Украинское произношение
The Ukrainian alphabet contains several letters that differ from the Russian alphabet, both in presence and pronunciation. Notably:
Ґґ is unique to Ukrainian, pronounced as the “g” in “goat.” For example, аґрус (gooseberry).
Єє is similar to “ye” in “yet,” or Ее in Russian. For example, Європа (Еurope).
Іі matches the “i” in “machine,” or the Russian Ии. For example, iдея (idea).
Її sounds like “yi” in “yield,” with no direct Russian equivalent. For example, їжа (food).
A significant distinction is the pronunciation of Гг in Ukrainian, which resembles the voiced “h” in “hello,” contrasting with the Russian “г,” pronounced like the “g” in “go.” For example, гарбуз (pumkin).
In Ukrainian, the apostrophe (’) prevents the palatalization of consonants before vowels, a role the hard sign (ъ) plays in Russian. For example, ім’я (name).
Instead of the Russian letter Ёё, Ukrainian represents the “yo” sound with combinations like “ьо” or “йо” depending on the phonetic context. For example, сьогодні (today), район (area, district).
Additionally, Ukrainian does not exhibit vowel reduction, a feature common in Russian where unstressed vowels change their quality. This makes Ukrainian vowels sound more consistent, regardless of stress. For example, яблоко (apple), подобатись (to like).
Давайте послушаем! Послушайте произношение названий нескольких украинских городов на украинском языке.
Ukrainian pronunciation is different from Russian. Click on the blue bubbles on the map below to hear the Ukrainian pronunciation of the names of several cities in Ukraine. If you would like to expand the map, click on the two arrows above the map.
Image source:
Карта Украины: Peter Fitzgerald, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
