Birthday in Different Languages
Discover 'Birthday' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
Birthdays are a universal concept, yet the way we celebrate them can vary greatly from culture to culture. The word 'birthday' itself is significant, marking the anniversary of the day a person was born and began their journey in this world. This special day is often celebrated with family, friends, and traditions that are unique to each culture.
In many Western cultures, birthday celebrations involve cake, candles, and gifts. But in other parts of the world, birthday traditions can be quite different. For example, in some Asian cultures, it is customary to visit a temple on your birthday to offer prayers and show gratitude for another year of life. And in some South American countries, it is traditional to eat sweets shaped like keys on your birthday, symbolizing the opening of new doors and opportunities in the coming year.
Knowing the translation of 'birthday' in different languages can be a fun way to learn about other cultures and traditions. For example, in Spanish, 'birthday' is 'cumpleaños', while in French, it is 'anniversaire de naissance'. In German, it is 'Geburtstag', and in Italian, it is 'compleanno'.
In this list, you will find the translations of 'birthday' in a variety of languages, from common ones like Spanish and French to more obscure ones like Welsh and Maori. Whether you are planning a multicultural birthday celebration or simply interested in learning more about the world around you, this list is sure to inspire and educate.
Birthday
Birthday in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | verjaarsdag | ||
| The Afrikaans word "verjaarsdag" originates from the Dutch word "verjaardag" and literally means "yearly day". | |||
| Amharic | የልደት ቀን | ||
| Hausa | ranar haihuwa | ||
| The Hausa word "ranar haihuwa" literally translates to "day of birth". | |||
| Igbo | ụbọchị ọmụmụ | ||
| The Igbo word 'ụbọchị ọmụmụ' could also refer to 'anniversary' or be split to mean 'day of birth' or 'day of celebration'. | |||
| Malagasy | fitsingerenan'ny andro nahaterahana | ||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | tsiku lobadwa | ||
| The word "tsiku lobadwa" can also mean "day of birth". | |||
| Shona | bhavhdhe | ||
| "Bhavhadhe" can also mean "time" or "era". | |||
| Somali | dhalasho | ||
| The word 'dhalasho' can also refer to a 'gathering of people'. | |||
| Sesotho | letsatsi la tsoalo | ||
| The word is derived from the Sesotho words "letsatsi" (day) and "tsoalo" (birth). | |||
| Swahili | siku ya kuzaliwa | ||
| Siku ya kuzaliwa is etymologically based on 'kuzaliwa', meaning 'to be born', and 'siku', meaning 'day'. | |||
| Xhosa | usuku lokuzalwa | ||
| The Xhosa word “usuku lokuzalwa” literally means “the day of giving birth”. | |||
| Yoruba | ojo ibi | ||
| The Yoruba word "ojo ibi" comes from the phrase "ojo ti a bi," meaning "the day on which one was born." | |||
| Zulu | usuku lokuzalwa | ||
| Usuku lokuzalwa comes from the Zulu language and literally means "day of birth". | |||
| Bambara | wolodon | ||
| Ewe | dzigbe | ||
| Kinyarwanda | isabukuru | ||
| Lingala | aniversere | ||
| Luganda | amazaalibwa | ||
| Sepedi | letšatši la matswalo | ||
| Twi (Akan) | awoda | ||
Birthday in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | عيد الميلاد | ||
| عيد الميلاد (Eid al-Milad) is a compound word, with Eid meaning "feast" or "festival" and Milad meaning "birth" or "nativity." | |||
| Hebrew | יום הולדת | ||
| יום הולדת is a compound of the Hebrew words יום (day) and הולדת (birth), but it is also homophonous with יומהולדת (mother's birthday), a Talmudic term referring to a woman's menstrual period. | |||
| Pashto | د زیږیدو نیټه | ||
| Arabic | عيد الميلاد | ||
| عيد الميلاد (Eid al-Milad) is a compound word, with Eid meaning "feast" or "festival" and Milad meaning "birth" or "nativity." | |||
Birthday in Western European Languages
| Albanian | ditëlindjen | ||
| The word "ditëlindjen" in Albanian shares the same Proto-Indo-European root as the Latin "natalis" (birth), the English "native," and the Russian "rozhdeniye" (birth). | |||
| Basque | urtebetetze | ||
| The Basque word for "birthday" is "urtebetetze" which means literally "year-anniversary". | |||
| Catalan | aniversari | ||
| The Catalan word "aniversari" originates from the Latin "anniversarius," meaning "yearly" or "recurring on a yearly basis. | |||
| Croatian | rođendan | ||
| The Slavic root of "rođendan" also translates to "Christmas." | |||
| Danish | fødselsdag | ||
| The word Fødselsdag is derived from the old Norse word fæðingardagr, which means "day of birth". | |||
| Dutch | verjaardag | ||
| The Dutch word "verjaardag" literally means "day of birth". | |||
| English | birthday | ||
| The word "birthday" is a combination of "birth" and "day". | |||
| French | anniversaire | ||
| The word "anniversaire" comes from the Latin phrase "annus" (year) and "vertere" (to turn), so it literally means "the turning of the year." | |||
| Frisian | jierdei | ||
| The Frisian word for birthday, "jierdei", literally means "yearly day" | |||
| Galician | aniversario | ||
| The word "aniversario" in Galician comes from the Latin word "anniversarius", meaning "yearly". | |||
| German | geburtstag | ||
| The word 'Geburtstag' is derived from 'Geburt' (birth) and 'Tag' (day), but in some regions it can also refer to a person's name day. | |||
| Icelandic | afmælisdagur | ||
| "Afmælisdagur" is derived from the Old Norse word "afmæli," which means "the day of measurement." This refers to the practice of measuring a person's age from the day of their birth. | |||
| Irish | breithlá | ||
| Breithlá is also the name of an Irish children's cartoon, a children's magazine, and a radio show about Irish folklore. | |||
| Italian | compleanno | ||
| Italian "compleanno" derives from "compire gli anni", "to complete the years", or "anniversario di nascita". | |||
| Luxembourgish | gebuertsdag | ||
| Gebuertsdag is derived from 'Geburt' (birth) and 'Dag' (day) and literally means 'Day of Birth'. | |||
| Maltese | għeluq | ||
| The Maltese word "għeluq" is derived from the Arabic word "ghalaq," meaning "to close" or "to complete," signifying the completion of a full year of life. | |||
| Norwegian | fødselsdag | ||
| "Fødselsdag" is derived from the Old Norse "føðelsdagr", meaning "birth day" and also "day of giving birth". | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | aniversário | ||
| The Portuguese word "aniversário" derives from the Latin "annus" (year) and "vertere" (to turn), meaning "the day the year turns". | |||
| Scots Gaelic | co-là-breith | ||
| The word 'co-là-breith' is a compound noun consisting of the words 'co-là' (life) and 'breith' (birth). | |||
| Spanish | cumpleaños | ||
| The word 'cumpleaños' in Spanish is derived from the Latin phrase 'compleri annos,' meaning 'to complete the years'. | |||
| Swedish | födelsedag | ||
| **Födelsedag** derives from the Old Norse **fæðingardagr**, meaning 'day of birth'. | |||
| Welsh | pen-blwydd | ||
| "Pen-blwydd" literally means "top of a year" and also refers to the "anniversary" of a saint's day or other festival. | |||
Birthday in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | дзень нараджэння | ||
| Bosnian | rođendan | ||
| "Rođendan" literally means "that which was born", in reference to the day of one's birth. | |||
| Bulgarian | рожден ден | ||
| The Bulgarian word 'pojden den' can also refer to 'day of birth', not necessarily of a person. | |||
| Czech | narozeniny | ||
| The word "narozeniny" comes from the verb "narodit se," meaning "to be born," and the suffix "-iny," which signifies a period of time. | |||
| Estonian | sünnipäev | ||
| "Sünnipäev" means "birthday" in Estonian and literally translates to "birth day." | |||
| Finnish | syntymäpäivä | ||
| The word "syntymäpäivä" literally means "day of birth" in Finnish. | |||
| Hungarian | születésnap | ||
| "Születésnap" means "born day" in Hungarian, but literally means "day of the birth." | |||
| Latvian | dzimšanas diena | ||
| The Latvian word "dzimšanas diena" literally means "day of birth". | |||
| Lithuanian | gimtadienis | ||
| The word "gimtadienis" has roots in the Baltic languages with "gimti" meaning "to be born" and "dienis" meaning "day" giving the full meaning as "day of birth". | |||
| Macedonian | роденден | ||
| The word “роденден” (birthday) comes from the Slavic root “rod” (to give birth). | |||
| Polish | urodziny | ||
| The word "urodziny" comes from the word "urodzić się", meaning "to be born". | |||
| Romanian | zi de nastere | ||
| The Romanian word "zi de nastere" literally translates to "day of birth." | |||
| Russian | день рождения | ||
| The word "день рождения" literally means "a day of birth", but in some contexts, it can also refer to the anniversary of a particular event. | |||
| Serbian | рођендан | ||
| The word "рођендан" literally translates to "day of birth" in Serbian. | |||
| Slovak | narodeniny | ||
| The word "narodeniny" is derived from the Slavic root "rod-", meaning "to give birth" or "to be born". | |||
| Slovenian | rojstni dan | ||
| The word "rojstni dan" is a compound word that literally means "day of birth". | |||
| Ukrainian | день народження | ||
| “День народження” is also used to refer to someone's birth anniversary. | |||
Birthday in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | জন্মদিন | ||
| The word জন্মদিন also means "anniversary" or "commemoration". | |||
| Gujarati | જન્મદિવસ | ||
| The word “જન્મદિવસ” literally means “the day of birth” in Gujarati, and it is also often used to refer to the anniversary of a person's birth. | |||
| Hindi | जन्मदिन | ||
| The word "जन्मदिन" is derived from Sanskrit and literally means "the day of birth". | |||
| Kannada | ಹುಟ್ಟುಹಬ್ಬ | ||
| The word "ಹುಟ್ಟುಹಬ್ಬ" ("birthday") in Kannada can also mean "the day of birth" or "the anniversary of one's birth." | |||
| Malayalam | ജന്മദിനം | ||
| 'ജന്മദിനം' means 'the day of birth', but it also means 'the day of death' | |||
| Marathi | वाढदिवस | ||
| वाढदिवस is formed by adding the Marathi words 'वाढ' (meaning growth) and 'दिवस' (meaning day). | |||
| Nepali | जन्मदिन | ||
| In Nepali, the word "जन्मदिन" literally means "birth day" | |||
| Punjabi | ਜਨਮਦਿਨ | ||
| The word "janamdin" has two parts, "janam" meaning "birth" and "din" meaning "day", but the word also refers to the anniversary of someone's death or the first day in office for a priest. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | උපන් දිනය | ||
| The word "උපන් දිනය" in Sinhala can also refer to the day a child is born or to a birthday celebration. | |||
| Tamil | பிறந்த நாள் | ||
| The term "பிறந்த நாள்" literally means "born day" in Tamil, implying the day of one's birth. | |||
| Telugu | పుట్టినరోజు | ||
| The word "పుట్టినరోజు" also refers to the act of giving birth and the day on which one is born. | |||
| Urdu | سالگرہ | ||
| The Urdu word سالگرہ, meaning birthday, originates from the Sanskrit word 'sarga,' meaning 'creation' or 'beginning'. | |||
Birthday in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 生日 | ||
| The first character, 生 (shēng), means 'give birth' or 'grow', and the second character, 日 (rì), means 'sun' or 'day'. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 生日 | ||
| In Chinese, the word 生日 (birthday) can also mean the | |||
| Japanese | お誕生日 | ||
| The literal translation of the characters in “お誕生日” is “Honorable Birth Day”. | |||
| Korean | 생신 | ||
| 생신 can refer to both the birthday of a person and the celebration of an anniversary | |||
| Mongolian | төрсөн өдөр | ||
| The word "төрсөн өдөр" can also mean "the day of one's birth" or "the anniversary of one's birth." | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | မွေးနေ့ | ||
Birthday in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | ulang tahun | ||
| The Indonesian word "ulang tahun" literally means "repetition of years". | |||
| Javanese | ulang taun | ||
| Literally meaning "return of the year", "ulang taun" has different connotations in different contexts. | |||
| Khmer | ថ្ងៃកំណើត | ||
| "ថ្ងៃកំណើត" can also be used to refer to an anniversary, the date on which an event occurred in a previous year. | |||
| Lao | ວັນເກີດ | ||
| Malay | hari jadi | ||
| The term "hari jadi" literally means "day of birth" or "day of arrival" in Malay. | |||
| Thai | วันเกิด | ||
| The Thai word for birthday, “วันเกิด” (wan keut), also means “the day that occurred,” reflecting the belief that one's destiny is determined based on the day they were born. | |||
| Vietnamese | sinh nhật | ||
| "Sinh nhật" means "to give birth" but also denotes someone's birthday, a clever play on words because the day of birth is like a day of rebirth. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kaarawan | ||
Birthday in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | ad günü | ||
| "Ad günü" in Azerbaijani literally translates to "name day" and refers to both a person's birthday and saint's day. | |||
| Kazakh | туған күн | ||
| The word "туған күн" literally translates to "birth day" in Kazakh. | |||
| Kyrgyz | туулган күн | ||
| Tajik | зодрӯз | ||
| The word зодрӯз ('birthday') is derived from the Persian words 'zo' meaning 'life' and 'rūz' meaning 'day'. | |||
| Turkmen | doglan güni | ||
| Uzbek | tug'ilgan kun | ||
| The word "tug'ilgan kun" literally means "day of birth" in Uzbek. | |||
| Uyghur | تۇغۇلغان كۈنى | ||
Birthday in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | lā hānau | ||
| Lā hānau can also signify a person's conception date. | |||
| Maori | rā whānau | ||
| The word “rā whānau” can also mean 'the day of birth' or 'the day of a person's passing'. | |||
| Samoan | aso fanau | ||
| In Samoan, 'aso fanau' can also refer to a birthday celebration or an anniversary. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | kaarawan | ||
| The word "kaarawan" in Tagalog comes from the root word "araw" which means "day", and the suffix "-an" which indicates a place or a point in time. | |||
Birthday in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | mara phuqhawi | ||
| Guarani | aramboty | ||
Birthday in International Languages
| Esperanto | naskiĝtago | ||
| The word "naskiĝtago" derives from the Esperanto words "naskiĝi" (to be born) and "tago" (day) and can also colloquially mean one's "age". | |||
| Latin | natalem | ||
| The Latin word 'natalem' also translates to 'native'. | |||
Birthday in Others Languages
| Greek | γενέθλια | ||
| The word 'γενέθλια' in Greek does not only mean 'birthday' but can also refer to the 'birth of a new day' or 'origin'. | |||
| Hmong | hnub yug | ||
| The Hmong word "hnub yug" literally means "the day of birth". | |||
| Kurdish | rojbûn | ||
| In Kurdish, "Rojbûn" derives from the words "roj" (day) and "bûn" (existence), signifying the celebration of the day of one's arrival into the world. | |||
| Turkish | doğum günü | ||
| "Doğum günü" literally translates to "day of birth" in Turkish. | |||
| Xhosa | usuku lokuzalwa | ||
| The Xhosa word “usuku lokuzalwa” literally means “the day of giving birth”. | |||
| Yiddish | דיין געבורסטאָג | ||
| The Yiddish word "דיין געבורסטאָג" (dayn geburstog) literally translates to "your day of birth". | |||
| Zulu | usuku lokuzalwa | ||
| Usuku lokuzalwa comes from the Zulu language and literally means "day of birth". | |||
| Assamese | জন্মদিন | ||
| Aymara | mara phuqhawi | ||
| Bhojpuri | जनमदिन | ||
| Dhivehi | އުފަންދުވަސް | ||
| Dogri | साल-गिरह | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kaarawan | ||
| Guarani | aramboty | ||
| Ilocano | pannakayanak | ||
| Krio | batde | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | ڕۆژی لەدایک بوون | ||
| Maithili | जन्मदिन | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯃꯄꯣꯈ ꯅꯨꯃꯤꯊ | ||
| Mizo | piancham | ||
| Oromo | guyyaa dhalootaa | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଜନ୍ମଦିନ | ||
| Quechua | punchawnin | ||
| Sanskrit | जन्मदिवस | ||
| Tatar | туган көн | ||
| Tigrinya | በዓል ልደት | ||
| Tsonga | siku ro velekiwa | ||