The Macedonian Alphabet - Vowels, Consonants & Unique Letters

Q: How many letters are in Macedonian?

There are 31 letters in the Macedonian alphabet [1] . Out of these, 5 are vowel letters and the remaining 26 letters are consonants, including six letters unique to Macedonian (Ѓ, Ѕ, Ј, Љ, Њ, Ќ).

Q: What makes the Macedonian alphabet unique?

Macedonian has six unique letters not found together in other Slavic languages: • Ѓ (gj) - soft "g" sound, like "gyeh" • Ѕ (dz) - "dz" sound, unique to Macedonian • Ј (j) - "y" sound as in "yes" • Љ (lj) - palatalized "l" sound • Њ (nj) - palatalized "n" sound • Ќ (kj) - soft "k" sound, like "kyeh" These letters help distinguish Macedonian from Bulgarian and Serbian !

Q: Is Macedonian similar to Bulgarian?

Yes, they are very closely related South Slavic languages : • Mutually intelligible to a large degree • Share many grammatical features and vocabulary • Both lack noun cases , unlike other Slavic languages • Both use definite articles (suffixes), rare in Slavic languages • However, Macedonian has distinct pronunciation and six unique letters

Q: Where is Macedonian spoken?

Macedonian is spoken in several locations : • North Macedonia - where it's the official language [2] • Approximately 1.4 million native speakers [2] • Diaspora communities in Bulgaria, Greece, Serbia, Albania • Larger communities in Australia, Canada, USA

Q: When was Macedonian standardized?

Macedonian was officially standardized in 1945 : • After World War II , when Macedonia became part of Yugoslavia • Based on central and western dialects of Macedonian • Makes it one of the youngest standardized Slavic languages • Before 1945, Macedonian existed as regional dialects without standard written form • Gained official status as the language of North Macedonia

Q: Does Macedonian have grammatical cases?

No! This is a unique feature of Macedonian and Bulgarian : • Most Slavic languages have 6-7 grammatical cases • Macedonian and Bulgarian lost their cases over time • Instead, they use word order and prepositions like English • They have definite articles (suffixes), rare in Slavic languages • This makes Macedonian easier to learn for English speakers !

Macedonian Alphabet at a Glance

31 letters: 5 vowels and 26 consonants, using the Cyrillic script ^[1]
Spoken by approximately 1.4 million native speakers in North Macedonia and diaspora ^[2]
Official language of North Macedonia since the country gained independence in 1991 ^[2]
Features six unique letters not found in other Slavic languages: Ѓ, Ѕ, Ј, Љ, Њ, Ќ ^[1]
Closely related to Bulgarian and Serbian, part of the South Slavic language group ^[2]
Codified in 1945 based on central dialects, making it one of the youngest standardized Slavic languages
Uses three distinct forms of stress accent that affect pronunciation and meaning

The Macedonian alphabet consists of 31 letters, comprising 5 vowels and 26 consonants ^[1]. Using the Cyrillic script, the Macedonian alphabet is distinguished by six unique letters: Ѓ (gj), Ѕ (dz), Ј (j), Љ (lj), Њ (nj), and Ќ (kj). The five vowels are А (a), Е (e), И (i), О (o), and У (u). The alphabet was officially codified in 1945 after World War II, based on the central dialects of Macedonian, making it one of the youngest standardized Slavic languages. Macedonian is spoken by approximately 1.4 million native speakers ^[2], primarily in North Macedonia, and is closely related to Bulgarian and Serbian.

Macedonian Vowels (Uppercase)

[a]

[ɛ]

[i]

[ɔ]

[u]

Macedonian Vowels (Lowercase)

[a]

[ɛ]

[i]

[ɔ]

[u]

Macedonian Consonants (Uppercase)

[b]

[v]

[ɡ]

[d]

[ɟ]

[ʒ]

[z]

[dz]

[j]

[k]

[l]

[ʎ]

[m]

[n]

[ɲ]

[p]

[r]

[s]

[t]

[c]

[f]

[x]

[ts]

[tʃ]

[dʒ]

[ʃ]

Macedonian Consonants (Lowercase)

[b]

[v]

[ɡ]

[d]

[ɟ]

[ʒ]

[z]

[dz]

[j]

[k]

[l]

[ʎ]

[m]

[n]

[ɲ]

[p]

[r]

[s]

[t]

[c]

[f]

[x]

[ts]

[tʃ]

[dʒ]

[ʃ]

[b]

The letter Б (b) represents the voiced bilabial plosive sound, similar to "b" in "boy".

[v]

The letter В (v) represents the voiced labiodental fricative sound, similar to "v" in "voice".

[ɡ]

The letter Г (g) represents the voiced velar plosive sound, similar to "g" in "go".

[d]

The letter Д (d) represents the voiced alveolar plosive sound, similar to "d" in "dog".

[ɟ]

The letter Ѓ (gj) represents the voiced palatal plosive sound, unique to Macedonian. Pronounced like "gyeh".

[ʒ]

The letter Ж (ž) represents the voiced postalveolar fricative sound, similar to "s" in "measure".

[z]

The letter З (z) represents the voiced alveolar fricative sound, similar to "z" in "zoo".

[dz]

The letter Ѕ (dz) represents the voiced alveolar affricate sound, unique to Macedonian. Pronounced like "dz" in "adze".

[j]

The letter Ј (j) represents the palatal approximant sound, similar to "y" in "yes".

[k]

The letter К (k) represents the voiceless velar plosive sound, similar to "k" in "kite".

[l]

The letter Л (l) represents the alveolar lateral approximant sound, similar to "l" in "light".

[ʎ]

The letter Љ (lj) represents the palatal lateral approximant sound, similar to "ll" in Italian "famiglia".

[m]

The letter М (m) represents the bilabial nasal sound, similar to "m" in "mother".

[n]

The letter Н (n) represents the alveolar nasal sound, similar to "n" in "nose".

[ɲ]

The letter Њ (nj) represents the palatal nasal sound, similar to "ny" in "canyon" or "gn" in French "gnocchi".

[p]

The letter П (p) represents the voiceless bilabial plosive sound, similar to "p" in "pen".

[r]

The letter Р (r) represents the alveolar trill sound, similar to the rolled "r" in Spanish.

[s]

The letter С (s) represents the voiceless alveolar fricative sound, similar to "s" in "sun".

[t]

The letter Т (t) represents the voiceless alveolar plosive sound, similar to "t" in "top".

[c]

The letter Ќ (kj) represents the voiceless palatal plosive sound, unique to Macedonian. Pronounced like "kyeh".

[f]

The letter Ф (f) represents the voiceless labiodental fricative sound, similar to "f" in "fun".

[x]

The letter Х (h) represents the voiceless velar fricative sound, similar to "ch" in Scottish "loch".

[ts]

The letter Ц (c) represents the voiceless alveolar affricate sound, similar to "ts" in "cats".

[tʃ]

The letter Ч (č) represents the voiceless postalveolar affricate sound, similar to "ch" in "church".

[dʒ]

The letter Џ (dž) represents the voiced postalveolar affricate sound, similar to "j" in "judge".

[ʃ]

The letter Ш (š) represents the voiceless postalveolar fricative sound, similar to "sh" in "shop".

[a]

[b]

[v]

[ɡ]

[d]

[ɟ]

[ɛ]

[ʒ]

[z]

[dz]

[i]

[j]

[k]

[l]

[ʎ]

[m]

[n]

[ɲ]

[ɔ]

[p]

[r]

[s]

[t]

[c]

[u]

[f]

[x]

[ts]

[tʃ]

[dʒ]

[ʃ]

[nula]

[eden]

[dva]

[tri]

[četiri]

[pet]

[šest]

[sedum]

[osum]

[devet]

[nula]

Zero in Macedonian.

[eden]

One in Macedonian.

[dva]

Two in Macedonian.

[tri]

Three in Macedonian.

[četiri]

Four in Macedonian.

[pet]

Five in Macedonian.

[šest]

Six in Macedonian.

[sedum]

Seven in Macedonian.

[osum]

Eight in Macedonian.

[devet]

Nine in Macedonian.

Comma used as decimal separator.

;

–

—

(

)

[

]

{

}

ден

[den]

Expand All Collapse All

How many letters are in Macedonian?

What makes the Macedonian alphabet unique?

Is Macedonian similar to Bulgarian?

Where is Macedonian spoken?

When was Macedonian standardized?

Does Macedonian have grammatical cases?

References:

[1] Unicode Consortium. "Cyrillic Unicode Block (U+0400-U+04FF)". Retrieved from Unicode Cyrillic Block
[2] Ethnologue. "Macedonian Language (MKD) - L1 & L2 Speakers, Status, Map". Retrieved from https://www.ethnologue.com/language/mkd/