Bulgarian Letter Ю: How to Say Ю (yu)
Ю is the 29th letter of the Bulgarian alphabet. The Bulgarian letter Ю stands for “yu” [ju], as in “you”. After a consonant it softens that consonant, as in любов (lyubov, “love”). Its name is ю and the official transliteration is yu.
The Bulgarian letter Ю is the 29th letter of the alphabet, second to last, and spells “yu”, [ju], as in “you”. It is one of two Bulgarian letters that pack a “y” glide and a vowel into one shape. At the start of a word it is a plain “yu”. After a consonant it softens that consonant instead.
How to pronounce the Bulgarian letter Ю
At the start of a word or after a vowel, Ю is a full [ju]: юг (yug, “south”) starts like English “you”. The letter name is just ю, “yoo”.
After a consonant, Ю marks the consonant as soft and then gives the vowel [u]. In любов (lyubov, “love”) the Л is softened: “lyu-BOF”. Do not add a separate, heavy “y” syllable; the softness should be quick. When unstressed, the vowel part can weaken toward [o], just as У does.
| Bulgarian | Streamlined | Meaning | Hear |
|---|---|---|---|
| юг | yug | south | |
| юни | yuni | June | |
| юли | yuli | July | |
| любов | lyubov | love | |
| ютия | yutia | clothes iron |
June or July? A real trap
The Bulgarian names for June and July differ by one letter: юни (yuni) and юли (yuli). On tickets, timetables and forms this is the easiest place to misread a date. A memory trick: юни contains Н, the “n” of June; юли contains Л, the “l” of July.
Check the third letter: юНи = June, юЛи = July.
Transliteration of the Bulgarian letter Ю
The Streamlined System writes Ю as yu, as the Transliteration Act sets out. The Act itself uses a road-sign example: София-юг becomes Sofia-yug, “Sofia South”. Notice also ютия: the word-final -ия becomes ia, so the result is yutia, not “yutiya”. Names follow the same pattern: Юлия is Yulia.
ISO 9 uses û and some older English texts use “iu” or “ju”. German and Scandinavian sources often write “ju”, which English readers may misread as the “j” of “jam”. In Bulgarian, Ю never has a “j” sound.
Ю in loanwords
Many borrowed words use Ю after a consonant to render the French or German “u” and “ü” sounds: бюро (byuro, “office, desk”), меню (menyu, “menu”) and бюджет (byudzhet, “budget”). At the start of words it appears in юрист (yurist, “lawyer”) and Юпитер (Yupiter, “Jupiter”). Note that English “j” names usually become Дж or Ю depending on the source language: Jupiter came through Latin, so Bulgarian uses Ю.
Shape: an I joined to an O
Ю looks like a vertical bar joined to an O. Historically it is usually described as a ligature of a short I and the old digraph for “u”, so the parts really do spell “y” plus a vowel. Learners rarely confuse it with other letters, but it can be misread as “IO” in all caps, as in ЮГ. The Bulgarian letters overview groups Ю with Я, its partner in the alphabet.
Common mistakes with the Bulgarian letter Ю
- Reading Ю as “IO” or “10” on signs.
- Mixing up юни and юли.
- Writing “ju” or “iu” in official transliteration. Use yu.
- Pronouncing a full “ee-oo” after consonants: любов is “lyubov”, not “lee-oo-bov”.
- Writing ю after ч, ж or ш. Bulgarian uses у there: чувам, not чювам.
Back to Ь, or continue to the final letter of the alphabet.
Frequently asked questions
How do you pronounce the Bulgarian letter Ю?
As yu [ju], like English “you”. After a consonant it softens the consonant and adds the vowel u, as in любов.
How do you say June and July in Bulgarian?
June is юни (yuni) and July is юли (yuli). They differ only in the third letter.
How is Ю transliterated?
As yu in the Streamlined System, so юг is yug and София-юг is Sofia-yug.
Is Ю ever pronounced like j?
No. Spellings like ju come from German-style transliteration. In Bulgarian, Ю always starts with a y glide.
Sources
- Transliteration Act of Bulgaria (2009), English text, Ministry of Regional Development
- Bulgarian alphabet (Wikipedia)
- Bulgarian phonology (Wikipedia)