CT Language-Specific Transliteration Rules 3

Question 1

In the BGN/PCGN system for Russian, the Cyrillic letter Й is transliterated as:

Accepted Answer

y

Answer

The Cyrillic short i (Й/й) is rendered as 'y' in the BGN/PCGN romanization system for Russian.

Question 2

How is the Russian soft sign (Ь) handled in BGN/PCGN transliteration of personal names for official US documents?

Accepted Answer

Rendered as an apostrophe (')

Answer

In BGN/PCGN romanization, the Russian soft sign (Ь) is represented by an apostrophe (') to indicate palatalization of the preceding consonant.

Question 3

The Russian Cyrillic letter Щ is transliterated in the BGN/PCGN system as:

Accepted Answer

shch

Answer

The Cyrillic letter Щ (shcha) is transliterated as 'shch' in the BGN/PCGN system, reflecting its phonetic value as a long palatalized fricative.

Question 4

When the Russian letter Е appears at the beginning of a word or after a vowel in BGN/PCGN transliteration, it is rendered as:

Accepted Answer

ye

Answer

In BGN/PCGN romanization, Е becomes 'ye' in word-initial position or after vowels to reflect its consonantal 'y' onset in those environments.

Question 5

How is the Russian letter Э (reversed e) transliterated in the BGN/PCGN system?

Accepted Answer

e

Answer

The Russian Э is simply transliterated as 'e' in BGN/PCGN romanization, distinguishing it from Е which can become 'ye' in certain positions.

(CT) Certificate of Transliteration Practice Test