Problems
Who speaks what where?
How can I cope with Cyrillic writing?
Is Russian any use in Bulgaria?
Answers
Russian used Cyrillic writing. So does Bulgarian. However the Slavic languages are divided into West and East and south Slavic.
Who writes with which alphabet and why?
The Roman catholic countries under the Pope living near Rome use the Latin or Roman alphabet.
Cyril was a Greek priest sent to Constantinople in what is now the Turkish region and he and / or his followers took what we now call Cyrillic (which has some Greek style letters) to Russian and other countries, mostly East of France and Italy.
East Slavic Languages
Coming from the East, the East Slavic languages are
Russian - or Greater Russian - spoken in Russia - Cyrillic writing
Ukrainian - or Little Russian - spoken in Ukraine - Cyrillic
Belarusian - or White Russian - spoken in Belarus - Cyrillic
West Slavic Languages
Czech - spoken in Czech Republic Republic (stress initial syllable) - Roman alphabet
Poland (stress last syllable but one) - Roman alphabet
Slovak - spoken in Slovakia - Roman alphabet
South Slavic
Bulgarian (uses article, a and the) - spoken in Bulgaria (Cyrillic alphabet)
Macedonian - Cyrillic alphabet
Serbo-Croatia split into Serbia and Croatia which have different alphabets.
Slovenian - spoken in Slovenia - Roman alphabet
Serbian is written in Cyrillic but
Croatian is written in Roman alphabet.
Cyrillic Alphabets
The letter c is pronounced like s, as in palace.
Story
I started learning Greek, Hebrew and Russian on Duolingo because I thought it would be handy to know the alphabets. When I went to Romania I was surprised how easy it was to learn Romanian which is similar to Italian, derived from Latin, the language of the Romans.
Going south from Romania you reach Bulgaria which is popular with British travellers, partly because of good prices, Bargain Bulgaria. Some of my friends are considering a trip to Bulgaria next year and I might join them. However, on hearing that Bulgaria uses the the Cyrillic alphabet, which I find challenging, I decided I must start learning the Cyrillic alphabet now.
Tips
LANGUAGES
More details from
https://www.duolingo.com/comment/17638789 Ukrainian letters and links to pages on verbs. Personal pronouns grammar portal.
http://www.encyclopedia.com/literature-and-arts/language-linguistics-and-literary-terms/language-and-linguistics/slavic
TRAVEL
https://www.cheapflights.co.uk/find-flights/to-Ukraine/
Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Teacher of English and other languages.
Who speaks what where?
How can I cope with Cyrillic writing?
Is Russian any use in Bulgaria?
Answers
Russian used Cyrillic writing. So does Bulgarian. However the Slavic languages are divided into West and East and south Slavic.
Who writes with which alphabet and why?
The Roman catholic countries under the Pope living near Rome use the Latin or Roman alphabet.
Cyril was a Greek priest sent to Constantinople in what is now the Turkish region and he and / or his followers took what we now call Cyrillic (which has some Greek style letters) to Russian and other countries, mostly East of France and Italy.
East Slavic Languages
Coming from the East, the East Slavic languages are
Russian - or Greater Russian - spoken in Russia - Cyrillic writing
Ukrainian - or Little Russian - spoken in Ukraine - Cyrillic
Belarusian - or White Russian - spoken in Belarus - Cyrillic
West Slavic Languages
Czech - spoken in Czech Republic Republic (stress initial syllable) - Roman alphabet
Poland (stress last syllable but one) - Roman alphabet
Slovak - spoken in Slovakia - Roman alphabet
South Slavic
Bulgarian (uses article, a and the) - spoken in Bulgaria (Cyrillic alphabet)
Macedonian - Cyrillic alphabet
Serbo-Croatia split into Serbia and Croatia which have different alphabets.
Slovenian - spoken in Slovenia - Roman alphabet
Serbian is written in Cyrillic but
Croatian is written in Roman alphabet.
Cyrillic Alphabets
The letter c is pronounced like s, as in palace.
Story
I started learning Greek, Hebrew and Russian on Duolingo because I thought it would be handy to know the alphabets. When I went to Romania I was surprised how easy it was to learn Romanian which is similar to Italian, derived from Latin, the language of the Romans.
Going south from Romania you reach Bulgaria which is popular with British travellers, partly because of good prices, Bargain Bulgaria. Some of my friends are considering a trip to Bulgaria next year and I might join them. However, on hearing that Bulgaria uses the the Cyrillic alphabet, which I find challenging, I decided I must start learning the Cyrillic alphabet now.
Tips
LANGUAGES
More details from
https://www.duolingo.com/comment/17638789 Ukrainian letters and links to pages on verbs. Personal pronouns grammar portal.
http://www.encyclopedia.com/literature-and-arts/language-linguistics-and-literary-terms/language-and-linguistics/slavic
TRAVEL
https://www.cheapflights.co.uk/find-flights/to-Ukraine/
Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Teacher of English and other languages.
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