REPORT ON THE CURRENT STATUS OF
UNITED NATIONS ROMANIZATION SYSTEMS FOR GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES
Compiled by the UNGEGN Working Group on Romanization Systems
Version 4.0, February 2013
The current United Nations recommended romanization system was approved in 2012 (resolution X/7), based on the system finalized and officially adopted in Bulgaria in 2009 by the Transliteration Act; implementation of the system had started in 19991.
Previously the United Nations had approved a romanization system in 1977 (resolution III/10), based on the system produced by the Council of Orthography and Transcription of Geographical Names, Sofia (1972)2. The 1977 resolution had adopted one of the two systems approved by the UN conference in 1972 (II/5).
The 2009 system has been implemented in Bulgarian maps, road signs, etc. The rules apply both to geographical and personal names in all spheres of public life.
Bulgarian uses the Cyrillic script which is alphabetic. The romanization table is not fully reversible as certain romanization equivalents are ambiguous.
| 1 | А а | a |
| 2 | Б б | b |
| 3 | В в | v |
| 4 | Г г | g |
| 5 | Д д | d |
| 6 | Е е | e |
| 7 | Ж ж | zh |
| 8 | З з | z |
| 9 | И и | i |
| 10 | Й й | y |
| 11 | К к | k |
| 12 | Л л | l |
| 13 | М м | m |
| 14 | Н н | n |
| 15 | О о | o |
| 16 | П п | p |
| 17 | Р р | r |
| 18 | С с | s |
| 19 | Т т | t |
| 20 | У у | u |
| 21 | Ф ф | f |
| 22 | Х х | h |
| 23 | Ц ц | ts |
| 24 | Ч ч | ch |
| 25 | Ш ш | sh |
| 26 | Щ щ | sht |
| 27 | Ъ ъ | a |
| 28 | Ь ь | y |
| 29 | Ю ю | yu |
| 30 | Я я | yaA |
Note. Cursive forms of some characters might be formed differently: Аа Бб Вв Гг Дд Ее Жж Зз Ии Йй Кк Лл Мм Нн Оо Пп Рр Сс Тт Уу Фф Хх Цц Чч Шш Щщ Ъъ Ьь Юю Яя.
The previous Bulgarian system of 1972 approved by the United Nations in 1977 provided for the romanization, as a single block, of the following characters differently from the current UN system (the Cyrillic character is followed in parentheses by the romanization according to the current UN system):
| ж (zh) | ž |
| й (y) | j |
| ц (ts) | c |
| ч (ch) | č |
| ш (sh) | š |
| щ (sht) | št |
| ъ (a) | ǎ |
| ь (y) | j |
| ю (yu) | ju |
| я (ya) | ja |
The BGN/PCGN 1952 System provides for the romanization, as a single block, of the following characters differently from the UN system (the Cyrillic character is followed in parentheses by the romanization according to the UN system):
| х (h) | kh |
| ъ (a) | ŭ |
| ь (y) | ’ |
| -ия (-ia) | -iya |
There are also notes concerning the romanization of characters abolished after the orthography reform of 1945.