How Many Letters Does Each European Language’s Alphabet Have?

Map created by Ligue MapsThe map above shows how many letters each country (or really each language) has in it’s alphabet.

In any case here’s a ranking of countries by the number letters in their alphabet from lowest to highest:

Number of Letters in Each Country’s Alphabet 

18 letters

• Ireland (Irish Gaelic)
• Scotland (Scottish Gaelic)

21 letters

• Italy (Italian)

24 letters

• Greece (Greek)

25 letters

• Slovenia (Slovene)

26 letters (standard Latin)

• England (English)
• France (French)
• Portugal (Portuguese)

27 letters

• Spain (Spanish)
• Netherlands (Dutch)

29 letters

• Norway (Norweigan)
• Sweden (Sweedish)
• Finland (Finish)
• Denmark (Danish)
• Wales (Welsh)
• Turkey (Turkish)

30 letters

• Germany (German)
• Austria (German)
• Croatia (Croatgian)
• Serbia (Serbian)
• Bosnia & Herzegovina (Bosnian)
• Bulgaria (Bulgarian)

31 letters

• Romania (Romanian)
• Moldova (Moldavan)
• North Macedonia (Macedonian)

32 letters

• Iceland (Icelandic)
• Estonia (Estonian)
• Lithuania (Lithuanian)
• Poland (Polish)
• Belarus (Belorussian)
• Kosovo (Kosovan)

33 letters

• Latvia (Latvian)
• Ukraine (Ukrainian)
• Russia (Russian)

36 letters

• Albania (Albanian)

42 letters

• Czech Republic (Czech)

44 letters

• Hungary (Hungarian)

46 letters

• Slovakia (Slovakian)

Examples of EXTRA Letters (Countries Above 26)

Czech Republic (42 letters)

Extra characters include:

• Č, Š, Ř, Ž
• Ě, Ň, Ť, Ď

Slovakia (46 letters)

Adds:

• Á, É, Í, Ó, Ú, Ý
• Č, Ď, Ľ, Ň, Š, Ť, Ž
• Ô, Ä

Hungary (44 letters)

Includes multi-letter characters treated as letters:

• Cs, Dz, Dzs
• Gy, Ly, Ny
• Sz, Ty, Zs
• Plus accented vowels: Á, É, Í, Ó, Ö, Ő, Ú, Ü, Ű

Russia / Ukraine (33 letters – Cyrillic)

Extra letters like:

• Ё, Й, Ь, Ы (Russian)
• Ї, Є, Ґ (Ukrainian)

Poland (32 letters)

Adds:

• Ą, Ć, Ę, Ł, Ń, Ó, Ś, Ż, Ź

Examples of MISSING Letters (Countries Below 26)

Ireland – 18 letters

Missing letters include:

• J, K, Q, V, W, X, Y, Z

Italy – 21 letters

Traditionally missing:

• J, K, W, X, Y

Greece – 24 letters

Greek alphabet does not include Latin letters, and has:

• No equivalents of J, Q, W, X, Y, Z (Latin sense)

Why the difference?

Here are the main reasons why alphabet sizes vary so much in Europe:

Languages Have Different Sounds

Each language has its own set of sounds.

If a language has more sounds, it often needs more letters to represent them.

Examples:

• Polish (32 letters) adds letters like Ł, Ś, Ż to represent sounds English doesn’t have.
• Hungarian (44 letters) treats sound combinations like “Sz” and “Cs” as separate letters.
• Irish (18 letters) has fewer distinct sounds, so it needs fewer letters.

Some Alphabets Treat Digraphs as Real Letters

Some countries count letter pairs as single letters in their alphabet.

Example (Hungary & Slovakia):

• Cs, Dz, Gy, Ny, Sz, Ty, Zs
  These count as one letter each, inflating the alphabet size.

English uses digraphs too (sh, ch, th), but does NOT count them as letters.

Different Writing Systems, Not Just Latin

Not all countries use the Latin alphabet.

Examples:

• Russia & Ukraine → Cyrillic
• Greece → Greek alphabet

These alphabets developed independently, so their letter counts reflect different linguistic histories.

Historical & Cultural Evolution

Languages change over centuries, and alphabets change with them.

• Some letters disappear if sounds fade out
• Some letters are added to clarify pronunciation
• Political or cultural reforms sometimes redesign alphabets

Example:

• Turkey switched from Arabic script to Latin (1928)
• German spelling reforms adjusted letter use
• Czech & Slovak added accented letters to better match speech

Accent Marks vs New Letters

Some languages:

• Treat accented letters as new letters (e.g., Czech, Polish)
• Treat accents as variants, not separate letters (e.g., French, Spanish in some systems)

That changes the official count.

Spelling Philosophy: Phonetic vs Traditional

Some writing systems aim to:

• Match pronunciation very precisely → more letters
• Preserve historical spelling → fewer letters, more ambiguity

Example:

• Hungarian spelling = highly phonetic
• English spelling = historical & irregular

National Identity & Standardization

Alphabet rules are often decided by academies, governments, and education systems.

Adding or removing letters can be a political or cultural choice, not just linguistic.

Which one surprises you the most?