City in Different Languages
Discover 'City' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
A city, often referred to as the 'heart' of a country, is a significant and vibrant center of culture, business, and industry. Cities have been the birthplace of some of the most influential civilizations and historical events, making them an integral part of our global heritage. The word 'city' has been translated into various languages, reflecting its universal significance and cultural importance.
For language enthusiasts and travelers alike, knowing the translation of 'city' in different languages can enrich your understanding and appreciation of various cultures. For instance, in Spanish, 'city' is 'ciudad'; in French, it's 'ville'; in German, it's 'Stadt'; in Italian, it's 'città'; and in Japanese, it's 'toshi' or 'shi'.
By learning these translations, you can connect with locals on a deeper level and gain a unique perspective on the cultural significance of cities around the world. So, whether you're a history buff, a language learner, or a curious traveler, exploring the translations of 'city' is a fascinating way to discover the richness and diversity of global cultures.
City
City in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | stad | ||
| In South Africa, 'stad' is commonly used to refer to Pretoria, the country's administrative capital. | |||
| Amharic | ከተማ | ||
| The word "ከተማ" (city) originally meant "fortified enclosure" but later came to refer to any significant settlement. | |||
| Hausa | birni | ||
| Hausa word 'birni' also means a 'walled city'. | |||
| Igbo | obodo | ||
| "Obodo" in Igbo also refers to "community" or "homeland," highlighting the importance of communal bonds and shared identity in Igbo culture. | |||
| Malagasy | tanàna | ||
| "Tanàna" also means "place where water rises" in the Betsimisaraka dialect spoken in the northeast of Madagascar. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | mzinda | ||
| The word "mzinda" can also be used to refer to the physical structure of the city, including its buildings and streets. | |||
| Shona | guta | ||
| The word "guta" in Shona can also mean "a place where people live", "a village", or "a homestead". | |||
| Somali | magaalada | ||
| The word magaalada in Somali derives from the Arabic word madiina, meaning "city" or "town". | |||
| Sesotho | motse | ||
| The Sesotho word "motse" can also refer to a town, village, or any settlement of people. | |||
| Swahili | mji | ||
| The Swahili word "mji" also means "village" and is derived from the Proto-Bantu word *muji* meaning "settlement". | |||
| Xhosa | isixeko | ||
| In Xhosa, "isixeko" also refers to a traditional settlement surrounded by a protective enclosure. | |||
| Yoruba | ilu | ||
| The Yoruba word "ilu," meaning "city," is believed to have originated from the word "ilu," meaning "campsite" or "settlement. | |||
| Zulu | idolobha | ||
| Idolobha, meaning 'city' in Zulu, derives from the word 'idolo' (settlement) and 'bha' (place). | |||
| Bambara | duguba | ||
| Ewe | dugã | ||
| Kinyarwanda | umujyi | ||
| Lingala | engumba | ||
| Luganda | ekibuga | ||
| Sepedi | toropokgolo | ||
| Twi (Akan) | kuropɔn | ||
City in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | مدينة | ||
| The word "مدينة" in Arabic is derived from the root "مدن", which means "to settle down" or "to become civilized". It can also refer to a "place of gathering" or a "metropolis". | |||
| Hebrew | עִיר | ||
| The word עִיר can also refer to a large settlement in the Bible and a capital, in contrast to כרך ('metropolis'). | |||
| Pashto | ښار | ||
| The word "ښار" is derived from the Proto-Indo-Iranian word "*kaxar," meaning "fenced place," and is cognate with the Sanskrit word "क्षेत्र" (kṣetra), meaning "field" or "territory." | |||
| Arabic | مدينة | ||
| The word "مدينة" in Arabic is derived from the root "مدن", which means "to settle down" or "to become civilized". It can also refer to a "place of gathering" or a "metropolis". | |||
City in Western European Languages
| Albanian | qyteti | ||
| The word "qyteti" is derived from the Proto-Albanian word "*kwéti" and is cognate with the Latin word "civitas". It can also refer to a town or village. | |||
| Basque | hiria | ||
| "Hiria" can also be broken down into "hiri" (town) and "a" (suffix indicating a place), suggesting a historical relationship between towns and cities. | |||
| Catalan | ciutat | ||
| The Catalan word "ciutat" derives from the Latin term "civitas", also meaning "city" but with the extended connotation of "citizen" or "civilized community". | |||
| Croatian | grad | ||
| The term 'grad' is of Illyrian origin and also refers to an old type of fortified castle, similar to the English 'burgh', which was often the origin of modern Balkan cities and later administrative districts | |||
| Danish | by | ||
| The word "by" in Danish can also refer to a small town or village. | |||
| Dutch | stad | ||
| The word "stad" in Dutch, which means "city," is derived from the Old Dutch word "statha," meaning "a place where trade, commerce, or administrative activities take place." | |||
| English | city | ||
| The word “city” derives from the Old French “cité” and the Latin “civitas”, both of which mean “community of citizens.” | |||
| French | ville | ||
| French "ville" is derived from Latin "villa" (country house or farm), while "cité" is from Latin "civitas" (city-state). | |||
| Frisian | stêd | ||
| Old Frisian 'stêd' meant 'place, plot' or 'place of human settlement,' with the latter evolving into 'city'. | |||
| Galician | cidade | ||
| The Galician word "cidade" derives from the Latin term "civitās," which denoted both a community of citizens and an urban settlement. | |||
| German | stadt | ||
| The word "Stadt" shares its etymology with "stead" and "state" and can refer to a location, a political entity, or a social condition. | |||
| Icelandic | borg | ||
| The word "borg" can also refer to a fort or castle, and is related to the English word "borough". | |||
| Irish | chathair | ||
| The Irish word "chathair" derives from the Proto-Indo-European word "*kʷetwóres, | |||
| Italian | città | ||
| The word "città" derives from the Latin "civitas", meaning "community" or "state", and also relates to the concept of "citizenship" and "civilization". | |||
| Luxembourgish | stad | ||
| The Luxembourgish word "Stad" is related to the German word "Stadt" and the Dutch word "Stad", meaning "city", and also refers to the city of Luxembourg. | |||
| Maltese | belt | ||
| The Maltese word "belt" is also used to refer to a town square, a garden, or a country area. | |||
| Norwegian | by | ||
| The word «by» in Norwegian can also refer to a small town or a village, distinguishing it from the larger «by» meaning city. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | cidade | ||
| "Cidade", from Vulgar Latin "civitatem" (acc.) and ultimately Latin "civis" ("civilian", "citizen"): a settlement of any size with charter, a market or town centre, and usually some form of local government or town council, not always clearly distinguished as a town from a small city, especially in Latin America or Portugal." | |||
| Scots Gaelic | bhaile-mòr | ||
| Bhaile-mòr is cognate with "big town" and "town" in Irish and with "farm" and "townland" in Manx. | |||
| Spanish | ciudad | ||
| Ciudad originates from the Latin 'civitas' meaning 'city-state' or 'citizenship'. | |||
| Swedish | stad | ||
| "Stad" also means "bank" in Swedish, sharing the same root as "stead" and "establish" in English. | |||
| Welsh | ddinas | ||
| The modern name 'ddinas' is derived from the word 'dinas', which often referred to a hill-fort or a fortified settlement in older Welsh texts. | |||
City in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | горад | ||
| Горад originally meant a fortified settlement, a stronghold, but later acquired the meaning of any urban area. | |||
| Bosnian | grad | ||
| The word "grad" can also refer to a castle or fortress, and is cognate with the word "gorod" in Russian and other Slavic languages. | |||
| Bulgarian | град | ||
| In Old Church Slavonic, "град" means "castle", as does its cognate German "burg" (as in "Hamburg", "Edinburgh") | |||
| Czech | město | ||
| The word "město" in Czech also refers to a town or village, as opposed to a "vesnice" (village). | |||
| Estonian | linn | ||
| The word "linn" in Estonian can also refer to a fortress or a castle. | |||
| Finnish | kaupunki | ||
| "Kaupunki" is derived from the Proto-Finnic word "kauppa", meaning "trade" or "market." | |||
| Hungarian | város | ||
| "Város" derives from the Slavic word "var" meaning "fortress". | |||
| Latvian | pilsēta | ||
| The word pilsēta is derived from the Proto-Baltic word *pilsātas, meaning "fortified settlement," and is related to the Lithuanian word pilis and the Old Prussian word pilso, both meaning "castle". | |||
| Lithuanian | miestas | ||
| "Miestas" is possibly derived from Proto-Indo-European | |||
| Macedonian | град | ||
| The word "град" also means "hail" in Macedonian and is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *gordъ, which meant "fortified settlement". | |||
| Polish | miasto | ||
| The word "miasto" in Polish can also refer to a town, village, or any other settlement that has a charter. | |||
| Romanian | oraș | ||
| The Romanian word "oraș" is derived from the Hungarian word "város" and also means "time" in Romanian. | |||
| Russian | город | ||
| "Город" (city) in Russian derives from the Slavic term meaning "fenced place" and can refer to a settlement with protective walls or ramparts. | |||
| Serbian | град | ||
| "Град" can also refer to a hailstone. | |||
| Slovak | mesto | ||
| The word "mesto" also has a historical meaning of "place" or "settlement", similar to its etymology in other Slavic languages. | |||
| Slovenian | mesto | ||
| The word "mesto" can also mean "place" or "site" in Slovenian. | |||
| Ukrainian | місто | ||
| In Old Slavic, the word “місто” meant any settlement, regardless of whether it was fortified or not. | |||
City in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | শহর | ||
| The Bengali word "শহর" can also refer to a large marketplace or town, especially one in a rural area. | |||
| Gujarati | શહેર | ||
| The Gujarati word "શહેર" comes from Sanskrit "क्षेत्र" (kṣetra), meaning 'field' or 'abode'. In modern Gujarati, it still retains this meaning in addition to 'city'. | |||
| Hindi | faridabad | ||
| "Faridabad" is likely derived from the word "Farid", meaning "a descendant of Farid" or "born to Farid". | |||
| Kannada | ನಗರ | ||
| ನಗರ is derived from the Sanskrit word "नग्न" (naked), possibly referring to unguarded open areas around early settlements. | |||
| Malayalam | നഗരം | ||
| The Malayalam word "നഗരം" is derived from the Sanskrit word "नगर" and also means "town" or "village". | |||
| Marathi | शहर | ||
| The word "शहर" likely derives from the Sanskrit word "क्षेत्र" (kṣetra), meaning "field". | |||
| Nepali | शहर | ||
| The word "शहर" is derived from the Sanskrit word "क्षेत्र" (kṣetra), which means "field" or "area". | |||
| Punjabi | ਸ਼ਹਿਰ | ||
| The word "ਸ਼ਹਿਰ" is also used to refer to a large town or a marketplace. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | නගරය | ||
| The Sinhala word "නගරය" shares a root with the word "නග" meaning "rise," and can refer to a mountain or other high place in addition to a city. | |||
| Tamil | நகரம் | ||
| Derived from Proto-Dravidian *nakaram, the word also means "settlement" or "dwelling place." | |||
| Telugu | నగరం | ||
| The word "నగరం" (city) is derived from the Sanskrit word "नगर" (town) and ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *nek- (to bind). | |||
| Urdu | شہر | ||
| شهر is also a term of endearment for a lover or spouse | |||
City in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 市 | ||
| The character '市' can also refer to a marketplace, fair, or a unit of area. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 市 | ||
| The character 市 also means 'market', and is a homophone of 事, meaning 'business', 'matter', or 'thing'. | |||
| Japanese | 市 | ||
| 市 in Japanese can also mean 'market', which gives us street words like 'Shinsekai' (lit. 'new world market') and 'Kuromon Ichiba' (lit. 'Kuromon market'). | |||
| Korean | 시티 | ||
| In Korean, "시티" can also mean "death" or "corpse," derived from the Sino-Korean word for "deathly smell" | |||
| Mongolian | хот | ||
| Хот, also translated as “town”, comes from the Mongolian root hot- (or khot-) meaning “walled enclosure” and was extended to refer to a “fortress”, “fort”, and “stronghold”, and by metonymy a “town” or “city”. | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | မြို့ | ||
| The word "မြို့" (city) in Myanmar can also mean "town", "village", or "settlement". | |||
City in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | kota | ||
| "Kota" also means 'fortress' in Sanskrit, possibly explaining why the word was used to refer to walled cities in the past. | |||
| Javanese | kutha | ||
| Derived from Sanskrit "ku" meaning "to dig" and "thas" meaning "place": a place that has been excavated. | |||
| Khmer | ទីក្រុង | ||
| The term "ទីក្រុង" also means "metropolitan area" in Khmer, encompassing the city proper and its surrounding suburbs. | |||
| Lao | ເມືອງ | ||
| The Lao word "ເມືອງ" also refers to a type of administrative division similar to a province or district. | |||
| Malay | bandar | ||
| The word "bandar" is derived from the Persian word "bandar" meaning "port". | |||
| Thai | เมือง | ||
| The Thai word "เมือง" (city) derives from the Mon word "meung" (settlement) and is also used to refer to certain administrative divisions. | |||
| Vietnamese | thành phố | ||
| The word "thành phố" is of Chinese origin and is derived from the characters "thành" (city wall) and "phố" (street), reflecting its historical association with walled urban settlements. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | lungsod | ||
City in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | şəhər | ||
| The word "şəhər" is derived from the Persian word "shahr" and ultimately from the Akkadian word "âlu", meaning "settlement" or "city-state". | |||
| Kazakh | қала | ||
| The word "қала" can also refer to a fortress or castle, as it is derived from the Persian word for "fort". | |||
| Kyrgyz | шаар | ||
| The word "шаар" has two meanings in Kyrgyz: “city” and “battle”. | |||
| Tajik | шаҳр | ||
| The word "шаҳр" in Tajik comes from the Persian word "شهر", which itself comes from the Avestan word "xšaθra", meaning "power" or "dominion." | |||
| Turkmen | şäher | ||
| Uzbek | shahar | ||
| The word "shahar" comes from the Arabic "shahristan", which means "district or town". | |||
| Uyghur | شەھەر | ||
City in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | kulanakauhale | ||
| The compound Hawaiian noun “kulanakauhale” originates from an older form “kulana kauhale,” meaning “to collect at the place of government.” | |||
| Maori | taone nui | ||
| The word "taone nui" can also refer to a "great gathering" or a "meeting place" in Maori. | |||
| Samoan | taulaga | ||
| Taulaga, meaning 'harbor,' derives from the Proto-Polynesian term *tau* ('harbor') and *laga* ('calm, peaceful'). | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | lungsod | ||
| "Lungsod" can be traced to the Old Malay "lugas", meaning "a wide stretch of land with an open sea-facing shore." | |||
City in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | jach'a marka | ||
| Guarani | táva | ||
City in International Languages
| Esperanto | urbo | ||
| The Esperanto word "urbo" comes from the Latin word "urbs", which means "city" or "town." | |||
| Latin | urbs | ||
| The Latin word "urbs" originally referred to a fortified settlement, and is related to the word "orbis" (circle), as cities were often built in a circular shape. | |||
City in Others Languages
| Greek | πόλη | ||
| The word "πόλη" can also mean "state" or "country" in Greek, depending on the context. | |||
| Hmong | lub nroog | ||
| The word "lub nroog" (city) in Hmong is a compound word composed of "lub" (water) and "nroog" (rice patty). | |||
| Kurdish | bajar | ||
| The word "bajar" in Kurdish is cognate with the Persian word "bāzār" and originally meant "market" or "marketplace". | |||
| Turkish | kent | ||
| Kent in Turkish can also refer to the geographical region of the British Isles, known as the County of Kent. | |||
| Xhosa | isixeko | ||
| In Xhosa, "isixeko" also refers to a traditional settlement surrounded by a protective enclosure. | |||
| Yiddish | שטאָט | ||
| The Yiddish word "שטאָט" (shtot) can also mean "town" or "village" in some contexts. | |||
| Zulu | idolobha | ||
| Idolobha, meaning 'city' in Zulu, derives from the word 'idolo' (settlement) and 'bha' (place). | |||
| Assamese | চহৰ | ||
| Aymara | jach'a marka | ||
| Bhojpuri | शहर | ||
| Dhivehi | ޝަހަރު | ||
| Dogri | शैहर | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | lungsod | ||
| Guarani | táva | ||
| Ilocano | siudad | ||
| Krio | siti | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | شار | ||
| Maithili | नगर | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯁꯍꯔ | ||
| Mizo | khawpui | ||
| Oromo | magaalaa | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ସହର | ||
| Quechua | llaqta | ||
| Sanskrit | नगरी | ||
| Tatar | шәһәр | ||
| Tigrinya | ከተማ | ||
| Tsonga | doroba | ||