Definition:
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transliteration is the system of representing or spelling
the text written in one alphabet using the corresponding letters
of another.
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Converting Russian letters into English ones, the
Cyrillic symbols are usually transcribed or transliterated. Transliteration
is more commonly used because Russian is a phonetic language, which
means that, in general, letters are pronounced nearly as written
except a very few rules. Nevertheless, there is no international
agreement among experts on a single unified system of converting
Cyrillic into Latin letters. That's why modern transliteration tables
differ a bit.
Below you can get acquainted with the transliteration scheme accepted
on our site:
Letter
|
Translit
|
Letter
|
Translit
|
Letter
|
Translit
|
A a |
A a |
К к |
K k
|
Х х |
H h
|
Б б |
B b
|
Л л |
L l
|
Ц ц |
Tz tz
|
В в |
V v
|
М м |
M m
|
Ч ч |
Ch ch
|
Г г |
G g
|
Н н |
N n
|
Ш ш |
Sh sh
|
Д д |
D d
|
О о |
O o
|
Щ щ |
Shch shch
|
Е е |
E e
|
П п |
P p
|
Ъ ъ |
' |
Ё ё |
Yo yo
|
Р р |
R r
|
Ы ы |
Y y
|
Ж ж |
Zh zh
|
С с |
S s
|
Ь ь |
' |
З з |
Z z
|
Т т |
T t
|
Э э |
E e
|
И и |
I i
|
У у |
U u
|
Ю ю |
Yu yu
|
Й й |
J j
|
Ф ф |
F f
|
Я я |
Ya ya
|
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If you can't read Cyrillic properly, check
russification of your PC.
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Please note that transliteration is appropriate
for written communication and isn't a reliable guide to proper pronunciation.
It may be good for an occasional student, but still it is superficial
and it makes you get used to pronouncing in an imperfect way. That
is why, we recommend you to avoid using such system when learning
the Russian language. Try some "real" sounds. For instance,
you may want to start with Introductory
Phonetic Course, devoted to Russian pronunciation, or English-Russian
Phrasebook where you'll find a considerable number of Russian
words and sentences available with sound.
Your comments and proposals are welcome at comments@learningrussian.com
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