Cheese in different languages

Cheese in Different Languages

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

Updated on March 6, 2024

Cheese is a culinary staple and cultural symbol, celebrated for its versatility and rich history. From the artisanal cheddar of England to the pungent limburger of Belgium, cheese has been an essential part of global cuisine for thousands of years. Its significance extends beyond the dinner table, as cheese has played a vital role in trade, agriculture, and even religious ceremonies.

Understanding the translation of cheese in different languages not only broadens your culinary vocabulary but also offers a glimpse into the unique cultural identities of various countries. For instance, cheese translates to 'queso' in Spanish, 'fromage' in French, and 'kaas' in Dutch. Imagine traveling the world and ordering 'queso' in a local Spanish market or savoring 'fromage' in a quaint French bistro.

Join us as we embark on a global cheese tour, exploring the many languages and cultures that have embraced this cherished food. Whether you're a cheese aficionado, a language enthusiast, or simply curious, this journey is sure to delight and inspire.

Cheese


Cheese in Sub-Saharan African Languages

Afrikaanskaas
The Afrikaans word 'kaas' originates from the Dutch 'kaas' and is also related to the German 'käse' and English 'cheese'.
Amharicአይብ
The Amharic word አይብ "cheese" may derive from the Ge'ez word አይበ "milk". The word is also used figuratively as a term of endearment for a beautiful woman.
Hausacuku
The word 'cuku' can also refer to the white sap of the baobab tree, which is used as an adhesive or sealant.
Igbochiiz
Igbo word ''chiiz'' (cheese) derives from Spanish ``queso'' through an English intermediary.
Malagasyfromazy
The word "fromazy" is derived from the French word "fromage", meaning "cheese", and is also used to refer to a type of fermented milk product in Madagascar.
Nyanja (Chichewa)tchizi
In Nyanja, "tchizi" can also mean "sour milk" or "yogurt".
Shonachizi
While chizi means 'cheese' in Shona, it's also used figuratively to refer to something that is fake or of low quality.
Somalifarmaajo
The Somali word "farmaajo" derives from the Arabic word "furmā'" meaning "choice" or "best".
Sesothochisi
Despite 'chisi' meaning 'cheese', it often refers to the fermented milk product known as mafi.
Swahilijibini
The word 'jibini' in Swahili can also refer to a traditional fermented milk product similar to yogurt.
Xhosaitshizi
The word "itshizi" is derived from the Xhosa word "itshiza" which means "sour milk".
Yorubawarankasi
In some Yoruba dialects, "warankasi" refers specifically to soft, unripened white cheese, while in others it can also mean cheese in general.
Zuluushizi
The Zulu word "ushizi" is derived from the Proto-Bantu word "*cisi", which also means "milk".
Bambaraforomazi
Ewenotsibabla
Kinyarwandaforomaje
Lingalafromage
Lugandacheese
Sepeditšhese
Twi (Akan)kyiisi

Cheese in North African & Middle Eastern Languages

Arabicجبنه
"جبنه" is also the Arabic word for cheese, the word originated from the Aramaic "gabnā" which means to curdle.
Hebrewגבינה
The word "גבינה" is a generic Hebrew term derived from the Aramaic "gabna," which could refer to a wide variety of fermented or curdled milk products.
Pashtoپنیر
The Pashto word "پنیر" is a derivative of the Sanskrit word "पनीर" (panīra), which in turn originates from the ancient Iranian root *pan̄- meaning "to protect" or "to keep safe".
Arabicجبنه
"جبنه" is also the Arabic word for cheese, the word originated from the Aramaic "gabnā" which means to curdle.

Cheese in Western European Languages

Albaniandjathë
In Albanian, "djathë" (cheese) also derives from Illyrian "daddhi", and Greek "dados" (resinous pine wood, but likely a cheese name, too).
Basquegazta
Basque “gazta” (cheese) is derived from “gazi” (salty), hence gazta in the 1258 Fuero General de Navarra (Charter of the Navarre Region) meant the salt cheese that was taxed, as opposed to curdled cheeses.
Catalanformatge
"Formatge" comes from the Latin "forma," which means "shape," referring to the molds used to press the curd into its final shape.
Croatiansir
The Croatian word "sir" also means "vinegar" and is derived from the Latin word "acetum".
Danishost
The word "ost" in Danish shares a common root with the Latin word "caseus", the precursor to English "cheese".
Dutchkaas
The word 'kaas' is derived from Latin 'caseus', meaning 'cheese made from curds'.
Englishcheese
The word "cheese" traces its roots to the Latin word "caseus," denoting both fermented and unfermented milk products like curd.
Frenchfromage
Fromage, meaning 'cheese' in French, originates from the Latin word 'forma,' meaning 'mold,' referring to the process of forming cheese in molds.
Frisiantsiis
In North Frisian, 'tsiis' is the term for 'cottage cheese', while 'kees' is the term for 'hard cheese'.
Galicianqueixo
Galician "queixo" derives from the Latin "caseus", meaning "cheese", and also refers to a traditional Galician cheese made from cow's milk.
Germankäse
Besides its primary meaning as 'cheese', 'Käse' can also refer to a wooden box used for aging cheese.
Icelandicostur
Ostur's alternate meaning is an old Norse word describing a Scandinavian type of boat.
Irishcáis
The Irish word "cáis" is derived from the Proto-Celtic word "kasyos," meaning "curdled milk."
Italianformaggio
"Formaggio" originates from the Latin word "formāceus" - "formed" due to the traditional round mold used to age it.
Luxembourgishkéis
The word “Kéis” derives from the Old High German “chesi,” related to Old English “cyse,” German “Käse,” and Dutch “kaas.”
Malteseġobon
The word "ġobon" is derived from the Arabic word "jubn", which also means "cheese". It is cognate with the Spanish word "jabón", which means "soap".
Norwegianost
The word "ost" can also refer to "east" or "a place where the sun rises" in Norwegian.
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil)queijo
"Queijo" is derived from the Latin word "caseus", which also means "cheese".
Scots Gaeliccàise
In Scots Gaelic, the word "càise" can also refer to a small wooden tub or box, or to the curds that are used in the making of cheese.
Spanishqueso
The word "queso" can also refer to a type of cheese sauce or melted cheese used in Mexican cuisine.
Swedishost
The word "ost" in Swedish is derived from the Old Norse word "ostr", which means "cream". It is cognate with the German word "Käse" and the English word "cheese". The word "ost" can also refer to a type of cheese mold or a cheese factory.
Welshcaws
The Welsh word 'caws' is also used to describe a cough or a hoarse voice.

Cheese in Eastern European Languages

Belarusianсыр
"сыр" also refers to other types of dairy products such as cottage cheese (тварог) and cream (сметана).
Bosniansir
The word 'sir' in Bosnian, meaning 'cheese', likely derives from the Proto-Indo-European root '*seyr-' meaning 'to flow', which also gave rise to the English word 'serum'.
Bulgarianсирене
The word "сирене" can also refer to rennet, a substance used in cheesemaking.
Czechsýr
The word "sýr" comes from the Proto-Slavic word "*syrъ", which originally meant "fermented milk".
Estonianjuust
Estonian word “juust” refers to cheese, but is also the name for a kind of fermented milk.
Finnishjuusto
The word "juusto" is thought to be derived from the Proto-Finnic word "justo", meaning "hard" or "firm".
Hungariansajt
In addition, the word 'sajt' also means 'curd' in Hungarian.
Latviansiers
The word "siers" also means "curd" in Latvian.
Lithuaniansūris
The word "sūris" in Lithuanian, meaning "cheese," originates from the Proto-Indo-European root "*kʷer-," meaning "to ferment" or "to sour," and is related to the Sanskrit word "kṣiras," meaning "milk."
Macedonianсирење
The word “сирење” (cheese) is derived from the Proto-Slavic word “*syrъ”, which also means “rennet” or “curd”.
Polishser
The Polish word "ser" derives from the Proto-Slavic *syrъ and shares its origin with the words for cheese in many other Indo-European languages, including the English "cheese".
Romanianbrânză
The word "brânză" is also used in Romanian to refer to a type of cream cheese called "caș".
Russianсыр
The Russian word "сыр" (cheese) likely derives from the Indo-European root *twer- or *ters-, meaning "to rub" or "to roll", hinting at the ancient technique of making cheese by rubbing or rolling curds.
Serbianсир
The Serbian word for "cheese", "сир", is likely derived from the Proto-Indo-European root "*ḱer-s", meaning "to cut" or "to carve".
Slovaksyr
The word "syr" in Slovak also means "the smell of a female goat" and "a dirty stain on a garment."
Sloveniansir
The word "sir" in Slovenian can also refer to a type of curd cheese, similar to cottage cheese.
Ukrainianсир
The word "сир" in Ukrainian is derived from an ancient Indo-European root meaning "to cut" or "to divide".

Cheese in South Asian Languages

Bengaliপনির
The word "পনির" is borrowed from Sanskrit "पनीर" (panīra) meaning "fermented milk curd" and is cognate with "paneer" in Hindi and Urdu.
Gujaratiચીઝ
The Gujarati word 'ચીઝ' ('cheese') ultimately derives from the Latin word 'caseus', which also gave rise to the English word 'cheese'.
Hindiपनीर
"पनीर" (cheese) derives from the Persian word "panir" and can also refer to the pupil of the eye.
Kannadaಗಿಣ್ಣು
In rural areas of Karnataka, it can also mean 'a wooden pillar' or 'a log of wood'.
Malayalamചീസ്
The word "ചീസ്" ("cheese") in Malayalam also refers to a kind of fish called "black pomfret".
Marathiचीज
The Marathi word "चीज" (chīj) is also used to refer to a "thing" or an "object."
Nepaliचीज
The Nepali word "चीज" derives from the Sanskrit word "क्षीर," which refers to fermented milk products akin to cheese or curd.
Punjabiਪਨੀਰ
The word "paneer" is derived from the Sanskrit word "panira" meaning "to set" or "to coagulate" and is related to the word "pani" meaning "water".
Sinhala (Sinhalese)චීස්
The Sinhala word 'චීස්' is often used to express surprise and can be compared to the English interjection 'whoa'.
Tamilசீஸ்
The Tamil word 'சீஸ்' (cheese) is derived from the Portuguese word 'queijo', which in turn comes from the Latin word 'caseus'.
Teluguజున్ను
The word "జున్ను" is derived from the Sanskrit word "क्षीर" (kshira), meaning "milk".
Urduپنیر
The word 'پنیر' is derived from the Sanskrit word 'piniram', meaning 'pressed together'.

Cheese in East Asian Languages

Chinese (Simplified)起司
起司一名源自閩南語,又稱乳酪、乾酪或乳酪乾酪。
Chinese (Traditional)起司
起司一詞來自葡萄牙語 queijo,原意為凝乳或奶酪,後來專指以牛奶為原料製成的乳製品。
Japaneseチーズ
チーズ (chīzu) is derived from the Portuguese word Queijo, which means "cheese."
Korean치즈
치즈(cheese) is a loanword, not native to the Korean language.
Mongolianбяслаг
The word "бяслаг" in Mongolian can also mean "milk product" or "food made from milk".
Myanmar (Burmese)ဒိန်ခဲ
The Burmese word for "cheese" (ဒိန်ခဲ) is thought to be derived from the Proto-Sino-Tibetan word *d-jins, which also meant "cheese".

Cheese in South East Asian Languages

Indonesiankeju
The word 'keju' is derived from the Portuguese word 'queijo' and is cognate with the English word 'cheese'
Javanesekeju
In addition to "cheese," keju also means "mold" in some Javanese dialects
Khmerឈីស
The word "ឈីស" is derived from the French word "fromage" and is also used to refer to dairy products such as butter and yogurt.
Laoເນີຍແຂງ
The word "ເນີຍແຂງ" is a direct loanword from French, where it originally referred to the hard, unripened cheese known as "fromage sec".
Malaykeju
Keju can also refer to other fermented soy or meat based food in Malaysia.
Thaiชีส
The word "ชีส" can also refer to a type of mold or fungus in Thai.
Vietnamesephô mai
The word "phô mai" is derived from the French word "fromage" and was introduced to Vietnam during the French colonial period.
Filipino (Tagalog)keso

Cheese in Central Asian Languages

Azerbaijanipendir
Pendir also means 'bread' in the old Azerbaijani language. The word Pendir is rooted in the words for bread in Old Turkic dialects.
Kazakhірімшік
The Kazakh word "ірімшік" (cheese) may be derived from the Turkic word "irim," meaning "sour"}
Kyrgyzсыр
The Kyrgyz word "сыр" (cheese) also means "gorge" or "canyon".
Tajikпанир
The word "панир" in Tajik can also refer to a type of cottage cheese or curd.
Turkmenpeýnir
Uzbekpishloq
"Pishloq" has the same origin as the Persian word "pishlak," both derived from the Old Iranian word "pishtaka" meaning "milk fat or cream."
Uyghurپىشلاق

Cheese in Pacific Languages

Hawaiian
Tī means 'cheese' in Hawaiian and refers specifically to curdled coconut milk used as a cooking ingredient in a variety of sweet and savory dishes.
Maoritīhi
The word "tīhi" in Māori also refers to a type of fermented fish paste or relish.
Samoansisi
Sisi can also mean 'to squeeze' or 'to milk' in Samoan.
Tagalog (Filipino)keso
The Tagalog word 'keso' can also refer to any type of dairy product, not just cheese, and is derived from the Spanish word 'queso'.

Cheese in American Indigenous Languages

Aymarakisu
Guaranikesu

Cheese in International Languages

Esperantofromaĝo
The word "fromaĝo" is derived from the Latin word "formaticus", meaning "made of cheese".
Latincaseus
"Caseus" comes from the Proto-Indo-European word "*kwat-", meaning "to ferment"

Cheese in Others Languages

Greekτυρί
The Greek word
Hmongcheese
Although "cheese" in Hmong (tsaj tsiaj) literally translates to "sour liquid," that word's actual usage encompasses dairy products like cheese and yogurt as well as any other sour liquid, like orange juice or vinegar.
Kurdishpenêr
The word 'penêr' is used in the context of the Kurdish saying 'penêr xware, dil xweş bide' which means 'eat cheese and make your tongue happy'.
Turkishpeynir
"Peynir" originates from the Persian word "panir", which refers to a type of soft, fresh cheese.
Xhosaitshizi
The word "itshizi" is derived from the Xhosa word "itshiza" which means "sour milk".
Yiddishקעז
In Yiddish, "קעז" can also refer to a type of cottage cheese known as "тварог" in Russian.
Zuluushizi
The Zulu word "ushizi" is derived from the Proto-Bantu word "*cisi", which also means "milk".
Assameseচীজ
Aymarakisu
Bhojpuriपनीर
Dhivehiޗީޒް
Dogriपनीर
Filipino (Tagalog)keso
Guaranikesu
Ilocanokeso
Kriochiz
Kurdish (Sorani)پەنیر
Maithiliपनीर
Meiteilon (Manipuri)ꯁꯪꯒꯣꯝ ꯃꯄꯥꯟ
Mizocheese
Oromobaaduu gogaa
Odia (Oriya)ପନିର
Quechuaqueso
Sanskritदधिक
Tatarсыр
Tigrinyaመጨባ
Tsongachizi

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