Your Name in Bulgarian: How to Write English Names in Cyrillic
Your name in Bulgarian is written by sound, not letter by letter: each English sound gets the matching Cyrillic letter. So Michael is Майкъл, Jennifer is Дженифър and William is Уилям. English j becomes дж, w becomes у, th becomes т or д, and the “-er” ending becomes -ър.
Writing your name in Bulgarian means spelling how it sounds in Cyrillic letters, not swapping each Latin letter for a Cyrillic one. That is how Bulgarian newspapers, publishers and translators handle foreign names: Michael Jackson is Майкъл Джексън, not “Михаел”. The converter above makes a first guess from Latin letters; this guide shows you how to check and fix it.
It is the opposite of Bulgarian transliteration. Going from Cyrillic to Latin, Bulgaria has a fixed legal table, set by the 2009 Transliteration Act. Going from English to Cyrillic, there is no law, only a well-established practice: follow the pronunciation.
How to write your name in Bulgarian, step by step
- Say your name out loud, the way you normally say it. Break it into sounds, not letters: “Heather” is h-e-dh-er.
- Match each sound to a Bulgarian letter. Most are obvious: m = м, s = с, k = к. The tricky ones are in the table below.
- Drop silent letters. The silent e in “Charlotte” and the h in “Sarah” disappear: Шарлот, Сара.
- Simplify double letters unless you really pronounce two sounds: Jessica is Джесика, Anna is Ана.
- Check against an existing spelling. If someone famous shares your name, the Bulgarian press has usually settled the spelling already.
English sounds and their Bulgarian letters
| English sound | Bulgarian | Example |
|---|---|---|
| j / soft g (John, George) | дж | Джон, Джордж |
| ch (Charles, Rachel) | ч | Чарлз, Рейчъл |
| sh (Ashley) | ш | Ашли |
| th | т or д | Томас, Хедър |
| w | у | Уенди |
| schwa, “-er”, “-on” | ъ | Хедър, Джонсън |
| y as in “yes” | й | Йорк (York) |
| h | х | Хари |
| x | кс | Макс |
Two of these need a note. English th has no Bulgarian equivalent, so it becomes т when voiceless (Thomas, Ethan) and usually д when voiced (Heather). And the weak vowel in “-er”, “-on” or “-an” at the end of English names is written ъ, the Bulgarian vowel close to the “u” in “but” ([ɤ]). That is why Johnson ends -сън.
Common English names in Bulgarian
If your name is on this list, your name in Bulgarian is already settled. These spellings are the ones you will find in Bulgarian media and books. Press play to hear them with a Bulgarian voice, if your device has one.
| English | Bulgarian | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Michael | Майкъл | “ai” as ай, final “el” as ъл |
| Jennifer | Дженифър | j = дж, “-er” = ър |
| William | Уилям | w = у, “-iam” = ям |
| Thomas | Томас | th sounds like t here |
| Matthew | Матю | th = т, “-ew” = ю |
| Heather | Хедър | th = д, “-er” = ър |
| Anthony | Антъни | th = т, unstressed vowel = ъ |
| Ethan | Итън | e = и, th = т, “-an” = ън |
| James | Джеймс | j = дж, “a” as ей |
| Chloe | Клоуи | ch = к, “o” as оу |
| Ryan | Райън | “y” as ай, “-an” = ън |
| Olivia | Оливия | “-ia” = ия |
| Charlotte | Шарлот | ch = ш, silent e dropped |
| Jessica | Джесика | double s written once |
| Alex | Алекс | x = кс |
Some names have two forms. David is Дейвид for an English speaker, but the traditional Bulgarian and biblical form is Давид. John is Джон, while the saint is Йоан and the Bulgarian equivalent is Иван (Ivan). When you write your own name, use the English-sounding form; the Bulgarian equivalent is a different name.
Nicknames and short forms
Write the form people actually call you. If everyone says “Mike”, your name in Bulgarian is Майк, not Майкъл. Short forms follow the same sound rules: Kate is Кейт, Ben is Бен, Liz is Лиз. Bulgarians use many diminutives of their own names, so a short form will not seem unusual. Just keep it consistent once you choose it.
Your full name in Bulgarian: surnames
Surnames follow the same rule: Smith is Смит, Johnson Джонсън, Taylor Тейлър, Brown Браун. Bulgarian does not add its own endings to foreign surnames, so a woman named Smith stays Смит, unlike Bulgarian surnames, which change form for women (Иванов, Иванова). More on that in Bulgarian names.
A few very old borrowings kept a spelling-based form: Вашингтон (Washington) and Шекспир (Shakespeare) are fixed, even though modern rules would give something closer to the English sound. Do not copy those patterns for new names.
Writing your name in Bulgarian neatly
Capitalize the first letter as usual. Use a Bulgarian Cyrillic keyboard so you type real Cyrillic letters; a name that mixes Latin “a” and Cyrillic а looks right but breaks searches. If you want to learn to read it back confidently, the Bulgarian letters guide covers each letter’s sound.
For official documents in Bulgaria, such as residence permits, your name is recorded from your passport in Latin letters. A Cyrillic form is for everyday use: business cards, introductions, a gift, or a tattoo. Ask a native speaker to read it back before printing anything permanent.
Common mistakes
- Letter-by-letter conversion. “Michael” letter by letter gives Мицхаел, which no Bulgarian would recognize. Spell the sounds: Майкъл.
- Using w as в. English w is written у in modern spellings: William is Уилям, not Вилям.
- Writing j as й. English j is дж. Й is the “y” sound in “yes”.
- Using Russian conventions. Russian often writes English names with э, which Bulgarian does not have, and with different vowel choices. Use the Bulgarian forms.
- Keeping silent letters. Silent e, gh and doubled letters are usually dropped.
- Forgetting ъ. English names ending “-er” or “-son” end in -ър and -сън, not -ер and -сон.
Frequently asked questions
How do you write Michael in Bulgarian?
Майкъл. It follows the English pronunciation, with ъ for the weak final vowel.
How do I write my name in Bulgarian letters?
Say your name aloud, split it into sounds, and write each sound with its Bulgarian letter. Check the result against how the name appears in Bulgarian media.
How is “th” written in Bulgarian?
As т when it is voiceless, as in Thomas (Томас), and usually as д when voiced, as in Heather (Хедър).
Is there an official way to write foreign names in Bulgarian Cyrillic?
There is no law for it, unlike Cyrillic to Latin. Publishers follow a long-standing practice of writing names by their pronunciation.
Why does the converter give a different spelling?
It works from letters, so it cannot know how a name is pronounced. Use its result as a draft and fix the sounds with the rules on this page.