Most Russian consonants can be classified into two types. They are palatalized and non-palatalized. The terms hard and soft are also used. In this case, the term soft is used for the consonants that are palatalized.
Russian consonants can be divided into four sets. They are C, Cj, Cʲ and Cʲj. The first one is not palatalized, a plain consonant. The second consists of a consonant followed by a palatal glide. The second set is found in many other languages. In English the word beauty is an example. The third is a consonant with a secondary palatal articulation, and the fourth consists of a consonant with a secondary palatal articulation followed by a palatal glide.
Russian consonants can be palatalized both in the onset and in the coda. Palatalizatized and non-palatalized consonants also contrast with one another in both the syllable onset and coda. In English, however, palatalization is restricted to the syllable onset.
Palatalization is a very important feature of Russian consonants. Unlike in languages such as English which only contrast consonants with the palatal glide, Russian also uses secondary palatal articulation. Palatalization in Russian is not restricted to the consonants. Vowels are also classified into two types, hard and soft.
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