The fastest way to learn Azerbaijani is to spend most of your study time on Azerbaijani you can mostly understand. That kind of Azerbaijani is called comprehensible input. What you read and listen to should change as you improve, so the plan below shows what to do at each level and how to split an hour of study.
What to Do at Each Level
Find the level that sounds like you. Its bar shows how to spend an hour of study.
- First Week
I can't read the Azerbaijani alphabet yet.
Learn the Alphabet 40 min. Listen 20 min.
Azerbaijani has 32 letters, and only seven of them, ç, ə, ğ, ı, ö, ş and ü, are new to English readers. Learn them first, and listen to easy Azerbaijani while you do, so the sounds start to feel familiar.
- Level 1
I'm just starting out or know only a few words.
Read and listen 35 min. Review 15 min. Speak 10 min.
Read short dialogues with audio and a translation, and listen to each one twice. Watch Learn Azerbaijani with Sevda for everyday phrases, and say a few lines out loud.
- Level 2
I can handle simple exchanges.
Read and listen 40 min. Review 10 min. Speak 10 min.
Hide the translation and look up only the words that stop you. Read the easiest GLOSS lessons along with their audio, and retell one to a tutor or a friend.
- Level 3
I follow conversations on familiar topics.
Read and listen 40 min. Review 5 min. Speak 15 min.
Listen to short folk tales on Danışan Kitab, such as Bilici Baba, and watch fairy tale cartoons in Azerbaijani. Talk about what you heard for longer.
- Level 4
I understand most content but miss some nuance.
Read and watch 45 min. Review 5 min. Speak 10 min.
Watch a series from İctimai TV, Azerbaijan's public broadcaster, such as Əqrəb mövsümü, one episode a week. Language Reactor shows its Azerbaijani subtitles beside a translation.
- Level 5
I read complex topics but rare words slow me down.
Read and listen 50 min. Speak 10 min.
Read the news on BBC News Azərbaycanca, and listen to long talks about health and history on Söhbətgah. Look up only the words that block the story.
- Level 6
I read at near-native level.
Read and watch 50 min. Speak 10 min.
Read Azerbaijani novels and watch full films from Azərbaycanfilm, the national film studio, and talk about them for their own sake.
Move up a level when your lessons start to feel easy, and move back down if you lose the thread by the third line.
How Long Does It Take to Learn Azerbaijani?
Azerbaijani takes 1,012 class hours, or about 44 weeks of full-time study, to reach professional fluency, according to the U.S. Foreign Service Institute. That puts Azerbaijani in the third of its four groups for English speakers, with Turkish, Uzbek, Kazakh and Russian.
| Language | FSI group | Full-time weeks |
|---|---|---|
| Spanish | Category I | 30 |
| German | Category II | 36 |
| Azerbaijani, Turkish | Category III | 44 |
| Japanese | Category IV | 88 |
FSI students have about 23 hours of class and 17 hours of study on their own each week, so 44 weeks comes to 1,012 class hours, or 1,760 hours in all. Here is how long those take at different amounts of study a week:
| Study per week | FSI classes (1,012 hours) | FSI classes and study on their own (1,760 hours) |
|---|---|---|
| 3½ hours | About 5½ years | About 9⅔ years |
| 7 hours | About 2¾ years | About 4¾ years |
| 14 hours | About 17 months | About 2⅓ years |
| 28 hours | About 8 months | About 14½ months |
These are class and study hours from full-time courses, so treat them as a rough guide. Time you spend understanding Azerbaijani on your own counts too.
What Slows Learners Down
- Reading Letters the English WayA few familiar letters stand for different sounds in Azerbaijani, so c sounds like the j in jam, and x sounds like the ch in loch. Learn each letter's Azerbaijani sound first, so you don't have to unlearn an English one later.
- Ending Tables AloneAzerbaijani adds endings to a word one after another, so ev (house) becomes evlərdən (from the houses). A table of endings is hard to use until you have read each one in many sentences.
- Content Far Too HardAn Azerbaijani series where you know one word in five teaches you very little.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Azerbaijani app should a beginner choose?
If you are serious about learning Azerbaijani, start with Bubblegum. Poppy writes lessons at your level about things you like. Our Azerbaijani app comparison covers courses, tutors and speaking apps too.
Can I learn Azerbaijani in three months?
You can learn the Azerbaijani alphabet and enough Azerbaijani to greet people and introduce yourself. At 14 hours a week, three months is about 180 hours, which is less than a fifth of the 1,012 class hours FSI plans for professional fluency.
How much should I study Azerbaijani each week?
Aim for three to five hours a week of Azerbaijani you understand, in sessions of at least 15 to 30 minutes. A longer session lets you get lost in a story, which teaches more than five minutes a day, and steady time each week matters more than a daily streak. Our post on deep sessions over daily streaks explains why.
Is Azerbaijani hard for English speakers?
Yes, by the Foreign Service Institute's measure: Azerbaijani is in the third of its four groups, so it takes longer than Spanish and less time than Japanese. The alphabet is the quick part, and most of the time goes into the words and their endings, which you pick up fastest from Azerbaijani you understand. If you know Turkish, you have a head start, because it is one of Azerbaijani's closest relatives.
Is Bubblegum free?
Yes. The lesson library is free for everyone, because we believe everyone should be able to learn. It holds lessons that other learners asked Poppy for. A new custom lesson costs us real money to make, so your first one is free, and Bubblegum Pro gives you unlimited custom lessons.
The Azerbaijani Alphabet course on this site is also free and needs no account.
