Useful Phrases

Below is a collection of phrases useful for starting or carrying on conversations in Livonian. Livonians will no doubt be pleased at an attempt to speak their language, however, attempts at using these phrases on non-speakers will likely elicit confusion. These examples are taken from the Latvian-Livonian-English Phrase Book by Valda Suvcane. The spelling used in this book occasionally deviates from that used by Kersti Boiko in Livõ Kel, which is the standard Modern Livonian orthography. Though recorded samples are not provided at this time, the Livonian writing system makes it easy for non-speakers to make a reasonable attempt at pronouncing these phrases. To learn more about the sound of each letter, please refer to the Sounds of the Livonian Language in the Language section of this site. Also remember that in Livonian, as in other Balto-Finnic languages, the accent is almost always on the first syllable of the word.

Numbers

Numbers in Livonian are declined according to noun case. The examples below are the basic nominative forms, which can be used for counting or stating your phone number as in the phrase given above.