Russian
Русский
Russian uses the Cyrillic alphabet with 33 letters. Russian was the first language ever spoken in space — Yuri Gagarin's first words on orbit were in Russian!
Lin says:
Privet! I'm Lin! Russian is spoken across the world's largest country — Russia spans 11 time zones! Russian was the first language ever spoken in space when Yuri Gagarin said 'Поехали!' (Poyekhali! — Let's go!) in 1961. Matryoshka dolls, ballet, chess — Russian culture is extraordinary!
Quick Facts
Speakers
~150 million
Language Family
Slavic (Indo-European)
Writing
Cyrillic alphabet (33 letters)
Regions
Europe & Central Asia
Discover Russian
Russian uses the Cyrillic alphabet with 33 letters. Russian was the first language ever spoken in space — Yuri Gagarin's first words on orbit were in Russian!
Writing System
Cyrillic alphabet
Native Speakers
~150 million
Key Countries
For Educators
Language learning builds empathy and global understanding. Use this page to spark classroom discussions about cultural diversity and communication across borders.
Did You Know?
Russia is the world's largest country by area — just crossing it by train (the Trans-Siberian Railway) takes 7 days!
Russian has two separate words for blue: "синий" (siniy) for dark blue and "голубой" (goluboy) for light blue — they are considered completely different colours.
Russian was one of the six original official languages of the United Nations when it was founded in 1945.
What Makes Russian Special?
Language of Space
Russian was the first language spoken in space — astronauts from all countries still learn Russian to work on the International Space Station.
Language of Chess
Russia has produced more world chess champions than any other country — chess is taught in Russian schools and is a national passion.
Ballet & Literature
Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky, Chekhov, Tchaikovsky, Nureyev — Russian language has produced some of the world's greatest literature and ballet.
Keep Exploring the World!
Languages are windows into the world's cultures. Discover more languages and the countries where they are spoken.