Government in Different Languages
Discover 'Government' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The concept of 'government' is a fundamental one in societies around the world. It refers to the system or group of people who make and enforce the laws, policies, and regulations that govern a country or region. The significance of government cannot be overstated, as it provides the framework for how a society operates and the services it provides to its citizens.
Throughout history, governments have taken many forms, from monarchies and dictatorships to democracies and republics. Each form has its own cultural importance and has shaped the course of history in different ways. Understanding the nuances of government in different cultures can provide valuable insights into the values, beliefs, and priorities of a society.
For those interested in language and culture, exploring the translations of 'government' in different languages can be a fascinating endeavor. For example, in Spanish, 'government' is translated as 'gobierno,' while in French, it is 'gouvernement.' In Mandarin Chinese, it is '政府' (zhèngfǔ), and in Japanese, it is '政府' (seifu).
By learning the translations of 'government' in different languages, we can gain a deeper appreciation for the diversity and complexity of human societies and the ways in which they are governed.
Government
Government in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | regering | ||
| The word "regering" in Afrikaans is derived from the Dutch word "regering", which in turn is derived from the French word "gouvernement", meaning "to govern". | |||
| Amharic | መንግሥት | ||
| The word "መንግሥት" (mengist) has a primary meaning of "government", but it also signifies "reign" and "kingdom." | |||
| Hausa | gwamnati | ||
| "Gwamnati" in Hausa also refers to the ruling authority or administration of a country. | |||
| Igbo | ọchịchị | ||
| Ọchịchị is the Igbo word for government, derived from the word "okike," meaning "power," and "ịchi," meaning "rule." | |||
| Malagasy | fitondram-panjakana | ||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | boma | ||
| The word "boma" also means "a cattle kraal" and was used to refer to settlements or villages where government officials resided. | |||
| Shona | hurumende | ||
| "Hurumende" comes from the Shona word "huru," meaning "leader" or "chief," and "mende," meaning "people." | |||
| Somali | dowladda | ||
| The Somali word "dowladda" is derived from the Arabic word "dawlah", meaning "state" | |||
| Sesotho | mmuso | ||
| "Mmuso" is derived from the word "mmusošo" (power, authority, ruling power). | |||
| Swahili | serikali | ||
| Serikali in Swahili could also refer to a public institution. | |||
| Xhosa | urhulumente | ||
| The word "urhulumente" in Xhosa is derived from the verb "urhula", which means "to regulate", hence its meaning of "government". | |||
| Yoruba | ijoba | ||
| The word "ijoba" also means "occupation" or "profession" in Yoruba. | |||
| Zulu | uhulumeni | ||
| "Uhulumeni" is derived from the Zulu word "uhulumende," which means "leadership" or "guidance." | |||
| Bambara | gofɛrɛnaman | ||
| Ewe | dziɖuɖu | ||
| Kinyarwanda | guverinoma | ||
| Lingala | boyangeli | ||
| Luganda | gavumenti | ||
| Sepedi | mmušo | ||
| Twi (Akan) | aban | ||
Government in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | حكومة | ||
| حكومة is sometimes used in a figurative sense to refer to an organized body, e.g. a company, an institution, or even a group of individuals | |||
| Hebrew | מֶמְשָׁלָה | ||
| Despite being derived from a root word meaning "dominion," מֶמְשָׁלָה's original meaning was a "body of rulers who share power". | |||
| Pashto | حکومت | ||
| The Pashto word 'حکومت' also means 'rule', 'governance', or 'administration'. | |||
| Arabic | حكومة | ||
| حكومة is sometimes used in a figurative sense to refer to an organized body, e.g. a company, an institution, or even a group of individuals | |||
Government in Western European Languages
| Albanian | qeveria | ||
| The word 'qeveria' originally denoted 'rule over a household', but its meaning later evolved to refer to 'political power'. | |||
| Basque | gobernu | ||
| "Gobernu" originates from the Latin word "gubernaculum", meaning "helm" or "rudder", reflecting the idea of steering and guiding a community. | |||
| Catalan | govern | ||
| The Catalan word "govern" derives from the Latin "gubernare," meaning "to steer a ship" or "to control," and has come to mean "government" or "administration." | |||
| Croatian | vlada | ||
| In Croatian, "vlada" (government) originates from the Slavic root "vlad-," meaning "to rule, master." | |||
| Danish | regering | ||
| The Danish word "regering" is derived from the Old Norse word "ríki", meaning "power" or "rule." | |||
| Dutch | regering | ||
| The word "regering" in Dutch can also refer to a specific type of fabric or a type of ship. | |||
| English | government | ||
| The word "government" derives from the Latin "gubernare," meaning to steer or control. | |||
| French | gouvernement | ||
| Gouvernement derives from the Latin word gubernare, meaning "to steer a ship" | |||
| Frisian | regear | ||
| The word "regear" in Frisian also means "to steer, control, or manage something." | |||
| Galician | goberno | ||
| The word "goberno" is derived from the Latin word "gubernare" (to control, to regulate). | |||
| German | regierung | ||
| The word 'Regierung' is derived from the Old High German word 'rihhari', meaning 'administration' or 'power'. | |||
| Icelandic | ríkisstjórn | ||
| In Old Norse, ríkisstjórn originally meant "steering of a ship" or, figuratively, "leadership". | |||
| Irish | rialtas | ||
| "Rialtas" is the Irish word for "government" and derives from the Latin "regalis", meaning "royal". | |||
| Italian | governo | ||
| Governo can also refer to the 'rudder of a ship' and 'a person's behavior'. | |||
| Luxembourgish | regierung | ||
| The word 'Regierung' in Luxembourgish also refers to the building where the government is located. | |||
| Maltese | gvern | ||
| The word "gvern" in Maltese is derived from the French word "gouvernement". | |||
| Norwegian | myndighetene | ||
| The word "Myndighetene" in Norwegian can also refer to "authorities" or "the establishment". | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | governo | ||
| In Portuguese, the word "governo" derives from the Latin "gubernare," meaning "to steer" or "to direct." | |||
| Scots Gaelic | riaghaltas | ||
| The word "riaghaltas" is derived from the Old Irish word "rí" meaning "king" and the suffix "-as" meaning "ship". | |||
| Spanish | gobierno | ||
| The word "gobierno" in Spanish derives from the Latin "gubernare," meaning "to steer" or "to govern," and also relates to the Greek "kybernan," meaning "to pilot a ship." | |||
| Swedish | regering | ||
| Regera means 'to rule' in Latin, indicating government as the entity in control. | |||
| Welsh | llywodraeth | ||
Government in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | ўрада | ||
| The word "ўрада" in Belarusian comes from the Old East Slavic word "voditi" meaning "to lead" or "to rule." | |||
| Bosnian | vlada | ||
| "Vlada" comes from the Slavic word "vladati," which means "power" or "dominion." | |||
| Bulgarian | правителство | ||
| The word "правителство" is derived from the Slavic root "витель", meaning "ruler" or "governor", and is related to the words "правило" (rule) and "управление" (management). | |||
| Czech | vláda | ||
| The word "vláda" in Czech can also mean "power" or "authority" | |||
| Estonian | valitsus | ||
| The Estonian word "valitsus" derives from the verb "valitsema" meaning "to rule" or "to govern". | |||
| Finnish | hallitus | ||
| The term hallitus (meaning "government") is derived from the word "haltija", meaning a ruler, a deity or a spirit. | |||
| Hungarian | kormány | ||
| Though it is typically a loanword for "government", the word "kormány" also has the original Hungarian meaning of "tiller, rudder". This is because it was originally used figuratively to refer to governance due to the analogy of steering a ship. | |||
| Latvian | valdība | ||
| The Latvian word "valdība" is derived from the Proto-Baltic root "*wald-," meaning "to rule" or "to govern." | |||
| Lithuanian | vyriausybė | ||
| The word "vyriausybė" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *wiHryo-, which also gives rise to the English words "virile" and "virus". | |||
| Macedonian | влада | ||
| The word "влада" (government) is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *vladъ, which also means "ruler" or "master". | |||
| Polish | rząd | ||
| The Polish word "rząd" originally meant "row, line, or order" and also referred to a "council" or "board of directors". | |||
| Romanian | guvern | ||
| The Romanian word "guvern" is derived from the Latin word "gubernare", meaning "to steer" or "to govern." | |||
| Russian | правительство | ||
| Правительство, derived from the verb 'править' (to rule), initially implied a person or persons governing a land or state. | |||
| Serbian | влада | ||
| "Влада" also means "hair" or "power" in Serbian. | |||
| Slovak | vláda | ||
| The name „vláda” derives directly from the word „vlásť”, which primarily means homeland in modern times as well as in older sources from as early as the end of the 17th century. | |||
| Slovenian | vlada | ||
| The word "vlada" derives from the Proto-Slavic word *vladati, meaning "to rule" or "to have power." | |||
| Ukrainian | уряд | ||
| The word "уряд" comes from the Old East Slavic word "рядъ", meaning "order" or "row". | |||
Government in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | সরকার | ||
| "সরকার" is derived from the Sanskrit word "सरकार". In ancient India, a "सरकार" was a provincial governor appointed by a king. | |||
| Gujarati | સરકાર | ||
| Hindi | सरकार | ||
| सरकार (sarkār) derives from the Sanskrit word "sakara" meaning "the holder of power" and was originally used to describe the Mughals and other foreign rulers of India. | |||
| Kannada | ಸರ್ಕಾರ | ||
| The Kannada word 'ಸರ್ಕಾರ' ('sarkāra') is derived from the Sanskrit root 'śri', meaning 'prosperity' or 'welfare'. | |||
| Malayalam | സർക്കാർ | ||
| The word "സർക്കാർ" (sarkār) originated from the Sanskrit "sarkar" or the Persian "sarkar," both meaning "rule". It also refers to various administrative divisions in South Asia like the Mughal Empire's "sarkars" (provinces). | |||
| Marathi | सरकार | ||
| The word "सरकार" (government) is derived from the Sanskrit word "शासक" (ruler), and can also refer to a king or a royal court. | |||
| Nepali | सरकार | ||
| The word 'सरकार' is derived from the Sanskrit word 'शासन', which means rule or control. | |||
| Punjabi | ਸਰਕਾਰ | ||
| The word "सरकार" (government) is derived from the Sanskrit word "शास" (rule) and "कर" (maker). | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | රජය | ||
| 'රජ' refers to a king or ruler, and 'ය' is a suffix indicating agency or state. Hence, 'රජය' means the state or organization headed by a king or ruler. | |||
| Tamil | அரசு | ||
| In ancient Tamil, 'அரசு' also denoted the king and his royal entourage or assembly | |||
| Telugu | ప్రభుత్వం | ||
| "ప్రభుత్వం" is also used to refer to a specific form of government, such as a monarchy or a republic. | |||
| Urdu | حکومت | ||
| The Persian word "حکومت" can also refer to a "judgement," "an order" or a "decree." | |||
Government in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 政府 | ||
| The word "政府" originally meant "to regulate the people", and it later came to mean "government". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 政府 | ||
| 政府 (zhèngfǔ) can also mean 'the ruling party' in Chinese. | |||
| Japanese | 政府 | ||
| The Chinese characters in “政府” literally mean “control” and “to serve,” alluding to the government’s role in serving the people. | |||
| Korean | 정부 | ||
| The word "정부" can also mean "state" or "administration". | |||
| Mongolian | засгийн газар | ||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | အစိုးရ | ||
| The word အစိုးရ (government) derives from Pali and Sanskrit, and can also mean "control" or "authority". | |||
Government in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | pemerintah | ||
| The Indonesian word for 'government', 'pemerintah', is etymologically related to the word 'perintah' ('commandment') and the root 'merintah', which carries meanings of 'rule', 'command', and 'authority'. | |||
| Javanese | pamrentah | ||
| The Javanese word "pamrentah" comes from the Sanskrit root "pra-mri," which means "to care for" or "to take charge." | |||
| Khmer | រដ្ឋាភិបាល | ||
| "រដ្ឋាភិបាល" can also refer to the administration or governing body of an organization or institution. | |||
| Lao | ລັດຖະບານ | ||
| Malay | kerajaan | ||
| The word 'kerajaan' is derived from the Sanskrit word 'grhya' meaning 'home' or 'household' and later came to mean 'administration' or 'domain', reflecting the idea that the king's role was to administer his domain like a household. | |||
| Thai | รัฐบาล | ||
| Although the word 'รัฐบาล' in Thai directly translates to 'government', it can also refer to a political system or the ruling party. | |||
| Vietnamese | chính quyền | ||
| The word "chính quyền" can also mean "authority" or "power". | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | pamahalaan | ||
Government in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | hökumət | ||
| The word "hökumət" in Azerbaijani, derived from the Arabic word "hukm" (order), also carries the connotation of "judgment" or "decree". | |||
| Kazakh | үкімет | ||
| The word "үкімет" is derived from the Arabic word "ḥukūmah" and also means "the state" or "the administration" in Kazakh. | |||
| Kyrgyz | өкмөт | ||
| The word "өкмөт" also means "command" or "power" in Kyrgyz. | |||
| Tajik | ҳукумат | ||
| The word "ҳукумат" is of Persian origin and is related to the word "ḥукм" meaning "rule" or "authority". | |||
| Turkmen | hökümet | ||
| Uzbek | hukumat | ||
| In Uzbek, "hukumat" can also refer to a district of a city or an administrative area. | |||
| Uyghur | ھۆكۈمەت | ||
Government in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | aupuni | ||
| ʻAupuni derives from the word ʻau, meaning "to guard" and puni meaning "the land", thereby indicating the traditional function of government to protect the land. | |||
| Maori | kāwanatanga | ||
| Samoan | malo | ||
| The word "malo" likely derives from the Proto-Polynesian word "*malo" meaning "council" or "assembly". | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | gobyerno | ||
| The Tagalog term "gobyerno" ultimately originated from the Spanish word "gobierno" which means "government" and is used to refer to the ruling body of a political unit. | |||
Government in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | irpiri | ||
| Guarani | tetãrerekua | ||
Government in International Languages
| Esperanto | registaro | ||
| "Registaro" derives from Latin "rego", "regis" (to rule), French "registre" (register) and English "register", sharing its spelling with Italian and with the "register" in English, meaning an official list or record, such as of births, marriages and deaths. | |||
| Latin | imperium | ||
| The Latin word "imperium" originally referred to the military authority of a Roman magistrate. | |||
Government in Others Languages
| Greek | κυβέρνηση | ||
| The Greek word "κυβέρνηση" originated from the ancient Greek word "κυβερνάω" (kyvernao), meaning "to steer a ship". | |||
| Hmong | tseem fwv | ||
| "Tseem fwv" derives from the verb "tsheem," meaning "to arrange," and the noun "fwv," which can refer to "land," "community," or "nation." | |||
| Kurdish | rêvebir | ||
| In Turkish, the word "rêvebir" has a similar meaning to "rüya," relating to dreams and visions. | |||
| Turkish | hükümet | ||
| The word 'hükümet' in Turkish is derived from the Arabic word 'hukm', which means 'rule' or 'judgment'. | |||
| Xhosa | urhulumente | ||
| The word "urhulumente" in Xhosa is derived from the verb "urhula", which means "to regulate", hence its meaning of "government". | |||
| Yiddish | רעגירונג | ||
| "רעגירונג" comes from the German "Regierung", itself derived from the French "gouvernement" or Latin "gubernare" (to steer). | |||
| Zulu | uhulumeni | ||
| "Uhulumeni" is derived from the Zulu word "uhulumende," which means "leadership" or "guidance." | |||
| Assamese | চৰকাৰ | ||
| Aymara | irpiri | ||
| Bhojpuri | सरकार | ||
| Dhivehi | ސަރުކާރު | ||
| Dogri | सरकार | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | pamahalaan | ||
| Guarani | tetãrerekua | ||
| Ilocano | gobierno | ||
| Krio | gɔvmɛnt | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | حکومەت | ||
| Maithili | सरकार | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯁꯔꯀꯥꯔ | ||
| Mizo | sawrkar | ||
| Oromo | mootummaa | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ସରକାର | ||
| Quechua | kamachiy | ||
| Sanskrit | शासन | ||
| Tatar | хөкүмәт | ||
| Tigrinya | መንግስቲ | ||
| Tsonga | mfumo | ||