Cyrillic – THE BULGARIAN ALPHABET

CYRILLIC LETTER continues to be widely used—as a primary or secondary written script—in various parts of Europe and Asia. From Russia and Bulgaria to Kazakhstan and Mongolia, it supports the literature and administration of dozens of peoples and countries.

🇧🇬 South Slavic countries

• Bulgaria – Cyrillic is the official script (since the 9th century, reformed in the 20th century).
• Serbia – Cyrillic is official (constitutionally equal to Latin, but preferred by the state).
• Montenegro – both Cyrillic and Latin are equal.
• North Macedonia – Cyrillic is official.
• Bosnia and Herzegovina – in Republika Srpska, Cyrillic is officially used, in other parts Latin is predominant.

🇷🇺 East Slavic countries

• Russia – Cyrillic is official, it is also used by dozens of national minorities (Tatar, Bashkir, Chechen, etc.).
• Belarus – Cyrillic is the main script.
• Ukraine – Cyrillic is official, despite regional initiatives for Latinization.
• Moldova – uses the Latin alphabet, but in the unrecognized republic of Transnistria, Cyrillic is used.

European Day of Languages – ALPHABETS AROUND THE WORLD

🌍 Central Asia (former Soviet republics)

• Kazakhstan – switches to Latin (full introduction planned by 2031), but Cyrillic is still the main one.
• Kyrgyzstan – Cyrillic is official.
• Tajikistan – Cyrillic is official.
• Uzbekistan – officially Latin, but Cyrillic continues to be widely used.
• Turkmenistan – officially Latin, but the older generation still uses Cyrillic.

🇲🇳 Mongolia

• Mongolia – Cyrillic has been official since the 1940s. There are plans to return to the traditional Mongolian script, but Cyrillic remains the basis in schools and administration.

🏔 Caucasus and Urals

• Abkhazia, South Ossetia (in Georgia) – they use Cyrillic.
• Russian republics – Chechen, Ossetian, Avar, Komi, Udmurt, Tatar and dozens of other languages in Russia are in Cyrillic (often adapted).

📝 Historical/cultural cases

• Mongolian People's Republic – imposed Cyrillic during the USSR period.
• Azerbaijan – until the 1990s it used Cyrillic, today Latin, but Cyrillic books still circulate.
• Vietnam – during the colonial era there were attempts at Cyrillicization, but they were unsuccessful.

© 2026 Iliana Dechkova