Bean in Different Languages
Discover 'Bean' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
Beans are more than just a humble legume; they hold immense significance and cultural importance across the globe. From the classic baked beans of American cuisine to the black beans of Mexican fare, beans are a versatile and vital source of nutrition. Historically, beans have played a crucial role in the diets of various civilizations, with evidence of their consumption dating back to ancient times.
But did you know that the word 'bean' has fascinating translations in different languages? For instance, in Spanish, the word for bean is 'frijol,' while in German, it's 'Bohne.' In French, beans are referred to as 'haricots,' and in Japanese, the word is 'mame.' These translations not only offer insight into the linguistic diversity of different cultures but also highlight the global ubiquity of beans as a dietary staple.
So, whether you're a language enthusiast, a foodie, or simply curious, exploring the translations of the word 'bean' is a fun and enlightening journey. Read on to discover more about this common yet remarkable legume and its name in various languages!
Bean
Bean in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | boontjie | ||
| 'Boontjie' is possibly a corruption of 'bone' (bean) as it was originally pronounced in old English or Dutch | |||
| Amharic | ባቄላ | ||
| The Amharic word "ባቄላ" (baqela) is derived from the Geez word "baqillu," which in turn is likely derived from the ancient Egyptian word "bq.t," meaning "bean." | |||
| Hausa | wake | ||
| The Hausa word “wake” can also refer to a type of soup or stew made with beans. | |||
| Igbo | agwa | ||
| The Igbo word 'agwa' also means 'seed' or 'kernel'. | |||
| Malagasy | tsaramaso | ||
| The word "tsaramaso" is also used to refer to the kidney and is likely derived from the Proto-Austronesian root *tasum, meaning "seed". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | nyemba | ||
| The word "nyemba" in Nyanja (Chichewa) may also refer to a kind of tree or its fruit. | |||
| Shona | bhinzi | ||
| The word "bhinzi" in Shona also refers to a type of small, round pumpkin. | |||
| Somali | digir | ||
| The word 'digir' also refers to a species of bean locally known as 'digirta madow' or 'black bean'. | |||
| Sesotho | linaoa | ||
| In Sesotho, "linaoa" is a homonym for "beans" and "beautiful one", showcasing the language's rich vocabulary and cultural connections. | |||
| Swahili | maharagwe | ||
| It is derived from Proto-Bantu *malaγwe, from Proto-Niger-Congo *maláŋwà, from the root *mal- 'rub, grind, crush' | |||
| Xhosa | imbotyi | ||
| I'mboti can also refer to the round and hard seed of the umhlaba (Voacanga africana). | |||
| Yoruba | ìrísí | ||
| ìrísí also means `to be similar` or `to resemble`. | |||
| Zulu | ubhontshisi | ||
| The word "ubhontshisi" can also refer to a type of game played with beans. | |||
| Bambara | shɛfan | ||
| Ewe | bean | ||
| Kinyarwanda | ibishyimbo | ||
| Lingala | nzungu ya nzungu | ||
| Luganda | ekinyeebwa | ||
| Sepedi | nawa ya | ||
| Twi (Akan) | bean | ||
Bean in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | فاصوليا | ||
| The word "فاصوليا" is derived from the Greek word "φάσηλος", which means "kidney bean". | |||
| Hebrew | אפונה | ||
| The word "אפונה" is derived from the Greek word "αφρός", meaning "foam" or "scum", possibly referring to the plant's white flowers or seed pods. | |||
| Pashto | لوبیا | ||
| The Pashto word "لوبیا" can also refer to a specific type of bean known as the "lubia bean" or "asparagus bean". | |||
| Arabic | فاصوليا | ||
| The word "فاصوليا" is derived from the Greek word "φάσηλος", which means "kidney bean". | |||
Bean in Western European Languages
| Albanian | fasule | ||
| "Fasule" is cognate with Italian "fagiuolo", French "haricot", and Spanish "fréjol". | |||
| Basque | babarruna | ||
| The Basque word "babarruna" may be rooted in the ancient word "babar" meaning "food" and the suffix "-una" indicating "abundance." | |||
| Catalan | mongeta | ||
| The word "mongeta" in Catalan derives from the Arabic word "múng" meaning "bean" and also referred to a type of small bean used for making a specific dish. | |||
| Croatian | grah | ||
| The word 'grah' can also refer to a variety of legumes and peas, including chickpeas, lentils, and fava beans. | |||
| Danish | bønne | ||
| The Danish word "bønne" is derived from the Old Norse "baun", which also meant "bone". | |||
| Dutch | boon | ||
| The Dutch word "boon" can also refer to a blessing or a favor bestowed upon someone. | |||
| English | bean | ||
| The word "bean" originates from the Middle English word "bene," derived from the Old English word "bean," which referred to various legumes, including beans, peas, and lentils. | |||
| French | haricot | ||
| "Haricot", coming from "harigot", was initially "ragout", then anything cut in pieces, such as "ragout". | |||
| Frisian | bean | ||
| It is also used as a term of endearment in the diminutive form "beentsje". | |||
| Galician | feixón | ||
| The Galician word "feixón" originates from the Latin word "phaseolus", meaning "bean". | |||
| German | bohne | ||
| The word "Bohne" is related to the Old Low German word "bona" and ultimately to the Latin word "fabam" (bean). | |||
| Icelandic | baun | ||
| The Icelandic word 'baun' can also refer to the 'ball' of a foot or the 'sole' of a shoe. | |||
| Irish | pónaire | ||
| The word "pónaire" in Irish can also refer to a type of boat or a small island. | |||
| Italian | fagiolo | ||
| "Fagiolo" initially meant "string bean" and later also "common bean" | |||
| Luxembourgish | boun | ||
| The word "Boun" can also mean "beanstalk" or "vine" in Luxembourgish. | |||
| Maltese | fażola | ||
| Maltese fażola, fażulu 'bean,' from It. fagiolo 'bean,' via Sp. alubia or Fr. haricot (also from Sp.). | |||
| Norwegian | bønne | ||
| Originally it referred to the broad bean but today all types of leguminous seed is called "bønner". | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | feijão | ||
| The word "feijão" comes from the Latin "phaseolus", meaning "bean" or "kidney bean". | |||
| Scots Gaelic | bean | ||
| In Scots Gaelic, the word 'bean' can also refer to a woman or a fairy. | |||
| Spanish | frijol | ||
| The word "frijol" derives from the Nahuatl word "etli", meaning "flesh". | |||
| Swedish | böna | ||
| Böna is also the Swedish word for "prayer". | |||
| Welsh | ffa | ||
| In Welsh, "ffa" can also refer to the number 20. | |||
Bean in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | фасоля | ||
| The word "фасоля" is related to the Greek word "φασόλι" (bean), as well as the Belarusian word "боб" (pod). | |||
| Bosnian | grah | ||
| The word "grah" in Bosnian can also mean "hail" or "a sudden attack". | |||
| Bulgarian | боб | ||
| The word "боб" also refers to a Bulgarian folk dance. | |||
| Czech | fazole | ||
| Slovo "fazole" pochází z latinského "phaseolus" a původně znamenalo jen zahradní fazol obecný, teprve později získalo význam pro různé druhy bobů. | |||
| Estonian | uba | ||
| 'Uba' also refers to the seeds of some plants other than beans (e.g. peas). | |||
| Finnish | papu | ||
| The word "papu" also refers to the fruit of the bean plant and the seed coat of the bean, and it is related to the word "papu" in Estonian and the word "bób" in Polish, all of which mean "bean." | |||
| Hungarian | bab | ||
| The Hungarian word "bab" also refers to a kind of flatbread, which is similar to the pita bread. | |||
| Latvian | pupa | ||
| Latvian “pupa” (bean) refers to the shape of a particular bean species – kidney beans. | |||
| Lithuanian | pupelė | ||
| The word "pupelė" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root "*peu-", meaning "to swell". | |||
| Macedonian | грав | ||
| 'Грав' (bean) is also used as a slang term for 'money' or 'cash'. | |||
| Polish | fasola | ||
| The word "fasola" is derived from the Greek "phaseolos", meaning "bean", and also refers to a type of bean commonly used in Polish cuisine. | |||
| Romanian | fasole | ||
| The word "fasole" is probably of Slavic origin and is related to the word "faze" which means "kidney bean". | |||
| Russian | фасоль | ||
| The word "фасоль" comes from the Greek word "φασίολος" (phasíolos), which means "kidney bean". | |||
| Serbian | пасуљ | ||
| The word "пасуљ" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *pasuljь, which is cognate with the Albanian word fasule and the Greek word φασόλι. | |||
| Slovak | fazuľa | ||
| The word “fazuľa” in Slovak is also used to refer to “beans” and “pulses”. Therefore, it can be used to refer to all types of beans, including kidney beans, chickpeas, lentils, and soybeans. | |||
| Slovenian | fižol | ||
| The name "fižol" is originally Germanic in origin, likely from an ancient form "*pisa" "pea" in Proto-Germanic, akin to the English name "pea". | |||
| Ukrainian | квасоля | ||
| The word "квасоля" originates from the Proto-Slavic word "*kvassol'a", which means "sour cabbage juice" or "pickled cabbage". | |||
Bean in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | শিম | ||
| The word 'শিম' may also refer to the string of a musical instrument or the edge of a piece of cloth. | |||
| Gujarati | બીન | ||
| The Gujarati word "બીન" (bean) derives from the Sanskrit word "वीन" (vina), referring to a stringed instrument, and also has alternate meanings including "without" and "other". | |||
| Hindi | सेम | ||
| The Hindi word "सेम" can also refer to a type of long pod containing multiple seeds, or to the seeds themselves. | |||
| Kannada | ಹುರುಳಿ | ||
| ಹುರುಳಿ can also refer to a type of pulse or lentil, specifically to black gram or urad dal. | |||
| Malayalam | കാപ്പിക്കുരു | ||
| The word "കാപ്പിക്കുരു" in Malayalam also refers to the person who delivers messages or does errands for a king or a wealthy person. | |||
| Marathi | बीन | ||
| The Marathi word "बीन" (bean) may also refer to a musical instrument, or to a person who plays a musical instrument. | |||
| Nepali | सिमी | ||
| The word "सिमी" in Nepali is derived from the Sanskrit word "सिम्ब" meaning "pod". It also refers to a specific type of bean known as the "cowpea". | |||
| Punjabi | ਬੀਨ | ||
| The word "ਬੀਨ" (bean) is likely derived from the Sanskrit word "bîna" meaning "lute" or "musical instrument", possibly referring to the bean's shape resembling a musical instrument. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | බෝංචි | ||
| The word "බෝංචි" (bean) is derived from the Sanskrit word "वंक" (curved), referring to the curved shape of beans. | |||
| Tamil | பீன் | ||
| In Tamil, the word "பீன்" is derived from the Portuguese word "feijão", which itself originated from the Latin word "phaseolus" meaning "bean". Interestingly, the term "பீன்" can also refer to a "wart" or "mole" in the colloquial Tamil lexicon. | |||
| Telugu | బీన్ | ||
| The word "బీన్" (bean) in Telugu also refers to a kind of musical instrument, similar to the sitar. | |||
| Urdu | بین | ||
| The word 'bean' is also used figuratively in Urdu to refer to something small and insignificant, or to something that is unimportant or worthless. | |||
Bean in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 豆 | ||
| "豆" (bean) is also used as a classifier for things like peas, lentils, and soybeans. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 豆 | ||
| The character for 'bean' (豆) can also refer to small objects like peas or millet and was a measure of weight for one grain in ancient China. | |||
| Japanese | 豆 | ||
| "豆" can also mean "small" or "young" in Japanese. | |||
| Korean | 콩 | ||
| The word "콩" can also refer to a type of traditional Korean soy sauce called "chungjang" or "doenjang". | |||
| Mongolian | буурцаг | ||
| The word "буурцаг" is also used to refer to the shape of a crescent moon or the curve of a river. | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ပဲမျိုးစုံ | ||
| "ပဲ" is also the name of a small bird that looks similar to a pigeon. | |||
Bean in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | kacang | ||
| The Indonesian word "kacang" can refer to a wide variety of leguminous seeds, including peanuts, soybeans, and mung beans. | |||
| Javanese | kacang buncis | ||
| The word "kacang buncis" in Javanese is also used to refer to peanuts, but is distinguished by the additional word "bunder" when referring to green beans. | |||
| Khmer | សណ្តែក | ||
| សណ្តែក also refers to a kind of sweet treat that is made with sticky rice. | |||
| Lao | ຖົ່ວ | ||
| The word ຖົ່ວ can also refer to the plant of the bean or the seeds of the bean | |||
| Malay | kacang | ||
| The Malay word "kacang" can also refer to groundnuts, peas or other legumes. | |||
| Thai | ถั่ว | ||
| "ถั่ว" may also refer to the peanut (ถั่วลิสง). | |||
| Vietnamese | hạt đậu | ||
| "Hạt đậu" also means a unit of area in rural Vietnam | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | bean | ||
Bean in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | lobya | ||
| The word "lobya" shares its root with the word "lobio", meaning "green bean" in Georgian. | |||
| Kazakh | бұршақ | ||
| In Kazakh, 'бұршақ' also refers to the plant pea, which is considered a type of bean. | |||
| Kyrgyz | буурчак | ||
| The Kyrgyz word "буурчак" also refers to a type of bread made from bean flour. | |||
| Tajik | лӯбиё | ||
| In Tajik, "лӯбиё" (bean) has the alternate meaning of "unfertile" or "barren" when used to describe women. | |||
| Turkmen | noýba | ||
| Uzbek | loviya | ||
| The Uzbek word "loviya" is thought to be derived from the Persian word "lubia" via Arabic, and is cognate with the Spanish word "alubia" and the Portuguese word "feijão". | |||
| Uyghur | پۇرچاق | ||
Bean in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | pīni | ||
| In Hawaiian, "pīni" can refer to the seed of a plant, a pearl, or a small bead. | |||
| Maori | pīni | ||
| Pīni can also mean 'kidney' or the 'kidney/loin' of a person or animal. | |||
| Samoan | pi | ||
| "Pi" can also mean "to make a mistake" in Samoan, and is often used as an exclamation of surprise or disbelief. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | bean | ||
| The word "bean" in Tagalog (Filipino) may also refer to the seeds of other plants, such as peas or peanuts, or to the fruit of the tamarind tree. | |||
Bean in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | jawasa | ||
| Guarani | habas rehegua | ||
Bean in International Languages
| Esperanto | fabo | ||
| The Esperanto word "fabo" can also mean "fable" or "myth". | |||
| Latin | faba | ||
| It is suggested that faba was also a term for voting beans, with the etymology related to the action of speaking. | |||
Bean in Others Languages
| Greek | φασόλι | ||
| Φασόλι derives from the Medieval Latin word "faseolus", which is the origin of the English word "bean". In Medieval Greek it also meant "kidney" and was later applied to the bean due to its shape. | |||
| Hmong | taum | ||
| Hmong “taum” (bean) is a borrowing from the Chinese “dòu” (bean), both words ultimately stemming from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *“br-ti.” | |||
| Kurdish | fasûlî | ||
| In Kurdish, “fasûlî” has also been used to refer to a type of lentil, specifically the brown variety known as “mercâ.” | |||
| Turkish | fasulye | ||
| "Fasulye" can also refer to the stringed instrument known as a "beanstalk". | |||
| Xhosa | imbotyi | ||
| I'mboti can also refer to the round and hard seed of the umhlaba (Voacanga africana). | |||
| Yiddish | בעבל | ||
| In Yiddish slang, 'בעבל' can also mean a young and inexperienced person. | |||
| Zulu | ubhontshisi | ||
| The word "ubhontshisi" can also refer to a type of game played with beans. | |||
| Assamese | বীন | ||
| Aymara | jawasa | ||
| Bhojpuri | बीन के बा | ||
| Dhivehi | ބިސް | ||
| Dogri | बीन | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | bean | ||
| Guarani | habas rehegua | ||
| Ilocano | bean | ||
| Krio | bin | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | فاسۆلیا | ||
| Maithili | बीन | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯕꯤꯟ꯫ | ||
| Mizo | bean a ni | ||
| Oromo | baaqelaa | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ବିନ୍ | ||
| Quechua | habas | ||
| Sanskrit | ताम्बूलम् | ||
| Tatar | фасоль | ||
| Tigrinya | ፋጁል | ||
| Tsonga | bean | ||