How to pronounce the names of Russian domestic and nature spirits

Prepared by: David J. Birnbaum (djbpitt+tales@pitt.edu)
Last modified: 2009-09-04 by David J. Birnbaum
Location: http://clover.slavic.pitt.edu/~tales/russian_pronunciation.html

The following is a list of Russian domestic and nature spirits discussed in Linda J. Ivanits, Russian Folk Belief, Armonk: M. E. Sharpe, 1989. Transcription is according to the Library of Congress transliteration system, with the stressed vowel of each word is indicated by bold type. Page numbers refer to Ivanits’s book.

For students in the Russian Fairy Tales course:

• Students should be able to recognize the names in italics both in transliteration (you do not have to be able to read the Russian letters) and when the instructors pronounce them.
• Students do not need to be able to pronounce any of the Russian names themselves, although we hope you will want to.
• Names not in italics are less important; be aware that they exist, but they will not be the focal point of examination questions.