Blood in different languages

Blood in Different Languages

Discover 'Blood' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.

Updated on March 6, 2024

Blood, a vital fluid that courses through our veins, is a symbol of life and vitality in countless cultures and languages. Its deep red hue and life-sustaining properties have made it a powerful and enduring symbol throughout history. From ancient mythology to modern science, blood has held great significance as a symbol of lineage, power, and sacrifice.

In many cultures, blood is believed to contain the essence of life, and its translation in different languages reflects this importance. For instance, in Spanish, blood is sangre, while in German, it's Blut. In the Hawaiian language, blood is ʻeleu, and in Maori, it's kiri.

Understanding the translation of blood in different languages can provide valuable insights into the cultural significance of this vital fluid. From ancient rituals to modern medical practices, blood has played a crucial role in shaping human history and culture. Join us as we explore the fascinating world of blood and its translations in various languages.

Blood


Blood in Sub-Saharan African Languages

Afrikaansbloed
Afrikaans 'bloed' (blood) is cognate with Dutch 'bloed', Norwegian 'blod', German 'Blut', and English 'blood', but also means 'temper' or 'courage'.
Amharicደም
The Amharic word "ደም" can also mean "lineage" or "family", showing the deep connection between blood and kinship in Ethiopian culture.
Hausajini
The Hausa word "jini" comes from the Arabic word "jinnay", a type of evil spirit.
Igboọbara
The Igbo word 'ọbara' originates from the Proto-Benue-Congo lexicon *bara, meaning 'red' or 'colour'
Malagasyra
Malagasy 'ra', 'rain', and 'rainforest' all have an ancestral meaning of 'life-giving liquid', while their shared Proto-Austronesian root *daRah means 'blood'.
Nyanja (Chichewa)magazi
The Nyanja word "magazi" not only signifies "blood" but also denotes "life-force" and "kinship ties."
Shonaropa
The Shona word, "ropa," also means "color" and "type."
Somalidhiig
The verb
Sesothomali
The word "mali" in Sesotho can also refer to lineage, kinship, or a group of people with a common ancestor.
Swahilidamu
The word "damu" in Swahili originates from the Bantu root "dam" meaning "red" or "black" and is cognate with many other Bantu languages.
Xhosaigazi
The word "igazi" originates from an archaic term for "red," and is cognate with the Nguni word for "black.
Yorubaẹjẹ
Ẹjẹ also means 'spirit' or 'life' in Yoruba, and is often used in religious contexts referring to the spirit of a person or deity.
Zuluigazi
In Zulu, 'igazi' can also refer to a close friend or relative.
Bambarajoli
Eweʋu
Kinyarwandamaraso
Lingalamakila
Lugandaomusaayi
Sepedimadi
Twi (Akan)mogya

Blood in North African & Middle Eastern Languages

Arabicدم
The word "دم" in Arabic doesn't only mean blood; it also means a person's life or soul, and can be used metaphorically to describe a person's character or temperament.
Hebrewדָם
הדם מתייחס למוות, חולשה, מחלה ואלימות
Pashtoوینه
The word "وینه" in Pashto can also mean "red" or "purple".
Arabicدم
The word "دم" in Arabic doesn't only mean blood; it also means a person's life or soul, and can be used metaphorically to describe a person's character or temperament.

Blood in Western European Languages

Albaniangjaku
In some Gheg dialects, "gjaku" can also refer to "juice" or "sap".
Basqueodola
"Odola" also referred to the "sun" in Old Basque and is thought to derive from Proto-Basque *egu-dol-a, "day light".
Catalansang
In Catalan, “sang” also means “curdling,” referring to the process of milk becoming yogurt or cheese.
Croatiankrv
The Croatian word "krv" derives from the Proto-Indo-European "k̂rewh-", meaning "meat" or "flesh".
Danishblod
The word "blod" can also mean "family" or "descent" in Danish, reflecting a historical belief in the importance of bloodlines and shared ancestry.
Dutchbloed
The Dutch word "bloed" shares an origin with "flower", referring to the bright red blossoms in its stem.
Englishblood
The word 'blood' comes from the Old English word 'blod', which meant both 'blood' and 'life'.
Frenchdu sang
Du sang ("blood") comes from the Latin *sanguis* meaning "blood or life force" and is related to the French words "sanglot" (sob) and "sanguinaire" (bloodthirsty).
Frisianbloed
Frisian 'bloed' is cognate with English 'blood' and German 'Blut', meaning 'fluid that circulates in the body of humans and other animals'
Galiciansangue
In Galician, “sangue” also means “lineage,” “family,” or “race,” as in the expression “sangue real” (“royal blood”).
Germanblut
The word "Blut" can also mean "race" or "family" in German.
Icelandicblóð
Blóð (blood) has the alternate meaning of "sacrifice" in many Germanic languages.
Irishfuil
The Irish word "fuil" also means "urine" or "water," deriving from the Proto-Indo-European root *gʰwei-l
Italiansangue
"Sangue" in Italian can also refer to a lineage, a stock, or a family, and is derived from the Latin word "sanguis" (
Luxembourgishblutt
"Blutt" also refers to the juice of grapes before fermentation and thus means "wine".
Maltesedemm
The Maltese word "demm" derives from the Arabic word "dam" which also means "blood", as well as other meanings such as "sin" or "guilt".
Norwegianblod
The word "blod" in Norwegian can also refer to "sacrifice" or "anger".
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil)sangue
In Portuguese, "sangue" can also refer to lineage or ancestry.
Scots Gaelicfuil
In some dialects, "fuil" can also mean "juice", "sap", or "fluid".
Spanishsangre
In pre-Columbian Nahuatl, "sangre" referred to the precious red pigment used as a dye or currency; its usage shifted to mean "blood" after Spanish conquest.
Swedishblod
Blod can also refer to a stain or a mark, and is a common ingredient in Swedish cuisine, especially in the form of blood sausage.
Welshgwaed
"Gwaed" also has historical connections with concepts of "red", "glowing" and "life force".

Blood in Eastern European Languages

Belarusianкроў
The word "кроў" in Belarusian is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *krovь, meaning "fluid, sap".
Bosniankrv
The word "krv" in Bosnian also means "lifeforce" or "strength."
Bulgarianкръв
The word "кръв" also means "family" in Bulgarian.
Czechkrev
The word "krev" in Czech can also refer to plasma or lymph.
Estonianveri
In Estonian, "veri" also signifies "anger" and "rage".
Finnishverta
The Finnish word "verta" is also used to refer to a blood transfusion or the act of letting blood.
Hungarianvér
The word "vér" can also mean "protection" (e.g. "a vér szerinti rokon" ~ "a relative by blood").
Latvianasinis
Latvian "asinis" shares its root "as" with "assassin" and "ash".
Lithuaniankraujas
The Lithuanian word "kraujas" is etymologically related to the Sanskrit word "krwi" (meaning blood) and the Latin word "cruor" (meaning gore).
Macedonianкрв
The verb "крвав" ("krvav") in Macedonian means "to bleed" or "to stain with blood."
Polishkrew
The Polish word 'krew' comes from the Old Polish 'krew' or 'krewie' and is cognate with other Slavic words for 'blood', such as the Russian 'кровь' (krov') and the Czech 'krev'.
Romaniansânge
The word "sânge" (blood) is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *sengw-, which also means "to be strong".
Russianкровь
"Кровь" also means "family lineage" or "origin".
Serbianкрв
The word 'крв' in Serbian not only refers to blood but also has a figurative meaning, denoting life, vitality, or kinship.
Slovakkrv
The word 'krv' also refers to relatives in Slovak.
Sloveniankri
"Kri" is a noun in Slovenian which is used to describe the liquid that circulates through the cardiovascular system of a human being or an animal. It is also used to describe any fluid that resembles blood in appearance, such as tomato juice or paint.
Ukrainianкрові
In Ukrainian, the word "крові" can also refer to the lineage or ancestry of a person.

Blood in South Asian Languages

Bengaliরক্ত
"রক্ত" may also mean "related by blood" or "lineage" or "clumped rice" in Bengali.
Gujaratiલોહી
The Gujarati word "લોહી" can also refer to red pigment or color.
Hindiरक्त
The Hindi word "रक्त" (rakt) is cognate with the Latin "cruor" (clotted blood), and also means "red (colour)" in Sanskrit.
Kannadaರಕ್ತ
The word "ರಕ್ತ" (rakta) also refers to the red pigment used in the Kannada flag, known as the "rakta dhwaja"
Malayalamരക്തം
The word 'രക്തം' (raktham) is also used to refer to the color red in Malayalam.
Marathiरक्त
In Marathi, the word "रक्त" (rakta) also refers to the color red and is cognate with the Sanskrit word "रक्त" (rakta), meaning "red" or "blood."
Nepaliरगत
The word 'रगत' in Nepali can also mean 'bloodshed' or 'warfare'.
Punjabiਲਹੂ
The Punjabi word "ਲਹੂ" also refers to "red color" in its adjective form.
Sinhala (Sinhalese)ලේ
"ලේ" also refers to a substance or fluid that flows, such as sap.
Tamilஇரத்தம்
The word "இரத்தம்" can also refer to a type of tree known as **red sandalwood** or **Raktha Chandana** in Sanskrit.
Teluguరక్తం
The word "రక్తం" can also refer to the red color of blood, or to a liquid that is similar to blood in appearance or consistency.
Urduخون
The word "خون" ("blood") is also used metaphorically to refer to lineage, ancestry, or kinship ties.

Blood in East Asian Languages

Chinese (Simplified)血液
The Chinese character "血" can also represent red or the color crimson.
Chinese (Traditional)血液
血液 (xuèyè) 'blood' has multiple possible meanings, one being that it is a vital force, essential to life and associated with emotions like anger.
Japanese血液
The kanji 血 (ketsu) can also mean "lineage" or "clan," as in 血縁 (ketsuen, "blood relation").
Korean피의
The word 피 (blood) also means 'life' or 'vital energy' in Korean.
Mongolianцус
Цус is a Turkic word meaning
Myanmar (Burmese)သွေး
The word "သွေး" ("blood") in Myanmar (Burmese) can also refer to "lineage" or "family line".

Blood in South East Asian Languages

Indonesiandarah
Javanesegetih
The Javanese word "getih" is cognate with "darah" in Indonesian and Malay, both ultimately deriving from Sanskrit "darah".
Khmerឈាម
The word "ឈាម" can also mean "sap" or "juice" in Khmer, and is related to the Lao word "ຊອກ" and the Thai word "เลือด".
Laoເລືອດ
The word "ເລືອດ" can also refer to the color red or a type of blood disease in Lao.
Malaydarah
In Malay, a poetic term for blood is 'nyawa' ('life'), reflecting its vital importance in folklore and traditional medicine.
Thaiเลือด
"เลือด" comes from the Proto-Austronesian word *daRuq meaning "red"
Vietnamesemáu
The word "máu" also means "life" in certain contexts, such as expressions like "máu anh em" (brotherhood).
Filipino (Tagalog)dugo

Blood in Central Asian Languages

Azerbaijaniqan
The word "qan" also means "life" in Azerbaijani, reflecting its importance in our culture.
Kazakhқан
"Қан" can also mean "life" or "soul" in Kazakh.
Kyrgyzкан
In addition to its primary meaning of "blood," "кан" in Kyrgyz can also refer to a relative from one's mother's lineage, a term of respect for elders, or a type of traditional fermented mare's milk.
Tajikхун
The word "хун" is an Old Turkic word and its meaning has shifted from "life, soul" to "blood" in Tajik.
Turkmengan
Uzbekqon
Qon, derived from Old Turkic "khun", also refers to lineage or family in Uzbek.
Uyghurقېنى

Blood in Pacific Languages

Hawaiiankoko
Hawaiian word "koko" also means "brown" and is thought to be related to "ko" (sugar cane).
Maoritoto
Derived from the Proto-Austronesian word *toto which also means 'blood' in several other Polynesian languages.
Samoantoto
The word "toto" in Samoan shares roots with the words for "red" and "soil".
Tagalog (Filipino)dugo
"Dugo" can also mean "ancestry" or "lineage" in Tagalog.

Blood in American Indigenous Languages

Aymarawila
Guaranituguy

Blood in International Languages

Esperantosango
The word 'sango' is derived from the Russian word for 'blood', "кровь", and also refers to a type of African drum.
Latinsanguis
The word "sanguis" also refers to the lineage or family of a person.

Blood in Others Languages

Greekαίμα
The word "αίμα" has also been used in Homeric Greek to mean "death, murder, or violent death, especially through the shedding of blood".
Hmongntshav
The Hmong word "ntshav" also refers to family members and a person's ancestral lineage.
Kurdishxwîn
Kurdish 'xwîn' is possibly related to Persian 'xun' or Proto-Indo-European '*ǵʰwéh₁n', cognate with Latin 'cruor' and Irish 'fuil'.
Turkishkan
In addition to its primary meaning of "blood," "kan" in Turkish can also refer to "relationship," "origin," or "essence."
Xhosaigazi
The word "igazi" originates from an archaic term for "red," and is cognate with the Nguni word for "black.
Yiddishבלוט
The Yiddish word "בלוט" ("blood") also means "sap", especially from birch trees.
Zuluigazi
In Zulu, 'igazi' can also refer to a close friend or relative.
Assameseতেজ
Aymarawila
Bhojpuriखून
Dhivehiލޭ
Dogriलहू
Filipino (Tagalog)dugo
Guaranituguy
Ilocanodara
Krioblɔd
Kurdish (Sorani)خوێن
Maithiliखून
Meiteilon (Manipuri)
Mizothisen
Oromodhiiga
Odia (Oriya)ରକ୍ତ
Quechuayawar
Sanskritरक्त
Tatarкан
Tigrinyaደም
Tsongangati

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