Learn the Russian Alphabet: How to Read Cyrillic

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If you use the right approach, you can learn the Russian alphabet in a few hours!

When somebody asked me what my major at university was and I told them that I studied Spanish and Russian, they often replied “What? Russian? Isn’t that difficult? They (the Russians) write differently!”

There are some tricky things about Russian, but the alphabet, written in Cyrillic, is definitely not the hardest part of the language.

The alphabet is often the first obvious difference English speakers notice, and an unfamiliar script can make Russian look harder than it is.

Once the letters stop looking unfamiliar, you can get into Russian without that extra barrier.

Here’s how to learn the letters, practise reading, and start typing in Cyrillic.

A note from the Fluent in 3 Months team before we get started: You can chat away in Russian for at least 15 minutes with the “Fluent in 3 Months” method. All it takes is 90 days. Tap this link to find out more.

By the way, you don’t need to speak Russian to make use of these tips!

Is It Important to Learn the Russian Alphabet (Cyrillic Script)?

This question always comes up when a language is written in a script other than the Latin one.

Of course, learning the script is an extra effort. Everybody needs to decide if it’s necessary to make this effort to reach their personal goals.

In my opinion, it’s important to learn Cyrillic script when you learn Russian (or any other language using this script).

Even if you only focus on speaking, the script could still be important to you. For example, there are some phrasebooks available that provide a transcription for all words and phrases, of course, and you could learn from these.

But when you are serious about Russian, I guess it will be very difficult to avoid the script completely.

Most dictionaries or grammar books don’t offer a transcription and I don’t know any Russian publications that use the Latin script instead of Cyrillic.

Also, if you plan to visit Russia as a traveler, it could be very helpful to know how to read the script.

On a 2013 visit to Moscow, I met several travellers who struggled with Cyrillic-only station names. Moscow Transport later introduced English announcements throughout the Metro, but being able to sound out place names is still handy.

Outside the most international routes, Cyrillic can also help you recognise stops, streets and place names without waiting for a translation.

Even if you aren’t learning Russian, a little Cyrillic can make a trip easier. A focused weekend is enough to get started.

Get in the Right Mindset: It’s All About the Letters

This post from @languagehacking is a quick reminder that a new alphabet often looks way harder than it is. Follow the account for more practical language-learning tips.

The Russian Cyrillic alphabet comprises 33 letters – that’s 7 more than the Latin alphabet.

Five letters have shapes and basic sounds that will feel familiar to English speakers:

А – К – М – О – Т

That means you can already have a go at words such as мама (mama) and томат (tomat).

Six more look familiar but represent different sounds:

В – Н – Р – С – У – Х

For example, нос is nos, “nose”, rather than hoc. These six are worth drilling because the Latin shapes pull your brain towards the wrong sounds.

They’re often the trickiest letters at first, but a few focused exercises will soon make the right sounds feel natural.

But this shouldn’t discourage you. After a few exercises, you will get used to reading them correctly.

The remaining 22 letters need more attention:

Б – Г – Д – Е – Ё – Ж – З – И – Й – Л – П

Ф – Ц – Ч – Ш – Щ – Ъ – Ы – Ь – Э – Ю – Я

Some map neatly to sounds English speakers already know, while others don’t. Е, Ё, Ю and Я can include an initial “y” sound, but their pronunciation changes with their position and the consonant before them.

Russian spelling isn’t a simple one-letter, one-sound system, so use audio alongside any alphabet chart and learn each letter in real words.

You might wonder now, How do I memorize these new Russian letters?

In my opinion, it’s enough to practise intensively for a short period of time, then continuously focus on reading while studying.

It’s like learning the Latin alphabet back at school. At the beginning it takes you about 20 seconds to read a word, later on you will be able to read it at first sight.

However, many people like to work with mnemonics.

You can find plenty of mnemonic charts and exercises online, although I personally prefer to come up with my own memory hacks.

Now it’s time to practise!

Play With Your Detective Skills by Decoding Words

Do you like crosswords or other kinds of puzzles? You can use the same detective mindset to make the Russian alphabet more fun.

Get some words written in Cyrillic and try and decode them letter by letter. This exercise is a lot of fun when you work with words whose meaning you will know once you decode them.

For example: go to the Wikipedia article about the cities and towns of Russia by population and you will find a list of the biggest Russian cities in both English and Russian.

Cover the English column (maybe print out the list before) and try to decode the Russian cities. Then you can easily compare it with the “solution”.

(And you don’t only practise reading, you also learn something about Russia.)

Or use the Russian article about the Oscar-winners. You can then try and decode the names of the famous actors. Sometimes, it’s really funny how a famous name looks when written in Cyrillic.

You can work with any article. If you find it difficult to find Russian articles, simply open up a Wikipedia article in English and switch to the Russian version (which you can find in the left navigation column).

Don’t Ignore the Importance of Reading & Listening

It’s easier for us to retain things that we read AND hear. So when we hear a word or a text while we read it, it’s easier for us to remember.

Forvo has Russian words recorded by native speakers. Reading a word while you listen will give you a much better feel for how the letters sound in context.

If you’d like a more structured audio course, our RussianPod101 review explains what you get before you sign up.

You don’t need to know how to type in Cyrillic at this point.

You can copy words from your decoding list, or look up an English word in Google Translate or another online dictionary and copy the Russian translation. You could also work with frequency lists.

If you want to work with random words, Forvo also offers a nice tool. When listening to a word, check out the bottom of the article. At the lower left corner, there is a small line that suggests a random word in the language you are currently listening to.

Your Language Exchange Partner Can Help You

If you have a language partner who speaks Russian, they can help you learn the Russian alphabet in many ways.

For example, they could type easy words into the chat during a video call while you read them aloud. International names, such as famous singers, are a friendly starting point, and you can then move on to Russian words that match your level.

After you read out the word, your partner can provide you with the English translation. This way, you not only improve your reading skills but also make progress in the language.

Your language exchange partner could also send some sentences or even short texts in Cyrillic via the chat function. The clue: the text is in English but transcribed into Cyrillic.

This is more motivating than actually writing Russian sentences because you can be sure that you understand the meaning of the sentence once you read it out correctly.

But, of course, you could also work with real Russian sentences or texts. You can read them out loud and your language exchange partner can correct you if you read out any letters incorrectly. Just make sure that you don’t worry too much about understanding the text at this point.

And if you don’t have a language exchange partner, you can find a great online language tutor who can help you in the same way!

Let Go of the Fear and Use the Russian Keyboard

As we have practised reading, the next step would be writing.

There are some discussions on various language learning platforms about whether it’s necessary to learn the handwriting of a language. The point is that we mostly use computers or other devices for writing.

It’s a legitimate question, and I guess it depends on your personal goals and your attitude. I, for example, like to work with pen and paper, so I often use handwriting.

So although I think the usefulness of learning handwriting can be debated, I find it crucial to learn how to TYPE the Cyrillic alphabet. It’s not very difficult, and it saves you a lot of time when you want to look up words or send an email to a friend.

You don’t need special transliteration software. Enable the Russian keyboard layout on your usual device and switch between languages there.

It may take a couple of hours to get familiar with the key positions, and you’ll type slowly at first, but it gets easier with practice.

Keep an on-screen Russian keyboard layout beside you while you practise, then try typing short words without looking at it.

It can feel awkward at first, much like learning to type for the first time, but your speed will build.

If you prefer a typing drill, Keybr.com lets you change the layout to Russian and practise away.

How Long Does It Take to Learn the Russian Alphabet/Cyrillic Script?

I would say it takes a few hours to get started with the script. The rest is continuous practice that happens naturally as you study Russian.

If you have a free afternoon or a weekend, grab a big cup of tea (or maybe even some Russian sweets) and just do it.

Once you get started with the exercises, you will see the progress really soon. I promise!

You could ask a friend to join you, even if they aren’t learning Russian. Sharing the struggle of reading like a six-year-old can make the first practice session much more fun.

Don’t forget to share this article with them! 🙂

Original article by Daniela Maizner, updated by the Fluent in 3 Months team.