Is Romanian Hard to Learn? What to Know Before You Start

Romanian is the Romance language nobody expects. Tucked away in Eastern Europe and surrounded by Slavic neighbours, it quietly kept its Latin backbone — making it a cousin of Spanish, French, Italian and Portuguese. For learners that’s great news: much of it is more familiar than it looks. So is Romanian hard to learn? For English speakers it sits in the more accessible tier, and if you already know another Romance language, you’re halfway there.

The good news: Romanian is a Romance language

Romanian descends from Latin, so its core vocabulary overlaps heavily with the big Romance languages. Words like familie (family), carte (book), apă (water), bun (good) and noapte (night) trace straight back to Latin — and many resemble English words borrowed from Latin and French too. If you speak any Spanish, Italian or French, you’ll recognise a remarkable amount on day one.

It’s spelled the way it’s spoken

Here’s a feature English learners dream about: Romanian is essentially phonetic. Once you know the sounds of the letters, you can read almost any word aloud correctly — no silent letters, no spelling traps. After the maze of English (or French) spelling, this is a genuine relief.

The special letters and sounds

Romanian adds five letters to the Latin alphabet, and they’re worth ten minutes up front:

• ă — a short, neutral “uh” sound, like the a in “sofa”.
• â / î — the same sound (a tense “uh” made further back), just written differently depending on position.
• ș — “sh”, as in shoe.
• ț — “ts”, as in cats.

Learn those five and Romanian’s spelling holds no more surprises.

What takes a little practice

A couple of things need attention. Romanian picked up a layer of Slavic loanwords (plus a few Hungarian, German and Turkish ones), so not every word is guessable from Latin. And the grammar has noun genders — including a neuter — plus case changes. None of it is a wall; it’s the normal work of any language, spread over months.

A genuinely cool feature: “the” is a suffix

Romanian does one thing no other Romance language does: it attaches the definite article to the end of the noun. “A man” is un om; “the man” is omul. Casă (house) → casa (the house); lup (wolf) → lupul (the wolf). It feels odd for a day, then becomes a fun party trick — and it’s a great example of learning nouns in context rather than in isolation.

How long does it take?

The US Foreign Service Institute places Romanian in Category I — its easiest tier for English speakers, at roughly 600 classroom hours (about 24 weeks of intensive study), the same group as Spanish, Italian and French. Because of its Latin core and phonetic spelling, Romanian is one of the more approachable languages for English speakers — and noticeably faster if you already know a Romance language. As always, consistency beats intensity: short daily practice will have you holding simple conversations within a few months. When you’re ready to begin, follow the full plan in how to learn Romanian for beginners.

How to start smart

1. Learn the alphabet and the five special letters first, so you can read everything aloud.
2. Front-load high-frequency words — see 100 most common Romanian words.
3. Speak from week one with ready-made phrases: 50 common Romanian phrases for travelers.
4. Keep it daily and out loud, always with native audio.

Quick answers

Is Romanian harder than Spanish?

A touch, but not by much. The vocabulary and spelling are just as friendly; the extra work is the suffixed article (om → omul), a case system Spanish doesn’t have, and a layer of Slavic loanwords. Both sit in the same “easiest” FSI category for English speakers.

Is Romanian a Slavic language?

No — it’s a Romance language, a direct descendant of Latin like Italian, Spanish and French. Its Slavic neighbours contributed loanwords (roughly 10–15% of the vocabulary), which is why it sounds different, but its grammar and core words are Latin through and through.

Can I learn Romanian in three months?

You can reach real, usable basics: with short daily practice, three months is enough for greetings, ordering, directions and simple conversations built on the most common words and ready-made travel phrases. Comfortable everyday fluency takes longer — think months of consistency, not years.

If I learn Romanian, will I understand Italian or Spanish?

You’ll recognise a lot on paper — the shared Latin core is that strong — and simple written Italian is often half-readable to Romanian speakers. Spoken understanding takes tuning your ear, but Romanian gives you a genuine head start on the whole Romance family.

The friendliest way in

The smoothest start combines the alphabet, frequency vocabulary, native audio and daily review in one place. Learn Romanian For Beginners opens with the alphabet and its sounds, then teaches 60+ everyday topics through pictures and native-speaker audio, with mini games — and daily and lifetime leaderboards — to keep your streak alive.

Download Learn Romanian For Beginners free on Google Play and discover how approachable Romanian really is.