Democracy in Different Languages
Discover 'Democracy' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
Democracy, a form of government in which power is vested in the people, who rule either directly or through freely elected representatives. This system of governance, which places a premium on equality and freedom, has shaped the cultural and political landscape of countless nations.
The significance of democracy extends far beyond its political implications. It is a concept that embodies the ideals of inclusivity, fairness, and representation, values that are cherished across cultures and time periods. From the ancient Athenian city-state to the modern nation-state, democracy has been a cornerstone of societies that strive for progress and prosperity.
Understanding the translation of democracy in different languages is a fascinating way to explore the cultural nuances of this universal concept. For instance, in Spanish, democracy is translated as 'democracia', in French as 'démocratie', and in German as 'Demokratie'. Each language offers a unique perspective on this timeless ideal, reflecting the history, values, and identity of the people who speak it.
In this article, we delve into the translations of democracy in a variety of languages, offering insights into the cultural significance of this powerful word. Join us on this journey of linguistic and cultural discovery!
Democracy
Democracy in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | demokrasie | ||
| In Afrikaans, 'demokrasie' can also mean 'rule by the people' like the Greek word 'demokratia' it originates from. | |||
| Amharic | ዲሞክራሲ | ||
| ዲሞ from Greek "demos = people" + -κρασι from Greek "-kratia = power." | |||
| Hausa | dimokiradiyya | ||
| Derived from the Greek "demos" (people), "kratos" (power), meaning "power of the people". | |||
| Igbo | ochichi onye kwuo uche ya | ||
| The phrase 'ochichi onye kwuo uche ya' literally means 'a gathering where everyone speaks their mind' and implies that everyone has the freedom to participate in government. | |||
| Malagasy | demokrasia | ||
| In Malagasy, "demokrasia" also refers to a type of dance accompanied by traditional chanting. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | demokalase | ||
| In Chichewa, ‘demokalase’, from English, is closely associated with words like ‘freedom’ that have come to be closely associated with western colonial practices | |||
| Shona | democracy | ||
| In Shona, 'democracy' translates to 'dhimokurasi,' a term adopted from the English language. | |||
| Somali | dimuqraadiyadda | ||
| The term is derived from the Greek words "demos" (people) and "kratos" (power). | |||
| Sesotho | demokrasi | ||
| In Sesotho, 'demokrasi' is also used to refer to a 'gathering where issues are decided upon by consensus' | |||
| Swahili | demokrasia | ||
| In Swahili, the origin of the word “demokrasia” has an etymological link to an older Bantu-speaking people’s concept of the word which is “to bargain until an agreement is reached”. | |||
| Xhosa | idemokhrasi | ||
| The Xhosa word "idemokhrasi" (democracy) has an alternate meaning, referring to the "ruling people", as in a chief or king. | |||
| Yoruba | ijoba tiwantiwa | ||
| The phrase “ijóbà tíiwàn-ti-wà” comes from “ijó to rule” + “tíiwàn” which was originally the Yoruba translation of “individual” or “free man”, but now means “cîtizen”. | |||
| Zulu | intando yeningi | ||
| In Zulu, 'democracy' is translated as 'intando yeningi', which literally means 'the will of the many'. | |||
| Bambara | bɛɛjɛfanga | ||
| Ewe | ablɔɖegbadza | ||
| Kinyarwanda | demokarasi | ||
| Lingala | demokrasi | ||
| Luganda | demokulasiya | ||
| Sepedi | temokrasi | ||
| Twi (Akan) | kabimamenkabi | ||
Democracy in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | ديمقراطية | ||
| ديمقراطية (dīmuqrāṭīyah) is related to the word "قمر" (qamar), which means "moon" in Arabic, suggesting a cosmic order and balance in its concept. | |||
| Hebrew | דֵמוֹקרָטִיָה | ||
| משמעות המילה "דמוקרטיה" בעברית נגזרת משתי המילים "דמוס" (עם) ו"קרטוס" (כוח). | |||
| Pashto | ډیموکراسي | ||
| In Pashto, the word "ډیموکراسي" can also refer to a type of traditional tribal council. | |||
| Arabic | ديمقراطية | ||
| ديمقراطية (dīmuqrāṭīyah) is related to the word "قمر" (qamar), which means "moon" in Arabic, suggesting a cosmic order and balance in its concept. | |||
Democracy in Western European Languages
| Albanian | demokraci | ||
| Albanian demokraci comes from the French démocratie and Greek demokratia, and can also be used to mean the 'rule of the majority'. | |||
| Basque | demokrazia | ||
| The word 'demokrazia' is a Basque loanword from Spanish, but also has a secondary meaning of "mob" or "rabble". | |||
| Catalan | democràcia | ||
| The term originated from Greek roots meaning “popular government.” | |||
| Croatian | demokracija | ||
| The Croatian word 'demokracija' comes from the Ancient Greek word 'δημοκρατία' (dēmokratiā), which was first used by Aristotle to describe the political system of ancient Greece. | |||
| Danish | demokrati | ||
| The word 'demokrati' in Danish comes from the Greek word 'dēmokratía', which means 'rule by the people'. | |||
| Dutch | democratie | ||
| In Dutch, "democratie" also means "democracy", but it comes from the Greek word "dēmos" (people) and "kratos" (rule). | |||
| English | democracy | ||
| The word "democracy" is derived from the Greek words "demos" (people) and "kratos" (rule), and originally referred to a system of government in which all citizens had an equal say in decision-making. | |||
| French | la démocratie | ||
| The word "la démocratie" also relates to ancient Sparta\u2019s demokratia, a term associated with the division of land among soldiers. | |||
| Frisian | demokrasy | ||
| Frisian "demokrasy" comes from the Greek "dēmokratia" but has other meanings like "the people as a whole" or "the people's rights". | |||
| Galician | democracia | ||
| No Galician, "democracia" is also a synonym for "party political activity." | |||
| German | demokratie | ||
| In the German language the term 'Demokratie' can also refer to the 'people' or the 'nation' | |||
| Icelandic | lýðræði | ||
| The word "lýðræði" is derived from the Old Norse word "lýðr", meaning "people", and "ræði", meaning "rule". It can also refer to a popular assembly or a form of government where power is vested in the people. | |||
| Irish | daonlathas | ||
| Daonlathas was a legal concept in ancient Irish law similar to the modern concept of 'due process'. | |||
| Italian | democrazia | ||
| In Italian, the word 'democrazia' is a derivative of the Greek word 'demokratia', meaning 'rule by the people'. | |||
| Luxembourgish | demokratie | ||
| Demokratie is also used specifically for the democratic structure of the state or the state itself. | |||
| Maltese | demokrazija | ||
| "Demokrazija" derives from the classical Greek "dēmokratia" via French "démocratie" and ultimately means "rule of people". | |||
| Norwegian | demokrati | ||
| In Norwegian, demokrati can also refer to the majority vote in a group or committee. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | democracia | ||
| No português do Brasil, "democracia" também pode indicar uma espécie de doce regional. | |||
| Scots Gaelic | deamocrasaidh | ||
| The word "deamocrasaidh" comes from the Greek word "dēmokratía," meaning "rule by the people." | |||
| Spanish | democracia | ||
| The word "democracia" comes from the Greek "dēmokratia," meaning "rule by the people." | |||
| Swedish | demokrati | ||
| The word 'demokrati' has its roots in the classical Greek terms 'demos', meaning the people, and 'kratos', meaning rule or strength. | |||
| Welsh | democratiaeth | ||
| The Welsh word "democratiaeth" is derived from the Greek word "dēmokratia", which means "rule of the people". | |||
Democracy in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | дэмакратыя | ||
| The Belarusian word "дэмакратыя" means "democracy" and comes from the Greek word "δημοκρατία," which means "rule by the people." | |||
| Bosnian | demokratija | ||
| The word 'demokratija' is derived from the Greek words 'demos' (people) and 'kratos' (power). | |||
| Bulgarian | демокрация | ||
| Българската дума “демокрация” идва от старогръцки и първоначално обозначава форма на държавно управление. | |||
| Czech | demokracie | ||
| The Czech word "demokracie" is derived from the Greek "demokratia", meaning "rule by the people". | |||
| Estonian | demokraatia | ||
| In 1865, "demokraatia" also referred to "popular power". | |||
| Finnish | demokratia | ||
| The word 'demokratia' comes from the Greek words 'demos', meaning 'people', and 'kratos', meaning 'power'. | |||
| Hungarian | demokrácia | ||
| A "demokrácia" szó eredeti görög jelentése "népuralom", amely a görög "demosz" (nép) és "kratosz" (uralom) szavak összetételéből származik. | |||
| Latvian | demokrātija | ||
| The Latvian word for democracy, “demokrātija”, originally meant "the power of the people". | |||
| Lithuanian | demokratija | ||
| The word "demokratija" is derived from the Greek words "demos" (people) and "kratos" (power). | |||
| Macedonian | демократија | ||
| The word "демократија" (democracy) in Macedonian shares its etymology with the Greek word "δημοκρατία", which literally means "rule of the people". | |||
| Polish | demokracja | ||
| The Polish word «demokracja» can refer to both direct and indirect forms of democracy. | |||
| Romanian | democraţie | ||
| The word "democraţie" is derived from the Greek word "demokratia" which means "rule by the people." | |||
| Russian | демократия | ||
| The word "демократия" in Russian, like the English word "democracy", is derived from the Ancient Greek word "δημοκρατία" (dēmokratía), meaning "rule of the people". | |||
| Serbian | демократија | ||
| The Serbian word „demokratija“ derives from the Greek terms „dēmos“ (people) and „kratēia“ (power), thus signifying “people power”. | |||
| Slovak | demokracia | ||
| V slovenčine slovo demokracia vzniklo z gréckeho demokratia, ale znamená aj vládu ľudu. | |||
| Slovenian | demokracija | ||
| In Slovene, "demokracija" not only means "democracy," but also "administration of property owned by local communities." | |||
| Ukrainian | демократія | ||
| The word "демократія" (democracy) in Ukrainian is derived from the Greek words "demos" (people) and "kratos" (power), and can also refer to the power or rule of the majority. | |||
Democracy in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | গণতন্ত্র | ||
| The word "গণতন্ত্র" (democracy) in Bengali literally means "power of the people". | |||
| Gujarati | લોકશાહી | ||
| Derived from Greek "demos" (people) and "kratos" (power), it reflects people's power in decision-making. | |||
| Hindi | जनतंत्र | ||
| जनतंत्र' शब्द संस्कृत के 'जन' (लोग) और 'तंत्र' (शासन) शब्दों से मिलकर बना है, जिसका अर्थ है 'लोगों का शासन'। | |||
| Kannada | ಪ್ರಜಾಪ್ರಭುತ್ವ | ||
| Malayalam | ജനാധിപത്യം | ||
| Marathi | लोकशाही | ||
| The word "लोकशाही" (democracy) in Marathi is derived from the Sanskrit word "लोक" (people) and "शासन" (rule), and can also refer to a type of government where the people have a say in how they are governed. | |||
| Nepali | प्रजातन्त्र | ||
| The word 'प्रजातन्त्र' (democracy) also refers to a political system in which the sovereign power is vested in the people who exercise it through representatives elected by them. | |||
| Punjabi | ਲੋਕਤੰਤਰ | ||
| लोकतंत्र शब्द की उत्पत्ति ग्रीक भाषा के 'लोकस' (लोग) और 'क्रटॉस' (शासन) शब्दों से हुई है। | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | ප්රජාතන්ත්රවාදය | ||
| Tamil | ஜனநாயகம் | ||
| "Jana" means "people" and "ayagam" means "rule" in Tamil, hence the word "Janaayagam" translates to "people's rule".} | |||
| Telugu | ప్రజాస్వామ్యం | ||
| "ప్రజాస్వామ్యం" (prajAswAmyam) is a Sanskrit compound noun composed of "ప్రజ" (prajA), meaning "people" or "citizens", and "स्वाम्य" (swAmya), meaning "rule" or "sovereignty". It is synonymous with the Greek term "δημοκρατία" (dēmokratia) from which the modern word "democracy" originates. | |||
| Urdu | جمہوریت | ||
| جمہوریت is an Urdu word primarily meaning "democracy", but can also mean "republic", "body or assembly of people", "community", or "congregation" in different contexts. | |||
Democracy in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 民主 | ||
| 民主, which comes from the Greek words "demos" (people) and "kratos" (rule), literally means "rule of the people". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 民主 | ||
| 民主 originated in ancient Greek as 'demos,' meaning people, and 'kratos,' meaning power, and was first translated as 'min zhu' in China in the 1890s, which literally translates to 'the people are masters'. | |||
| Japanese | 民主主義 | ||
| The word "民主主義" (democracy) was coined in the Meiji era, and its original meaning was "government by the people". | |||
| Korean | 민주주의 | ||
| The word "민주주의" is derived from the Greek words "demos" (people) and "kratos" (power), meaning "power to the people" | |||
| Mongolian | ардчилал | ||
| ардчилал has historical meaning of 'democratic republic', although this specific meaning only recently found use | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ဒီမိုကရေစီ | ||
Democracy in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | demokrasi | ||
| Indonesian "demokrasi" also means "public opinion" or "people's right to speak their mind". | |||
| Javanese | demokrasi | ||
| "Demokrasi" berasal dari bahasa Sansekerta, "demos" yang artinya rakyat, dan "kratos" yang artinya kekuasaan. | |||
| Khmer | ប្រជាធិបតេយ្យ | ||
| Lao | ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ | ||
| Malay | demokrasi | ||
| The Malay word "demokrasi" is derived from the Greek words "demos" (people) and "kratos" (rule) and refers to a system of government in which all or many citizens can participate. | |||
| Thai | ประชาธิปไตย | ||
| "ประชาธิปไตย" also means "sovereign power of the people" in Thai. | |||
| Vietnamese | dân chủ | ||
| Vietnamese "dân chủ" can also mean "the right to autonomy" | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | demokrasya | ||
Democracy in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | demokratiya | ||
| "Demokratiya" comes from the Greek "dēmos" (people) and "kratos" (power). | |||
| Kazakh | демократия | ||
| Слово “демократия” в казахском языке имеет более широкое значение, обозначая не только форму правления, но и справедливость, равенство и социальную гармонию. | |||
| Kyrgyz | демократия | ||
| Слово «демократия» произошло от греческих слов «demos» («народ») и «kratos» («власть»). | |||
| Tajik | демократия | ||
| В таджикском языке слово «демократия» заимствовано из греческого через русский и имеет значение «народное правление». | |||
| Turkmen | demokratiýa | ||
| Uzbek | demokratiya | ||
| The Uzbek word "demokratiya" is derived from the Greek word "dēmokratía", meaning "rule by the people". | |||
| Uyghur | دېموكراتىيە | ||
Democracy in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | aupuni kemokalaka | ||
| The word "aupuni kemokalaka" literally means "government of the common people" in Hawaiian. | |||
| Maori | manapori | ||
| The word "manapori" is also related to the concepts of power, influence, and authority. | |||
| Samoan | temokalasi | ||
| "Temokalasi" is derived from the Greek words "demos" (people) and "kratos" (power), hence meaning "power of the people". | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | demokrasya | ||
| Demokrasya in Tagalog is derived from the Greek words 'demos' ('people') and 'kratos' ('power'), implying people having control over government matters, and connotes an egalitarian distribution of political privileges. | |||
Democracy in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | democracia | ||
| Guarani | jekupyty | ||
Democracy in International Languages
| Esperanto | demokratio | ||
| "Demokratio" is derived from the same root as "demos" (people) and "kratein" (to rule), but in Esperanto it also refers to the system in which the people are the ones who decide. | |||
| Latin | democratiam | ||
| The word "democratiam" comes from the Greek word "dēmokratía," which means "rule by the people." | |||
Democracy in Others Languages
| Greek | δημοκρατία | ||
| "Δημοκρατία" is a compound Greek word meaning "rule of the people". | |||
| Hmong | kev ywj pheej | ||
| The word "kev ywj pheej" can also refer to a traditional Hmong assembly where decisions are made through consensus. | |||
| Kurdish | dimûqratî | ||
| The Kurdish word "dimûqratî" is derived from the Greek word "demokratia", meaning "rule by the people." | |||
| Turkish | demokrasi | ||
| The Turkish word "demokrasi" is derived from the Greek word "dēmokratia"} | |||
| Xhosa | idemokhrasi | ||
| The Xhosa word "idemokhrasi" (democracy) has an alternate meaning, referring to the "ruling people", as in a chief or king. | |||
| Yiddish | דעמאקראטיע | ||
| In Yiddish, 'דעמאקראטיע' can also refer to a lottery or raffle drawing. | |||
| Zulu | intando yeningi | ||
| In Zulu, 'democracy' is translated as 'intando yeningi', which literally means 'the will of the many'. | |||
| Assamese | গণতন্ত্ৰ | ||
| Aymara | democracia | ||
| Bhojpuri | लोकतंत्र | ||
| Dhivehi | ޑިމޮކްރަަސީ | ||
| Dogri | जम्हूरीयत | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | demokrasya | ||
| Guarani | jekupyty | ||
| Ilocano | demokrasia | ||
| Krio | gɔvmɛnt fɔ di pipul | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | دیموکراتیەت | ||
| Maithili | लोकतंत्र | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯒꯅꯇꯟꯇ꯭ꯔ | ||
| Mizo | mipui rorelna | ||
| Oromo | dimookiraasii | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଗଣତନ୍ତ୍ର | ||
| Quechua | democracia | ||
| Sanskrit | लोकतंत्र | ||
| Tatar | демократия | ||
| Tigrinya | ዲሞክራሲ | ||
| Tsonga | demokrasi | ||