Bulgarian, a South Slavic language, holds a unique place in the linguistic landscape of Southeast Europe. However, several languages share significant similarities with Bulgarian due to historical, cultural, and geographical connections. According to the eLinguistics.net analysis using specific software modules to assess linguistic relationships, the five languages most similar to Bulgarian are Slovenian, Serbian, Macedonian, Polish, and Ukrainian.
- Slovenian (90.6)
Though geographically further west, Slovenian shares notable traits with Bulgarian due to its Slavic heritage. They have common Slavic vocabulary and similar verb conjugations and tenses. However, Slovenian’s geographic position has led to influence from Germanic and Romance languages, which are less prominent in Bulgarian. One big difference is Slovenian is written in the Latin alphabet. - Serbian (88.4)
Serbia is on Bulgaria’s western border. As a result, their languages have a lot in common. Serbian is another South Slavic language with substantial similarities to Bulgarian. The languages have comparable sound systems, with similar pronunciation of vowels and consonants. - Macedonian (88.3)
Macedonian is the official language of North Macedonia. It is closely related language to Bulgarian. Both languages stem from the Eastern South Slavic linguistic group, and their similarities are so profound that they are mutually intelligible to a significant degree. As a result, they have a lot of shared vocabulary. - Polish (86.6)
Polish, a West Slavic language, may seem an unlikely candidate for similarity to Bulgarian at first glance. Phonetics and orthography in Polish are distinctly West Slavic. Still, shared vocabulary from historical interactions between Slavic peoples create connections. - Ukrainian (85.2)
As an East Slavic language, Ukrainian has a different linguistic trajectory from Bulgarian. Nevertheless, shared Slavic roots create overlaps in vocabulary and phonetics. Historical interactions, such as through the spread of Orthodox Christianity and Old Church Slavonic texts, have created linguistic parallels.
(to be considered for the list, the language must be spoken by at least one million people)