Translit
Encyclopedia
Translit is a method of encoding Cyrillic letters with Latin
ones. The term is derived from transliteration
, the system of replacing letters of one alphabet with letters of another.
The translit system arose when Russian speakers first needed to write their language on computers that did not support the Cyrillic script. There is evidence of past translit use in international telegraphic communications. Translit found its way into web forums, chats, messengers, emails, MMORPG
s and other network games. Some Cyrillic web sites had a translit version for cases of encoding problems.
As computer and network technologies developed support for the Cyrillic script, translit fell into disrepute. Sometimes translit users were ignored or even banned in Cyrillic-using communities.
Translit received its last development impulse with the increasing availability of mobile phone
s in Cyrillic-using countries. At first, the situation was the same as with computers; neither mobile phones nor mobile network operator
s supported Cyrillic. Although mobile phone technology now supports Unicode including all variants of Cyrillic alphabets, a single SMS
in Unicode is limited to 70 characters, whereas a Latinate SMS can have up to 160 characters. If text exceeds single SMS maximum characters it is split into multiple SMS's and their amount determines the total cost , because of that translit SMS's are cheaper and more commonly used.
Sometimes «y», «yu», «yo», «ye», «ya» serve as transliteration for «й», «ю», «ё», «э», «я».
Lately a more aggressive form of translit appeared, usually associated with teens new to the web and neglecting its rules. Its identifying characteristic is the use of numbers to substitute some of the letters. For example, 4 reads as "ch" and is used to translit letter "ч", from the transliteration of the word "four" in Russian ("Chetiry", четыре), or, arguably, the appearance of the letter similar to that of four in Arabic numerals
. Also, a number can substitute its whole name as part of a word: "sov7" for "sovsem" ("completely") or "posmo3" for "posmotri" ("have a look", imperative).
Such translit is often so distorted that native speakers have trouble reading it. The use of translit is prohibited on many Internet forums.
Russia
and other former Soviet republics adopted the ISO 9
transliteration standard for official use (under the designation 7.79-2000), replacing the old Soviet GOST 16876-71
.
Latin alphabet
The Latin alphabet, also called the Roman alphabet, is the most recognized alphabet used in the world today. It evolved from a western variety of the Greek alphabet called the Cumaean alphabet, which was adopted and modified by the Etruscans who ruled early Rome...
ones. The term is derived from transliteration
Transliteration
Transliteration is a subset of the science of hermeneutics. It is a form of translation, and is the practice of converting a text from one script into another...
, the system of replacing letters of one alphabet with letters of another.
The translit system arose when Russian speakers first needed to write their language on computers that did not support the Cyrillic script. There is evidence of past translit use in international telegraphic communications. Translit found its way into web forums, chats, messengers, emails, MMORPG
MMORPG
Massively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
s and other network games. Some Cyrillic web sites had a translit version for cases of encoding problems.
As computer and network technologies developed support for the Cyrillic script, translit fell into disrepute. Sometimes translit users were ignored or even banned in Cyrillic-using communities.
Translit received its last development impulse with the increasing availability of mobile phone
Mobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
s in Cyrillic-using countries. At first, the situation was the same as with computers; neither mobile phones nor mobile network operator
Mobile network operator
A mobile network operator , also known as mobile phone operator , carrier service provider , wireless service provider, wireless carrier, or cellular company, or mobile network carrier is a telephone company that provides services for mobile phone subscribers.One essential...
s supported Cyrillic. Although mobile phone technology now supports Unicode including all variants of Cyrillic alphabets, a single SMS
Short message service
Short Message Service is a text messaging service component of phone, web, or mobile communication systems, using standardized communications protocols that allow the exchange of short text messages between fixed line or mobile phone devices...
in Unicode is limited to 70 characters, whereas a Latinate SMS can have up to 160 characters. If text exceeds single SMS maximum characters it is split into multiple SMS's and their amount determines the total cost , because of that translit SMS's are cheaper and more commonly used.
| а ─ a | к ─ k | х ─ h (kh, x) |
| б ─ b | л ─ l | ц ─ c (ts,tz) |
| в ─ v | м ─ m | ч ─ ch |
| г ─ g (gh) | н ─ n | ш ─ sh |
| д ─ d | о ─ o | щ ─ sht (shch) |
| е ─ e | п ─ p | ъ ─ " (y) |
| ё ─ jo (yo) | р ─ r (rr) | ы ─ y |
| ж ─ zh | с ─ s | ь ─ ' (y) |
| з ─ z | т ─ t | э ─ eh (e) |
| и ─ i | у ─ u (ou) | ю ─ ju (yu) |
| й ─ j (y) | ф ─ f | я ─ ja (ya) |
Sometimes «y», «yu», «yo», «ye», «ya» serve as transliteration for «й», «ю», «ё», «э», «я».
Lately a more aggressive form of translit appeared, usually associated with teens new to the web and neglecting its rules. Its identifying characteristic is the use of numbers to substitute some of the letters. For example, 4 reads as "ch" and is used to translit letter "ч", from the transliteration of the word "four" in Russian ("Chetiry", четыре), or, arguably, the appearance of the letter similar to that of four in Arabic numerals
Arabic numerals
Arabic numerals or Hindu numerals or Hindu-Arabic numerals or Indo-Arabic numerals are the ten digits . They are descended from the Hindu-Arabic numeral system developed by Indian mathematicians, in which a sequence of digits such as "975" is read as a numeral...
. Also, a number can substitute its whole name as part of a word: "sov7" for "sovsem" ("completely") or "posmo3" for "posmotri" ("have a look", imperative).
| Number | Usual transliteration | Original word for it in Translit | Original word in Russian |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | od | odin | один |
| 2 | dv | dva | два |
| 3 | tr | tri | три |
| 4 | ch | chetyre | четыре |
| 5 | p | pyat' | пять |
| 6 | sh | shest' | шесть |
| 7 | s | sem' | семь |
| 8 | vo | vosem' | восемь |
| 9 | dt | devyat' | девять |
Such translit is often so distorted that native speakers have trouble reading it. The use of translit is prohibited on many Internet forums.
Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and other former Soviet republics adopted the ISO 9
ISO 9
The international standard ISO 9 establishes a system for the transliteration into Latin characters of Cyrillic characters constituting the alphabets of many Slavic and some non-Slavic languages....
transliteration standard for official use (under the designation 7.79-2000), replacing the old Soviet GOST 16876-71
GOST 16876-71
GOST 16876-71 is a romanization system devised by the National Administration for Geodesy and Cartography of the Soviet Union. It is based on the scientific transliteration system used in linguistics. GOST was an international standard so it included provision for a number of the languages of...
.
See also
- TransliterationTransliterationTransliteration is a subset of the science of hermeneutics. It is a form of translation, and is the practice of converting a text from one script into another...
- Volapuk encodingVolapuk encodingVolapuk encoding or latinitsa is a slang term for rendering the letters of the Cyrillic script with Latin ones...
- Russian Chat Alphabet
- Romanization of RussianRomanization of RussianRomanization of the Russian alphabet is the process of transliterating the Russian language from the Cyrillic alphabet into the Latin alphabet...
External links
- apps.isimpleness.com/translit/ Translit App for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch – type Phonetic in Russian
- Translitor.net Online Service for Transliteration of Cyrillic Scripts
- Translit.biz Non-trivial Russian-English Transliteration (for domain names and URLs).
- Translit Ru/En Online Russian-English Transliteration, supports multiple transliteration standards and spell check.
- Translit.ru Russian-English transliterator and spell checker (in Russian).
- Dekoder.org English-Russian and Russian-English letter transformation.
- Translit.tv Russian-Latin transliterator, spell checker and translator (in Russian).