Cyrillic - what are the letters on the keyboard: Russian layout

The Russian-language keyboard layout is called the Cyrillic alphabet all over the world. It is popular among native speakers and is recognizable even by those who have never studied the languages ​​of the Slavic group. We will figure out which letters are called Cyrillic and which are Latin.

Russian keyboard layout

The first keyboard was created with Latin characters. But spreading, it acquired additional symbols of other languages, from which it was slightly different (for example, German). And for other languages, she completely changed her appearance. A vivid example of this is Cyrillic.

Why is the Russian layout called Cyrillic

Oddly enough, the characters on the "Russian" keyboard are not the Cyrillic alphabet itself, but only created on the basis of it.

Cyrillic is an Old Slavonic script that is not currently used in everyday writing. Since the Cyrillic alphabet was once created by the Apostles Cyril and Methodius, it became, in fact, the first written language in Russia. In honor of her, they decided to name the Russian-language keyboard layout.

How the Russian alphabet is located on the keyboard

The letters of the Cyrillic layout, created after the experiments with Qwerty, are not arranged in alphabetical order, but depending on the frequency of their use. Since the Russian layout was created somewhat later than the Latin one, the errors of the latest experience were taken into account.

IMPORTANT! The Russian layout is more ergonomic and convenient both for simple printing and for typing blindly.

The letters in it are arranged according to the following principle:

• the most used letters are located under the index fingers;
• rare - under the weaker nameless and little fingers;
• the letter E in a separate corner, as it is used in exceptional cases when printing.

REFERENCE! The main disadvantage of the Cyrillic layout is the location of the comma, which did not get a separate key.

To put it in the text, you must use two keys at once. Some believe that this was the reason for the frequent omission of commas during quick electronic correspondence.

Transition from Cyrillic to Latin and vice versa

In adapted computers and laptops, switching to Cyrillic is not difficult. However, if your installed system does not immediately provide quick access to the Russian layout, then you will need to make additional settings.

REFERENCE! Similarly, it will be possible to connect any other layouts, which is most relevant for those who study several foreign languages.

Keyboard Second Language - Latin

Latin often acts as the main layout, since literally you can’t do without its use. Not only that, all communication on the Internet (website URLs, e-mail) is written in Latin, and operations on the same command line are typed in Latin letters.

If you do not have quick access to the Cyrillic in the settings, you will have to perform several steps to add it. To do this, just follow a simple algorithm.

1. Open the Control Panel.
2. Select the Region and Language tab.
3. In the column Add language (Unput Language), you can add the necessary layout (or several). After which it will appear at the bottom of the quick access panel along with the Latin alphabet.

Reference: in the same tab, if necessary, you can change the language of the Windows interface.

How to switch from Cyrillic to Latin and go back

When printing, often changing the layout, whether it is messages in foreign languages, website addresses and electronic mail, as well as some special characters that are not available on the Cyrillic layout (for example, square parentheses).

Keyboard shortcut

If the layout were switched manually each time through the settings, this would significantly slow down the printing speed. Therefore, we identified several keyboard shortcuts that must be pressed simultaneously to switch:

• Shift and Alt;
• Win and space.

Reference: if you have connected several layouts, they will switch in turn. Therefore, you may have to press the keys several times.

Quick Access Toolbar

A slightly less quick way to change layouts through the quick access panel. However, it is more convenient if you have more than three layouts connected. On the right in the bottom panel there is a layout icon, which is 2-3 letters from the name of the alphabet (EN - Latin, RUS - Cyrillic). When you click on it with the left mouse button, all connected layouts will be displayed. Of these, with one click, you can select the necessary.