Languages using Cyrillic
This is a list of languages that have been written in the
Cyrillic alphabet at one time or another. See also
early Cyrillic alphabet.
|
Distribution of the Cyrillic alphabet worldwide. The dark green shows the countries that use Cyrillic as the one main script; the lighter green those that use Cyrillic alongside another official script. |
*
Indo-Iranian languages**
Indo-Aryan languages***
Romani (in
Serbia,
Montenegro,
Bulgaria and former
USSR)
**
Iranian languages***
Kurdish (living in former
USSR)
***
Ossetic (since
18th century, modern alphabet since
1938)
***
Tajik***
Tat (
Judeo-Tat)
*
Romance languages**
Romanian (up to the
19th century, and in
Moldova from
1940–
89 exclusively; now Cyrillic is used in Transnistria officially and in the rest of the country in everyday communication by some groups of people; see
Moldavian)
**
Ladino in occasional Bulgarian Sephardic publications.
*
Slavic languages**
Old Church Slavonic**
Church Slavonic**
Belarusian, now almost exclusively in Cyrillic, although there was a Roman version of the language during the Polish occupation. The Belarusian Roman script was called
Łacinka**
Bulgarian**
Macedonian**
Russian**
Rusyn**
Serbian, prior to 1918 Roman script was almost absolutely characterristic for the Serb Catholics, but since 1918 Roman script has been used alongside with Roman even by the Orthodox Serbs
**
Ukrainian(This group is not assumed to comprise genetically related subgroups.)
*
Northeast Caucasian languages:
**
Avar**
Chechen (since 1938, also with Roman 1991–2000)
**
Dargwa**
Lak**
Lezgian**
Tabassaran*
Northwest Caucasian languages:
**
Abaza**
Abkhaz**
Adyghe**
Kabardian*
Chinese languages
**
Dungan (since
1953)
*
Chukchi (since
1936)
*
Koryak (since 1936)
*
Buryat*
Kalmyk*
Mongolian*
Evenk (since 1936)
*
Nanai*
Udihe (
Udekhe) (writing recently is not used)
*
Altay*
Azeri (
1939–
91, exclusively in Cyrillic, since 1991 oficially in Roman, but in reality in everyday communication Cyrillic is used alongside with Roman script)
*
Balkar*
Bashkir*
Chuvash*
Crimean Tatar (
1938–
91)
*
Gagauz (
1957-
1990s, exclusively in Cyrillic, since 1990s oficially in Roman, but in reality in everyday communication Cyrillic is used alongside with Roman script)
*
Kazakh*
Karachay*
Karakalpak (1940s–1990s)
*
Khakas*
Kumyk*
Kyrgyz*
Nogai*
Tatar (since 1939; also with Roman since
2000, although not officially in Russia)
*
Turkmen (
1940–
94 exclusively in Cyrillic, since 1994 oficially in Roman, but in reality in everyday communication Cyrillic is used alongside with Roman script)
*
Tuvan*
Uzbek (
1941–
98 exclusively in Cyrillic, since 1998 Cyrillic is used alongside with Roman script, which was prescribed as the "future" alphabet of Uzbek)
*
Yakut*
Samoyedic languages**
Nenets (since 1937)
**
Selkup (since 1950s writing recently is not used)
*
Finno-Ugric languages**
Karelian (
1940–
1991)
**
Khanty**
Mansi (since 1937 writing has not received distribution)
**
Komi***
Komi-Zyrian (since
17th century, modern alphabet since 1930s)
***
Komi-Permyak**
Mari (since
19th century)
**
Mordvin languages
***
Erzya (since
18th century)
***
Moksha (since
18th century)
**
Sami (in Russia, since 1980s)
***
Kildin Sami**
Udmurt*
Aleut (in
19th century)
*
Siberian Eskimo (Yuit)*
Assyrian Neo-Aramaic (Aisor)
*
Russian sign language (uses the Cyrillic alphabet via the
Russian Manual Alphabet)
*
Constructed languages**
International auxiliary languages
***
Lingua Franca Nova***
Slovio***
Козеине***
"айанувукф**
Fictional languages***
Brutopian (
Donald Duck stories)
***
Syldavian (
Tintin)
