History Cyrillic script

a page azbuka, first ruthenian language textbook, printed ivan fyodorov in 1574. page features cyrillic alphabet.

the cyrillic script created in first bulgarian empire. first variant, cyrillic alphabet, created @ preslav literary school. derived greek uncial script letters, augmented ligatures , consonants older glagolitic alphabet sounds not found in greek. tradition holds cyrillic , glagolitic formalized either saints cyril , methodius brought christianity southern slavs, or disciples. paul cubberley posits although cyril may have codified , expanded glagolitic, students in first bulgarian empire under tsar simeon great developed cyrillic greek letters in 890s more suitable script church books. later cyrillic spread among other slavic peoples, among non-slavic vlachs , moldavians.

cyrillic , glagolitic used church slavonic language, old church slavonic variant. hence expressions such И tenth cyrillic letter typically refer order of church slavonic alphabet; not every cyrillic alphabet uses every letter available in script.

the cyrillic script came dominate glagolitic in 12th century. literature produced in old bulgarian language spread north , became lingua franca of balkans , eastern europe, came known old church slavonic. alphabet used modern church slavonic language in eastern orthodox , eastern catholic rites still resembles cyrillic. however, on course of following millennium, cyrillic adapted changes in spoken language, developed regional variations suit features of national languages, , subjected academic reform , political decrees. notable example of such linguistic reform can attributed vuk stefanović karadžić updated serbian cyrillic alphabet removing graphemes no longer represented in vernacular, , introducing graphemes specific serbian (i.e. Љ Њ Ђ Ћ Џ Ј), distancing church slavonic alphabet in use prior reform. today, many languages in balkans, eastern europe, , northern eurasia written in cyrillic alphabets.