Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'district' holds a significant place in our vocabulary, denoting a specific area or region that shares common characteristics. Its cultural importance is evident in the way we use it to define neighborhoods, administrative divisions, and even virtual communities. Understanding the translation of 'district' in different languages can open up a world of cultural discovery and foster global connections.
For instance, the Spanish translation of 'distrito' reflects the country's rich history and cultural diversity, while the German 'Bezirk' highlights the region's administrative significance. In China, 'qu' (区) is the term used to describe a district, reflecting the country's vast population and geographical expanse.
By learning these translations, you can deepen your understanding of different cultures and broaden your linguistic horizons. So, let's explore the many ways 'district' is translated around the world.
Afrikaans | distrik | ||
The word "distrik" in Afrikaans comes from the Dutch "district", ultimately derived from the Latin "districtus", meaning "a defined territory". | |||
Amharic | ወረዳ | ||
Amharic ወረዳ (weräda) comes from the root word ረደ (rädä) meaning to descend or go down. | |||
Hausa | gundumar | ||
The word "gundumar" is thought to derive from the Arabic word "qism", meaning "part" or "district". It can also refer to a group of villages or a chieftaincy. | |||
Igbo | district | ||
The Igbo word "ọgbe" can also refer to a person's homestead, a group of people living together, or a section of a town. | |||
Malagasy | distrika | ||
The French word “district” is the likely origin, but the term could also refer to a group within a commune or the head of a district. | |||
Nyanja (Chichewa) | chigawo | ||
The word "chigawo" can also refer to a "region" or "province" in the Chewa language. | |||
Shona | dunhu | ||
The word 'dunhu' is derived from the Proto-Bantu root '-dù' meaning 'to dwell'. | |||
Somali | degmada | ||
"Degmada" can also refer to a specific administrative region in Somalia and other regions where Somali people live. | |||
Sesotho | setereke | ||
The word "setereke" is derived from the root "tereka," meaning "to draw a line" or "to mark out," and refers to a defined geographical area. | |||
Swahili | wilaya | ||
Wilāya may also refer to an "appointment" or "delegation". | |||
Xhosa | kwisithili | ||
The word "kwisithili" originates from the Xhosa phrase "ukusitha" (to sit), referring to a place where people gathered for meetings or discussions. | |||
Yoruba | agbegbe | ||
"Agbegbe" in Yoruba could also refer to a group of people or an assembly. | |||
Zulu | isifunda | ||
In some traditional Nguni societies, an isifunda was a military unit of around 200 men and women. | |||
Bambara | sigida | ||
Ewe | nuto | ||
Kinyarwanda | karere | ||
Lingala | etuka | ||
Luganda | disitulikiti | ||
Sepedi | distriki | ||
Twi (Akan) | masnini | ||
Arabic | منطقة | ||
The word "منطقة" can also refer to a "zone" or "region" in Arabic. | |||
Hebrew | מָחוֹז | ||
The word "מָחוֹז" (district) is derived from the root "הוח" (to go), suggesting a region or area within which people travel or roam. | |||
Pashto | ولسوالۍ | ||
The Pashto word “ولسوالۍ” (“district”) is derived from the Persian word “ولایت” (“province”), which in turn comes from the Arabic word “ولاية” (“governance”). | |||
Arabic | منطقة | ||
The word "منطقة" can also refer to a "zone" or "region" in Arabic. |
Albanian | rrethi | ||
The word "rrethi" comes from the Latin "radius," meaning "ray" or "spoke," and originally referred to the administrative divisions of the Roman Empire. | |||
Basque | auzoa | ||
"Auzoa" can mean both "district" and "neighborhood" in Basque | |||
Catalan | districte | ||
Catalan "districte" comes from "districtus" and originally referred to an "area governed by Roman authorities" | |||
Croatian | okrug | ||
Originally, "okrug" meant a circle or a round area (cognate with "okruglo" meaning "round" in Croatian). | |||
Danish | distrikt | ||
The Danish word "distrikt" originates from the Latin word "districtus" and originally meant "a geographical or administrative division of a country". | |||
Dutch | wijk | ||
The Dutch word 'wijk' is derived from the Proto-Germanic word 'wīk', which originally meant 'camp' or 'settlement'. | |||
English | district | ||
The word 'district' derives from the Latin word 'districtus', meaning 'separation' or 'division'. It can also refer to an administrative or electoral division of a city or country. | |||
French | district | ||
The word "district" comes from the Latin word "districtus," meaning "a region marked off by boundaries." | |||
Frisian | distrikt | ||
In Frisian, "distrikt" can also refer to a specific administrative subdivision within a municipality. | |||
Galician | distrito | ||
In Galician, "distrito" can also refer to a judicial district or the office of a district attorney. | |||
German | kreis | ||
The word "Kreis" derives from an old Germanic word meaning "circle" or "sphere", reflecting the historical practice of organizing administrative divisions around geographic boundaries. | |||
Icelandic | umdæmi | ||
The word “umræmi” initially meant “delimitation” and was later used in the sense of “delimited area” and eventually “district”. | |||
Irish | dúiche | ||
In Irish, 'dúiche' can also refer to one's homeland or native place, adding a sense of belonging and connection to the term. | |||
Italian | quartiere | ||
In Italian, the word "quartiere" can also refer to a neighborhood, a city ward, or even a specific building or block within a city. | |||
Luxembourgish | bezierk | ||
While "Bezirke" are administrative units in Germany, "Bezirker" in Luxembourg are electoral districts for the country's Chamber of Deputies. | |||
Maltese | distrett | ||
The word "distrett" is derived from the Italian word "distretto", which means "district" or "county". | |||
Norwegian | distrikt | ||
"Distrikt" is a cognate of the French word "district," and is used in Norwegian to refer to a subdivision of a county or other administrative division. | |||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | distrito | ||
"Distrito" derives from the Latin word "districtus" (to bind, to surround, to limit). | |||
Scots Gaelic | sgìre | ||
The word "sgìre" is also used in Scots Gaelic to refer to a "parish" or "diocese". | |||
Spanish | distrito | ||
In Spanish, "distrito" also refers to a judicial or electoral division, and can designate a specific area within a city or town. | |||
Swedish | distrikt | ||
The Swedish word "distrikt" stems from the Latin word "districtus", which means "region" or "territory". | |||
Welsh | ardal | ||
The word 'ardal' is derived from the Welsh word 'ard', meaning 'high', and can also refer to a high place or a mountain. |
Belarusian | раён | ||
The word can also refer to a type of traditional woven cloth in Belarusian culture. | |||
Bosnian | okrug | ||
The word 'okrug' in Bosnian is derived from the Slavic word '*obkrug' meaning 'around' or 'circle'. | |||
Bulgarian | област | ||
Област, a Slavic noun meaning both "district" of the state and "sphere" of the human mind (in this sense is related to "обло"" - "cover, surround") and "облако" - "cloud". | |||
Czech | okres | ||
"Okres" is also used to refer to a prehistoric period or a period of time in general. | |||
Estonian | linnaosa | ||
This place name derives from "linn" (town, castle) and "aosa" (part), and thus originally marked the territory surrounding a local stronghold | |||
Finnish | kaupunginosa | ||
While kaupunginosa literally means 'city-part', its other meaning is 'district', a political division. | |||
Hungarian | kerület | ||
The word kerület originated from the Middle Hungarian "ker", meaning "to enclose". | |||
Latvian | apgabals | ||
The word “apgabals” comes from the German loanword “Apgabel,” meaning a certain section within which the tithe of the church and other taxes are levied. | |||
Lithuanian | rajonas | ||
The Lithuanian word "rajonas" is related to the Slavic word "raj", which means "paradise". | |||
Macedonian | област | ||
Област derives from the Old Church Slavonic word власт meaning "dominion", "power", "authority" | |||
Polish | dzielnica | ||
Etymology: Polish dzielnica from dzielić 'to share, to divide', thus 'a shared, divided place'. | |||
Romanian | district | ||
"District" in Romanian can also refer to a city quarter or a geographical region. | |||
Russian | район | ||
The word "район" also means "paradise" or "heaven" in Russian. | |||
Serbian | округ | ||
Округ is also used to describe a group of deputies elected on a regional list to represent their region in the parliament. | |||
Slovak | okres | ||
"Okres" comes from the Czech word "okrouh" (meaning "circle"), originally referring to an administrative unit with a circular boundary. | |||
Slovenian | okrožje | ||
The word 'okrožje' originates from the Proto-Slavic word '*okrugъ', which originally meant 'round' or 'circle'. | |||
Ukrainian | р-ну | ||
The word "р-ну" in Ukrainian is derived from the Slavic word "раyon", which also means "district" in other Slavic languages such as Russian and Polish. |
Bengali | জেলা | ||
জেলা is derived from the Sanskrit word 'deśa' which means 'country' or 'region', thus its original meaning was 'a small country' | |||
Gujarati | જીલ્લો | ||
The word "જીલ્લો" (district) in Gujarati is derived from the Persian word "zila", meaning "division" or "province". | |||
Hindi | जिला | ||
In Urdu, "district" is also known as "zila" which originally meant "a group of villages". | |||
Kannada | ಜಿಲ್ಲೆ | ||
The word "ಜಿಲ್ಲೆ" also means "a large tract of land" or "a region". | |||
Malayalam | ജില്ല | ||
The word "ജില്ല" (district) in Malayalam is derived from the Persian word "zil", meaning "shadow" or "province." | |||
Marathi | जिल्हा | ||
The Marathi word "जिल्हा" (district) derives from the Persian word "zila" (land), which itself originates from the Arabic word "zil" (shadow). | |||
Nepali | जिल्ला | ||
The Nepali word 'जिल्ला' (district) originates from the Sanskrit term 'जल', meaning water. | |||
Punjabi | ਜ਼ਿਲ੍ਹਾ | ||
It is a borrowing from the Persian word "zirlah", meaning "a yard or garden." | |||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) | දිසා | ||
දිසා (disa) is cognate with Sanskrit disha (दिश) which means direction and also part, place, or region. | |||
Tamil | மாவட்டம் | ||
Telugu | జిల్లా | ||
The word "జిల్లా" (district) is derived from the Sanskrit word "जिल्ला" (jilḍa), meaning "a collection of villages" or "a region under a single administrative unit". | |||
Urdu | ضلع | ||
The word "ضلع" can also mean "side" or "rib" in Arabic and Urdu. |
Chinese (Simplified) | 区 | ||
The character "区" can also mean "area", "portion", or "region". | |||
Chinese (Traditional) | 區 | ||
區 also means 'zone,' 'area,' 'region,' 'place,' 'locality,' 'quarter,' or 'section'. | |||
Japanese | 地区 | ||
The word "地区" can also mean "area" or "region" in Japanese. | |||
Korean | 지구 | ||
지구 can also refer to the area around an administrative office, such as a district office. | |||
Mongolian | дүүрэг | ||
In Mongolian, "дүүрэг" (district) also refers to an area of land divided into smaller units or to a group of people living in a particular area. | |||
Myanmar (Burmese) | ခရိုင် | ||
The word "ခရိုင်" in Burmese can also be used to refer to a geographical area larger than a township but smaller than a state or region. |
Indonesian | distrik | ||
The word "distrik" in Indonesian is derived from the Dutch word "district" and has the same meaning. | |||
Javanese | kabupaten | ||
In Javanese, 'kabupaten' can also refer to a group of villages under the leadership of a common elder or official. | |||
Khmer | ស្រុក | ||
It is closely related to the concept of "a field". | |||
Lao | ເມືອງ | ||
Malay | daerah | ||
The word "daerah" in Malay can also refer to a region, a geographical area, or a locality. | |||
Thai | อำเภอ | ||
The word "อำเภอ" (district) also means "watercourse" or "estuary" in Thai. | |||
Vietnamese | huyện | ||
"Huyện" originally meant "frontier" or "outpost" | |||
Filipino (Tagalog) | distrito | ||
Azerbaijani | rayon | ||
In Persian, "rayon" means "territory, region, or province." | |||
Kazakh | аудан | ||
In Kazakh, the word "аудан" also refers to a traditional Kazakh administrative division. | |||
Kyrgyz | район | ||
The word "район" is sometimes confused with "айыл" (village) in Kyrgyz, but they have distinct meanings and usages. | |||
Tajik | ноҳия | ||
The word "ноҳия" ("district") is derived from the Persian word "ناحیه" ("district") | |||
Turkmen | etrap | ||
Uzbek | tuman | ||
"Tuman" also means "10,000" in Uzbek, Persian, and Mongolian. | |||
Uyghur | رايون | ||
Hawaiian | apana | ||
The word "apana" can also refer to a land division, a section of land, or a plot of land. | |||
Maori | takiwa | ||
The word "takiwa" in Māori can also refer to a region governed by a Māori chief or tribe. | |||
Samoan | itu | ||
Itu can also mean 'that' or 'it' in Samoan, similar to the demonstrative pronoun 'that' in English. | |||
Tagalog (Filipino) | distrito | ||
The Tagalog word "distrito" can also mean "region" or "area". |
Aymara | tistritu | ||
Guarani | táva | ||
Esperanto | distrikto | ||
'Distrikto' also means 'district' in Esperanto, but is derived from the Latin 'districtus' meaning 'drawn out', and not from the Spanish 'distrito'. | |||
Latin | regio | ||
In Latin, 'regio' derives from the verb 'regere' ('to rule'), implying governance over a particular area. |
Greek | περιοχή | ||
" Περιοχή " also refers to the abdominal cavity in the human body, the area surrounding a volcano and a body part. | |||
Hmong | cheeb tsam | ||
"Cheeb tsam" is also the Hmong word for a "sub-village," "clan group," or "village branch." | |||
Kurdish | herêm | ||
The word herêm in Kurdish derives from the Arabic word harīm, meaning "a sacred or forbidden place" or "a sanctuary". It can also refer to a "residential district" or a "city quarter" in some contexts. | |||
Turkish | ilçe | ||
The Turkish word "ilçe" derives from the Mongolian word "ilgür", which denotes a small feudal domain. | |||
Xhosa | kwisithili | ||
The word "kwisithili" originates from the Xhosa phrase "ukusitha" (to sit), referring to a place where people gathered for meetings or discussions. | |||
Yiddish | דיסטריקט | ||
The Yiddish word 'דיסטריקט' can also refer to a specific neighborhood or area with a particular character or identity. | |||
Zulu | isifunda | ||
In some traditional Nguni societies, an isifunda was a military unit of around 200 men and women. | |||
Assamese | জিলা | ||
Aymara | tistritu | ||
Bhojpuri | जिला | ||
Dhivehi | ސަރަހައްދު | ||
Dogri | जि'ला | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) | distrito | ||
Guarani | táva | ||
Ilocano | distrito | ||
Krio | distrikt | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) | قەزا | ||
Maithili | जिला | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯖꯤꯂꯥ | ||
Mizo | ram bial khat | ||
Oromo | aanaa | ||
Odia (Oriya) | ଜିଲ୍ଲା | ||
Quechua | distrito | ||
Sanskrit | जनपद | ||
Tatar | район | ||
Tigrinya | ኣውራጃ | ||
Tsonga | xifundza | ||