Lesson 1 — Alphabet & Pronunciation

Bitola 1997 orthography · Pindean dialect

Aromanian vowels and consonants mostly match their Latin or Romanian counterparts. Below is the full extended alphabet chart:

Uppercase Lowercase Name IPA Notes Word Example
Aaa/a/apã (water)
Ããã/ə/, /ɨ/ (sometimes)cãnd (when)
Bb/b/bunã (good (female))
Cc/k/, /tʃ/, /x//k/ before a,o,u or consonant; (/x/ in some dialects); /tʃ/ before e,icasã (house)
Dd/d/domnu (lord, sir)
Dhdhdhã/ð/Notation for accents with this phoneme; otherwise “d” used. Used both for loanwords and native words.dhalã (buttermilk)
Dzdzdzã/dz/dzuã (day)
Eee/ɛ/eascã (tinder, touchwood, punk)
Ff/f/foc (fire)
Gg/ɡ/, /dʒ/, /ɣ//ɡ/ before a,o,u or consonant (/ɣ/ in some dialects); /dʒ/ before e,igiumitati (half)
Ghghghã/ɟ/Before e and ighini (good)
Hh/h/hearhic (peach tree)
Iii/i/ipã (knuckle bone)
Jj/ʒ/jigãrditsã (sleet, thaw, rain mixed with snow)
Kkca/c/It's only very rarely used for imported loanwords of usually Modern Greek origin otherwise it's almost still never used. Before e or i only.karekla (chair)
Ll/l/lupu (wolf)
Ljljljã/ʎ/Found in Macedonian Latin alphabetljepuri (rabbit)
Mm/m/mari (big)
Nn/n/noapti (night)
Njnjnjã/ɲ/Found in Macedonian Latin alphabetNjercuri (Wednesday)
Ooo/o/om (man)
Pp/p/pãni (bread)
Qqkiu/k/Used only in foreign words – “c” is normally used.
Rr/r/aroshi (red)
Rrrrrrã/r/Notation for accents with this phoneme; otherwise “r” is usedrrendze (rennet)
Ss/s/scamnu (chair, stool)
Shshshã/ʃ/shasi (six)
Tt/t/tatã (father)
Thththã/θ/Notation for accents with this phoneme; otherwise “t” is used. Found in loanwords of Greek origin but still also in variations of native Latin-inherited words.thrapsu (ash tree)
Tststsã/ts/tsarã (soil, earth, land)
Uuu/u/, /ʷ/For /ʷ/, “ù” may be usedursã (bear)
Vv/v/vearã (summer)
Wwdublã vã/w/Used only in foreign words
Xxcsã/gzã/ks/, /ɡz/Same pronunciation as in English. Found in foreign words usually of (Modern) Greek origin.xurãhi (razors)
Yyi greacã/j/, /ɣ//j/ before e and i, /ɣ/ elsewhereyeatsã (life, creature, existence, eternity)
Zz/z/zbor (word)

Lesson 2 — Greetings & Basic Sentences

Bitola 1997 orthography · Pindean base — introduce yourself, ask basic questions.

Useful, everyday greeting forms and short sentence patterns to introduce yourself.

2.1 Basic Greeting Patterns

AromanianMeaningNotes
Bunã dzuãHello / Good dayNeutral — works any time but still it's usually used during the morning
Bunã tahinaGood morningOften shortened in casual speech to "tah(i)na" and it's logically used for early morning
Bunã dimineatsãGood morningProbably shortened in casual speech
Bunã searãGood eveningUsed for afternoon
Noapti bunãGood nightUsed before going to bed

2.2 Introducing Yourself

AromanianMeaning
Cum ti-cljiamã?What is your name? (Literally: What you call (yourself)?)
Mi-cljiamã [Name].My name is [Name]. (Literally: I am called [Name].)
Tu ti-cljiamã?And you? (Literally: You call yourself?)

2.3 Saying How You Are

AromanianMeaning
Cum hits?How are you? (plural or formal speech)
Ghini.Fine/Good.
Ghini, shuchiur.Fine, thanks.
Nu ghini.Not well.

2.4 Simple Statements (S–V–O)

Aromanian generally follows Subject – Verb – Object. Pronouns are often dropped because verb endings tell the person.

PatternExampleMeaning
Io hiu [X].Io hiu Armãn.I am Aromanian.
Tu hii [X].Tini hii nvitsãtorlu.You are the teacher.
El / Ea iasti [X].Ea iasti mushatã.She is beautiful.

2.5 First Dialogue

Bunâ dzâua!
– Bunã dzuã!
Cum ti cljiamâ?
– Io mi-cljiamã Maria. Tu ti-cljiamã?
– Io mi cljiamã Andrei.
Cum hits?
– Ghini, shuchiur. Sh-tu?
– Sh-io hiu ghini.

Practice Prompt

  1. Write a 4–5 line dialogue introducing yourself (use Cum ti cljiamâ? and Eu mi cljiamâ…).
  2. Make three S–V–O sentences with professions or adjectives (e.g., Eu sunt studenti).
  3. Record yourself reading the dialogue slowly, then at natural speed; listen for clear vowels and stress.

Lesson 3 — Nouns, Gender, and Articles

Enclitic definite articles and preposed indefinite articles (Bitola 1997).

3.1 Gender

Aromanian has two genders: masculine and feminine. Typical singular endings:

  • Masculine — often -u (e.g., lupu).
  • Feminine — often or -a (e.g., femea).

Endings are a guide; exceptions exist (loanwords, irregulars).

3.2 Definite Article (enclitic)

The definite article attaches to the end of the noun:

GenderSingular articlePlural articleExample
Masculine-lu-ljilupu → luplu (the wolf)
Feminine-a-lefemea → femea (the woman)

3.3 Indefinite Article

The indefinite article comes before the noun:

  • Masculine: un (e.g., un lup — a wolf)
  • Feminine: o (e.g., o femea — a woman)
  • Some plural indefinites: niște (some)

3.4 Practice

  1. Write five nouns (3 masculine, 2 feminine) and show their indefinite and definite forms.
  2. Make three short exchanges asking “Ce este acâ?” and answering with un/ o …

Lesson 4 — Adjectives & Agreement

Agreement patterns and adjective placement (Bitola 1997).

4.1 Basic agreement

Adjectives agree in gender and number with the noun. General pattern (example root frumos = beautiful):

FormAdjective
Masculine singularfrumos
Feminine singularfrumoasâ
Masculine pluralfrumoși
Feminine pluralfrumoase

4.2 Position

Adjectives usually follow the noun: casâ marâ — the big house. Short, very common adjectives can appear before for emphasis.

4.3 Examples

  • femea frumoasâ — the beautiful woman
  • bărbatu nalti — the tall man
  • o casâ micâ — a small house

4.4 Practice

  1. Take three masculine and three feminine nouns; write an adjective for each (positive & negative) and form sentences with both indefinite & definite articles.
  2. Record yourself saying the pairs to check natural adjective endings.

Lesson 5 — Present Tense Verbs (1st Conjugation)

Basic present conjugation patterns and usage (Bitola 1997).

5.1 Overview

Many Aromanian verbs are shown by their 1st person singular present. A common 1st-conjugation verb pattern (root cânt- “sing”):

PersonEnding / FormExample (cãntu = to sing)
1st singular-ueu cãntu
2nd singular-itu cãnti
3rd singular-u / -i (varies)el/ea cãntu
1st plural-munoi cãntamu
2nd plural-tsivoi cãntatsi
3rd plural-u (often)ei/ele cãntu

Notes: Aromanian is a null-subject language: pronouns are optional because verb endings indicate the subject.

5.2 Examples

  • Eu cãntu o cântecu. — I sing a song.
  • Tu cãnti frumos. — You sing beautifully.
  • Noi cãntamu împreună. — We sing together.

5.3 Practice

  1. Choose a verb (cãntu, dau, lucreadză) and conjugate across all six persons.
  2. Write three short sentences using different persons and objects.

Lesson 6 — Question Formation

Interrogatives, intonation, and question particles.

6.1 Yes / No Questions

Yes–no questions often rely on rising intonation or context; word order may remain the same:

  • Tu esti armân? — Are you Aromanian?
  • Ai o casâ? — Do you have a house?

6.2 Wh-Questions (question words)

Common interrogatives:

AromanianEnglish
CineWho
CeWhat
UndeWhere
CândWhen
De ceWhy
Cât / CâteHow much / How many

6.3 Examples

  • Cine vine? — Who is coming?
  • Ce faci? — What are you doing?
  • Unde este casa? — Where is the house?

6.4 Practice

  1. Make 5 yes/no questions using verbs you know.
  2. Make 5 wh-questions (use Cine, Ce, Unde, Când, De ce).
  3. Record and practice answering them in complete sentences.

Exercises & Practice

Practice: Make 3 questions with Ce and 3 with Unde.

Resources & Further Reading

  • Mathimata Koutsovlahikis (1996) — scanned PDF source
  • Farsharotu — courses & dictionaries
  • Avdhela Project — digital texts
  • Mercator Research — Aromanian in the Balkans

Static guide. Expand with separate lesson pages, audio, and interactive elements.