Language/Bulgarian/Grammar/Cyrillic-alphabet

Bulgarian Grammar → Alphabet and sounds → Cyrillic alphabet

As a Bulgarian language teacher with over 20 years of experience, I know how important it is to have a solid grasp of the Bulgarian alphabet and sounds. In this lesson, I will guide you through the basics of the Cyrillic alphabet and help you learn to read, write, and pronounce Bulgarian letters and sounds. By the end of this lesson, you will have a firm foundation for your journey towards mastering Bulgarian.

Introduction to the Cyrillic Alphabet

The Cyrillic script is the writing system used for Bulgarian, Russian, Serbian, and many other Slavic languages. The Bulgarian Cyrillic alphabet consists of 30 letters, 23 of which are consonants and 7 of which are vowels.

Below is a table of the Bulgarian Cyrillic alphabet:

Letter	Name	Pronunciation	English Transliteration
А	а	a	a
Б	б	b	b
В	в	v	v
Г	г	g	g
Д	д	d	d
Е	е	e	e
Ж	ж	zh	zh
З	з	z	z
И	и	i, ee	i, y
Й	й	y	y
К	к	k	k
Л	л	l	l
М	м	m	m
Н	н	n	n
О	о	o	o
П	п	p	p
Р	р	r	r
С	с	s	s
Т	т	t	t
У	у	u, oo	u, y
Ф	ф	f	f
Х	х	h, kh	h, ch
Ц	ц	ts	ts
Ч	ч	ch	ch
Ш	ш	sh	sh
Щ	щ	sht	sht
Ъ	ъ	uh, a	a
Ь	ь	y	y
Ю	ю	yu, oo	yu, y
Я	я	ya, ah	ya, a

It is important to note that some of the letters in the Cyrillic alphabet have the same or similar shapes as letters in the Latin alphabet. However, the sounds represented by these letters may be different. For example, the Bulgarian letter 'P' looks like the English letter 'N', but it is pronounced as 'P'.

Vowels

Bulgarian has seven vowel sounds. They can be short or long, and stressed or unstressed. The table below shows the Bulgarian vowels and their pronunciation:

Letter(s)	Pronunciation	English Example
А, а	a	father
Ъ, ъ	uh	fun
О, о	o	no
У, у	u	rule
Е, е	e	met
И, и	i	hit
Я, я	ya, ah	yard, father
Ю, ю	yu, oo	use, food

It is important to remember that the pronunciation of Bulgarian vowels depends on the stress in the word. The stress in Bulgarian usually falls on the second last syllable of the word.

Consonants

Bulgarian has a number of consonant clusters, in which two or more consonant sounds appear together without any vowels between them. It is important to learn how to pronounce these clusters correctly in order to be easily understood in Bulgarian.

Below are some common Bulgarian consonant clusters and how they should be pronounced:

• The cluster "бл" should be pronounced as "bl", like in the English word "black"
• The cluster "гл" should be pronounced as "gl", like in the English word "glee"
• The cluster "дл" should be pronounced as "dl", like in the English word "dull"
• The cluster "жд" should be pronounced as "zd", like in the English word "pleasure"
• The cluster "зд" should be pronounced as "zd", like in the English word "design"
• The cluster "кл" should be pronounced as "kl", like in the English word "clip"
• The cluster "пл" should be pronounced as "pl", like in the English word "plum"
• The cluster "ст" should be pronounced as "st", like in the English word "stop"
• The cluster "тр" should be pronounced as "tr", like in the English word "train"

In addition to these consonant clusters, there are some Bulgarian consonants that can be pronounced in different ways depending on their position in a word. For example:

• The letter "г" can be pronounced as a hard "g" (like in "go") or a soft "h" (like in "huge")
• The letter "д" can be pronounced as a hard "d" (like in "dog") or a soft "th" (like in "then")

Mastering these different sounds and pronunciations will take time and practice, but by becoming familiar with the basics of the Cyrillic alphabet and sounds, you will be well on your way to unlocking the full potential of the Bulgarian language.

Conclusion

In this lesson, we've covered the basics of the Cyrillic alphabet and the vowel and consonant sounds in the Bulgarian language. It's important to take the time to practice these sounds and get them right so that you can communicate effectively in Bulgarian. Remember to take your time and always keep practicing!

Sources

• Bulgarian Alphabet
• Bulgarian Phonology

Table of Contents - Bulgarian Course - 0 to A1

• Course Presentation

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Alphabet and sounds

• Cyrillic alphabet
• Vowels
• Consonants

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Greetings and Introductions

• Greetings
• Introducing yourself
• Numbers 0-100

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Bulgarian Traditions

• Bulgarian Folklore
• Cuisine
• Holidays and Customs

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Nouns and Adjectives

• Gender
• Cases
• Adjectives

  ---

At the Restaurant

• Ordering Food
• Making Special Requests
• Paying the Bill

  ---

Bulgarian Cinema and Literature

• Bulgarian Cinema
• Bulgarian Literature
• Literary Translation

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Verbs and Tenses

• Present Tense
• Perfective and Imperfective Verbs
• Past Tense

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Traveling

• Transportation
• Booking a Hotel
• Asking for Directions

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Bulgarian Music

• Bulgarian Pop Music
• Traditional Bulgarian Music
• Music Festivals

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Future Tense and Modals

• Future Tense
• Modal Verbs
• Conditional Sentences

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Celebrations and Festivities

• Birthday Parties
• Weddings and Marriage Customs
• Religious Holidays

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Bulgarian Theatre and Performance Arts

• Bulgarian Theatre
• Puppet Theatre
• Dance