Herself in Different Languages
Discover 'Herself' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'herself' is a reflexive pronoun that is often used to indicate that the subject of a sentence is performing an action on themselves. This small word carries a significant weight in the English language, emphasizing the autonomy and independence of the individual being referred to. The use of 'herself' can also indicate a deep sense of self-awareness and self-possession, highlighting the importance of individual identity in modern culture.
Moreover, the word 'herself' has fascinating historical contexts and cultural significance. For instance, in Old English, the reflexive pronoun was formed by adding the suffix '-self' to the possessive form of the pronoun, indicating a strong sense of self-ownership. Today, the use of 'herself' and other reflexive pronouns has evolved to reflect changing attitudes towards gender and identity.
Given the significance and cultural importance of the word 'herself', it's no wonder that people around the world are interested in learning its translations in different languages. By understanding how other cultures express this concept, we can gain valuable insights into their unique perspectives and ways of thinking.
Here are some translations of 'herself' in various languages:
Herself
Herself in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | haarself | ||
| The Afrikaans word "haarself" can also mean "her" or "itself" depending on the context. | |||
| Amharic | እራሷ | ||
| The word "እራሷ" (her-self) is derived from the root "ራስ" (head), emphasizing the sense of an individual's essence or being. | |||
| Hausa | kanta | ||
| The Hausa word 'kanta' also refers to 'a part or place in something' and is related to the word 'kashi', meaning 'a part or piece' | |||
| Igbo | onwe ya | ||
| The Igbo word "onwe ya" derives from "onwe" (self) and "ya" (his/her) and denotes female self-referentiality. | |||
| Malagasy | ny tenany | ||
| 'Ny tenany' also means 'his or her own person' and is related to the word 'tenan' meaning 'person'. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | yekha | ||
| The word "yekha" in Nyanja (Chichewa) can also mean "alone" or "by herself". | |||
| Shona | iye pachake | ||
| Originating from the word "iye" (mother), "iye pachake" is also used as a term of respect for any woman, regardless of their actual maternal status. | |||
| Somali | nafteeda | ||
| The word "nafteeda" in Somali can also mean "by herself" or "on her own". | |||
| Sesotho | ka boeena | ||
| Swahili | mwenyewe | ||
| The root "mwenye" can also mean "owner" or "possessor" in Swahili, implying a sense of control or responsibility over oneself. | |||
| Xhosa | ngokwakhe | ||
| The word "ngokwakhe" can also refer to "alone" or "by herself" | |||
| Yoruba | funrararẹ | ||
| The word "funrararẹ" (herself) in Yoruba also means "her own (person)". | |||
| Zulu | yena | ||
| The word "yena" can also mean "very" or "extremely" in Zulu, adding emphasis to a statement. | |||
| Bambara | a yɛrɛ ye | ||
| Ewe | eya ŋutɔ | ||
| Kinyarwanda | ubwe | ||
| Lingala | ye moko | ||
| Luganda | ye kennyini | ||
| Sepedi | ka boyena | ||
| Twi (Akan) | ɔno ankasa | ||
Herself in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | نفسها | ||
| The Arabic word "نفسها" (nafs-ul-haa) can also refer to "her mind" or "her soul" besides meaning "herself."} | |||
| Hebrew | עַצמָה | ||
| The word "עַצמָה" (atzama) is a feminine form of the word "עֶצֶם" (etzem), which means "bone" or "self". It thus shares the etymological root and semantic field of "essence" and "substance", indicating an emphasis on the self as a fundamental and enduring entity. | |||
| Pashto | خپله | ||
| The word "خپله" can also mean "own" or "special" in Pashto. | |||
| Arabic | نفسها | ||
| The Arabic word "نفسها" (nafs-ul-haa) can also refer to "her mind" or "her soul" besides meaning "herself."} | |||
Herself in Western European Languages
| Albanian | vetveten | ||
| The word "vetveten" is also used in Albanian to refer to "a woman who is not married or has no children." | |||
| Basque | bere burua | ||
| Basque word "bere burua" is formed by the words "bere" (her) and "burua" (head), and literally means "her head". | |||
| Catalan | ella mateixa | ||
| The word "ella mateixa" is used to refer to both the singular first-person female subject in Catalan ("she herself") and a third-person female object ("her or it itself"). | |||
| Croatian | ona sama | ||
| In Slavic languages, "ona sama" literally means "she herself" or "her own self". | |||
| Danish | hende selv | ||
| The word "hende selv" in Danish is derived from the dative form of the Old Norse word "henni sjálfri", meaning "herself". | |||
| Dutch | haarzelf | ||
| The Dutch word "haarzelf" not only means "herself" but is also used to reflect the gender of the subject in the sentence. | |||
| English | herself | ||
| The word "herself" is derived from the Old English word "heo self," which means "she herself." | |||
| French | se | ||
| The French 'se' can also mean 'himself' or 'themselves' or serve to form the passive voice or reflexive verbs. | |||
| Frisian | harsels | ||
| The word 'harsels' also means 'self' in Frisian, and is related to the English word 'hers'. | |||
| Galician | ela mesma | ||
| The Galician word "ela mesma" is derived from the Latin "illa ipsa" (she, herself), with the feminine definite article "a" added. | |||
| German | sie selber | ||
| "Sie selber" can also mean "she herself" or "by herself." | |||
| Icelandic | sjálfri sér | ||
| Sjálfri sér translates literally to 'self to self' in Icelandic and can mean 'oneself', 'the same' or 'each other'. | |||
| Irish | í féin | ||
| Í féin (meaning "herself" in modern Irish) was originally used as a general reflexive.} | |||
| Italian | lei stessa | ||
| The Italian word "lei stessa" ("herself") comes from the Latin phrase "illa ipsa" meaning "that same (woman)". | |||
| Luxembourgish | selwer | ||
| The Luxembourgish word "selwer" can also refer to female animals, while "selwert" is used for male animals. | |||
| Maltese | lilha nfisha | ||
| The Maltese word "lilha nfisha" can also be used to refer to a woman who is single or unmarried. | |||
| Norwegian | seg selv | ||
| The word "seg selv" can also be used as an impersonal pronoun, meaning "it" or "itself." | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | ela própria | ||
| "Ela própria" is a reflexive pronoun in Portuguese, meaning the subject is acting upon itself, but it can also be used independently to refer to a female person already mentioned in the context. | |||
| Scots Gaelic | i fhèin | ||
| The word "i fhèin" also means "belonging to a person or thing" without indicating gender. | |||
| Spanish | sí misma | ||
| "Mí" (mí) is a shortened version of "mío" (mine) used as a pronoun that also translates to "myself" in English. | |||
| Swedish | själv | ||
| The word "själv" is also used as a reflexive pronoun, meaning "oneself" or "itself". | |||
| Welsh | ei hun | ||
| In the Brythonic languages, "ei" can also mean "her" in a general sense, not necessarily reflexive. | |||
Herself in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | сама | ||
| The word "сама" in Belarusian also carries the meaning of "in person, independently," and can sometimes be used as an intensive pronoun to emphasize the subject's own agency. | |||
| Bosnian | sebe | ||
| The word "sebe" can also mean "to oneself" or "by oneself" in Bosnian. | |||
| Bulgarian | себе си | ||
| The Bulgarian word "себе си" can also be used to refer to "oneself" as a direct or indirect object | |||
| Czech | sebe | ||
| Sebe may also refer to a place in Czechia or Slovakia, or a river in Slovenia. | |||
| Estonian | ise | ||
| The word "ise" in Estonian is derived from the Old Norse word "sik", which originally meant "one's own" or "private". | |||
| Finnish | oma itsensä | ||
| The word "oma itsensä" literally means "one's own self" and can also refer to a person's individuality or authenticity. | |||
| Hungarian | önmaga | ||
| Derived from the Old Hungarian word "ő" (he/she), which also appears in the word "maga" (himself/herself), "maga" is often used as a polite form of "you" in the third person singular. | |||
| Latvian | pati | ||
| The word "pati" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *swe-, meaning "self". It also has a reflexive meaning, similar to the English word "itself". | |||
| Lithuanian | pati | ||
| Pati is also used as a possessive pronoun, meaning "her own" or "hers". | |||
| Macedonian | самата | ||
| The word "самата" in Macedonian is derived from the Proto-Slavic "sama" meaning "alone" or "by oneself"} | |||
| Polish | się | ||
| The word "się" in Polish is reflexive and can be used not only as "herself" but also for other third-person reflexive pronouns like "himself" in English, or as a passive voice marker. | |||
| Romanian | se | ||
| "Se" also derives the Romanian words "sine" ("self" and "own") as well as "sinele" ("the self" or "the entity"). | |||
| Russian | саму себя | ||
| "Саму" (in the accusative case) can also mean "self-sufficient" or "independent". | |||
| Serbian | она сама | ||
| "Она сама" is also an expression in Serbian that means "she is the one" or "she is the only one". | |||
| Slovak | sama | ||
| The word "sama" also means "by itself" or "alone" in context, and stems from the Middle Slovak dialect. | |||
| Slovenian | sama | ||
| The word “sama” can also mean “by oneself,” “alone,” “single,” “merely,” and “just”. | |||
| Ukrainian | сама | ||
| The word "сама" also means "alone" or "by herself" in Ukrainian. | |||
Herself in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | নিজেকে | ||
| Gujarati | પોતાને | ||
| The word "પોતાને" can also mean "oneself" or "one's own". | |||
| Hindi | स्वयं | ||
| The Sanskrit word "स्वयं" (svayam) originally meant "self" or "own" but is now primarily used to mean "herself" in Hindi. | |||
| Kannada | ಸ್ವತಃ | ||
| In Kannada, "ಸ್ವತಃ" can also mean "of her own accord" or "automatically". However, in Sanskrit, it means "one's self". Kannada has borrowed the word after the 12th century. | |||
| Malayalam | സ്വയം | ||
| The word "സ്വയം" in Malayalam is derived from the Sanskrit word "svayam", meaning "self" or "oneself". It can also refer to "independence" or "autonomy". | |||
| Marathi | स्वतः | ||
| स्वतः is a Sanskrit word that means 'self', 'by oneself', or 'automatically' | |||
| Nepali | उनी | ||
| The word 'उनी' can also mean 'her' or 'she' in Nepali, depending on the context in which it is used. | |||
| Punjabi | ਆਪਣੇ ਆਪ ਨੂੰ | ||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | ඇය | ||
| The word "ඇය" can also be used as a polite form of address for a woman. | |||
| Tamil | தன்னை | ||
| The word "தன்னை" can also mean "him" or "it" in Tamil, depending on the context. | |||
| Telugu | ఆమె | ||
| "ఆమె" is the feminine singular form of the reflexive pronoun, "తన", which means "self". | |||
| Urdu | خود | ||
| The Urdu word "خود" ("herself") can also be used to refer to "oneself" or "the self." | |||
Herself in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 她自己 | ||
| "她自己" means "herself" in English, but can also mean "by herself" or "on her own." | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 她自己 | ||
| 她自己 can be used to refer to a woman's husband, family, or personal belongings. | |||
| Japanese | 彼女自身 | ||
| "彼女自身" is also used in Japanese to refer to a woman's significant other, which is not the case in English. | |||
| Korean | 그녀 자신 | ||
| The word "그녀 자신" (herseIf) in Korean literally means "herself by herself." | |||
| Mongolian | өөрөө | ||
| The word "өөрөө" in Mongolian can also mean "her" or "by oneself" depending on the context. | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | သူမ | ||
| သူမ is also used as a respectful way to refer to women, regardless of their age or social status. | |||
Herself in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | diri | ||
| The word "diri" in Indonesian also means "self" and is often used in the context of meditation and spiritual practices. | |||
| Javanese | awake dhewe | ||
| The word "awake dhewe" literally means "awake by herself" in Javanese. | |||
| Khmer | ខ្លួននាងផ្ទាល់ | ||
| Lao | ຕົນເອງ | ||
| Malay | dirinya | ||
| "Dirinya" in Malay is a pronoun that means "oneself," and is used to represent the subject of a sentence. | |||
| Thai | ตัวเธอเอง | ||
| "ตัวเธอเอง" (tua-ter-ngeu) is a compound word that can also mean "by herself" or "on her own". | |||
| Vietnamese | chính cô ấy | ||
| "Chính cô ấy" literally means "exactly she," but can also be used to emphasize the subject of a sentence. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kanyang sarili | ||
Herself in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | özü | ||
| The word "özü" in Azerbaijani can also mean "essence" or "core". | |||
| Kazakh | өзі | ||
| Өзі is commonly used in Kazakh as a polite third-person pronoun when referring to women. | |||
| Kyrgyz | өзү | ||
| 'Өзү' is also used to say 'himself', 'itself', 'by himself/herself/itself' and 'alone'. | |||
| Tajik | худаш | ||
| The word "худаш" is also used to refer to a female deity or goddess. | |||
| Turkmen | özi | ||
| Uzbek | o'zi | ||
| The word "o'zi" in Uzbek can also refer to one's own body or mind. | |||
| Uyghur | ئۆزى | ||
Herself in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | ʻo ia iho | ||
| There is evidence to suggest that "‘o ia iho" in Hawaiian originally referred to the act of having just eaten. | |||
| Maori | ia | ||
| In Maori, ia is a feminine singular reciprocal pronoun that is only used with the first person and second person pronouns tāku and tāu. | |||
| Samoan | lava ia | ||
| In Samoan, the word "lava ia" can also mean "itself" or "the one itself". | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | ang sarili niya | ||
| The etymology of ang sarili niya ('herself') reveals a reflexive construction using the indefinite article ang ('the') which precedes the noun sarili ('self') and is followed by the possessive pronoun niya ('her'). | |||
Herself in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | jupa pachpaw ukham luräna | ||
| Guarani | ha’e voi | ||
Herself in International Languages
| Esperanto | sin mem | ||
| The Esperanto word "sin mem" ultimately derives from the Latin word "ipsemet" but also has connotations of "one's own" like the English word "my own". | |||
| Latin | se | ||
| In Latin, "se" can also mean "himself, itself, themselves, or oneself". | |||
Herself in Others Languages
| Greek | εαυτήν | ||
| The word "εαυτήν" is the feminine form of the reflexive pronoun "εαυτόν," which also means "himself" in English. | |||
| Hmong | nws tus kheej | ||
| The Hmong word "nws tus kheej" can also mean she or her depending on its placement within the sentence and the surrounding context. | |||
| Kurdish | xwe | ||
| The word "xwe" in Kurdish also means "own" and "self". | |||
| Turkish | kendini | ||
| The word "kendini" can also mean "oneself" or "by oneself" in Turkish. | |||
| Xhosa | ngokwakhe | ||
| The word "ngokwakhe" can also refer to "alone" or "by herself" | |||
| Yiddish | זיך | ||
| The word "זיך" (zikh), meaning "herself," is also used to refer to "self" or "one's own person." | |||
| Zulu | yena | ||
| The word "yena" can also mean "very" or "extremely" in Zulu, adding emphasis to a statement. | |||
| Assamese | নিজেই | ||
| Aymara | jupa pachpaw ukham luräna | ||
| Bhojpuri | खुदे के बा | ||
| Dhivehi | އަމިއްލައަށް | ||
| Dogri | खुद ही | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kanyang sarili | ||
| Guarani | ha’e voi | ||
| Ilocano | ti bagina | ||
| Krio | insɛf sɛf | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | خۆی | ||
| Maithili | स्वयं | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯃꯁꯥꯃꯛ꯫ | ||
| Mizo | amah ngei pawh a ni | ||
| Oromo | ofii isheetii | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ନିଜେ | ||
| Quechua | kikin | ||
| Sanskrit | स्वयं | ||
| Tatar | үзе | ||
| Tigrinya | ንባዕላ | ||
| Tsonga | hi yexe | ||