Abroad in Different Languages
Discover 'Abroad' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'abroad' holds a special significance in our vocabulary, denoting any location outside of one's native country. It's a term that encapsulates the excitement of travel, the allure of new cultures, and the promise of personal growth. From ancient maritime explorations to modern-day study abroad programs, the concept of going abroad has been a central theme in human history.
In many ways, understanding the word 'abroad' in different languages can open up a world of opportunities. It's a small step towards cultural competency, a way to connect with people from different backgrounds, and a sign of respect for their native tongue. For instance, in Spanish, 'abroad' is 'en el extranjero', while in French, it's 'à l'étranger'. In German, it's 'im Ausland', and in Japanese, it's 'か country に'.
Stay tuned for a comprehensive list of 'abroad' in different languages, from Arabic to Zulu, each a key to a new cultural experience.
Abroad
Abroad in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | in die buiteland | ||
| The word “in die buiteland” is also a euphemism for “in exile.” | |||
| Amharic | በውጭ አገር | ||
| The word "abroad" in Amharic, "በውጭ አገር," can also mean "in a foreign country" or "outside of the country." | |||
| Hausa | kasashen waje | ||
| In some contexts, “kasashen waje” can refer to foreign countries, while in others it may encompass all non-Hausa speaking regions of Nigeria. | |||
| Igbo | ná mba ọzọ | ||
| The Igbo word "ná mba ọzọ" can also mean "in a foreign land" or "amongst foreigners". | |||
| Malagasy | any ivelany | ||
| "Any ivelany" has other meanings like "the exterior part", "outside of the house" or "the other world". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | kunja | ||
| The word 'kunja' is also used to mean 'a foreign country'. | |||
| Shona | kunze kwenyika | ||
| The word "kunze kwenyika" can also refer to a place outside of one's home village or town. | |||
| Somali | dibedda | ||
| The word "dibedda" in Somali can also mean "a foreign country" or "the diaspora". | |||
| Sesotho | kantle ho naha | ||
| The phrase "kantle ho naha" also means "go abroad". | |||
| Swahili | nje ya nchi | ||
| The term "nje ya nchi" in Swahili is thought to derive from "nje" (outside) and "nchi" (country), implying "outside one's nation." | |||
| Xhosa | phesheya | ||
| "Phesheya" may also refer to the realm of the dead or the afterlife in traditional Xhosa beliefs. | |||
| Yoruba | odi | ||
| In Yoruba, "odi" can also mean "to be absent", "to be missing", or "to be gone", emphasizing its sense of distance from a familiar location. | |||
| Zulu | phesheya | ||
| The word “phesheya” is derived from the Zulu word “phela”, meaning “to pass” or “to go”, and the suffix “-ya”, which indicates a place or direction. | |||
| Bambara | tunga | ||
| Ewe | ablotsi | ||
| Kinyarwanda | mu mahanga | ||
| Lingala | na mboka mopaya | ||
| Luganda | mitala mawanga | ||
| Sepedi | naga e šele | ||
| Twi (Akan) | aburokyire | ||
Abroad in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | خارج البلاد | ||
| The word "خارج البلاد" in Arabic literally means "outside the land." | |||
| Hebrew | מחוץ לארץ | ||
| "מחוץ לארץ" or "Chutz la'Aretz" is also used in religious contexts to refer to anywhere outside the Land of Israel, a territory defined in the Torah and Talmud. | |||
| Pashto | بهر | ||
| The word "بهر" can also mean "across" or "over" in Pashto. | |||
| Arabic | خارج البلاد | ||
| The word "خارج البلاد" in Arabic literally means "outside the land." | |||
Abroad in Western European Languages
| Albanian | jashtë vendit | ||
| The word "jashtë vendit" literally means "outside the country" or "off-land". | |||
| Basque | atzerrian | ||
| The word "atzerrian" can also be used to refer to foreign countries or cultures. | |||
| Catalan | a l'estranger | ||
| The Catalan phrase "a l'estranger" derives from the Latin "in stranu", meaning "in a strange land" or "away from home". It is also commonly translated to "overseas" or "foreign country". | |||
| Croatian | u inozemstvu | ||
| An alternate spelling of 'u inozemstvu' is 'u inostranstvu'. | |||
| Danish | i udlandet | ||
| The prefix "i" here means “in”, and "udlandet" means “foreign lands”, thus "i udlandet" is literally “in foreign lands”. | |||
| Dutch | buitenland | ||
| The Dutch word "Buitenland" is derived from the Middle Dutch word "butenlande", meaning "beyond the land or border". | |||
| English | abroad | ||
| The word "abroad" derives from the Old English "abroad" which meant "out of a house or enclosure." | |||
| French | à l'étranger | ||
| The French phrase "à l’étranger" literally translates to "to the stranger". | |||
| Frisian | bûtenlân | ||
| "Bûtenlân" is cognate with all other Germanic languages, and was originally cognate with "foreign". | |||
| Galician | no estranxeiro | ||
| In Galician, "no estranxeiro" is derived from Latin "in extraneo", meaning "in a foreign land". | |||
| German | im ausland | ||
| In some German dialects, "im Ausland" can refer to the neighbouring village. | |||
| Icelandic | erlendis | ||
| Erlendi, meaning "abroad" in Icelandic, is also the name of two different types of Icelandic folk dance. | |||
| Irish | thar lear | ||
| The Irish word 'thar lear' has a number of cognate terms found in Celtic languages; it means 'across the sea' in Welsh and 'overseas' in Breton. | |||
| Italian | all'estero | ||
| "All'estero" (abroad) is the fusion of the preposition "a" (to) with the noun estero (estuary), in the past a place considered a limit to be overcome. | |||
| Luxembourgish | am ausland | ||
| "Am Ausland" has a double meaning: in High German it means "abroad", in Luxembourgish it means "outlandish". | |||
| Maltese | barra mill-pajjiż | ||
| The word "barra mill-pajjiż" (abroad) literally means "outside of the country" | |||
| Norwegian | i utlandet | ||
| The word "i utlandet" is derived from the Old Norse word "útland", meaning "outside the country". | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | no exterior | ||
| In Brazil "no exterior" can also means "in other states of Brazil that are not your current one" | |||
| Scots Gaelic | thall thairis | ||
| The word 'thall thairis' has no etymology or alternate meanings. | |||
| Spanish | extranjero | ||
| The word "extranjero" in Spanish comes from the Latin word "extraneus", meaning "foreign" or "outsider". | |||
| Swedish | utomlands | ||
| The word "utomlands" is derived from the Old Norse word "útland", meaning "foreign land". | |||
| Welsh | dramor | ||
| The word "dramor" is cognate with the Old Irish "tremor," and the Latin "transmarinus," both meaning "across the sea." | |||
Abroad in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | за мяжой | ||
| "За мяжой" means "abroad" in Belarusian and originates from the word "мяжа", which means "border" or "boundary." | |||
| Bosnian | u inostranstvu | ||
| The word "inostranstvu" in Bosnian is a combination of two words: "ino" meaning "outside" or "foreign", and "stranstvo" meaning "country"} | |||
| Bulgarian | в чужбина | ||
| "В чужбина" means "abroad" in Bulgarian. The root of the word "чужд" (chuzhd) means "foreign" or "strange." | |||
| Czech | v cizině | ||
| The Czech word "v cizině" also means "among strangers" or "in a foreign environment". | |||
| Estonian | välismaal | ||
| The Estonian word "välismaal" also means "foreign country". | |||
| Finnish | ulkomailla | ||
| The etymology of "ulkomailla" is uncertain, with potential derivations from "ulkoa" (outside) or "ulkona" (outdoors) and "maa" (land). | |||
| Hungarian | külföldön | ||
| The Hungarian term "külföldön" derives from the words "kül" meaning "outer" and "föld" meaning "land" or "earth". | |||
| Latvian | ārzemēs | ||
| The word "ārzemēs" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root "*per-/", meaning "beyond", and "*zemē", meaning "land". It is cognate with the Lithuanian word "užsienis" and the Old Church Slavonic word "вънѣ" (vъně), both meaning "abroad". | |||
| Lithuanian | užsienyje | ||
| The Lithuanian word "užsienyje" can also refer to a foreign country. | |||
| Macedonian | во странство | ||
| "Во странство" in Macedonian, derived from the Old Slavonic "stranьstvo", also means "pilgrimage" or "traveling in search of spiritual enlightenment." | |||
| Polish | za granicą | ||
| The Polish word "za granicą" literally means "beyond the border" and can also refer to foreign countries or places outside of Poland. | |||
| Romanian | in strainatate | ||
| The Romanian word "în străinătate" (abroad) derives from the Latin word "extraneus" (foreign, outsider), meaning literally "in a foreign land." | |||
| Russian | за границу | ||
| "За границу" is literally "over the border". | |||
| Serbian | иностранство | ||
| "Иностранство" can also be used to refer to a foreign country or a foreign language. | |||
| Slovak | v zahraničí | ||
| "V zahraničí" is used also informally to mean "outside one's home". | |||
| Slovenian | v tujini | ||
| The name "v tujini" in Slovenian derives from the prefix "v" meaning "inside" or "in" which is combined with the noun "tujina" meaning "foreign lands" or "other country". | |||
| Ukrainian | за кордоном | ||
| "За кордоном" is a colloquial term in Ukrainian that literally means "across the border" and is used to refer to foreign countries. | |||
Abroad in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | বিদেশে | ||
| The word "বিদেশে" (abroad) also means "in a foreign country" in Bengali. | |||
| Gujarati | વિદેશમાં | ||
| The word "વિદેશમાં" (abroad) is derived from the Sanskrit words "वि" (vi), meaning "away" or "apart", and "देश" (desh), meaning "country". It can also refer to foreign countries or a place outside one's own country. | |||
| Hindi | विदेश में | ||
| "विदेश में" can also mean "in a foreign country" or "in a foreign land". | |||
| Kannada | ವಿದೇಶದಲ್ಲಿ | ||
| The word "ವಿದೇಶದಲ್ಲಿ" ("abroad") comes from the Sanskrit word "विदेश:" meaning "a foreign country". | |||
| Malayalam | വിദേശത്ത് | ||
| Marathi | परदेशात | ||
| परादेशात is derived from the Sanskrit word "परदेश", which literally means "outside one's own country". | |||
| Nepali | विदेशमा | ||
| विदेशमा (videśamā) is derived from Sanskrit विदेश ('videśa') meaning 'distant or foreign country'. | |||
| Punjabi | ਵਿਦੇਸ਼ | ||
| The word "ਵਿਦੇਸ਼" derives from the Sanskrit word "विदेष" and can also refer to "separation" or "a foreign thing" in Hindi and many other Indic languages. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | විදේශයක | ||
| Tamil | வெளிநாட்டில் | ||
| The word "வெளிநாட்டில்" can also refer to a foreign country or a place outside one's own country. | |||
| Telugu | విదేశాలలో | ||
| The word "విదేశాలలో" is derived from the Sanskrit word "विदेश" (videśa), which means "foreign country" or "abroad". | |||
| Urdu | بیرون ملک | ||
| "بیرون ملک" means "out of the country" or "foreign" in Urdu. | |||
Abroad in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 国外 | ||
| 国外 (guówài) consists of the characters 国 (guó) "country" and 外 (wài) "outside" and refers to places outside of one's own country. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 國外 | ||
| The word "國外" can also mean "a foreign country" or "overseas. | |||
| Japanese | 海外 | ||
| The word "海外" (abroad) literally means "outside the sea" in Japanese, reflecting the country's island geography. | |||
| Korean | 널리 | ||
| Originally referred to the vast space beyond one's house and was also used as an abbreviation of a wider concept, i.e., "the whole country". | |||
| Mongolian | гадаадад | ||
| The word 'гадаадад' is thought to derive from Mongolian words for 'foreigner' or 'enemy' | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ပြည်ပမှာ | ||
Abroad in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | di luar negeri | ||
| The Indonesian word "di luar negeri" literally translates to "outside the country". | |||
| Javanese | ing luar negeri | ||
| Ing luar negeri is a Javanese phrase that literally means "in the outside country". | |||
| Khmer | នៅបរទេស | ||
| The term នៅបរទេស derives from Sanskrit and may also signify living in a far-off place or staying in a different country or region. | |||
| Lao | ຕ່າງປະເທດ | ||
| The Lao word "ຕ່າງປະເທດ" (abroad) is derived from the Thai word "ต่างประเทศ" (different country). | |||
| Malay | di luar negara | ||
| As a particle, "di" may also denote a locative (e.g. "di rumah" means "at home") or means (e.g. "di kereta" means "by car"). In this case, it denotes the locative "at". On the other hand, "luar" means "outside". "Negara" is derived from the Sanskrit word "nagara" which means "a city" or "a territory". | |||
| Thai | ต่างประเทศ | ||
| ต่างประเทศ has alternate meanings like 'foreign country', 'in a foreign country' or 'from a foreign country'. | |||
| Vietnamese | ở nước ngoài | ||
| The word "ở nước ngoài" in Vietnamese literally means "in a foreign country". | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | sa ibang bansa | ||
Abroad in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | xaricdə | ||
| The word "xaricdə" is derived from the Arabic word "khārij", meaning "outside". | |||
| Kazakh | шетелде | ||
| The word "шетелде" can also refer to another country or place that is not one's own. | |||
| Kyrgyz | чет өлкөлөрдө | ||
| The word "чет өлкөлөрдө" is a compound noun consisting of three words that mean "four" ("чет"), "country" ("өлкө"), and "in" ("дө"). It is a locative case form, which means "in four countries." | |||
| Tajik | дар хориҷа | ||
| 'Дар хориҷа' means 'beyond the border' in Tajik, and it can also refer to 'outside the country' or places that are located beyond the boundaries of the country. | |||
| Turkmen | daşary ýurtlarda | ||
| Uzbek | chet elda | ||
| The word "chet elda" is derived from the Persian phrase "ched elda" meaning "outside the country" or "abroad." | |||
| Uyghur | چەتئەللەردە | ||
Abroad in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | ma nā ʻāina ʻē | ||
| The word "ma nā ʻāina ʻē" has various meanings, including "in other countries", "on the mainland", and "in foreign lands". | |||
| Maori | ki tawahi | ||
| "Ki tawahi" can also mean "to the outside world" or "overseas". | |||
| Samoan | i fafo atu | ||
| The term "fafo" also denotes the direction of seaward or outward. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | sa ibang bansa | ||
Abroad in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | anqaxa | ||
| Guarani | tetã ambuépe | ||
Abroad in International Languages
| Esperanto | eksterlande | ||
| The word "eksterlande" is derived from the German word "ausland" and the Latin word "exter". | |||
| Latin | foris | ||
| The Latin word "foris" originally meant "out of doors" or "in the open air", and only later came to mean "abroad". | |||
Abroad in Others Languages
| Greek | στο εξωτερικο | ||
| The word 'στο εξωτερικο' is derived from the Greek word 'εξω', meaning 'outside', and 'ερος', meaning 'space', thus signifying a location outside of one's home country. | |||
| Hmong | sia mus thoob ntiajteb | ||
| Sia mus thoob ntiajteb is a Hmong phrase that literally means "in other lands" or "among other people". This phrase is used to describe foreign countries or regions that are different from the speaker's own homeland. | |||
| Kurdish | ji derve | ||
| "Ji der ve /ve/ is composed by the noun 'ji' (of) which often refers to a location and 'der ve /ve/' (in) which also indicates a location: hence, the meaning "abroad". | |||
| Turkish | yurt dışı | ||
| The word "yurt dışı" literally means "outside yurt" in Turkish, referring to the nomadic dwellings used by Central Asian tribes. | |||
| Xhosa | phesheya | ||
| "Phesheya" may also refer to the realm of the dead or the afterlife in traditional Xhosa beliefs. | |||
| Yiddish | אויסלאנד | ||
| The Yiddish word "אויסלאנד" (oisland) originally meant "outside of the city walls" and later came to mean "abroad" or "foreign country". | |||
| Zulu | phesheya | ||
| The word “phesheya” is derived from the Zulu word “phela”, meaning “to pass” or “to go”, and the suffix “-ya”, which indicates a place or direction. | |||
| Assamese | দেশৰ বাহিৰত | ||
| Aymara | anqaxa | ||
| Bhojpuri | बिलाईत | ||
| Dhivehi | ބޭރުޤައުމެއްގައި | ||
| Dogri | बदेस | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | sa ibang bansa | ||
| Guarani | tetã ambuépe | ||
| Ilocano | sabali a pagilian | ||
| Krio | patrol | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | لە دەرەوەی وڵات | ||
| Maithili | विदेश | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯃꯤꯔꯩꯕꯥꯛ | ||
| Mizo | ramdang | ||
| Oromo | biyyaa ala | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ବିଦେଶ | ||
| Quechua | hawa llaqtapi | ||
| Sanskrit | देशान्तरम् | ||
| Tatar | чит илләрдә | ||
| Tigrinya | ካብ ዓዲ ወፃእ | ||
| Tsonga | entsungeni | ||