The Macedonian Alphabet
31 letters, one sound each: мама (mom), куќа (house) and здраво (hello) are read exactly as they are written.
How It Works
The 31 letters in order: А Б В Г Д Ѓ Е Ж З Ѕ И Ј К Л Љ М Н Њ О П Р С Т Ќ У Ф Х Ц Ч Џ Ш.
Letters that look familiar but sound different: В is v, Н is n, Р is a rolled r, С is s, У is oo, and Х is the h in Scottish loch. Ѕ looks like Latin s, but it is the sound dz. So ресторан (restaurant) is read restoran.
Five vowels: а, е, и, о, у. They keep their full sound even when they are not stressed, so млеко (milk) sounds just the way it looks.
Letters Macedonian does not use: there is no я, ю, й, ё, щ, ъ, ы, ь or э. The y sound is always ј, so ya and yu are written ја and ју: јас (I), мој (my), јуни (June).
Take a closer look at: Ѓ and Ќ, Ѕ and Џ, Љ, Њ and Ј, and the marks on ѐ and ѝ. One place where sound and spelling part ways is the end of a word: леб (bread) sounds like lep. See final devoicing.
Examples (5)
- Мама е дома.
Mom is at home.
Word by Word: Mom is at-home.
Every letter is one sound: м-а-м-а, д-о-м-а.
- Нашата куќа е голема.
Our house is big.
Ќ is one of the letters that only Macedonian uses.
- Јас сум од Скопје.
I am from Skopje.
Ј is the y sound, so Скопје is read skopye.
- Ова е ресторан.
This is a restaurant.
Р, С and Н look like Latin P, C and H, but they are r, s and n.
- Пијам млеко.
I drink milk.
The vowels keep their full sound, even in unstressed syllables.
Common Mistakes
Using the Russian or Bulgarian letter я.
Я сум Ана.Јас сум Ана.Macedonian has no я. The word for I is јас, and the y sound is always written with ј.
Writing й for the y sound.
Ова е мойот телефон.Ова е мојот телефон.Macedonian has no й. Every y sound, even at the end of a syllable, is written ј.
How It Connects
Related Patterns
- ѓ / ќThe Letters Ѓ and Ќ
Two soft sounds with letters found only in the Macedonian alphabet.
Level 1 - ѕ / џThe Letters Ѕ and Џ
Two letters for the sounds dz and j.
Level 1 - љ / њ / јThe Letters Љ Њ and Ј
The soft l and n, and the y sound that spells ја and ју.
Level 1 - ѐ / ѝThe Marks on Ѐ and Ѝ
The grave mark that tells a few short words apart.
Level 1 - Final Devoicing
The main place where a word is not said exactly as it is written.
Level 1 - Stress on the Third Syllable From the End
Once you can read the letters, the stress rule tells you which syllable to stress.
Level 1
Practice The Macedonian Alphabet in Bubblegum
Poppy, your AI tutor, writes Macedonian lessons at your level. Tap any grammar point in a lesson to see its full explanation.
