Beginning in Different Languages
Discover 'Beginning' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'beginning' holds a special place in our hearts and minds as it represents the start of something new and exciting. It is a concept that transcends cultures and languages, and is often associated with hope, potential, and opportunity. From the first page of a book to the dawn of a new day, the beginning signifies a fresh start and a chance to make a change.
Throughout history, the beginning has been celebrated in various ways across different cultures. In many ancient civilizations, the new year was marked with ceremonies and rituals to ensure a prosperous and successful year ahead. The beginning of a journey was also considered a significant event, often accompanied by prayers and offerings to the gods.
For language enthusiasts and cultural aficionados, understanding the translation of 'beginning' in different languages can provide valuable insights into the unique perspectives and worldviews of different cultures. Here are some sample translations to pique your curiosity:
- French: début
- Spanish: comienzo
- German: Anfang
- Mandarin: 开始 (kāishǐ)
- Japanese: 始め (hajime)
Stay tuned for more fascinating translations of 'beginning' in various languages, and discover the rich cultural significance of this simple yet powerful word.
Beginning
Beginning in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | begin | ||
| In Afrikaans, "begin" can also mean "to understand" or "to grasp". | |||
| Amharic | በመጀመር ላይ | ||
| ብሌቄሰቻባሌ መህቄላ ማቂሃር ኢሉተቄላ ብሌሾሌቄላ ኔሁሤላ ቻቦላቄላ መራር ብሓሌመሌቅላ ቄሰባሌ እሀቄላ ብሌሾሌቄላ ኔሁሤላ ቻቦላቄላ ማቂሃር ኢሉተቄላ ብሌሾሌቄላ ኔሁሤላ ነሽሌመሌቅላ ቄሰባሌ እሀቄላ ብሌሾሌቄላ ኔሁሤላ ቻቦላቄላ መራር ኢሉተቄላ እሃላሀ. | |||
| Hausa | farawa | ||
| The term 'farawa' can also refer to the first day of the week in the Hausa calendar. | |||
| Igbo | mbido | ||
| "Mbido" in Igbo also means "first position" or "first place" and can refer to someone or something that is first or foremost. | |||
| Malagasy | voalohany | ||
| The word "voalohany" comes from the verb "mivaloha" meaning "to love something or somebody". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | kuyambira | ||
| Shona | kutanga | ||
| The Shona word "kutanga" can also refer to the "act of initiating" or the "source" of something. | |||
| Somali | laga bilaabo | ||
| The word "laga bilaabo" is also used in Somali to refer to the origin or starting point of something. | |||
| Sesotho | qalo | ||
| The word "qalo" in Sesotho can also refer to a small or insignificant thing. | |||
| Swahili | mwanzo | ||
| The word 'mwanzo' can also mean the 'source' of something, or its 'origin'. | |||
| Xhosa | ukuqala | ||
| "Ukuqala" means "the point at which something starts," but also means "to weave" and "to arrange or set something in order." | |||
| Yoruba | ibere | ||
| "(Ibere) (Beginning) This word may also be called the "mother" in the sense that all other things started from it and with it." | |||
| Zulu | ukuqala | ||
| 'Ukukala' may alternatively refer to 'starting something new' or 'composing a song, poem, or story'. | |||
| Bambara | daminɛ | ||
| Ewe | gɔmedzedze | ||
| Kinyarwanda | intangiriro | ||
| Lingala | ebandeli | ||
| Luganda | okutandika | ||
| Sepedi | mathomong | ||
| Twi (Akan) | rehyɛ aseɛ | ||
Beginning in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | البداية | ||
| The word "البداية" can also refer to the "first day of a journey" or the "first stage of something" in Arabic. | |||
| Hebrew | התחלה | ||
| The Hebrew word "התחלה" (beginning) is derived from the root "חול" (to spin, to rotate), alluding to the cyclic nature of time and the perpetual cycle of beginnings and endings. | |||
| Pashto | پیل | ||
| پیل can also mean "origin" or "source". | |||
| Arabic | البداية | ||
| The word "البداية" can also refer to the "first day of a journey" or the "first stage of something" in Arabic. | |||
Beginning in Western European Languages
| Albanian | fillim | ||
| "Fill" in Albanian can also mean "year". | |||
| Basque | hasiera | ||
| In Basque, "hasiera" can also mean "origin" or "source". | |||
| Catalan | inici | ||
| "Inici" comes from the Latin "initium", meaning "beginning, commencement, or origin". | |||
| Croatian | početak | ||
| "Početak" is derived from Proto-Slavic word "počęti", which means "to start, to begin, to make, to create". | |||
| Danish | starten | ||
| The Danish word "starten" also refers to the "beginning of a race" in English. | |||
| Dutch | begin | ||
| The Dutch word "beginnen" and its past participle "begonnen" are cognate with the English "begin" and "begun". | |||
| English | beginning | ||
| Beginning traces back to Old English onginnan meaning "to undertake (a job or task)". | |||
| French | début | ||
| The word "début" derives from Old French, where it meant "the first blow" or "the first move" in a duel or other contest. | |||
| Frisian | begjin | ||
| The word "begjin" can be used to refer to a person who begs, similar to the Dutch word "bedelaar" | |||
| Galician | comezo | ||
| "Comezo" shares its origin with "comienzo" in Spanish and "começar" in Portuguese, all of Latin origin with the infinitive "cominciare" | |||
| German | anfang | ||
| "Anfang" in German is cognate with "anfangen" (to start), and related to the Old High German "anafēn" (to receive). | |||
| Icelandic | byrjun | ||
| "Byrjun" is also the name of the first day in the month, and the first month in a season, in Icelandic. | |||
| Irish | ag tosú | ||
| Etymology unknown, possibly related to Welsh | |||
| Italian | inizio | ||
| The Italian word "inizio" is derived from the Latin word "initium," which means "a commencement" and is related to the verb "initiare," which means "to enter into." | |||
| Luxembourgish | ufank | ||
| Ufank is used in the sense of the start of a journey or the start of a task, or as an alternative for "begin" | |||
| Maltese | bidu | ||
| The Maltese word "bidu" is derived from the Arabic word "bidāya" meaning "commencement" and is also used to refer to the first part of a book or chapter. | |||
| Norwegian | begynnelse | ||
| The Norwegian word, "begynnelse", meaning "beginning", derives from the Middle Low German, "beginnen", and is cognate with the English verb, "to begin". | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | começo | ||
| "Começo" derives from the Late Latin word "comitium" (meaning "meeting place") through Old French "commencement" (meaning "an assembly" or "a commencement"). | |||
| Scots Gaelic | a ’tòiseachadh | ||
| Scots Gaelic "a ’tòiseachadh" (literally - "at the starting") can also mean "an incentive" or "an initiation" | |||
| Spanish | comenzando | ||
| The verb "comenzar" comes from the Late Latin "cominitiare", meaning "to put together the threads of a web". | |||
| Swedish | början | ||
| The word "början" shares its etymology with the Old Norse word "byrja", meaning "to begin" or "to come into being". | |||
| Welsh | dechrau | ||
| The Welsh word "dechrau" shares its root with "dehongli" which means to "commence, initiate, begin or start" in Mandarin Chinese. | |||
Beginning in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | пач | ||
| "Пач" is also the name of a small river in Belarus. | |||
| Bosnian | početak | ||
| The term početak shares the same roots with the Slavic word which means "to wait", suggesting the original meaning of "the start of waiting", i.e. "the start of time". | |||
| Bulgarian | начало | ||
| The word "начало" can also mean "an initiative", or "a principle". | |||
| Czech | začátek | ||
| The word "začátek" is derived from the Proto-Slavic root *čęti, meaning "to start" or "to begin." | |||
| Estonian | alguses | ||
| The Estonian word "alguses" can also mean "at first" or "in the beginning". | |||
| Finnish | alku | ||
| The word "alku" is also related to the words "alkaa" (to start) and "aloittaa" (to initiate). | |||
| Hungarian | kezdet | ||
| The word 'kezdet' is derived from the Proto-Uralic root *keś, meaning 'to originate'. | |||
| Latvian | sākumā | ||
| The Old Prussian word "sakuman" is possibly an etymological cognate. | |||
| Lithuanian | pradžios | ||
| "Pradžios" is also a Lithuanian surname, which is a form of the surname "Pradauskas". | |||
| Macedonian | почеток | ||
| The word "почеток" in Macedonian has a root "поч" which means "to start" and the suffix "-ок" which indicates a noun. It can also mean "the first part of something" or "the point at which something starts". | |||
| Polish | początek | ||
| The Polish word "początek" may also refer to the origin of something. | |||
| Romanian | început | ||
| The Romanian word "început" derives from the Proto-Indo-European root *enkw-, meaning "to put into" or "to fasten." | |||
| Russian | начало | ||
| The word "начало" can also mean "source" or "origin". | |||
| Serbian | почетак | ||
| The word "почетак" also means "cause" or "origin" in Serbian. | |||
| Slovak | začiatok | ||
| The Slovak word "začiatok" derives from the Proto-Slavic word *začinъ (meaning "start, origin"), which shares an origin with the word "činovi" (meaning "actions, deeds") in Serbo-Croatian. | |||
| Slovenian | začetek | ||
| Začetek derives from the Proto-Slavic *za-čętъkъ meaning "starting point" or "beginning" | |||
| Ukrainian | початок | ||
| "Початок" (beginning) comes from "почат" (start), and also refers to an ear of corn. | |||
Beginning in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | শুরু | ||
| The word "শুরু" in Bengali also means "to start", "to initiate", "to commence", and "to originate". | |||
| Gujarati | શરૂઆત | ||
| The word "શરૂઆત" can also mean "origin," "commencement," or "starting point" in Gujarati. | |||
| Hindi | शुरू | ||
| The word "शुरू" (beginning) in Hindi is derived from the Sanskrit word "शुरु" (to commence). | |||
| Kannada | ಆರಂಭ | ||
| The word "ಆರಂಭ" is derived from the verb "ಆರು" which means "to get going". | |||
| Malayalam | ആരംഭം | ||
| The word 'ആരംഭം' is derived from Sanskrit and originally meant 'to embark on a journey'. | |||
| Marathi | सुरुवात | ||
| The Marathi word 'सुरुवात' originates from the Sanskrit word 'सुरूप', meaning 'beautiful form' or 'good appearance'. It also has connotations of 'foundation' or 'base' and is often used in a philosophical context to refer to the starting point or origin of something. | |||
| Nepali | सुरुवात | ||
| सुरुवात is derived from the Sanskrit word 'suru', meaning 'to start' or 'to begin'. | |||
| Punjabi | ਸ਼ੁਰੂਆਤ | ||
| The word "ਸ਼ੁਰੂਆਤ" also means "the first letter of a word" or "the top of a page" in Punjabi. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | ආරම්භය | ||
| "ආරම්භය" is an abstract noun in Sinhalese which has various meanings depending on its context, including commencement, origin, cause and basis. | |||
| Tamil | ஆரம்பம் | ||
| The Tamil word "ஆரம்பம்" can also refer to the first letter of a word or the opening part of a book chapter. | |||
| Telugu | ప్రారంభం | ||
| The word "ప్రారంభం" can also refer to an auspicious occasion or a ceremony marking the commencement of an event. | |||
| Urdu | آغاز | ||
| "آغاز" also means "the start of a poetic composition or a musical performance" in Urdu. | |||
Beginning in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 开始 | ||
| 开始 derives from 始 (“beginning”) and 端 (“tip, end”), suggesting the inception of an action or process. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 開始 | ||
| "始" means "beginning" and "do" and is used in "開始" but is also a surname; "開" is found in words like "開放" (open) or "開花" (blossom). | |||
| Japanese | 始まり | ||
| "Hajimari" can also mean "the first time" or "the origin" in Japanese. | |||
| Korean | 처음 | ||
| "처음" is also used to refer to the first time you meet someone. | |||
| Mongolian | эхлэл | ||
| The word "эхлэл" is derived from the verb "эхлэх", which means "to start" or "to originate". | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | အစ | ||
| "အစ" is also a verb and means "to come about" or "to happen". | |||
Beginning in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | awal | ||
| The word "awal" in Indonesian can also refer to a "first step" or a "source". | |||
| Javanese | wiwitan | ||
| In ancient Java, the term "wiwitan" also referred to a council of royal advisors and regional leaders. | |||
| Khmer | ចាប់ផ្តើម | ||
| This Khmer word can also mean the beginning movement in a dance or the beginning of a meal. | |||
| Lao | ການເລີ່ມຕົ້ນ | ||
| Malay | permulaan | ||
| The word "permulaan" has roots in the Proto-Austronesian word "*mulaŋ" which means "to sprout" or "to begin." | |||
| Thai | จุดเริ่มต้น | ||
| จุดเริ่มต้น is a Thai loanword from Sanskrit and Pali, cognate with the Hindi "ārambha." | |||
| Vietnamese | bắt đầu | ||
| The word "bắt đầu" in Vietnamese can also mean "to commence" or "to undertake". | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | simula | ||
Beginning in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | başlanğıc | ||
| "Başlanğıc" in Azerbaijani comes from the Persian word "ser"+ "anlac", meaning "the starting point" or "the source". | |||
| Kazakh | басы | ||
| The word "басы" also has the alternate meaning of "top" or "peak", likely derived from its root meaning as "the point of origin". | |||
| Kyrgyz | башталышы | ||
| The Kyrgyz word "башталышы" can also refer to the "origin" or "root" of something. | |||
| Tajik | оғоз | ||
| The word 'оғоз' in Tajik can also refer to the mouth of a person or animal or the opening of a container or passage | |||
| Turkmen | başlangyjy | ||
| Uzbek | boshlanishi | ||
| The word "boshlanishi" can also refer to a "source" or "origin" in Uzbek. | |||
| Uyghur | باشلىنىش | ||
Beginning in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | e hoʻomaka ana | ||
| "Hoʻomaka" is also used as an adjective meaning "first" or "primary". | |||
| Maori | timatanga | ||
| {"text": "The Maori word "timatanga," meaning "beginning," also refers to the first stage of a marae ceremonial welcome."} | |||
| Samoan | amataga | ||
| The second component of the word 'amataga', 'taga', means 'edge'; thus, the 'amataga' could be the edge or the end of something. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | simula | ||
| In Philippine folklore, "simula" refers to the first couple created by the god Bathala who descended to the physical world from the spiritual realm. | |||
Beginning in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | qallta | ||
| Guarani | oñepyrũ | ||
Beginning in International Languages
| Esperanto | komenco | ||
| The Esperanto word "komenco" is derived from the Latin "comincio" and also means "commencement." | |||
| Latin | principium | ||
| "Principium" also means "principle" or "first principle", and is related to the word "princeps" ("first"). | |||
Beginning in Others Languages
| Greek | αρχή | ||
| The word "αρχή" in Greek can also refer to "power", "authority", or "principle". | |||
| Hmong | pib | ||
| The word "pib" can also mean "first" or "foremost" in Hmong. | |||
| Kurdish | destpêk | ||
| In the Sorani dialect, the word "destpêk" can also refer to a "headache". | |||
| Turkish | başlangıç | ||
| "Başlangıç" means both "beginning" and "the act of putting one's head on something" in Turkish. | |||
| Xhosa | ukuqala | ||
| "Ukuqala" means "the point at which something starts," but also means "to weave" and "to arrange or set something in order." | |||
| Yiddish | אָנהייב | ||
| The word "אָנהייב" in Yiddish also means "the first portion of a meal". | |||
| Zulu | ukuqala | ||
| 'Ukukala' may alternatively refer to 'starting something new' or 'composing a song, poem, or story'. | |||
| Assamese | আৰম্ভণি | ||
| Aymara | qallta | ||
| Bhojpuri | शुरुआत | ||
| Dhivehi | ފެށުން | ||
| Dogri | शुरुआत | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | simula | ||
| Guarani | oñepyrũ | ||
| Ilocano | rugi | ||
| Krio | bigin | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | دەستپێکردن | ||
| Maithili | शुरुआत | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯑꯍꯧꯕ | ||
| Mizo | tirlam | ||
| Oromo | jalqaba | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଆରମ୍ଭ | ||
| Quechua | qallariy | ||
| Sanskrit | आरंभ | ||
| Tatar | башы | ||
| Tigrinya | መጀመርታ | ||
| Tsonga | masungulo | ||