The Cyrillic Code I
Warm-up
You're about to crack a code that 45 million people use every day. The Ukrainian Cyrillic alphabet isn't as foreign as it looks. In fact, you already know how to read about a third of it. Some letters are True Friends (they look AND sound like their English equivalents). Some are False Friends (they look familiar but make completely different sounds). And some are entirely new.
Think of learning Cyrillic like learning to read again. But this time, it only takes a few hours instead of a few years. By the end of this module, you'll be reading real Ukrainian words. Let's start with the letters you already know.
Presentation
The True Friends (7 letters)
These letters look and sound almost identical to their English counterparts. When you see them, read them exactly as you would in English:
| Letter | Sound | Example | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| А а | /ɑ/ like «father» | мама | mama |
| Е е | /ɛ/ like «bet» | метро | metro |
| І і | /i/ like «meet» | піца | pizza |
| О о | /ɔ/ like «soft» | доктор | doctor |
| К к | /k/ like «kite» | банк | bank |
| М м | /m/ like «mom» | музика | music |
| Т т | /t/ like «top» | турист | tourist |
These are your True Friends. When you see А, О, Е, І, К, М, Т, read them just like English. The word метро (metro) uses only True Friends, so you can read it right now: M-E-T-R-O. Wait, what about that Р? That's where things get interesting.
💡 Did You Know?
The Cyrillic alphabet wasn't invented by Russians. It was created in the 9th century in Bulgaria by followers of Saints Cyril and Methodius. Ukraine adopted Cyrillic independently through the medieval state of Kyivan Rus'. Russian didn't even exist as a distinct language when Cyrillic was created!
The False Friends (6 letters)
These letters LOOK like English letters but make COMPLETELY different sounds. This is where English speakers get tripped up:
| Letter | Looks Like | Actually Says | Example | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| В в | B | /v/ like «van» | кава | coffee |
| Н н | H | /n/ like «no» | банк | bank |
| Р р | P | /r/ like «red» (rolled) | радіо | radio |
| С с | C | /s/ like «sun» | суп | soup |
| У у | Y | /u/ like «moon» | суп | soup |
| Х х | X | /x/ like Scottish «loch» | хокей | hockey |
The word банк (bank) has the False Friend Н (sounds like N, not H). So it's pronounced «bank», not «bahk»!
Look at радіо (radio): the Р looks like a P, but it's actually an R. So it says «radio». Exactly what you'd expect, just with a different letter!
🔍 Myth Buster
Myth: «Russian and Ukrainian are basically the same language.» Fact: Ukrainian and Russian are as different as Spanish and Portuguese. They share Cyrillic roots, but Ukrainian has unique letters (Ї, Є, Ґ) that Russian doesn't have. They have different grammar and thousands of words that don't exist in Russian.
The New Letters (6 letters)
These letters are completely new to English speakers. But don't worry. They represent sounds you can make:
| Letter | Sound | Example | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Б б | /b/ like «ball» | банан | banana |
| Д д | /d/ like «dog» | доктор | doctor |
| З з | /z/ like «zoo» | ваза | vase |
| Л л | /l/ like «love» | лимон | lemon |
| П п | /p/ like «pet» | парк | park |
| Ф ф | /f/ like «fun» | фото | photo |
The word футбол (football) uses several new letters: Ф (f), У (u, False Friend!), Т (t, True Friend), Б (b), О (o, True Friend), Л (l). Put it together: f-u-t-b-o-l. Football!
🎬 Pop Culture Moment: S.T.A.L.K.E.R.
The famous Ukrainian video game S.T.A.L.K.E.R. was made by GSC Game World in Kyiv. In Ukrainian, «stalker» is written сталкер. You can decode it using False Friends: С (s), Т (t), А (a), Л (l), К (k), Е (e), Р (r). The game is set in the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone.
Practice
Reading International Words
Many words in Ukrainian are international. They're borrowed from Latin, Greek, or English. Once you know the letters, you can read these immediately.
Places:
Банк (bank). Парк (park). Кафе (café). Бар (bar). Ресторан (restaurant).
Food:
Кава (coffee). Суп (soup). Салат (salad). Піца (pizza). Банан (banana). Лимон (lemon).
Technology:
Метро (metro). Радіо (radio). Телефон (telephone). Інтернет (internet). Фото (photo). Відео (video).
Mini-Dialogue 1: At the Metro Station
— Це метро? (Tse metro?) — Is this the metro?
— Так, метро. (Tak, metro.) — Yes, the metro.
Notice how метро looks almost English? That's because it IS almost English. Just written in Cyrillic!
Mini-Dialogue 2: At a Café
— Кава? (Kava?) — Coffee?
— Так, кава. (Tak, kava.) — Yes, coffee.
The word кава comes from the same root as English «coffee» but took a different path through Turkish and Arabic. In Ukrainian, it sounds like «kava.»
Cultural Insight
Why Ukrainian Uses Cyrillic
When people see Cyrillic, they often think «Russian alphabet.» But Cyrillic belongs to no single nation. It was created specifically for Slavic peoples. Bulgarians, Serbs, Ukrainians, and others used it centuries before the Russian Empire even existed.
Ukrainian Cyrillic has 33 letters. Some exist only in Ukrainian:
І і — Ukrainian has this simple «ee» sound like in «meet».
Ї ї — A uniquely Ukrainian sound (we'll learn it in Module 2).
Є є — Another uniquely Ukrainian letter.
Ґ ґ — A hard «g» sound that Russian lost centuries ago.
🌍 Real World
When you visit Київ (Kyiv, note the Ukrainian spelling!), you'll see Cyrillic everywhere: on metro stations, street signs, restaurant menus, and shop windows. The words банк, кафе, бар, ресторан, метро are all around you. And now you can read them!
The Letter Count
Today you learned 19 letters. That's more than half the alphabet! Only 14 letters remain for Module 2.
Production
Now it's time to test your decoding skills. Look at these Ukrainian words and try to read them aloud:
Таксі /tɑkˈsi/ (taxi). Опера /ˈɔpɛrɑ/ (opera). Балет /bɑˈlɛt/ (ballet). Актор /ɑkˈtɔr/ (actor). Паспорт /ˈpɑspɔrt/ (passport). Віза /ˈvizɑ/ (visa). Карта /ˈkɑrtɑ/ (card/map). Комета /kɔˈmɛtɑ/ (comet). Ракета /rɑˈkɛtɑ/ (rocket). Какао /kɑˈkɑɔ/ (cocoa).
Every single one of these is an international word that you already know. Just written in a different alphabet!
📋 Підсумок
In this module, you learned:
True Friends (7 letters): А, Е, І, О, К, М, Т. They look AND sound like English.
False Friends (6 letters): В (v), Н (n), Р (r), С (s), У (u), Х (kh). They look familiar but sound different.
New Letters (6 letters): Б (b), Д (d), З (z), Л (l), П (p), Ф (f). They are completely new shapes.
You can now read 35 international words in Ukrainian. The key insight: many «Ukrainian» words are actually international words you already know, just written in Cyrillic.
Remember: В is V, not B. Н is N, not H. Р is R, not P. С is S, not C. У is U, not Y. Х is like Scottish «loch.»
Need More Practice?
External Review
🎯 Activities
True Friends
False Friends Sound
Letter Types
True Friends
False Friends
New Letters
Reading Words
How do you pronounce банк?
How do you pronounce радіо?
How do you pronounce кава?
How do you pronounce парк?
How do you pronounce суп?
How do you pronounce футбол?
What letter is Р equivalent to in English sound?
What letter is Н equivalent to in English sound?
What sound does В make?
How do you pronounce метро?
Which word means "tourist"?
Which word means "telephone"?
Letter Recognition
The letter А sounds like "a" in "father".
The letter В sounds like "b" in "ball".
The letter Н sounds like "n" in "no".
The letter Р sounds like "p" in "pet".
The letter С sounds like "s" in "sun".
The letter У sounds like "y" in "yes".
Cyrillic was created in Bulgaria, not Russia.
Ukrainian has unique letters (Ї, Є, Ґ) that Russian doesn't have.
The word «метро» uses only False Friends.
The letter К sounds like "k" in "kite".
The letter Х sounds like "x" in "box".
The letter Л sounds like "l" in "love".
Complete the Word
Build the Word
International Words
📚 Vocabulary
| Word | IPA | English | POS | Gender | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| актор | /aktˈɔr/ | actor | noun | ч | |
| балет | /balˈɛt/ | ballet | noun | ч | |
| банан | /banˈan/ | banana | noun | ч | |
| банк | /bank/ | bank | noun | ч | |
| бар | /bar/ | bar | noun | ч | |
| відео | /ʋˈidɛɔ/ | video | noun | с | |
| віза | /ʋˈiza/ | visa | noun | ж | |
| кава | /kˈaʋa/ | coffee | noun | ж | |
| какао | /kakˈaɔ/ | cocoa | noun | с | |
| карта | /kˈarta/ | card, map | noun | ж | |
| кафе | /kafˈɛ/ | cafe | noun | с | |
| київ | /kɪˈjiʋ/ | Kyiv | noun | ч | |
| комета | /kɔmˈɛta/ | comet | noun | ж | |
| лимон | /lɪmˈɔn/ | lemon | noun | ч | |
| метро | /mɛtrˈɔ/ | metro, subway | noun | с | |
| опера | /ˈɔpɛra/ | opera | noun | ж | |
| парк | /park/ | park | noun | ч | |
| паспорт | /pˈaspɔrt/ | passport | noun | ч | |
| підсумок | /pidsumɔk/ | result, total, summary | noun | ч | |
| піца | /pˈit͡sa/ | pizza | noun | ж | |
| радіо | /rˈadiɔ/ | radio | noun | с | |
| ракета | /rakˈɛta/ | rocket | noun | ж | |
| ресторан | /rɛstɔrˈan/ | restaurant | noun | ч | |
| салат | /salˈat/ | salad | noun | ч | |
| сталкер | /stˈalkɛr/ | stalker | noun | ч | |
| суп | /sup/ | soup | noun | ч | |
| таксі | /taksˈi/ | taxi | noun | с | |
| телефон | /tɛlɛfˈɔn/ | telephone | noun | ч | |
| фото | /fˈɔtɔ/ | photo | noun | с | |
| футбол | /futbˈɔl/ | football, soccer | noun | ч | |
| інтернет | /intɛrnˈɛt/ | internet | noun | ч |