Russian-English Transliteration

Russian-English transliteration is as follows:

а a	ж zh	н n	ф f	э e
б b	з z	о o	х kh	ю yu
в v	и i	п p	ц ts	я ya
г g	й y	р r	ч ch
д d	к k	с s	ш sh	дж j
е ye, e*	л l	т t	щ shch	кс x
ё yo	м m	у u	ы y
*Note: ye substitutes the first letter in a syllable or a single-letter syllable; e substitutes the last letter in a syllable or the letter standing between two consonants. Example: Yel -tsin, She - re - met - ye -vo.
Commonly accepted representation of Russian endings is as follows:
ий y	ее eye	ая aya	ия ia
ой oy	ое oye	яя yaya	ие, ые iye

When citing initials, use the entire transliteration of the Russian letter.

Yu.Ye. Yakovlev

Note that initials should be used only at the first mention of a person’s name. All subsequent references should use only person’s last name, unless the text mentions two people with the same last name.

The exceptions to the transliteration system are the following:

(1) Spellings of personal names generally used in the English-speaking countries:

Peter the Great, Nicolas II, Joseph Stalin, Genghis Khan, Leo Tolstoy, etc. (see the Webster’s Dictionary of Biographical Names)

(3) Ethnic groups and tribes, either historical or contemporaneous:

Slavs, Muscovites, Polovtsians, Cossacks, Circassians, Azerbaijanis

(3) Generally used geographical and historical names:

St. Petersburg, Peterhof, Rostov-on-Don, Azerbaijan, Tajikistan, Kirghizia, Chisinau, Transbaykalia, Transcaucasia, Ciscaucasia, Crimea, North Land, Commander Islands, Chukchi AO, etc.

Chersonesus, Kievan Rus, Rurik dynasty, Constantinople, Tsardom of Muscovy, Golden Horde, Khanate of Bukhara, Turkistan, Port Arthur, Russo-Polish War, etc.

Non-Russian personal names used in Russian toponyms should whenever possible retain their original spelling. Consult with encyclopedic and historical dictionaries; also use the Webster’s Dictionary of Biographical Names.

Togliatty, Thorez, Gheorghiu-Dej, Nordenskiöld Archipelago, Franz Joseph Land, Wilczek Land, Graham Bell Island, Wrangel Island, La Perouse Strait, Schmidt settlement, ul. Walter Ulbricht, pl. Ho Chi Minh, etc.

Be careful with non-Russian spelling that may lead to misunderstanding. Address your mail to ul. Fonvizina, not to ul. von Wisin, otherwise it may cause trouble to Russian mailmen.