Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'create' holds a significant place in our lives, as it represents the act of bringing something new into existence. From artists painting a masterpiece to entrepreneurs launching a groundbreaking startup, the ability to create is a fundamental aspect of human experience.
Moreover, the concept of creation is deeply ingrained in various cultures and religions worldwide. For instance, in Christianity, God is often depicted as the creator of the universe, while in many Indigenous cultures, the act of creation is believed to be a sacred and collaborative process between humans, animals, and the natural world.
Understanding the translation of 'create' in different languages can provide valuable insights into how different cultures perceive and approach the act of creation. For instance, in Spanish, 'create' is 'crear,' while in French, it's 'créer.' Meanwhile, in Japanese, the word for 'create' is '創造する' (sōzō suru), which combines the characters for 'create' and 'do.'
In this article, we explore the translations of 'create' in various languages, shedding light on the fascinating cultural nuances and historical contexts associated with this powerful word.
Afrikaans | skep | ||
"Skep" in Afrikaans also refers to the act of forming or shaping something. | |||
Amharic | ፍጠር | ||
In Amharic, "ፍጠር" also means "to produce" or "to generate". | |||
Hausa | halitta | ||
Hausa "halitta" has cognates in Gwandara, Angas, and other nearby languages, implying an older origin in a West African substrate. | |||
Igbo | kee | ||
In Mbaise dialect of Igbo, 'kee' also means 'put up with, endure'. | |||
Malagasy | manangana | ||
The word "MANANGANA" also means "to write" or "to draw" in Malagasy, highlighting the connection between creation and expression. | |||
Nyanja (Chichewa) | pangani | ||
The word "pangani" also means "to be born" in Nyanja (Chichewa). | |||
Shona | gadzira | ||
"Gadzira" also means "to shape," "to fabricate," and "to form." | |||
Somali | abuur | ||
"Abuur" can also mean "cause to appear or emerge" or "make manifest". | |||
Sesotho | bopa | ||
"Bopa" also means "come forth," "be created" and "arise." | |||
Swahili | kuunda | ||
In Swahili, "kuunda" can also refer to forming or bringing into being non-physical things, such as ideas or organizations. | |||
Xhosa | yenza | ||
The word "yenza" can also refer to "making" or "doing" something. | |||
Yoruba | ṣẹda | ||
The word "ṣẹda" in Yoruba also means "to open" or "to initiate". | |||
Zulu | dala | ||
In Zulu, "dala" can also refer to "generate" or "produce". | |||
Bambara | ka dilan | ||
Ewe | wᴐ | ||
Kinyarwanda | kurema | ||
Lingala | kosala | ||
Luganda | okutonda | ||
Sepedi | hlama | ||
Twi (Akan) | yɛ | ||
Arabic | خلق | ||
The word 'خلق' has two different roots in Arabic, meaning both 'to separate' and 'to bring into being'. | |||
Hebrew | לִיצוֹר | ||
The Hebrew verb ליצור (līṭsōr), "to create," also means "to form, shape, or produce." | |||
Pashto | جوړول | ||
The Pashto verb "جوړول" (jorol) also means "to prepare" or "to make ready". | |||
Arabic | خلق | ||
The word 'خلق' has two different roots in Arabic, meaning both 'to separate' and 'to bring into being'. |
Albanian | krijoj | ||
The Albanian word "krijoj" is derived from the Proto-Albanian *krijō, which is cognate with the Latin "creo" and the Greek "κτίζω". | |||
Basque | sortu | ||
Basque "sortu" is cognated with "sortu" in many other languages, like Romanian, Catalan or Italian, and might be related to Basque "sortu" (to burn). | |||
Catalan | crear | ||
"Crear" derives from Latin "creare" but can also mean "to filter" in Catalan. | |||
Croatian | stvoriti | ||
In some Slavic languages "stvoriti" means "to create," and in Ancient Slavic it originally meant "to make a whole." | |||
Danish | skab | ||
The word "skab" in Danish may also refer to a "cupboard" or a "closet". | |||
Dutch | creëren | ||
The Dutch word "creëren" is derived from the French word "créer" and originally meant "to give birth to" or "to procreate". | |||
English | create | ||
The word "create" comes from the Latin word "creare," meaning "to bring into being, produce, or cause to exist." | |||
French | créer | ||
Créer comes from the Latin "creare" meaning "to make, to produce, to bring into existence" and also means "to believe, to suppose" in French. | |||
Frisian | meitsje | ||
The word "meitsje" in Frisian can also mean "to make" or "to form". | |||
Galician | crear | ||
"Crear" also means "to believe" in Galician, from the Latin "credere". | |||
German | erstellen | ||
Erstellen originates from the Latin "creare" (to produce) and also shares connections to the English "establish." | |||
Icelandic | búa til | ||
The Old Norse equivalent, "búa," had a broader meaning, including "to cultivate," "to dwell," and "to build a nest." | |||
Irish | cruthaigh | ||
The Irish word "cruthaigh" can mean "create, form, compose" and is thought to be derived from the Proto-Celtic word "krew" meaning "to gather together". | |||
Italian | creare | ||
The Italian word "creare" derives from the Latin verb "creare," meaning "to bring into being, make, produce." | |||
Luxembourgish | kreéieren | ||
"Kreéieren" is derived from the French word "créer" and originally meant "to grow", "to form", or "to produce". | |||
Maltese | toħloq | ||
"Toħloq" is also used figuratively to mean "bring about" or "cause to happen" | |||
Norwegian | skape | ||
Skape is a Proto-Germanic word shared with other languages like Swedish, Danish, and English, where it means 'shape'. | |||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | crio | ||
In Brazil, "crio" can also refer to a person of mixed African and European descent, while in Portugal, it can mean "boy" or "young man" | |||
Scots Gaelic | cruthaich | ||
Scots Gaelic term 'cruthaich', meaning 'create', originates from Old Irish 'cruthaigid' referring to 'forming' or 'shaping'. | |||
Spanish | crear | ||
Crear originally meant 'to grow' or 'to develop' in Spanish, but its meaning has since evolved to include 'to create' or 'to bring into existence'. | |||
Swedish | skapa | ||
The Swedish word "skapa" is related to the English word "shape". | |||
Welsh | creu | ||
In Welsh, "creu" means "create," but it can also refer to "shape" or "form," emphasizing the active process of bringing something into existence. |
Belarusian | стварыць | ||
The word | |||
Bosnian | stvoriti | ||
The verb "stvoriti" also means "to make", "to produce", "to bring into being" | |||
Bulgarian | създайте | ||
"Създайте" is also the Bulgarian word for "make". Unlike English, the word has feminine and masculine forms. | |||
Czech | vytvořit | ||
The Czech word "vytvořit" also refers to the process of making something visible, such as turning on lights or showing a film. | |||
Estonian | luua | ||
The word "luua" in Estonian is also used to refer to a "creature" or a "being". | |||
Finnish | luoda | ||
The Finnish word 'luoda' is ultimately derived from the Proto-Finnic word *luwtā, meaning 'to bend'. | |||
Hungarian | teremt | ||
Hungarian word "teremt" (create) originates from Proto-Turkic "türem" (creation, birth), cognate with "tur" (life), found in "tör" (law) and "ter" (land, nature) | |||
Latvian | izveidot | ||
The word "izveidot" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *krei-, meaning "to make, create, separate". It is also related to the English word "creative". | |||
Lithuanian | sukurti | ||
Sukurti derives from the root of the Slavic verb *konstrukti and is a cognate of the modern Russian word for "construct" or "build". | |||
Macedonian | создаваат | ||
The Macedonian verb "создаваат" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *sъzdati, which also means "to put together" or "to build". | |||
Polish | stwórz | ||
The word "Stwórz" can also refer to a mythical creature or a deity in Polish mythology. | |||
Romanian | crea | ||
In addition to "create," "crea" can also mean "grow" or "raise." | |||
Russian | создайте | ||
Создать (Russian) shares its etymology with создавать (sozdat' - to create) in Bulgarian and створити (stvoriti - to create) in Serbian, all of which mean "to produce something new." | |||
Serbian | креирај | ||
The word "Креирај" in Serbian is derived from the French word "créer," which means "to create" or "to bring into existence." | |||
Slovak | vytvoriť | ||
"Vytvoriť" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "tvoriti", which also means "to fashion" or "to shape". | |||
Slovenian | ustvariti | ||
The word 'ustvariti' is derived from the Proto-Slavic word 'tvarь', meaning 'creature' or 'formation'. | |||
Ukrainian | створити | ||
The Ukrainian word "створити" comes from the Proto-Slavic root "*tvoriti", meaning "to form, to shape, to create". |
Bengali | সৃষ্টি | ||
The word "সৃষ্টি" is derived from the Sanskrit word "sṛṣṭi" meaning "to create" and can also mean "a thing created". | |||
Gujarati | બનાવો | ||
બનાવો (banavo) is related to the Sanskrit word 'ban', which means "weave" and "join together." | |||
Hindi | सृजन करना | ||
It can refer to the bringing something into existence, as well as the artistic act of making something new and unique. | |||
Kannada | ರಚಿಸಿ | ||
The term "ರಚಿಸಿ" is also used in a figurative sense to describe composition and arrangement in writing. | |||
Malayalam | സൃഷ്ടിക്കാൻ | ||
The word "സൃഷ്ടിക്കാൻ" comes from the Sanskrit root "srj", meaning "to spread out, emit, or set free", and is also related to the word "srijana", meaning "creation". | |||
Marathi | तयार करा | ||
The Marathi word "तयार करा" is derived from Sanskrit, where "तयार" means "prepared" and "करा" means "to do." | |||
Nepali | सिर्जना गर्नुहोस् | ||
The verb 'सिर्जना गर्नुहोस्' ('create') is derived from the Sanskrit word 'srj' meaning 'to let go, emit, produce, or create'. | |||
Punjabi | ਬਣਾਓ | ||
The word 'बनाओ' ('create') is also used to refer to the act of decorating or beautifying something. | |||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) | සාදන්න | ||
The word සාදන්න (create) in Sinhala can also mean 'to make' or 'to produce'. | |||
Tamil | உருவாக்கு | ||
The word உருவாக்கு is derived from the root word உரு 'form' and can also mean 'to form' or 'to shape'. | |||
Telugu | సృష్టించండి | ||
The Telugu word "సృష్టించండి" is derived from the Sanskrit word "सृज्" (srij), which means "to bring into being, to produce, or to create." | |||
Urdu | بنانا | ||
The word "بنانا" can also mean "to write" or "to compose" in Urdu. |
Chinese (Simplified) | 创造 | ||
As '创造', it also means to 'forge', to 'make', and to 'invent'. | |||
Chinese (Traditional) | 創造 | ||
"創造" can also mean 'invention' or 'achievement' in Chinese. | |||
Japanese | 作成する | ||
The word "作成する" (sakusei suru) can also refer to "to produce" or "to write". | |||
Korean | 창조하다 | ||
창조하다 can also mean "to bring into being," "to make," or "to cause to exist." | |||
Mongolian | бий болгох | ||
The literal translation of "бий болгох" is "to make be". | |||
Myanmar (Burmese) | ဖန်တီး | ||
The word “ဖန်တီး” can also mean to design, make, or bring something into existence. |
Indonesian | membuat | ||
Membuat's root verb 'buat' has various meanings like 'do,' 'cause' or 'shape' depending on its affix. | |||
Javanese | nggawe | ||
The word "nggawe" in Javanese can also mean "to form", "to make", or "to construct". | |||
Khmer | បង្កើត | ||
The word "បង្កើត" also has the meaning of "to cause to happen" or "to bring about" in Khmer. | |||
Lao | ສ້າງ | ||
The Lao word for "create" (ສ້າງ) is cognate with the Khmer word "srang" and the Thai word "sang". | |||
Malay | buat | ||
The word 'buat' can also mean 'do' or 'make' in Malay. | |||
Thai | สร้าง | ||
สร้าง (s̄̄ạ̀ng) comes from the Khmer word សាង (saṅ) and it can also mean 'to establish' in Thai. | |||
Vietnamese | tạo nên | ||
"Tạo nên" in Vietnamese can also mean "to make up", "to invent", or "to establish". | |||
Filipino (Tagalog) | lumikha | ||
Azerbaijani | yaratmaq | ||
"Yaratmaq" also means "to love" and has a root in "yar" meaning "friend." | |||
Kazakh | жасау | ||
The word «жасау» also means "to build" and "to compose" in Kazakh. | |||
Kyrgyz | түзүү | ||
The word "түзүү" can also mean "to draw up or compose, as a document or a contract" in Kyrgyz. | |||
Tajik | эҷод кардан | ||
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Turkmen | döretmek | ||
Uzbek | yaratmoq | ||
The Uzbek word "yaratmoq" can also mean "make" or "produce." | |||
Uyghur | قۇرۇش | ||
Hawaiian | hana | ||
The Hawaiian word "hana" derives from the Proto-Polynesian *fana meaning "to shape" or "to mold". | |||
Maori | hanga | ||
'Hanga' also means 'to build' and 'to establish' in Maori, highlighting the interconnectedness of creation, building, and establishment in Maori culture. | |||
Samoan | faia | ||
The Samoan word 'faia' can also mean 'make' or 'do'. | |||
Tagalog (Filipino) | lumikha | ||
"Lumikha" may also mean "form" or "make". |
Aymara | uñstayaña | ||
Guarani | mboypy | ||
Esperanto | krei | ||
Esperanto “krei” derives from Old Norse and shares connections with words like “grow” and “beget". | |||
Latin | partum | ||
The Latin word 'partum' ('to bring forth') also translates as 'to conceive', 'to suffer', or (as an archaic term) 'an offspring'. |
Greek | δημιουργώ | ||
In ancient Greek, "δημιουργώ" also means "to work with the hands," likely deriving from the root "δημος," meaning "people" or "community." | |||
Hmong | tsim | ||
Tsim can also refer to the action of putting things in order or making something work properly. | |||
Kurdish | xûliqandin | ||
xûliqandin is thought to derive from the Indo-European word *kʷer-, 'to make, to create'. | |||
Turkish | oluşturmak | ||
"Oluşturmak" has the same root as "olmak" meaning "to be", implying that creation is the act of bringing something into existence. | |||
Xhosa | yenza | ||
The word "yenza" can also refer to "making" or "doing" something. | |||
Yiddish | שאַפֿן | ||
"שאַפֿן" derives from Middle High German "schaffen" meaning "form, create" in the sense of making something tangible, similar to modern English "shaping". | |||
Zulu | dala | ||
In Zulu, "dala" can also refer to "generate" or "produce". | |||
Assamese | সৃষ্টি কৰা | ||
Aymara | uñstayaña | ||
Bhojpuri | बनावल | ||
Dhivehi | ތައްޔާރުކުރުން | ||
Dogri | बनाना | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) | lumikha | ||
Guarani | mboypy | ||
Ilocano | agaramid | ||
Krio | mek | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) | دروستکردن | ||
Maithili | बनाउ | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯁꯦꯝꯕ | ||
Mizo | siam | ||
Oromo | uumuu | ||
Odia (Oriya) | ସୃଷ୍ଟି କରନ୍ତୁ | | ||
Quechua | paqarichiy | ||
Sanskrit | निर्मियताम् | ||
Tatar | булдыру | ||
Tigrinya | ፍጠር | ||
Tsonga | vumba | ||