Is 'И' Really the 10Th Letter? Fact-Checking the Russian Alphabet Sequence
By Marcus Vance
The status of the letter in the seventh slot is not merely an academic exercise. In Russian civil courts and registry offices (ZAGS), the distinction between Е and Ё has generated high-profile legal battles over inheritances, property deeds, and passports.
If a citizen's birth certificate reads Семён (Semyon) but their property deed records Семен (Semen), bureaucratic automated systems frequently register two different legal identities. In 2009, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation addressed this discrepancy, ruling that the use of Е instead of Ё in identifying documents does not invalidate an individual’s identity when the intent is unambiguous.
Even so, notary registries and identity databases mandate that when alphabetizing formal rolls, Ё must retain its dedicated position. Treating Ё as non-existent breaks registry sequencing, re-affirming that И remains the immutable tenth letter of the state standard.
Marcus Vance is a cybersecurity auditor and technology writer dedicated to educating the public about online safety, data privacy regulations, enterprise security, and emerging cyber threats.
