Employment in Different Languages
Discover 'Employment' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
Employment is a significant and culturally important concept that affects individuals, communities, and economies worldwide. It refers to the state of having a paid job or of being engaged in a productive activity, whether for an organization or on one's own. Employment is a key driver of prosperity, social mobility, and personal fulfillment, and it is often seen as a fundamental human right. The word 'employment' has roots in the Old French word 'employer', which means 'to use up, to expend, to devote (to a purpose)'.
Given the global nature of the economy and the increasing interconnectedness of societies, it is essential to understand the concept of employment in different languages. For instance, in Spanish, employment translates to 'empleo', while in French, it is 'emploi'. In German, it is 'Beschäftigung', and in Japanese, it is '就業' (shūgyō). In Mandarin Chinese, employment is translated as '就业' (jiùyè).
Understanding the translation of employment in different languages can help bridge cultural gaps, facilitate international communication, and promote global cooperation. In the following list, you will find the translations of employment in various languages, along with their pronunciation and script.
Employment
Employment in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | indiensneming | ||
| "Indiensneming" in Afrikaans, which literally translates to "Indian taking" in English, has a separate and distinct meaning from its English counterpart. | |||
| Amharic | ሥራ | ||
| The word "ሥራ" can also refer to a task or a duty. | |||
| Hausa | aiki | ||
| The word "aiki" can also refer to the act of working or a person's job or occupation. | |||
| Igbo | ọrụ | ||
| Ọrụ, meaning "work" or "job" in Igbo, also has the connotation of "service" or "ministry." | |||
| Malagasy | asa | ||
| ASA can be used to denote not only work but also business or activity in which someone has an interest. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | ntchito | ||
| The word 'ntchito' can also refer to a job or task, and is related to the verb 'kuchita', meaning 'to work'. | |||
| Shona | basa | ||
| In Shona, "basa" can also refer to a "burden" or a "burden-bearer". | |||
| Somali | shaqaalaynta | ||
| In the past, 'shaqaalaynta' was used to refer only to paid work but has since been broadened to include both paid and unpaid work. | |||
| Sesotho | mosebetsi | ||
| "Mosebetsi" is derived from the word "sebetsi" which means "work" and the prefix "mo-" which denotes a noun class. | |||
| Swahili | ajira | ||
| The word 'ajira' in Swahili also means 'work', 'job', or 'occupation'. | |||
| Xhosa | ingqesho | ||
| The word "ingqesho" in Xhosa can also refer to labour, work, service, or occupation. | |||
| Yoruba | oojọ | ||
| The word "ọ̀jọ" has its roots in the Yoruba verb "jọ̀," meaning "to gather". Its original context was "to gather for a purpose". | |||
| Zulu | ukuqashwa | ||
| "Ukuqashwa" in Zulu also refers to the process of harvesting or reaping, as in agriculture. | |||
| Bambara | baara | ||
| Ewe | dɔwɔɖua | ||
| Kinyarwanda | akazi | ||
| Lingala | mosala | ||
| Luganda | okukola | ||
| Sepedi | thwalo | ||
| Twi (Akan) | adwumafa | ||
Employment in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | توظيف | ||
| The word "توظيف" means "employment", but can also mean "the act of allocating resources". | |||
| Hebrew | תעסוקה | ||
| The Hebrew word תעסוקה, or 'employment,' is derived from the root ע-ס-ק, which means 'to be busy' or 'to engage in an activity'. | |||
| Pashto | کارموندنه | ||
| The word کارموندنه (employment) derives from the Persian word کار (work) and the suffix -مند (possessing), meaning "possessing work" or "engaged in work." | |||
| Arabic | توظيف | ||
| The word "توظيف" means "employment", but can also mean "the act of allocating resources". | |||
Employment in Western European Languages
| Albanian | punësimi | ||
| "Punësimi" is an Albanian word that can also refer to "occupation," "task" or "mission." | |||
| Basque | enplegua | ||
| The word "enplegua" is a loan from the French word "emploi", meaning both employment and function. | |||
| Catalan | ocupació | ||
| The Catalan noun "ocupació" comes from the Latin verb "occupare" meaning "to seize" or "to hold". | |||
| Croatian | zapošljavanje | ||
| The word "zapošljavanje" derives from the verb "zaposliti" meaning "to employ" which in turn comes from the noun "posao" meaning "job" or "work". | |||
| Danish | beskæftigelse | ||
| The word beskæftigelse means 'employment' in Danish, but it can also refer to 'occupation', 'activity', or 'engagement'. | |||
| Dutch | werkgelegenheid | ||
| The Dutch word "werkgelegenheid" literally means "work created" or "opportunity to work". | |||
| English | employment | ||
| The word 'employment' can also mean the act of keeping someone busy or the state of being busy. | |||
| French | emploi | ||
| "Emploi" also means "use, usage" in French. | |||
| Frisian | wurkgelegenheid | ||
| The Old Frisian word | |||
| Galician | emprego | ||
| "Emprego" comes from the Latin "implicare", which also means "to wrap" or "to engage." | |||
| German | beschäftigung | ||
| "Beschäftigung" can also mean "occupation" or "activity" in German. | |||
| Icelandic | atvinnu | ||
| "Atvinna" is derived from the Old Norse word "atvinna," which also meant "gain, income, profit, livelihood." | |||
| Irish | fostaíocht | ||
| Fostaíocht can also refer to a 'hiring' or 'recruiting' and is derived from the verb 'fostaigh' meaning 'to hire' or 'to engage'. | |||
| Italian | occupazione | ||
| The Italian word "occupazione" comes from the Latin word "occupatio", which means "occupation", "seizure", or "possession". | |||
| Luxembourgish | beschäftegung | ||
| Maltese | impjieg | ||
| The word "impjieg" in Maltese originates from the Italian word "impiego", which has the same meaning. | |||
| Norwegian | arbeid | ||
| The word "arbeid" stems from the Old Norse word "arbeið," meaning "effort" or "toil." | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | emprego | ||
| The word "emprego" derives from the Latin word "prehendere," meaning "to grasp" or "to seize." | |||
| Scots Gaelic | cosnadh | ||
| Cosnadh derives from the Old Gaelic cosnaim (to assist) and is cognate with the Welsh cynnal (to support). | |||
| Spanish | empleo | ||
| The Spanish word "empleo" derives from the Latin "implicare" meaning "to entangle" or "to implicate". | |||
| Swedish | sysselsättning | ||
| "Sysselsättning" is a Swedish word that also means "engagement" and derives from the verb "sysselsätta" ("to engage"). | |||
| Welsh | cyflogaeth | ||
| "Cyflogaeth" derives from "cyflog" (salary) and, ultimately, from the Latin "stipendium" (pay). | |||
Employment in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | працаўладкаванне | ||
| Bosnian | zapošljavanje | ||
| The word "zapošljavanje" also has the alternate meaning of "getting ready for work" in Bosnian. | |||
| Bulgarian | назначаване на работа | ||
| The Bulgarian word "работа" (work or labor) has the same Indo-European root as the Latin "labor" and the Old English "weorc". | |||
| Czech | zaměstnanost | ||
| The word "zaměstnanost" is derived from the Old Czech word "zamastatnost" meaning "busyness" or "occupation". | |||
| Estonian | tööhõive | ||
| Tööhõive derives from the words 'töö' (work) and 'hõivata' (to occupy), meaning to occupy oneself with work | |||
| Finnish | työllisyys | ||
| The word "työllisyys" is derived from the Old Norse word "þjóð," meaning "nation," and "lýs," meaning "shelter" or "light." | |||
| Hungarian | foglalkoztatás | ||
| "Foglalkoztatás" originates from the Hungarian word "foglalkozás" (occupation), which stems from the verb "foglalkozik" (to occupy oneself with something). Originally, it referred to any activity that occupied one's time and attention, including leisure activities and hobbies. | |||
| Latvian | nodarbinātību | ||
| The word "nodarbinātību" derives from the root "nodarboties", meaning "to engage in an activity" or "to work." | |||
| Lithuanian | užimtumas | ||
| "Užimtumas" also refers to the state of having one or several jobs. | |||
| Macedonian | вработување | ||
| Вработување primarily means employment, but may also refer to employment for a limited period of time, such as seasonal work. | |||
| Polish | zatrudnienie | ||
| The word "zatrudnienie" also means "difficulty" or "trouble" in Polish. | |||
| Romanian | angajare | ||
| The word "angajare" in Romanian is a cognate of "engagement" in French, meaning an obligation to do something. | |||
| Russian | занятость | ||
| The word "занятость" in Russian derives from the verb "занимать" meaning "to occupy". | |||
| Serbian | радни однос | ||
| The Serbian word "радни однос" also means "labor relations". | |||
| Slovak | zamestnanie | ||
| "Zamestnanie" in Slovak is a cognate of the word "employment" in English and shares the same etymology through the Proto-Indo-European word *gʷʰen-. | |||
| Slovenian | zaposlitev | ||
| "Zaposlitev" is also used to refer to the act of getting a job. | |||
| Ukrainian | працевлаштування | ||
| The Ukrainian word "працевлаштування" is derived from the word "праця" (work) and the word "владити" (to manage, to rule). | |||
Employment in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | কর্মসংস্থান | ||
| The Bengali word "কর্মসংস্থান" (employment) literally means "setting up of work" or "organization of work." | |||
| Gujarati | રોજગાર | ||
| The word "રોજગાર" also means "daily work" and is derived from the Sanskrit word "रोजगार" (rojagāra), meaning "daily earning". | |||
| Hindi | रोज़गार | ||
| The word "रोज़गार" (employment) comes from the Persian word "रोज़" meaning "day" and "गार" meaning "work". | |||
| Kannada | ಉದ್ಯೋಗ | ||
| The word "ಉದ್ಯೋಗ" can also refer to "enterprise", "occupation", "profession", or "business" in Kannada. | |||
| Malayalam | തൊഴിൽ | ||
| The term തൊഴിൽ in Malayalam has multiple origins, including the word 'to work' and the term 'to cultivate' | |||
| Marathi | रोजगार | ||
| The word "रोजगार" comes from the Sanskrit word "रोज" meaning "day" and "गार" meaning "to do", so it literally means "daily work". | |||
| Nepali | रोजगार | ||
| The word रोजगार can also mean 'earning wages on a daily basis' or 'temporary employment'. | |||
| Punjabi | ਰੁਜ਼ਗਾਰ | ||
| The word 'ਰੁਜ਼ਗਾਰ' is a loanword from Persian; in Urdu, it can be used for 'livelihood' or 'work' in a general sense. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | රැකියා | ||
| In Sinhala, "රැකියා" (employment) is derived from the word "රැකීම" (guarding, protection), as employment provides financial security and protection against economic hardship. | |||
| Tamil | வேலைவாய்ப்பு | ||
| The term "வேலைவாய்ப்பு" can also refer to the availability of a job or the opportunity to earn a living. | |||
| Telugu | ఉపాధి | ||
| The word "ఉపాధి" ("employment") derives from the Sanskrit term "upajivi," meaning "dependent on something for a living." | |||
| Urdu | روزگار | ||
| The word 'روزگار' (employment) also derives from Sanskrit roots and initially held the meaning of 'fate, fortune, good luck'. | |||
Employment in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 就业 | ||
| "就业" is an abbreviation of "就业机会", meaning "job opportunity". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 就業 | ||
| In Chinese, 就業 is a compound of 就 ("take up"), and 業, meaning both "work" and, archaically, "karma". | |||
| Japanese | 雇用 | ||
| "雇用" is a Japanese word that means "employment," but it can also mean "hiring" or "recruitment." | |||
| Korean | 고용 | ||
| "고용" originally meant "hiring" but has been widely used to mean "employment" | |||
| Mongolian | ажил эрхлэлт | ||
| Ажил юс хэлнээ жзэйний ъблелдений багий для "ажил" могдагий ьяглад углан людий аратай пофигов ыбц ниймэдий гадагдал, популярности шинелий ажилной задачигой и тэмэм ажлог, задолжилгаад, ялалтий и белик щинэъ аролигадал дараганий арат когтов или ажиллат ниймэдий гадагдал, можно багий аратай ажилбат еръосъог над цельюлей аратай ажиллат ниймэдий гадагдал. | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | အလုပ်အကိုင် | ||
Employment in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | pekerjaan | ||
| Although "pekerjaan" primarily means "employment", it can also refer to "work", "labor", or "task". | |||
| Javanese | padamelan | ||
| The word 'padamelan' is derived from the Javanese words 'pada' (with) and 'damelan' (work), and can also refer to a place of work. | |||
| Khmer | ការងារ | ||
| The word "ការងារ" can also refer to a person's occupation, job, or profession. | |||
| Lao | ການຈ້າງງານ | ||
| Malay | pekerjaan | ||
| "Pekerjaan" is a loanword from the Javanese word "pekerjan" which means "work" or "job". | |||
| Thai | การจ้างงาน | ||
| Alternate meanings of "การจ้างงาน" in Thai include "recruitment" and "hiring" | |||
| Vietnamese | việc làm | ||
| Việc làm in Vietnamese is directly translated as "make something work" but also holds the meaning of a paid occupation. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | trabaho | ||
Employment in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | məşğulluq | ||
| "Məşğulluq" köken olarak "meşğul etmek" anlamına gelen "meşğul" sözcüğünden türemiştir. | |||
| Kazakh | жұмыспен қамту | ||
| The word "жұмыспен қамту" can also refer to providing someone with a job or a task. | |||
| Kyrgyz | жумушка орношуу | ||
| Tajik | шуғл | ||
| The word "шуғл" meaning "employment" in Tajik has its derivations in Old Persian with alternate definitions such as "diversion" and "business". | |||
| Turkmen | iş bilen üpjün etmek | ||
| Uzbek | ish bilan ta'minlash | ||
| The word "ish bilan ta'minlash" can also mean "recruitment" in Uzbek | |||
| Uyghur | ئىشقا ئورۇنلىشىش | ||
Employment in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | ka hana | ||
| The word "ka hana" in Hawaiian also refers to a task, work, or job. | |||
| Maori | mahi | ||
| The Māori word "mahi" has roots in both Polynesian and pre-Polynesian origins and originally meant "to strike or to beat". | |||
| Samoan | galuega | ||
| The Samoan word for 'employment', 'galuega', has its origins in the Proto-Austronesian word 'galawa', which means 'work' or 'occupation'. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | trabaho | ||
| "Trabaho" also means "suffering" in Tagalog, perhaps arising from the difficulty of the early Filipinos in finding a job. | |||
Employment in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | irnaqawi | ||
| Guarani | mba'apoha | ||
Employment in International Languages
| Esperanto | dungado | ||
| Esperanto's "dungado" also means "fertilizer". In English, "employer" and "fertilize" both derive from Latin "-plicare", to fold. | |||
| Latin | laboris | ||
| In Latin, the word "laboris" is etymologically connected to the concept of pain or hardship. | |||
Employment in Others Languages
| Greek | εργασία | ||
| "Εργασία" (employment) derives from the verb "εργάζομαι," meaning "to work" and ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *werg- "to do, make." | |||
| Hmong | kev ua haujlwm | ||
| The Hmong word “kev ua haujlwm” not only translates to employment, but it also carries the idea of work or task. | |||
| Kurdish | kar | ||
| In addition to its meaning of "employment", the Kurdish word "kar" also refers to the act of plowing or tilling. | |||
| Turkish | iş | ||
| The word "iş" also has the meaning of "work", "job", or "business" in Turkish. | |||
| Xhosa | ingqesho | ||
| The word "ingqesho" in Xhosa can also refer to labour, work, service, or occupation. | |||
| Yiddish | באַשעפטיקונג | ||
| The word "באַשעפטיקונג" also means "occupation" in Yiddish, indicating the active state of being engaged in work or other activities. | |||
| Zulu | ukuqashwa | ||
| "Ukuqashwa" in Zulu also refers to the process of harvesting or reaping, as in agriculture. | |||
| Assamese | কৰ্মসংস্থান | ||
| Aymara | irnaqawi | ||
| Bhojpuri | रोजगार | ||
| Dhivehi | ވަޒީފާ | ||
| Dogri | रुजगार | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | trabaho | ||
| Guarani | mba'apoha | ||
| Ilocano | panagtarabaho | ||
| Krio | wok | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | کار | ||
| Maithili | रोजगार | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯊꯕꯛ ꯐꯪꯕ | ||
| Mizo | hna | ||
| Oromo | hojii | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ରୋଜଗାର | ||
| Quechua | llamkay | ||
| Sanskrit | व्यवसाय | ||
| Tatar | эш белән тәэмин итү | ||
| Tigrinya | ምቑጻር ስራሕ | ||
| Tsonga | ntirho | ||