The Russian alphabet has 33 letters, and most learners can read it within a week — because the hard part isn't the count, it's that a handful look exactly like Latin letters and sound nothing like them. В is not B, Н is not H, and Р is not P. Below: the full printed chart with letter names, plain-English pronunciation, and a Cyrillic-to-Latin transliteration table — plus the three traps other tables skip: false friends, the vanishing Ё, and the two silent signs.
This covers the printed alphabet — handwriting changes many shapes, mapped in our Russian cursive alphabet chart. To set Russian words in beautiful type, the Russian calligraphy generator renders any Cyrillic you type in 30 real Cyrillic styles, verbatim: type or paste Russian text, not English.
After the 1918 reform, the modern alphabet has 33 letters: 10 vowels, 20 consonants, one semivowel (й, "short i") and two silent modifier signs (ъ, ь).
The tables below are a complete Russian letters pronunciation guide: Letter (upper/lowercase), Name (what Russians say when spelling aloud), Sounds like (English word anchor), Translit. (Latin equivalent; full table below).
Vowels come in two teams — hard а, о, у, э, ы and soft я, ё, ю, е, и. After a consonant, a soft vowel marks it as soft (more in the signs section).
| Letter | Name | Sounds like | Translit. |
|---|---|---|---|
| А а | а | "a" in father | a |
| Е е | е | "ye" in yes (word-initial); "e" in yet (after consonants) | ye / e |
| Ё ё | ё | "yo" in yogurt — always stressed | yo |
| И и | и | "ee" in see | i |
| О о | о | "o" in more; unstressed it drifts toward "ah" | o |
| У у | у | "oo" in boot | u |
| Ы ы | ы | No English equivalent — closest is the "i" in roses | y |
| Э э | э | "e" in met | e |
| Ю ю | ю | "u" in use | yu |
| Я я | я | "ya" in yard | ya |
Most match an English sound. Five deserve practice: ж ("s" in "pleasure"), х (throaty "ch" in Scottish "loch"), ц ("ts" in "sits"), р (rolled r), щ (long soft "sh"). The five look-alikes get their own section below.
| Letter | Name | Sounds like | Translit. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Б б | бэ | "b" in bad | b |
| В в | вэ | "v" in vine | v |
| Г г | гэ | hard "g" in go (never like "giant") | g |
| Д д | дэ | "d" in do | d |
| Ж ж | жэ | "s" in pleasure | zh |
| З з | зэ | "z" in zoo | z |
| К к | ка | "k" in kept | k |
| Л л | эль | "l" in lamp | l |
| М м | эм | "m" in map | m |
| Н н | эн | "n" in not | n |
| П п | пэ | "p" in pet | p |
| Р р | эр | rolled r, like Spanish "rr" | r |
| С с | эс | "s" in set | s |
| Т т | тэ | "t" in top | t |
| Ф ф | эф | "f" in face | f |
| Х х | ха | "ch" in the Scottish loch | kh |
| Ц ц | цэ | "ts" in sits — one crisp sound | ts |
| Ч ч | че | "ch" in check | ch |
| Ш ш | ша | "sh" in hush | sh |
| Щ щ | ща | long soft "sh" — "push ships" said fast | shch |
| Letter | Name | Sounds like | Translit. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Й й | и краткое ("short i") | "y" in boy — a quick glide | y |
| Ъ ъ | твёрдый знак ("hard sign") | Silent — separates a prefix from a vowel: объект ("object") | " |
| Ь ь | мягкий знак ("soft sign") | Silent — softens the consonant before it: мать ("mother") | ' |
Transliteration converts Cyrillic to Latin letter by letter — Москва → Moskva, Достоевский → Dostoevsky. Scholars use ISO 9 (with diacritics like ž); the table below uses the common English transliteration (BGN/PCGN-style), the system in passports and English-language writing.
| Cyrillic | Latin | Cyrillic | Latin | Cyrillic | Latin | Cyrillic | Latin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| А а | a | Й й | y | Т т | t | Ъ ъ | " |
| Б б | b | К к | k | У у | u | Ы ы | y |
| В в | v | Л л | l | Ф ф | f | Ь ь | ' |
| Г г | g | М м | m | Х х | kh | Э э | e |
| Д д | d | Н н | n | Ц ц | ts | Ю ю | yu |
| Е е | ye / e | О о | o | Ч ч | ch | Я я | ya |
| Ё ё | yo | П п | p | Ш ш | sh | ||
| Ж ж | zh | Р р | r | Щ щ | shch | ||
| З з | z | С с | s | ||||
| И и | i |
Fine points: Е is "ye" word-initially, "e" after consonants (Европа → Yevropa; нет → net). Ё is usually printed Е (next section), so the composer is both Tchaikovsky and Chaykovsky — same name, different conventions. Transliteration is not translation: spasibo tells you the sound, not the meaning ("thank you").
The biggest reading obstacle is five letters. Drill them until automatic.
| Looks like Latin… | Really is | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| В в looks like B | Ve | v in vine — вода (voda), "water" |
| Н н looks like H | En | n in not — нет (nyet), "no" |
| Р р looks like P | Er | rolled r — река (reka), "river" |
| С с looks like C | Es | s in set — спасибо (spasibo), "thank you" |
| Х х looks like X | Kha | Scottish loch — хорошо (khorosho), "good" |
The honest matches: К к = k, М м = m, О о = o, Т т = t — so спорт reads "sport" and КОСМОС reads "kosmos". First sentence: Мама мыла раму ("Mama washed the window frame") — mama myla ramu.
Ё (yo) is the 7th letter and always stressed — you never guess the emphasis. The quirk: in print, Ё is almost always written Е — еж and все are still read "yozh" (hedgehog) and "vsyo" (everything). The dots return in children's books, dictionaries, and where ambiguity matters:
Same spelling in print, different pronunciation. When learning, ask of every stressed Е: could it be Ё?
Consonants come in hard/soft pairs — a soft consonant adds a faint "y" quality, tongue raised. English speakers notice it last; Russians notice it first.
The soft sign (ь) softens the consonant before it, adding no vowel: мать (mat', "mother") vs мат (mat, "checkmate"); it ends countless words (ночь, любовь). The hard sign (ъ) blocks softening between a prefix and a vowel: объект (ob-yekt, "object"). It's far rarer than ь.
Shortcut: after a consonant, я, ё, ю, е, и signal "soft"; а, о, у, э, ы signal "hard". Six consonants never change teams: ж, ш, ц are always hard; й, ч, щ are always soft.
If you searched for a Russian alphabet generator, the tool is one click away — this page is its reference companion: learn the letters here, style them there. Type any Russian word into the Russian calligraphy generator, preview 30 Cyrillic styles, copy the text or download a PNG. It renders exactly what you type — paste Cyrillic in, since it won't convert English into Russian.
Next: our Russian cursive alphabet chart walks all 33 letters through handwritten forms and joining rules. If б, г, д, п or т ever look "wrong", you may be reading Serbian — our Serbian Cyrillic cursive guide explains the national variants.
Type in Cyrillic and preview real Cyrillic fonts — free, no sign-up, PNG download included.
Open the Russian Calligraphy Generator33: 10 vowels, 20 consonants, one semivowel (й, "short i"), and two silent signs (ъ, ь) that modify the preceding consonant.
Most map to a familiar sound: б="b", м="m", к="k". The five needing practice: ж ("s" in "pleasure"), х ("ch" in Scottish "loch"), ц ("ts" in "sits"), р (rolled r), ы (no English equivalent; like "i" in "roses"). First learn the false friends: в="v", н="n", р="r", с="s", х="kh", despite looking like Latin B, H, P, C, X.
Ы. Its vowel sound doesn't exist in English — a short, central "i" roughly like the second syllable of "roses". Learners usually substitute a hard "i" or "oo" at first; native speakers will still understand you, but ы is what marks you as a beginner. Runners-up: х (the throaty Scottish "loch" sound) and the rolled р.
Use the common-English system in the transliteration table above — а→a, в→v, ж→zh, х→kh, ц→ts, ч→ch, ш→sh, щ→shch, ю→yu, я→ya, with е as "ye" word-initially and "e" after consonants. So Москва becomes Moskva and спасибо becomes spasibo.
Printing convention: ё is almost always written е, but still pronounced "yo" — еж reads "yozh" (hedgehog). Dots return where ambiguity matters, in children's books, and in dictionaries. The classic pair: все ("vsye", everyone) vs всё ("vsyo", everything).
Same 33 letters, but many shapes change: cursive п looks like Latin "n", и like "u", т like "m" with a bar, д like a looped "g". This page covers print only; our Russian cursive alphabet chart maps all 33 cursive forms.