Language Overview
Serbian
Српски
Serbian is a South Slavic language with about 12 million speakers, unique for being written in both Cyrillic and Latin scripts.
Overview
Serbian is a South Slavic language spoken primarily in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro. It is mutually intelligible with Croatian, Bosnian, and Montenegrin.
Alphabet
Serbian is unique among Slavic languages because it uses two scripts: Cyrillic (official) and Latin (widely used). Every letter in one has a direct equivalent in the other. There are 30 sounds, and each sound has exactly one letter.
1. The One-to-One Correspondence
In Serbian, whether you write in Cyrillic or Latin, the pronunciation remains identical.
| Cyrillic | Latin | Pronunciation (English) | IPA |
|---|---|---|---|
| А а | A a | a as in father | [a] |
| Б б | B b | b as in bat | [b] |
| В в | V v | v as in vet | [v] |
| Г г | G g | g as in go | [g] |
| Д д | D d | d as in dog | [d] |
| Ђ ђ | Đ đ | j as in jeep (but softer) | [d͡ʑ] |
| Е е | E e | e as in set | [ɛ] |
| Ж ж | Ž ž | s as in pleasure | [ʒ] |
| З з | Z z | z as in zoo | [z] |
| И и | I i | ee as in see | [i] |
| Ј ј | J j | y as in yes | [j] |
| К к | K k | k as in kite | [k] |
| Л л | L l | l as in lamp | [l] |
| Љ љ | Lj lj | li as in million | [ʎ] |
| М м | M m | m as in man | [m] |
| Н н | N n | n as in no | [n] |
| Њ њ | Nj nj | ny as in canyon | [ɲ] |
| О о | O o | o as in bore | [o] |
| П п | P p | p as in pet | [p] |
| Р р | R r | rolled r | [r] |
| С с | S s | s as in set | [s] |
| Т т | T t | t as in tap | [t] |
| Ћ ћ | Ć ć | ch as in check (but softer) | [t͡ɕ] |
| У у | U u | oo as in boot | [u] |
| Ф ф | F f | f as in fat | [f] |
| Х х | H h | h as in house | [x] |
| Ц ц | C c | ts as in sits | [t͡s] |
| Ч ч | Č č | ch as in chip | [t͡ʃ] |
| Џ џ | Dž dž | j as in jump | [d͡ʒ] |
| Ш ш | Š š | sh as in shut | [ʃ] |
2. The Unique Serbian Cyrillic Letters
Unlike Russian or Bulgarian, Serbian Cyrillic was reformed in the 19th century to be perfectly phonetic. These letters are unique to the Serbian version of Cyrillic:
- Ј (Je): Borrowed from the Latin alphabet to represent the "y" sound.
- Љ (Lje) & Њ (Nje): Created by merging Л and Н with the soft sign (Ь).
- Ђ (Đe) & Ћ (Će): Represent soft "j" and "ch" sounds.
- Џ (Dže): Represents the hard "j" sound.
3. The "False Friends" (Latin Script)
If you are using the Latin version of Serbian, you need to watch out for these:
| Letter | Pronunciation | Note |
|---|---|---|
| C c | ts | Always "ts" (like pizza), never "k" or "s". |
| J j | y | Always like the English y. |
| V v | v | Always like English v (never w). |
4. Pro-Tips
"Write as you speak"
The golden rule of Serbian is: Piši kao što govoriš i čitaj kao što je napisano. There are no silent letters, no vowel reductions (unlike Russian), and no complex spelling rules. If you see it, you say it.
The Two "Ch" Sounds
Like Polish, Serbian distinguishes between a Hard Ch (Č / Ч) and a Soft Ch (Ć / Ћ).
- Č is "crunchier," like chop.
- Ć is "lighter," almost like the t in tube.
The Two "J" Sounds
Similarly, there is a Hard J (Dž / Џ) and a Soft J (Đ / Ђ).
- Dž is like joy.
- Đ is like the d in educate (British pronunciation).
R can be a Vowel and it can be stressed
Like Czech, the Serbian R can act as a vowel in words like vrt (garden) or smrt (death). It is a short, trilled sound that carries the syllable.
Sound Features
Serbian features:
- Pitch accent system (rising and falling tones)
- Simple vowel system with 5 vowels
- Lack of palatalization compared to other Slavic languages
- Phonetic spelling - words are written as they sound
Key Grammar Highlights
Serbian grammar includes:
- Seven grammatical cases
- Three grammatical genders
- Verb aspect system
- Rich system of verbal tenses
Related Languages
Serbian is closely related to Croatian, Bosnian, and Montenegrin. These languages are sometimes collectively referred to as Serbo-Croatian.
Basic Phrases
- Hello: Здраво / Zdravo
- Thank you: Хвала / Hvala
- Yes: Да / Da
- No: Не / Ne
- Please: Молим / Molim
Resources
- Serbian language courses
- Serbian media and literature in both scripts
- Language exchange programs
- Online dictionaries and grammar resources