Play   (Download sound)    Й й       Play  ee kratkoye (short i) like y  in boy   (Download sound)   йо́гурт       Play   (Download sound)    К к       Play  ka like k in k ey or c in c at  (Download sound)   клубни́ка       Play   (Download sound)    Л л       Play  el likel  in l amp  (Download sound)   лимо́н       Play   (Download sound)    М м       Play  em like m in m an  (Download sound)   мали́на       Play   (Download sound)    Н н       Play  en like n in n ote  (Download sound)   носки́       Play   (Download sound)    О о       Play  o like o in no t  (Download sound)   о́вощи       Play   (Download sound)    П п       Play  pe like p in p et  (Download sound)   пе́рец       Play   (Download sound)    Р р       Play  er like r  in r ock (but rolled)  (Download sound)   ры́ба       Play   (Download sound)    С с       Play  es like s in s un  (Download sound)   стул       Play   (Download sound)    Т т       Play  te like t  in t able  (Download sound)   торт       Play   (Download sound)    У у       Play  oo like oo in moo n  (Download sound)   у́дочка       Play   (Download sound)    Ф ф       Play  ef like f  in f ood  (Download sound)   фру́кты       Play   (Download sound)    Х х       Play  kha like ch in Scottish loch   (Download sound)   хво́я       Play   (Download sound)    Ц ц       Play  tse like ts in boots   (Download sound)   ци́фры       Play   (Download sound)    Ч ч       Play  che like ch in ch at  (Download sound)   ча́шка       Play   (Download sound)    Ш ш       Play  sha like sh in sh ort  (Download sound)   ша́пка       Play   (Download sound)    Щ щ       Play  shcha like sh_ch in fresh_ch eese  (Download sound)   щётка       Play   (Download sound)    ъ       Play  tviordiy znak (hard sign) has no sound     (Download sound)    ы       Play  ih* likei in i ll     (Download sound)    ь       Play  myagkiy znak (soft sign) has no sound     (Download sound)    Э э       Play  e like e in e nd  (Download sound)   экра́н       Play   (Download sound)    Ю ю       Play  yoo like u in u se  (Download sound)   ю́бка       Play   (Download sound)    Я я       Play  ya like ya in ya rd  (Download sound)   я́блоко       Play     * ih - "h" had been added to produce a more open sound, but is not pronounced as an English "h". More About Russian Alphabet  Cyril and Methodius called their alphabet Glagolitsa, or the Glagolitic alphabet. The name comes from the Old Slavic word glagolŭ, which means ‘sound’.
The Glagolitic alphabet was used for Slavonic manuscripts for a relatively short period of time (no more than a century) before the development of the Cyrillic.
The Cyrillic alphabet was derived from Glagolitic by Cyril’s pupils and named after him. Cyrillic letters are different from the Glagolitic ones and have lots in common with the Greek letters. Until the 17th century, the only written language in Russia was Church Slavonic. Civil Russian language started appearing in writing during the reign of Peter the Great (1672-1725). The dialect of Moscow was used as the basis for written Russian. The new civil alphabet was introduced by Peter the Great himself in order to write civil books, books on science and other texts not related to the church. Four letters were eliminated from the alphabet in a 1918 language reform. Since 1918 the alphabet remains unchanged.     Russian keyboard layout  from (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:KB_Russian.svg) here  (https://www.russianforeveryone.com/) Back to self study guide (http://www.russianforeveryone.com/) Back to main