Russian Classes: Dress up for winter with the letter 'Ш'

Hello again! There are 33 letters in the Russian alphabet. Some look just like letters from the Latin alphabet (a, с, т, е, о, м). Some of them even sound the same. But, you know by now that Cyrillic has a ton of its own letters and sounds. So, without further ado, let's discuss the letter ‘Ш’! It sounds like [sh] (and looks like the business end of a trident).

It's an important letter, as it is used in two pieces of clothing that are crucial for staying alive through Russia's notorious winters - fur coats (шубы) and fur hats (меховые шапки)!

I'd also like to show you Boris Kustodiev's wonderful painting, ‘Portrait of Chaliapin’. The name in the title belonged to a famous actor and opera singer with a unique, deep voice, and starts with ‘Ш’ as well. His title role as Boris Godunov, among numerous others, received widespread critical acclaim. And I bet you’ve heard the Russian romance ‘Очи Чёрные’ (‘Dark Eyes’).

Check out more lessons in our Telegram channel, using the tag #russianclasses!

Dear readers,

Our website and social media accounts are under threat of being restricted or banned, due to the current circumstances. So, to keep up with our latest content, simply do the following:

• Subscribe to our Telegram channel
• Subscribe to our weekly email newsletter
• Enable push notifications on our website
• Install a VPN service on your computer and/or phone to have access to our website, even if it is blocked in your country