Photo: Emmanuel Phaeton (Unsplash License)
ПРД
Over 800 languages can be heard in the neighborhoods of New York! · 3 writing systems
Language of New York
New York is like a giant treasure chest filled with different languages from all over the world! Walking down its busy streets, you'll hear people speaking Spanish, Chinese, Russian, and so many more. Each language brings its own music and stories, making New York a fun and lively place with voices from every corner of the globe. It's a city where everyone's unique voice is part of its colorful symphony!
Test Your Knowledge
About the Script
Discover how New Yorkers write in different alphabets: our Latin letters, Russian Cyrillic, and Chinese characters.
Script Explorer
Cyrillic Script
Russian is written in the Cyrillic alphabet. You can hear it in Brighton Beach, a Brooklyn neighborhood also called 'Little Odessa'. Some letters look like ours but make different sounds: 'Р' says an 'R', and 'П' says a 'P'.
Spanish Script
Spanish uses the Latin alphabet too, but letters like 'ñ' and 'rr' create different sounds.
Chinese Script
In Chinese, each character is like a little picture that stands for a whole word or idea. The little marks above the romanization (like the dip in 'nǐ' or 'hǎo') are tone marks — they tell you whether to make your voice fall, rise, or dip when you say the word. 20 most common of 2,000+
Phrase Cards
Fun Fact
More than 800 languages are spoken in New York City, making it one of the most linguistically diverse places in the world!
Fun Fact
There's a neighborhood in Brooklyn called 'Little Odessa,' known for its Russian-speaking residents.
Cultural Note
New York is called the melting pot because of its rich mix of cultures and languages.
Vocabulary
Did you know that like Los Angeles, New York is one of the top destinations for immigrants? This is why you hear so many different languages spoken in the city.
