City in different languages

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

Afrikaansstad
In South Africa, 'stad' is commonly used to refer to Pretoria, the country's administrative capital.
Amharicከተማ
The word "ከተማ" (city) originally meant "fortified enclosure" but later came to refer to any significant settlement.
Hausabirni
Hausa word 'birni' also means a 'walled city'.
Igboobodo
"Obodo" in Igbo also refers to "community" or "homeland," highlighting the importance of communal bonds and shared identity in Igbo culture.
Malagasytanàna
"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.
Shonaguta
The word "guta" in Shona can also mean "a place where people live", "a village", or "a homestead".
Somalimagaalada
The word magaalada in Somali derives from the Arabic word madiina, meaning "city" or "town".
Sesothomotse
The Sesotho word "motse" can also refer to a town, village, or any settlement of people.
Swahilimji
The Swahili word "mji" also means "village" and is derived from the Proto-Bantu word *muji* meaning "settlement".
Xhosaisixeko
In Xhosa, "isixeko" also refers to a traditional settlement surrounded by a protective enclosure.
Yorubailu
The Yoruba word "ilu," meaning "city," is believed to have originated from the word "ilu," meaning "campsite" or "settlement.
Zuluidolobha
Idolobha, meaning 'city' in Zulu, derives from the word 'idolo' (settlement) and 'bha' (place).
Bambaraduguba
Ewedugã
Kinyarwandaumujyi
Lingalaengumba
Lugandaekibuga
Sepeditoropokgolo
Twi (Akan)kuropɔn

City in North African & Middle Eastern Languages

Arabicمدينة
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".
Hebrewעִיר
The word עִיר can also refer to a large settlement in the Bible and a capital, in contrast to כרך ('metropolis').
Pashtoښار
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."
Arabicمدينة
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

Albanianqyteti
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.
Basquehiria
"Hiria" can also be broken down into "hiri" (town) and "a" (suffix indicating a place), suggesting a historical relationship between towns and cities.
Catalanciutat
The Catalan word "ciutat" derives from the Latin term "civitas", also meaning "city" but with the extended connotation of "citizen" or "civilized community".
Croatiangrad
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
Danishby
The word "by" in Danish can also refer to a small town or village.
Dutchstad
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."
Englishcity
The word “city” derives from the Old French “cité” and the Latin “civitas”, both of which mean “community of citizens.”
Frenchville
French "ville" is derived from Latin "villa" (country house or farm), while "cité" is from Latin "civitas" (city-state).
Frisianstêd
Old Frisian 'stêd' meant 'place, plot' or 'place of human settlement,' with the latter evolving into 'city'.
Galiciancidade
The Galician word "cidade" derives from the Latin term "civitās," which denoted both a community of citizens and an urban settlement.
Germanstadt
The word "Stadt" shares its etymology with "stead" and "state" and can refer to a location, a political entity, or a social condition.
Icelandicborg
The word "borg" can also refer to a fort or castle, and is related to the English word "borough".
Irishchathair
The Irish word "chathair" derives from the Proto-Indo-European word "*kʷetwóres,
Italiancittà
The word "città" derives from the Latin "civitas", meaning "community" or "state", and also relates to the concept of "citizenship" and "civilization".
Luxembourgishstad
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.
Maltesebelt
The Maltese word "belt" is also used to refer to a town square, a garden, or a country area.
Norwegianby
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 Gaelicbhaile-mòr
Bhaile-mòr is cognate with "big town" and "town" in Irish and with "farm" and "townland" in Manx.
Spanishciudad
Ciudad originates from the Latin 'civitas' meaning 'city-state' or 'citizenship'.
Swedishstad
"Stad" also means "bank" in Swedish, sharing the same root as "stead" and "establish" in English.
Welshddinas
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

Belarusianгорад
Горад originally meant a fortified settlement, a stronghold, but later acquired the meaning of any urban area.
Bosniangrad
The word "grad" can also refer to a castle or fortress, and is cognate with the word "gorod" in Russian and other Slavic languages.
Bulgarianград
In Old Church Slavonic, "град" means "castle", as does its cognate German "burg" (as in "Hamburg", "Edinburgh")
Czechměsto
The word "město" in Czech also refers to a town or village, as opposed to a "vesnice" (village).
Estonianlinn
The word "linn" in Estonian can also refer to a fortress or a castle.
Finnishkaupunki
"Kaupunki" is derived from the Proto-Finnic word "kauppa", meaning "trade" or "market."
Hungarianváros
"Város" derives from the Slavic word "var" meaning "fortress".
Latvianpilsēta
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".
Lithuanianmiestas
"Miestas" is possibly derived from Proto-Indo-European
Macedonianград
The word "град" also means "hail" in Macedonian and is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *gordъ, which meant "fortified settlement".
Polishmiasto
The word "miasto" in Polish can also refer to a town, village, or any other settlement that has a charter.
Romanianoraș
The Romanian word "oraș" is derived from the Hungarian word "város" and also means "time" in Romanian.
Russianгород
"Город" (city) in Russian derives from the Slavic term meaning "fenced place" and can refer to a settlement with protective walls or ramparts.
Serbianград
"Град" can also refer to a hailstone.
Slovakmesto
The word "mesto" also has a historical meaning of "place" or "settlement", similar to its etymology in other Slavic languages.
Slovenianmesto
The word "mesto" can also mean "place" or "site" in Slovenian.
Ukrainianмісто
In Old Slavic, the word “місто” meant any settlement, regardless of whether it was fortified or not.

City in South Asian Languages

Bengaliশহর
The Bengali word "শহর" can also refer to a large marketplace or town, especially one in a rural area.
Gujaratiશહેર
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'.
Hindifaridabad
"Faridabad" is likely derived from the word "Farid", meaning "a descendant of Farid" or "born to Farid".
Kannadaನಗರ
ನಗರ is derived from the Sanskrit word "नग्न" (naked), possibly referring to unguarded open areas around early settlements.
Malayalamനഗരം
The Malayalam word "നഗരം" is derived from the Sanskrit word "नगर" and also means "town" or "village".
Marathiशहर
The word "शहर" likely derives from the Sanskrit word "क्षेत्र" (kṣetra), meaning "field".
Nepaliशहर
The word "शहर" is derived from the Sanskrit word "क्षेत्र" (kṣetra), which means "field" or "area".
Punjabiਸ਼ਹਿਰ
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.
Tamilநகரம்
Derived from Proto-Dravidian *nakaram, the word also means "settlement" or "dwelling place."
Teluguనగరం
The word "నగరం" (city) is derived from the Sanskrit word "नगर" (town) and ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *nek- (to bind).
Urduشہر
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').
Korean시티
In Korean, "시티" can also mean "death" or "corpse," derived from the Sino-Korean word for "deathly smell"
Mongolianхот
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

Indonesiankota
"Kota" also means 'fortress' in Sanskrit, possibly explaining why the word was used to refer to walled cities in the past.
Javanesekutha
Derived from Sanskrit "ku" meaning "to dig" and "thas" meaning "place": a place that has been excavated.
Khmerទីក្រុង
The term "ទីក្រុង" also means "metropolitan area" in Khmer, encompassing the city proper and its surrounding suburbs.
Laoເມືອງ
The Lao word "ເມືອງ" also refers to a type of administrative division similar to a province or district.
Malaybandar
The word "bandar" is derived from the Persian word "bandar" meaning "port".
Thaiเมือง
The Thai word "เมือง" (city) derives from the Mon word "meung" (settlement) and is also used to refer to certain administrative divisions.
Vietnamesethành 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

Azerbaijanişəhər
The word "şəhər" is derived from the Persian word "shahr" and ultimately from the Akkadian word "âlu", meaning "settlement" or "city-state".
Kazakhқала
The word "қала" can also refer to a fortress or castle, as it is derived from the Persian word for "fort".
Kyrgyzшаар
The word "шаар" has two meanings in Kyrgyz: “city” and “battle”.
Tajikшаҳр
The word "шаҳр" in Tajik comes from the Persian word "شهر", which itself comes from the Avestan word "xšaθra", meaning "power" or "dominion."
Turkmenşäher
Uzbekshahar
The word "shahar" comes from the Arabic "shahristan", which means "district or town".
Uyghurشەھەر

City in Pacific Languages

Hawaiiankulanakauhale
The compound Hawaiian noun “kulanakauhale” originates from an older form “kulana kauhale,” meaning “to collect at the place of government.”
Maoritaone nui
The word "taone nui" can also refer to a "great gathering" or a "meeting place" in Maori.
Samoantaulaga
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

Aymarajach'a marka
Guaranitáva

City in International Languages

Esperantourbo
The Esperanto word "urbo" comes from the Latin word "urbs", which means "city" or "town."
Latinurbs
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

Greekπόλη
The word "πόλη" can also mean "state" or "country" in Greek, depending on the context.
Hmonglub nroog
The word "lub nroog" (city) in Hmong is a compound word composed of "lub" (water) and "nroog" (rice patty).
Kurdishbajar
The word "bajar" in Kurdish is cognate with the Persian word "bāzār" and originally meant "market" or "marketplace".
Turkishkent
Kent in Turkish can also refer to the geographical region of the British Isles, known as the County of Kent.
Xhosaisixeko
In Xhosa, "isixeko" also refers to a traditional settlement surrounded by a protective enclosure.
Yiddishשטאָט
The Yiddish word "שטאָט" (shtot) can also mean "town" or "village" in some contexts.
Zuluidolobha
Idolobha, meaning 'city' in Zulu, derives from the word 'idolo' (settlement) and 'bha' (place).
Assameseচহৰ
Aymarajach'a marka
Bhojpuriशहर
Dhivehiޝަހަރު
Dogriशैहर
Filipino (Tagalog)lungsod
Guaranitáva
Ilocanosiudad
Kriositi
Kurdish (Sorani)شار
Maithiliनगर
Meiteilon (Manipuri)ꯁꯍꯔ
Mizokhawpui
Oromomagaalaa
Odia (Oriya)ସହର
Quechuallaqta
Sanskritनगरी
Tatarшәһәр
Tigrinyaከተማ
Tsongadoroba

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