Chairman in Different Languages
Discover 'Chairman' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word chairman holds great significance in many cultures and languages around the world. Originating from the concept of a person who leads a meeting while seated in a chair, the term 'chairman' has evolved to represent leadership, authority, and responsibility. From a historical context, the role of a chairman has been crucial in various settings such as business, politics, and education. In many cultures, the chairman is considered a symbol of power and respect.
Given the cultural importance of the chairman, it's no surprise that the term has been translated into various languages, each with its unique connotations and nuances. For instance, in Spanish, the translation of chairman is 'presidente', while in German, it's 'Vorsitzender'. In French, the term is 'président', and in Chinese, it's '会长' (Huì zhǎng).
Understanding the translation of chairman in different languages can help bridge cultural gaps and foster better communication. Whether you're traveling to a foreign country, conducting international business, or simply interested in language and culture, knowing the translation of chairman can be a valuable tool in your linguistic arsenal.
Chairman
Chairman in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | voorsitter | ||
| The word "voorsitter" is of Dutch origin and literally means "sitter in front". | |||
| Amharic | ሊቀመንበር | ||
| The word 'ሊቀመንበር' ('chairman') also refers to a church deacon who is responsible for administering the Eucharist. | |||
| Hausa | shugaba | ||
| In some local governments and NGOs the word "shugaba" can also refer to a "president" | |||
| Igbo | onye isi oche | ||
| The Igbo phrase "Onye isi oche" literally means "head (isi) of the seat (oche)", signifying authority and leadership. | |||
| Malagasy | mpitari-draharaha | ||
| "Mpitarika dia raharaha" is also used to refer to the chief of a clan or village, or the head of an association | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | wapampando | ||
| The word "wapampando" is derived from the root word "pampando", which means to rule, control, or lead. | |||
| Shona | sachigaro | ||
| The word "sachigaro" in Shona can also refer to the head of a household or clan. | |||
| Somali | gudoomiye | ||
| In the Somali language, "gudoomiye" also means "leader" or "head of an organization" | |||
| Sesotho | molula-setulo | ||
| In the Sesotho language, the word “molula-setulo” is derived from the term “molula,” which means “chief,” and “setulo,” which means “chair.” | |||
| Swahili | mwenyekiti | ||
| The word "mwenyekiti" is derived from the root -enye- meaning "to have" and -kiti- meaning "throne" or "seat", implying a position of authority. | |||
| Xhosa | usihlalo | ||
| Also used as a term of address for male elders, even when they are not in a position of authority. | |||
| Yoruba | alaga | ||
| The word 'alaga' is derived from the Yoruba word 'lagba', which means 'head' or 'leader'. | |||
| Zulu | usihlalo | ||
| "Usihlalo" derives from the verb "hlala" (sit), implying the chairman's positional authority. | |||
| Bambara | ɲɛmɔgɔba | ||
| Ewe | zimenɔla | ||
| Kinyarwanda | umuyobozi | ||
| Lingala | mokambi ya eteyelo | ||
| Luganda | ssentebe wa ssentebe | ||
| Sepedi | modulasetulo | ||
| Twi (Akan) | oguamtrani | ||
Chairman in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | رئيس | ||
| The word "رئيس" also means "head" or "leader" and is derived from the Arabic root "رءس" meaning "to be at the top". | |||
| Hebrew | יושב ראש | ||
| יושב ראש literally means 'one who sits at the head' | |||
| Pashto | رییس | ||
| The Pashto word "رییس" can also be spelled "رايس", which means "chieftain, ruler, leader". | |||
| Arabic | رئيس | ||
| The word "رئيس" also means "head" or "leader" and is derived from the Arabic root "رءس" meaning "to be at the top". | |||
Chairman in Western European Languages
| Albanian | kryetari | ||
| The Albanian word "kryetari" also means "leader" and derives from "krye" (head) and "tar" (holder). | |||
| Basque | presidentea | ||
| In Basque, the word "presidentea" is derived from the Spanish word "presidente" and also refers to the head of an association or group. | |||
| Catalan | president | ||
| The word "president" in Catalan comes from the Latin word "praesidere", meaning "to sit in front". | |||
| Croatian | predsjednik | ||
| The word "predsjednik" comes from the Slavic word "prěděti" meaning "to lead" and is used in some Slavic languages with the meaning of "president". | |||
| Danish | formand | ||
| The Danish word "formand" is derived from the German "Vorsitzender" (chairman) and can also refer to the head of an association, organization or committee. | |||
| Dutch | voorzitter | ||
| In Dutch, 'Voorzitter' is also used in the context of a judge presiding over a court, or a professor leading a meeting. | |||
| English | chairman | ||
| In the 17th century, “chairman” referred to people who carried chairs or litters for hire. | |||
| French | président | ||
| The French word "président" derives from the Latin "praesidere", meaning "to preside over" or "to lead". | |||
| Frisian | foarsitter | ||
| The word "foarsitter" is made up of the base "foar" meaning "before" or "first" and "sitter" meaning "sitter". | |||
| Galician | presidente | ||
| The Galician word "presidente" can also mean "leader" or "chief" in other contexts. | |||
| German | vorsitzende | ||
| The term "Vorsitzende" in German also refers to a presiding officer, moderator, chairperson, chairwoman or president of a meeting or organization. | |||
| Icelandic | formaður | ||
| Formaður, a word derived from Proto-Norse *furmaðuz 'first person,' also designates a 'crew chief' on a fishing boat or a 'team leader' in sports. | |||
| Irish | cathaoirleach | ||
| "Cathaoirleach" is derived from the Irish word "cathaoir" meaning "chair", and also has the meaning of "cathedral canon" or "professor at a university". | |||
| Italian | presidente | ||
| In Italian, "presidente" can also refer to the chief executive of a nation or a corporate board. | |||
| Luxembourgish | president | ||
| President derives from the Latin word "praesidere" meaning "to preside". | |||
| Maltese | president | ||
| The Maltese word "president" originated from the Italian "presidente," meaning "person who presides". | |||
| Norwegian | formann | ||
| The word "Formann" comes from the Old Norse word "formanni", meaning "leader of a group." | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | presidente | ||
| The word "presidente" derives from the Latin "praesidere", meaning "to sit before or over" | |||
| Scots Gaelic | cathraiche | ||
| The word `cathraiche` in Scots Gaelic is also sometimes used to refer to the chairman of a meeting or gathering. | |||
| Spanish | presidente | ||
| The Spanish word "presidente" can also mean "president" or "head of state". | |||
| Swedish | ordförande | ||
| The term "ordförande" in Swedish originally referred to the presiding officer of a court or other legal body before becoming synonymous with "chairman" | |||
| Welsh | cadeirydd | ||
| The word 'cadeirydd' in Welsh is derived from the Latin word 'cathedra', meaning 'chair'. | |||
Chairman in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | старшыня | ||
| The Belarusian word `старшыня` is cognate with Polish `starszy` meaning `elder`. | |||
| Bosnian | predsjedavajući | ||
| The word "predsjedavajući" is derived from the Slavic root "sed-," meaning "to sit," and the suffix "-avajući," which indicates an ongoing action. | |||
| Bulgarian | председател | ||
| In Bulgarian, the word "председател" can also refer to a person who leads a meeting or organization. | |||
| Czech | předseda | ||
| The word "předseda" comes from the Proto-Slavic word *predьsěda*, meaning "one who sits in front". | |||
| Estonian | esimees | ||
| Esimees is also used as a title for the head of a household or estate, or the head of a family, or as a title for a foreman or manager. | |||
| Finnish | puheenjohtaja | ||
| The word "puheenjohtaja" literally means "the leader of speeches" in Finnish and is used to refer to the person who chairs a meeting or discussion. | |||
| Hungarian | elnök | ||
| In Hungarian, the word "elnök" originated from the old Germanic verb "*walhón" meaning "to elect, to choose". | |||
| Latvian | priekšsēdētājs | ||
| "Priekšsēdētājs" (chairman) comes from the Latvian verb "sēdēt" (to sit), referring to a person who literally sits in front of a meeting and leads it. | |||
| Lithuanian | pirmininkas | ||
| The word "pirmininkas" is derived from "pirma" ("first") and "-ininkas", a suffix indicating the head of an organization. | |||
| Macedonian | претседател | ||
| In Macedonian the word претседател can also mean "president" or "speaker". | |||
| Polish | przewodniczący | ||
| The word "przewodniczący" is derived from the verb "przewodniczyć", which means "to preside over a meeting". | |||
| Romanian | preşedinte | ||
| The Romanian word "preşedinte" comes from the French word "président" and can also mean "president" in Romanian. | |||
| Russian | председатель | ||
| The word "председатель" is derived from the verb "председать", meaning "to preside", and originally referred to the head of a council or meeting. | |||
| Serbian | председавајући | ||
| The word "председавајући" (chairman, chair) is derived from the Church Slavonic word "предсѣдати" (to sit before, to preside) and literally means "the one who sits before". | |||
| Slovak | predseda | ||
| The word "predseda" in Slovak also means "chairman" or "president". | |||
| Slovenian | predsednik | ||
| The word "predsednik" in Slovenian, in addition to meaning "chairman", is the term used to refer to the president of a country. | |||
| Ukrainian | голова | ||
| In Ukrainian, "голова" also means "head" and can refer to the leader of an organization or community. | |||
Chairman in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | চেয়ারম্যান | ||
| চেয়ারম্যান শব্দটি চেয়ার (কর্মকাণ্ডের পরিচালনাকারী) এবং ম্যান (পুরুষ) অর্থাৎ "কর্মকাণ্ডের পরিচালনাকারী পুরুষ" থেকে এসেছে। | |||
| Gujarati | અધ્યક્ષ | ||
| The word "અધ્યક્ષ" (adhyaksh) in Gujarati originally meant "president or head of an organization" | |||
| Hindi | अध्यक्ष | ||
| The Hindi word "अध्यक्ष" comes from "अधि" meaning "over" and "क्ष" meaning "to protect". | |||
| Kannada | ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷ | ||
| The word 'ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷ' in Kannada also means 'president' if it refers to the head of a nation or an organization. | |||
| Malayalam | ചെയർമാൻ | ||
| ചെയർമാൻ (Chairman in English) is derived from the word 'chair', which refers to the seat of authority or leadership. | |||
| Marathi | अध्यक्ष | ||
| The word 'अध्यक्ष' in Marathi is derived from the Sanskrit word 'अधि' meaning 'over' or 'on top of', and 'क्ष' meaning 'to rule or govern'. Hence, the word literally translates to 'one who presides over' or 'a superior'. | |||
| Nepali | अध्यक्ष | ||
| The Sanskrit word "अध्यक्ष" can also refer to a deity, a leader, a president, a sovereign, a speaker, or a director. | |||
| Punjabi | ਚੇਅਰਮੈਨ | ||
| ਚੇਅਰਮੈਨ (chairman) is derived from the English word 'chair,' meaning a seat for one person, and 'man,' a person who holds a position of authority. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | සභාපති | ||
| සභාපති is derived from the Sanskrit words 'sabha' ('assembly') and 'pati' ('lord'), and has alternate meanings such as 'president' or 'speaker'. | |||
| Tamil | தலைவர் | ||
| The word "தலைவர்" also means "leader" or "head" in Tamil. | |||
| Telugu | చైర్మన్ | ||
| "చైర్మన్" comes from the English word "chairman", which originally meant the person presiding over a meeting or group. | |||
| Urdu | چیئرمین | ||
| The Urdu word چیئرمین can also refer to a chair used by someone who leads a meeting. | |||
Chairman in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 主席 | ||
| 主席 is short for 董事主席, meaning 'chairman of the board of directors'. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 主席 | ||
| 主席 in Traditional Chinese is also used to address the chairperson of a group or meeting | |||
| Japanese | 委員長 | ||
| The term 委員長 can also refer to the leader of a student organization or club in Japan. | |||
| Korean | 의장 | ||
| In addition to its meaning "chairman," 의장 can also refer to the speaker of the National Assembly or a provincial assembly in South Korea. | |||
| Mongolian | дарга | ||
| The Mongolian word "дарга" (chairman) is derived from the Tibetan word "sgar-ra" meaning "head of a monastery". | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ဥက္က္ဌ | ||
| Pronounced [ʔoʊʔ kʰa̰], it derives from Pali and Sanskrit root word ‘ukh’ and ‘khachcha’ and the suffix ‘a’ indicating a masculine subject. | |||
Chairman in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | ketua | ||
| The word "ketua" in Indonesian comes from the Sanskrit word "ketu", meaning "a sign or banner". | |||
| Javanese | ketua | ||
| The word "ketua" also denotes a head of a family or a head of a village or district in Javanese. | |||
| Khmer | ប្រធាន | ||
| The word "ប្រធាន" can also be used to refer to the head of a monastery, a village chief, or a teacher. | |||
| Lao | ປະທານ | ||
| The word "ປະທານ" can also refer to a president or head of an organization in Lao. | |||
| Malay | ketua | ||
| The word "ketua" is derived from the Sanskrit word "ketu" meaning "banner" or "standard", and in Malay it can also refer to a leader or chief. | |||
| Thai | ประธาน | ||
| "ประธาน" (prathān) comes from the Sanskrit word "pradhāna", meaning "chief" or "principal". | |||
| Vietnamese | chủ tịch | ||
| In Vietnamese, Chủ tịch can mean either chairman or president, depending on the context | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | tagapangulo | ||
Chairman in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | sədr | ||
| "sədr" is derived from Arabic and has different meanings in different languages, including "front", "top", and "chief". | |||
| Kazakh | төраға | ||
| In Mongolian, 'төраға' means 'to be at the head, to lead' and 'the chief or head of a group, organization, or country'. | |||
| Kyrgyz | төрага | ||
| Derived from the word тор а - "gathering" or "council", and "-га" - the nominal suffix of action | |||
| Tajik | раис | ||
| The word "раис" is also used to refer to the head of a religious community. | |||
| Turkmen | başlygy | ||
| Uzbek | rais | ||
| In Uzbek, "rais" can also refer to a "chief", "head**, or "leader**. | |||
| Uyghur | رەئىس | ||
Chairman in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | lunahoomalu | ||
| The word "lunahoomalu" has its roots in Hawaiian: "luna," referring to a chief, leader, or overseer, and "hoomalu," meaning to protect, guard, or shield. | |||
| Maori | heamana | ||
| The Maori word "heamana" can also refer to a leader, chief, or head of a group or organization. | |||
| Samoan | taitaifono | ||
| The Samoan word 'taitaifono' also refers to a 'storyteller' and, historically, a high orator. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | chairman | ||
| In Tagalog, "chairman" comes from the Spanish word "chair" and also means "chair" or "seat." | |||
Chairman in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | p’iqinchiri | ||
| Guarani | presidente | ||
Chairman in International Languages
| Esperanto | prezidanto | ||
| The Esperanto word "prezidanto" derives from the Latin word "praesidens" meaning "one who sits before". | |||
| Latin | praeses | ||
| "Praeses" in Latin can also mean "protector" or "president". | |||
Chairman in Others Languages
| Greek | πρόεδρος | ||
| The word "Πρόεδρος" (chairman) comes from the Greek word "προεδρία" (presidency). | |||
| Hmong | tus thawj coj | ||
| "Tus thawj coj" is a compound word that literally means "head of the people". | |||
| Kurdish | pêşewar | ||
| The word "pêşewar" is derived from the Persian word "peshwar" meaning "leader". | |||
| Turkish | başkan | ||
| The word 'başkan' comes from Persian and also means 'chief' or 'leader'. | |||
| Xhosa | usihlalo | ||
| Also used as a term of address for male elders, even when they are not in a position of authority. | |||
| Yiddish | טשערמאן | ||
| The Yiddish word "טשערמאן" ("tsherman") derives from the German "vorsitzender", meaning "presiding officer" or "one who sits in front" | |||
| Zulu | usihlalo | ||
| "Usihlalo" derives from the verb "hlala" (sit), implying the chairman's positional authority. | |||
| Assamese | চেয়াৰমেন | ||
| Aymara | p’iqinchiri | ||
| Bhojpuri | अध्यक्ष के रूप में काम कइले बानी | ||
| Dhivehi | ޗެއާމަން އެވެ | ||
| Dogri | चेयरमैन जी | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | tagapangulo | ||
| Guarani | presidente | ||
| Ilocano | tserman | ||
| Krio | chiaman fɔ di chiaman | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | سەرۆک | ||
| Maithili | अध्यक्ष जी | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯆꯦꯌꯔꯃꯦꯟ ꯑꯣꯏꯅꯥ ꯊꯧ ꯄꯨꯈꯤ꯫ | ||
| Mizo | chairman a ni | ||
| Oromo | dura taa’aa | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଅଧ୍ୟକ୍ଷ | ||
| Quechua | umalliq | ||
| Sanskrit | अध्यक्षः | ||
| Tatar | председателе | ||
| Tigrinya | ኣቦ መንበር | ||
| Tsonga | mutshama-xitulu | ||