In today’s lesson, you are going to learn 8 basic sentences which will help you introduce yourself in Bulgarian. I will use the same text to also teach you how to read the Cyrillic script. For more information watch my video:
If you want to know more about the Cyrillic script and why it is important to be able to read it, check my previous article.
First, I will start by giving you the text in Bulgarian. Then, I will go through it sentence by sentence translating and explaining some typical Bulgarian expressions and words. This will help you sound like a native speaker and not like a robot who has memorized a few phrases from some book.
Let’s learn some Bulgarian!
Ready, steady, go…
Здравейте! Казвам се Джесика Блакбърн и съм на 24 години. От Англия съм, но живея в Пловдив. Уча български, защото приятелят ми е българин. Много ми харесва България. Обичам да ям баница със сирене и да пия айрян. Все още не говоря много добре български, но искам да се науча. До следващия път!
- Здравейте! Hello!
There are three different ways to say “Hello” in Bulgarian. I prefer “Здравейте” because it is more formal and refers to a group of people. The other option is “Здравей” which is used when you talk to only one person and you already know her/him. “Здрасти” is 90% informal and is used among close friends or among people that know each other. For example, when I see my friend/friends on the street I would most probably tell them “Здрасти”. The root of these words is the same and comes from “здраве” which means health.
To sum up, “Здравейте” is more like “Hello” while “Здравей” and “Здрасти” more like “Hi”.
- Казвам се Джесика Блакбърн и съм на 29 години. My name is Jessica Blackburn and I am 29 years old.
In most books, they would probably teach you the whole sentence which goes like ‘“Аз се казвам Джесика Блакбърн и аз съм на 29 години.”. But nobody speaks like that in real life.
In Bulgarian, we tend to omit “I” (“Аз”) in a lot of situations. This is because our verbs have different endings. So when you see the ending of a verb you already know who it is (I, you, he, she, it, we, they) and there is no need to mention it one more time.
In English, on the other hand, you always have to say who is the doer of the action (I, you, etc). That is why it might be a bit difficult for you to not say “I” all the time. But I am sure that you will get used to it.
- От Англия съм, но живея в Пловдив. I am from England, but I live in Plovdiv.
The first part is an answer to the question “Where are you from?” (“Откъде си?”). The second one gives an answer to the question “Where do you live?” (“Къде живееш?”).
Plovdiv is one of the most ancient cities in the world. It has more than 6,000 years of history. It is also the second largest city in Bulgaria after the capital city Sofia. It is located on seven hills and is famous for its architectural discoveries, international culture, and affordable prices. Plovdiv is going to be the European Capital of Culture in 2019.
- Уча български, защото приятелят ми е българин. I am learning Bulgarian because my boyfriend is Bulgarian.
This is the reason that 90% of my students give when I ask them why they are learning Bulgarian. Almost all of them say that it is because of love. And this is what makes them great students – persistent, motivated, and hard-working.
If you are learning it because your girlfriend is Bulgarian, then you need to slightly modify it. This is because we have genders in Bulgarian (masculine, feminine, and neuter). So the sentence will go like this: “Уча български, защото приятелката ми е българка.”.
- Много ми харесва България. I like Bulgaria a lot.
This is a good sentence to make some friends in Bulgaria. Everybody likes it when you appreciate their country and culture.
- Обичам да ям баница със сирене и да пия айрян. I like to eat banitsa with cheese and to drink ayran (doogh).
It is a traditional Bulgarian dish. There are many different recipes on how to make it, but you will definitely need filo pastry sheets, cheese (a special Bulgarian white cheese), eggs and oil. It looks like the shell of a snail or a spiral and tastes like heaven. We love having it in the morning for breakfast together with a glass of ayran. Ayran or doogh is a beverage made out of yogurt, water, and salt.
- Все още не говоря много добре български, но искам да се науча. I do not speak Bulgarian very well yet, but I want to learn it.
This is an important sentence to remember if you want to get some assistance and help with the language. We love when foreigners are trying to speak our language and we are usually extremely supportive. Just say this sentence and see how doors will start opening up for you.
- До следващия път! See you next time!
I look forward to your feedback. Let me know if this article has been helpful for you and what else you would like to learn.
If you want to improve your level of Bulgarian, then schedule an online lesson with me. I will help you learn it fast while at the same time having fun!
This is a link to my italki account where you can book a lesson with me: https://www.italki.com/en/teacher/4606951
See you next time and until then smile, have fun and learn Bulgarian!
