Romanian Language Basics
Romanian Alphabet
The Romanian Alphabet
Learning a new language starts with its alphabet. The good news is that Romanian uses a version of the Latin alphabet, the same one English uses. So, you'll recognize most of the letters right away. The Romanian alphabet has 31 letters in total.
| Letter | Name | Pronunciation Example |
|---|---|---|
| A a | a | Like 'a' in father |
| Ă ă | ă | Like 'a' in about |
| Â â | â din a | A sound with no English equivalent |
| B b | be | Like 'b' in bed |
| C c | ce | Like 'ch' in chair or 'k' in cat |
| D d | de | Like 'd' in dog |
| E e | e | Like 'e' in bed |
| F f | fe | Like 'f' in fish |
| G g | ge | Like 'g' in go or 'j' in gem |
| H h | haș | Like 'h' in hat |
| I i | i | Like 'ee' in see |
| Î î | î din i | Same as â |
| J j | je | Like the 's' in pleasure |
| K k | ka | Like 'k' in kilo (foreign words only) |
| L l | le | Like 'l' in love |
| M m | me | Like 'm' in man |
| N n | ne | Like 'n' in no |
| O o | o | Like 'o' in more |
| P p | pe | Like 'p' in pen |
| Q q | chiu | Like 'k' in queen (foreign words only) |
| R r | re | A rolled 'r' sound |
| S s | se | Like 's' in sun |
| Ș ș | șe | Like 'sh' in shoe |
| T t | te | Like 't' in top |
| Ț ț | țe | Like 'ts' in cats |
| U u | u | Like 'oo' in moon |
| V v | ve | Like 'v' in vest |
| W w | dublu ve | Like 'v' or 'w' (foreign words only) |
| X x | ics | Like 'x' in box or 'gz' in exam |
| Y y | i grec | Like 'ee' in see (foreign words only) |
| Z z | ze | Like 'z' in zoo |
Sounds and Pronunciations
Romanian is a phonetic language, which means words are pronounced just as they are spelled. This is a huge advantage. Once you learn the sound for each letter, you can confidently pronounce almost any word you see.
Many letters, like B, D, F, M, and N, sound just like they do in English. Others have consistent rules. For example, the letter 'C' sounds like 'k' in cat unless it's followed by an 'e' or 'i'. When it is, it makes a 'ch' sound, like in cheese.
- Ce, Ci = 'che', 'chee' sounds (e.g., cer - sky)
- Ca, Co, Cu = 'ka', 'ko', 'koo' sounds (e.g., cap - head)
The same pattern applies to the letter 'G'.
- Ge, Gi = 'je', 'jee' sounds (e.g., ger - frost)
- Ga, Go, Gu = 'ga', 'go', 'goo' sounds (e.g., gol - empty)
Unlike English, letters in Romanian almost always make the same sound. Consistency is key.
A few other letters to watch out for are 'J', which sounds like the 's' in treasure, and 'H', which is always pronounced, even at the beginning of a word. The Romanian 'R' is also slightly different. It's a 'rolled' or 'trilled' R, made by tapping the tip of your tongue against the roof of your mouth.
The Special Characters
You probably noticed five letters with extra marks on them. These marks are called diacritics, and they change the letter's sound. Let's break them down.
Ă/ă makes a sound called a schwa. It's the most common vowel sound in English, found in words like about or sofa.
apple
Â/â and Î/î represent the exact same sound. This sound doesn't exist in English. It's a vowel made with your tongue in a position somewhere between the 'ee' in see and the 'oo' in boot. The rule is simple: use Î at the beginning or end of a word, and  anywhere in the middle.
dog
Ș/ș is easy for English speakers. It's simply the 'sh' sound from shoe.
school
Ț/ț makes the 'ts' sound you hear at the end of the word cats.
boy
And that's it! By learning these few special letters and pronunciation rules, you've taken a huge step toward reading and speaking Romanian. Let's review what we've covered.
Time to test your knowledge.
How many letters are in the modern Romanian alphabet?
Romanian is a phonetic language. What does this mean?
Mastering the alphabet is the first and most important step. With these fundamentals, you're ready to start building your vocabulary.