POLISH PRONUNCIATION VOWELS

CONSONANTS LETTER PRONUNCIATION SYMBOL

LETTER PRONUNCIATION

SYMBOL

C

like ts in cats

ts

A

like u in cult

ah

C'

soft C

ch

E

like e in let

eh

CH

like ch in Yiddish

I

like i in fit

i

like o in cot

o

like oo in boot

oo

CI, CZ

like ch in chip

ch

O

DZ

like ds in beds

dz

U, Ó

DZ.

like j in jam

j

A,

like awn in dawn

awn

soft DZ

dzh

E,

like en in den

en

G

like g in go

g

IA

like "yu" in "yummy"

J

like y in yes

y

IE

like "ye" in "yes"

N'

soft N

ny

IO

like "you"

L

w in win

w

IU

like "you"

R

rolled r

r

Ó

like "u' in "bull"

S

like s in sit

s

Y

S'

soft S

sy

somewhere between "i" and German "ü"

SI

Like shi as in ship

SZ

like s in ship

sh

W

like v in vine

v

Z., RZ

like s in peasure

zh

Z', ZI

soft Z

zy

DZ', DZI

B, D, F, H, pronounced as in K, L, M, N, P, T, English Z

Compiled by Olen B. Soifer 9-12-2008

LITHUANIAN PRONUNCIATION CONSONANTS

DIPTHONGS

LETTER

LETTER

C C DZ H, CH J R S Z

PRONUNCIATION SYMBOL Like: ts in cats ts ch in church ch j in joy dzh h in him h y in yes y german r (trilled) r sh in ship sh s in measure zh

AI AU EI IAI IE UI UO

PRONUNCIATION SYMBOL i in fine ai ow in cow aoo ey in prey ei ai in main ai ea in dear ie ooey ui O + short O sound uo

Pronounced as in English: B D F G K L M N P S T V Z

VOWELS A A¸ E

u in sun a in car 1) short: e in let 2) long: a in hat E¸ long like a in man Ê a in are I i in kid I¸ ee in meet O 1) short: o in hot 2) long: o in more U u in put Ú, U¸ like oo in soon

ah aa e ah a eh i ee o oh u oo

Compiled by Olen B. Soifer 9-12-2008

Spanish Pronunciation Consonents: b, v -- When found at the beginning of a word or following a consonant, pronounce like a b. Otherwise, they have a sound which falls somewhere in between the English b and v sounds. c -- before a consonant or a, o, or u, like the c in cat; before e or i like an s ch -- like the ch in church. Historically, the Spanish ch has been treated as a separate letter although this has recently been changed. Therefore, many dictionaries list words beginning with ch after the c's and before the d's. d -- like the English d except between vowels and following l or n where pronounced like the th in this f -- like the f in for g -- before e or i, like the Spanish j; otherwise like the g in get h -- silent j -- like an h but stronger; silent when at the end of a word k -- like a k l -- like an l ll -- like the y in you m -- like an m n -- like an n; except where it appears before a v, like an m ñ -- like the n in onion p -- like a p q -- like a k; always followed by a silent u r -- pronounced with a strong trill at the beginning of a word and following an l, n, or s; very little trill when at the end of a word; and medium trill in other positions rr -- strongly trilled s -- before consonants b, d, g, l, m, n, like a z; otherwise like s t -- like a t v -- see b, v w -- usually like a v x -- when between vowels, like the x in box; before a consonant, like an s y -- like the y in yes z -- like an s

au -- like the ou in found ei, ey -- like the ey in they eu -- like the vowel sounds in may-you oi, oy -- like the oy in boy

Semiconsonants i, y -- like the y in yes. Examples: bien, hielo

u -- like with w in well. Examples: huevo, fuente, agua

Basic Rules of Accentuation 1. 2. 3.

Syllable division involving two vowels The vowels a, e, and o are "strong" vowels, and i and u are "weak". Where two vowels fall together, the following rules affect syllable division and accentuation: 1.

2.

3. 4.

Vowels:

Words ending in a vowel, or n or s, the next to last syllable is stressed. For words ending in a consonant other than n or s stress falls on the last syllable. If the word has an accent mark, then that syllable is stressed, ignoring the rules above.

A weak + strong combination belongs to one syllable with the stress falling on the strong vowel. aceite, cierra, causa. A weak + weak combination belongs to one syllable with the stress falling on the second vowel. viuda, fuimos, diluir A strong + strong combination is divided into two syllables. bom-be- ar, po-le-a, em-ple- o If the word has an accent mark, then that syllable is stressed. flúido, día, encías

a -- like the a in father e -- for a syllable ending in a vowel, like the e in they; for a syllable ending in a consonant, like the e in get i -- like the i in machine o -- for a syllable ending in a vowel, like the o in vote; for a syllable ending in a consonant, like the o in pot u -- like the u in rule; silent after q & in the groups gue & gui y -- When used as a vowel, such as in the words y and voy, it is pronounced like the Spanish i.

Diphthongs ai, ay -- like the i in side Compiled by Olen B. Soifer 9-12-2008

The Russian Alphabet The Russian (Cyrillic) alphabet consits of 33 letters: 10 vowels (а, е, ё, и, о, у, ы, э, ю, я) and 23 consonants. Russian name

Pronunciation (with English examples)

Хх

kha

ch - hard similar to 'Lochness' or soft. No English equivalent.

a

a - long as in 'father"; short as in 'mother"

Цц

tse

ts (always hard) as in 'tsar'

Чч

tche

tch (always soft) as in 'cheers'

Бб

be

b - hard as in 'boss' or soft as in 'Bjorn'

Ш ш sha

sh (always hard) as in 'sure'

Вв

ve

v - hard as in 'vase' or soft as in 'view'

Гг

ge

g - hard as in 'God' or soft as in 'argue'

Щ щ tsha

tsch (always soft) as in 'schtschi' (Russian cabbage soup)

Дд

de

d - hard as in 'day' or soft as in 'dew'

ye

ye - as in 'yet' - in the initial position, after vowels and after ь and ъ. yi - as in 'yeast'. Also 'e', 'a', 'i' or ' '.

Letter Aa

Ее

Softens preceding consonants. Always stressed! yo - as in 'your' - in the initial position, after vowels and after ь and ъ. Also 'o'. Softens preceding consonants.

Ёё

yo

Жж

zhe

sh as in 'pleasure'

Зз

ze

z - hard as in 'zero' or soft as in 'resume'

i

i: - stressed as in 'deep'; i - unstressed as in 'pit'; after ж, ш, ц - wie ы (see below). Softens preceding consonants.

Ии

Йй

i krátkoye y - as in 'young' (short)

Кк

ka

k - hard as in 'can' or soft as in 'keep'

Лл

el

l - hard as in 'lord' or soft as in 'million'

Мм

em

m - hard as in 'must' or soft as in 'Muse'

Нн

en

n - hard as in 'null' or soft as in 'nude'

Оо

o

o - if stressed - long as in 'obey'; shorter then 'a' - if unstressed as in 'together'

Пп

pe

p - hard as in 'pot' or soft as in 'peer'

Рр

er

r trilled with the tip of the tongue; hard or soft

Сс

es

s - hard as in 'some' or soft as in 'sue'

Тт

te

t - hard, but unaspirated as in 'time' or soft as in 'tulip'

Уу

u

shorter then 'oo' in 'goose'

Фф

ef

f - hard as in 'fall' or soft as in 'few'

Ъъ

tvyordyi znak (hard sign)

The hard sign is not pronounced. It is placed between a hard consonant and the vowels -е, -ё, -ю, -я. These vowels are pronounced with the distinct initial 'j' (je, jo, ju, ja). A retracted variety of 'i' pronounced with the tongue blocking the throat. No English equivalent.

Ыы

Ьь

The soft sign is not pronounced. It softens myachkiy a preceeding consonant and indicates the znak distinct pronunciation of the initial 'j' of the (soft following vowels -е, -ё, -ю, -я (je, jo, ju, sign) ja).

Ээ

ε

'ε' or 'e' similar to 'set'

Ю ю yu

ju as in 'you'. In some cases the 'j' is hardly pronounced. Softens preceeding consonant.

Яя

ja - if stressed as in 'young' yi - if unstressed as in 'yeast', but shorter. Can sometimes be reduced to 'a' or 'i'. Softens preceeding consonant.

ya

Compiled by Olen B. Soifer 9-12-2008

Yiddish vs Hebrew sound (as in "it"); in Hebrew, it is always either a "y" sound or silent (identifying and modifying a preceding vowel).

• There are combinations of letters in Yiddish to account for Yiddish is written with Hebrew letters, but the letters are used somewhat differently than in Hebrew. In fact, the first time I saw the familiar Yiddish phrase "oy vey" written in Yiddish letters, I thought the spelling must be a mistake! The Yiddish alphabet is called the alef-beyz for its first two letters. The biggest difference between the Hebrew alefbet and the Yiddish alef-beyz is in the use of vowels: in Hebrew, vowels and other pronunciation aids are ordinarily not written, and when they are written, they are dots and dashes added to the text in ways that do not affect the physical length of the text. In Yiddish, however, many of the Hebrew letters have been adapted to serve as vowels and the pronunciation aids in Hebrew are reflected in the consonants. Vowels and other pronunciation aids are always written unless the Yiddish word comes from Hebrew, in which case the Yiddish word is written as it is in Hebrew, without the vowel points but with the dagesh (dot in the middle). When a Hebrew word is combined with a Yiddish suffix, the Hebrew part is spelled as in Hebrew and the Yiddish part as in Yiddish. For example, the Yiddish word "Shabbesdik" (for the Sabbath; festive) combines the Hebrew word Shabbat (Sabbath), spelled as in Hebrew, with the Yiddish adjective suffix "-dik" (set aside for, suitable for, in the mood for, "-ish"), spelled as in Yiddish. In addition, some of the most common Hebrew letters are rarely used in Yiddish, being used only if the Yiddish word comes from Hebrew. These rarely-used letters all have the same sound as another Hebrew letter, and reducing their use simplifies spelling when bringing words in from languages that weren't originally written using these letters.

consonant sounds that do not exist in Hebrew, such as zh (like the second "g" in "garage" or the "s" in "measure"), dzh (j as in judge) and tsh (like the "ch" in chair).

• Combinations of Vov and Yud are used to handle additional vowel sounds.

• Melupm Vov and Khirek Yud are used to clarify that the Vov or Yud is not to be combined with an adjacent letter into a different pronunciation. For example Double-Yud is a letter combination pronounced as the "ey" in "they," but the word "Yiddish" begins with two separate Yuds: one for the Y and one for the i. To clarify that these Yuds are not combined into an "ey" sound, the word Yiddish begins with a Yud, then a Khirek Yud. See the illustration in the heading of this page.

•

•

•

As in Hebrew, some letters are drawn differently when they occur at the end of the word. Most of these letters are named "langer" (longer) because, well, they are! The final version of Mem, which is not longer, is named Shlos Mem. In Hebrew, the dot in the middle of Kaf, Pei and Tav and on top of Sin is written only in pointed texts. In Yiddish, it is always written. Note that Shin in Yiddish, unlike Hebrew, never uses a dot. Remember, though, that Kof, Sin and Tof are rarely used in Yiddish. The Yiddish letter Sof is equivalent to the soft sound of the Hebrew letter Tav, which is used in Ashkenazic pronunciation but is not used in Sephardic pronunciation. Remember, though, that Sof is rarely used in Yiddish.

For example, there are three different Hebrew letters that make the sound "s": Samekh, Sin and the soft sound of Tav (according to Ashkenazic pronunciation). Which one do you use? It depends on the origin of the word. Words brought in from Hebrew use the original Hebrew spelling, which may be any of these three letters, but words brought in from other languages will always use Samekh. The word vaser (water, from the German wasser) is spelled with a Samekh, but the word simkhah (celebration, from Hebrew) is spelled with a Sin and the word Shabbes (Sabbath, from Hebrew) ends with a Sof. Here are some things to notice:

• The letter Alef, which is always silent in Hebrew, has three versions in Yiddish: one that is silent, one that is pronounced "ah" (like the "a" in "father"), and one that is pronounced "o" or "aw" (a bit like the "o" in "or" or "more").

• In Hebrew, Vav can be pronounced as V, O (as in home) or U (like the oo in room). In Yiddish, Vov alone is pronounced "u"; a Double-Vov is pronounced "v," and the nearest equivalent of the Hebrew "o" sound is the "oy" sound of Vov-Yud.

• In Yiddish, the letter Yud can be pronounced as a "y" sound (as in "yellow") or a short "i"

Compiled by Olen B. Soifer 9-12-2008

HEBREW The Hebrew and Yiddish languages use a different alphabet than English. On this page is an illustration of the Hebrew alphabet, in Hebrew alphabetical order. Note that Hebrew is written from right to left, rather than left to right as in English, so Alef is the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet and Tav is the last. The Hebrew alphabet is often called the "alefbet," because of its first two letters. If this sounds like Greek to you, you're not far off! Many letters in the Greek alphabet have similar names and occur in the same order (though they don't look anything alike!): Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta ... Zeta ... Theta, Iota, Kappa, Lambda, Mu, Nu ... Pi ... Rho, Sigma Tau. The "Kh" and the "Ch" are pronounced as in German or Scottish, a throat clearing noise, not as the "ch" in "chair." Note that there are two versions of some letters. Kaf, Mem, Nun, Pei and Tzadei all are written differently when they appear at the end of a word than when they appear in the beginning or middle of the word. The version used at the end of a word is referred to as Final Kaf, Final Mem, etc. The version of the letter on the left is the final version. In all cases except Final Mem, the final version has a long tail. Pronunciations are approximate. There are many variations. The Vowel points are shown in blue. The letter Alef, shown in red, is used to illustrate the position of the points relative to the consonants. The letters shown in purple are technically consonants and would appear in unpointed texts, but they function as vowels in this context. Other Nikkud The dot that appears in the center of some letters (see below) is called a dagesh. It can appear in just about any letter in Hebrew. With most letters, the dagesh does not significantly affect pronunciation of the letter; it simply marks a split between syllables, where the letter is pronounced both at the end of the first syllable and the beginning of the second. Vowels and Points Like most early Semitic alphabetic writing systems, the alefbet has no vowels. People who are fluent in the language do not need vowels to read Hebrew, and most things written in Hebrew in Israel are written without vowels. However, as Hebrew literacy declined, particularly after the Romans expelled the Jews from Israel, the rabbis recognized the need for aids to pronunciation, so they developed a system of dots and dashes called nikkud (points). These dots and dashes are written above, below or inside the letter, in ways that do not alter the spacing of the line. Text containing these markings is referred to as "pointed" text. Most nikkud are used to indicate vowels. The table at right illustrates the vowel points, along with their pronunciations.

With the letters Beit, Kaf and Pei, however, the dagesh indicates that the letter should be pronounced with its hard sound (b, k, p) rather than its soft sound (v, kh, f). See the table above. In Ashkenazic pronunciation (the pronunciation used by many Orthodox Jews and by many older Jews), Tav also has a soft sound, and is pronounced as an "s" when it does not have a dagesh. Vav, usually a consonant pronounced as a "v," is sometimes a vowel pronounced "oo" (u) or "oh" (o). When it is pronounced "oo" as in "food", pointed texts have a dagesh. When it is pronounced "oh" as in "Oh!," pointed texts have a dot on top.

Compiled by Olen B. Soifer 9-12-2008

Shin is pronounced "sh" when it has a dot over the right branch and "s" when it has a dot over the left branch. Below is an example of pointed text. Nikkud are shown in blue. This line would be pronounced (in Sephardic pronunciation, which is what most people use today): V'ahavtah l'reyahkhah kamokhah. (And you shall love your neighbor as yourself. Leviticus 19:18).

Styles of Writing The style of writing illustrated above is the one most commonly seen in Hebrew books. It is referred to as block print, square script or sometimes Assyrian script. For sacred documents, such as torah scrolls or the scrolls inside tefillin and mezuzot, there is a special writing style with "crowns" (crows-foot-like marks coming up from the upper points) on many of the letters. This style of writing is known as STA"M, an acronym for "Sifrei Torah, Tefillin and Mezuzot," which is where you will see that style of writing. There is another style used for handwriting, in much the same way that cursive is used for the Roman (English) alphabet. This modern script style is illustrated below:

Finally, the script below is an example of a script that is used in certain texts to distinguish the body of the text from commentary upon the text. This style is known as Rashi Script, in honor of Rashi, the greatest commentator on the Torah and the Talmud. Rashi himself did not use this script; it is only named in his honor.

Compiled by Olen B. Soifer 9-12-2008