Psi (Ѱ, ѱ; italics: Ѱ ѱ) is a letter in the
early Cyrillic alphabet, derived from the
Greek letter
psi (Ψ, ψ). It represents the sound /ps/, as in English naps. According to the school rules developed in the 16th and the 17th centuries, such as
Meletius Smotrytsky's grammar book, it was intended for use in words of Greek origin, but it was occasionally used for writing native words as well like Ukrainian ѱы (psy, "dogs").[1] It was used especially in words relating to the
Eastern Orthodox Church, as can be seen in its continuing use in
Church Slavonic.
Psi was eliminated from the
Russian orthography, along with
ksi,
omega, and the
yuses, in the
Civil Script of 1708 (
Peter the Great's Grazhdansky Shrift), and it has also been dropped from other secular languages. It continues to be used in
Church Slavonic.
Simovyč, V. and J.B. Rudnycky, "The History of Ukrainian Orthography", in Kubijovyč, Volodymyr ed. (1963), Ukraine: A Concise Encyclopædia, v 1. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
ISBN0-8020-3105-6.
Psi (Ѱ, ѱ; italics: Ѱ ѱ) is a letter in the
early Cyrillic alphabet, derived from the
Greek letter
psi (Ψ, ψ). It represents the sound /ps/, as in English naps. According to the school rules developed in the 16th and the 17th centuries, such as
Meletius Smotrytsky's grammar book, it was intended for use in words of Greek origin, but it was occasionally used for writing native words as well like Ukrainian ѱы (psy, "dogs").[1] It was used especially in words relating to the
Eastern Orthodox Church, as can be seen in its continuing use in
Church Slavonic.
Psi was eliminated from the
Russian orthography, along with
ksi,
omega, and the
yuses, in the
Civil Script of 1708 (
Peter the Great's Grazhdansky Shrift), and it has also been dropped from other secular languages. It continues to be used in
Church Slavonic.
Simovyč, V. and J.B. Rudnycky, "The History of Ukrainian Orthography", in Kubijovyč, Volodymyr ed. (1963), Ukraine: A Concise Encyclopædia, v 1. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
ISBN0-8020-3105-6.