Identify in Different Languages
Discover 'Identify' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'identify' holds great significance in our daily lives, as it relates to recognizing and understanding ourselves and the world around us. From a philosophical perspective, identifying something is to establish its unique place in the grand scheme of things, granting it meaning and purpose. Culturally, the ability to identify has allowed us to classify and categorize ideas, objects, and people, fostering a sense of order and shared understanding.
Given the importance of this concept, it's no surprise that people might be interested in learning how to say 'identify' in different languages. Not only is this a fun and engaging way to explore linguistic diversity, but it can also provide valuable insights into the unique ways that different cultures conceptualize and interact with the world.
For instance, in Spanish, 'identify' is 'identificar', while in French it's 'identifier'. In Mandarin Chinese, the word is composed of the characters '識別' (shí bié), which literally mean 'to recognize and differentiate'.
In the following sections, we'll delve deeper into the translations of 'identify' in a variety of languages, shedding light on the fascinating cultural and linguistic differences that make our world so rich and diverse.
Identify
Identify in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | identifiseer | ||
| The Afrikaans word "identifiseer" ultimately derives from the Latin word "īdentificāre," also meaning "to identify." | |||
| Amharic | መለየት | ||
| The word "መለየት" can also mean "to show" or "to demonstrate" depending on the context. | |||
| Hausa | gano | ||
| "Gano" is also used in Hausa to mean "to recognize" or "to understand". | |||
| Igbo | mata | ||
| The word "mata" in Igbo can also refer to "knowing" or "recognizing" something. | |||
| Malagasy | hamantatra | ||
| The word "hamantatra" also means "to find" or "to meet" in Malagasy. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | kuzindikira | ||
| The word "kuzindikira" also means "to make clear or to distinguish". | |||
| Shona | kuziva | ||
| The word 'kuziva' in Shona is derived from the Proto-Bantu root '-ziv-', meaning 'to point out or reveal', and can also refer to the process of naming something. | |||
| Somali | cadee | ||
| Somali word "cadee" also means "discover". | |||
| Sesotho | hlwaya | ||
| The word "hlwaya" can also mean "to point out" or "to indicate". | |||
| Swahili | tambua | ||
| "Tambulisha" is derived from the root "tambua" but specifically means "to make known". | |||
| Xhosa | zichonge | ||
| The word 'zichonge' can also mean 'to examine' or 'to investigate'. | |||
| Yoruba | ṣe idanimọ | ||
| The Yoruba word ṣe idanimọ is also used in the context of distinguishing or recognizing something or someone. | |||
| Zulu | khomba | ||
| The word "khomba" can also mean "to recognize" or "to understand". | |||
| Bambara | ka yira | ||
| Ewe | de dzesi | ||
| Kinyarwanda | menya | ||
| Lingala | komona | ||
| Luganda | okufuna | ||
| Sepedi | hlaola | ||
| Twi (Akan) | adida | ||
Identify in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | تحديد | ||
| The Arabic word "تحديد" also means "to limit" or "to define". | |||
| Hebrew | לזהות | ||
| The verb 'לזהות' in Hebrew originates from the Arabic 'זיהה' ('to determine'), which is likely drawn from the Persian 'zanāndan' ('to know', 'to recognize'). | |||
| Pashto | پيژندنه | ||
| The Pashto word "پيژندنه" is derived from the Proto-Iranian root *piǰ-, meaning "to know, to perceive". | |||
| Arabic | تحديد | ||
| The Arabic word "تحديد" also means "to limit" or "to define". | |||
Identify in Western European Languages
| Albanian | identifikojnë | ||
| Identifikojnë comes from Latin "identificare" which also means "understand". | |||
| Basque | identifikatu | ||
| The word "identifikatu" comes from the Latin "identificare" and also means "to recognize". | |||
| Catalan | identificar | ||
| "Identificar" can refer to both identifying someone or something and making a particular trait known, as opposed to the Spanish "identificar", which exclusively has the first meaning. | |||
| Croatian | identificirati | ||
| The Croatian word "identificirati" is derived from the Latin word "identificare", meaning "to make the same" or "to establish the identity of". | |||
| Danish | identificere | ||
| The Danish word "identificere” comes from the Latin word "identificare" but also means "make known, declare". | |||
| Dutch | identificeren | ||
| Identificeren in Dutch is etymologically linked to the Latin word "facere", which means to make or do. | |||
| English | identify | ||
| The word "identify" derives from the Latin "īdēntificare," meaning "to make the same. | |||
| French | identifier | ||
| "Identifier" is also used to describe a unique element within a system | |||
| Frisian | identifisearje | ||
| The Frisian word "identifisearje" also means "to show one's credentials". | |||
| Galician | identificar | ||
| O verbo "identificar" tamén pode significar "reconhecer". | |||
| German | identifizieren | ||
| The verb ‘identifizieren’ is rooted in the Latin words “idem” (same) and “facere” (to make). | |||
| Icelandic | bera kennsl á | ||
| The verb 'bera kennsl á' in Icelandic can also mean to recognize, acknowledge, or confirm. | |||
| Irish | aithint | ||
| The Irish word 'aithint' can also mean 'recognize', 'perceive' or 'distinguish'. | |||
| Italian | identificare | ||
| The word "identificare" comes from the Latin verb "identificare", meaning "to make the same". | |||
| Luxembourgish | identifizéieren | ||
| Maltese | identifika | ||
| The word "identifika" in Maltese is derived from the Italian word "identificare", which in turn comes from the Latin word "identificare", meaning "to make the same". | |||
| Norwegian | identifisere | ||
| Identifisere is also used in Norwegian to describe the process of detecting and recognizing something or someone. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | identificar | ||
| Identify in Portuguese also means "find out who someone is" and comes from Latin root *idem* meaning "same" and *facere* meaning "to make". | |||
| Scots Gaelic | aithneachadh | ||
| ‘Aithneachadh’ is a Gaelic word that may also mean ‘recognize’ or ‘make out’ in English. | |||
| Spanish | identificar | ||
| The Spanish word "identificar" comes from the Latin word "identificare", which means "to make the same". | |||
| Swedish | identifiera | ||
| The word "identifiera" in Swedish can also mean "to ascertain" or "to determine." | |||
| Welsh | adnabod | ||
| The word "adnabod" in Welsh has connotations of knowing someone intimately, while its English counterpart "identify" focuses on establishing a person's identity. | |||
Identify in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | вызначыць | ||
| The word "вызначыць" can also mean "to determine" or "to define" in Belarusian. | |||
| Bosnian | identifikovati | ||
| The word 'identifikovati' in Bosnian originates from the Latin verb 'identificare', meaning 'to recognize'. | |||
| Bulgarian | идентифицират | ||
| In Bulgarian, "идентифицират" also means to recognize or to characterize something. | |||
| Czech | identifikovat | ||
| The word "identifikovat" is derived from the Latin word "identificare", which means "to make the same". | |||
| Estonian | tuvastama | ||
| The word "tuvastama" is derived from the Proto-Finnic verb "*tunt-", meaning "to know" or "to recognize". | |||
| Finnish | tunnistaa | ||
| The word "tunnistaa" also means "to recognize" or "to know by sight". | |||
| Hungarian | azonosítani | ||
| The Hungarian word "azonosítani" is derived from the Greek word "αυτόν," meaning "same," and the Latin suffix "-izare," meaning "to make." | |||
| Latvian | identificēt | ||
| In its original form, “identificēt” was related to the identification of suspects by their fingerprints or the identification of bodies of victims of crime, war, or accidents. | |||
| Lithuanian | nustatyti | ||
| The Lithuanian word "nustatyti" can also mean "to establish" or "to determine". | |||
| Macedonian | идентификува | ||
| The verb "идентификува" derives from the Latin word "identificare", which in turn is a compound of the prefix "identi-" (same) and the suffix "-ficere" (make, produce). | |||
| Polish | zidentyfikować | ||
| Zidentyfikować may also mean 'to identify the body,' or 'to be sure that something is there,' similar to the Spanish 'identificar.' | |||
| Romanian | identifica | ||
| The Romanian word "identifica" is derived from the Latin word "identificare", meaning "to make the same" or "to declare the same". | |||
| Russian | идентифицировать | ||
| The word "идентифицировать" ultimately derives from the Latin word "idem," meaning "the same." | |||
| Serbian | идентификовати | ||
| The word "идентификовати" also means "understand, grasp" in Serbian. | |||
| Slovak | identifikovať | ||
| The word "identifikovať" likely comes from the Latin word "identificare", meaning "to make the same". | |||
| Slovenian | prepoznati | ||
| The word 'prepoznati' is derived from the Proto-Slavic word '*poznati', meaning 'to know'. The prefix 'pre-' means 'in advance' and was used in the sense of 'to anticipate' to avoid danger. | |||
| Ukrainian | визначити | ||
| "Визначити" also means "to calculate" and "to determine". | |||
Identify in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | সনাক্ত | ||
| সনাক্ত can also mean 'detect' or 'recognize'. | |||
| Gujarati | ઓળખવા | ||
| The word ઓળખવા "identify" is derived from the Proto-Indo-Iranian word "*hrd-g-h₂" meaning "to recognise". | |||
| Hindi | पहचान | ||
| " पहचान" also refers to "recognition", "acknowledgement" or even the act of "recognising" or "identifying" in Hindi | |||
| Kannada | ಗುರುತಿಸಲು | ||
| The word ಗುರುತಿಸಲು can also mean 'to distinguish' or 'to recognize' in Kannada. | |||
| Malayalam | തിരിച്ചറിയുക | ||
| The word "തിരിച്ചറിയുക" (identify) is derived from the root word "തിരി" (back) and "അറിയുക" (to know), suggesting a process of recognizing something that was previously known. | |||
| Marathi | ओळखणे | ||
| In ancient Marathi, the verb ओळखणे meant 'to recognize.' | |||
| Nepali | पहिचान | ||
| "पहिचान" can also mean 'mark', 'trace', or 'signature' in Nepali. | |||
| Punjabi | ਦੀ ਪਛਾਣ | ||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | හඳුනා ගන්න | ||
| Tamil | அடையாளம் | ||
| Telugu | గుర్తించండి | ||
| గుర్తించండి (gurthinchundi) is derived from the Proto-Dravidian root word *kuru-, which also means 'to observe', 'to notice' and 'to find' | |||
| Urdu | شناخت | ||
| The Persian word شناخت originally meant 'to mark' and is often used figuratively to mean 'to comprehend' or 'to recognize'. | |||
Identify in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 确定 | ||
| It also means 'confirm', and the '定' component suggests 'stability'. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 確定 | ||
| The word 確定 originally meant "to fix," and only later acquired the meaning of "to identify." | |||
| Japanese | 識別する | ||
| 識別する derives from the Old Japanese verb シラス (shirus), meaning 'to know' or 'to understand'. It can also mean 'to recognize' or 'to discern'. | |||
| Korean | 식별 | ||
| The word 식별 (sikbyeol) derives from the Sino-Korean roots 식 (sik), meaning "knowledge," and 별 (byeol), meaning "distinction." It also has an alternate meaning of "name," as in a person's given name. | |||
| Mongolian | тодорхойлох | ||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ခွဲခြားသတ်မှတ် | ||
| The word "identify" can also mean "to make a distinction between" or "to establish the identity of" in Myanmar (Burmese). | |||
Identify in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | mengenali | ||
| The word "mengenali" in Indonesian is derived from the root word "kenal" which means "know" or "familiar with". | |||
| Javanese | ngenali | ||
| The word 'ngenali' can also mean 'to meet' or 'to interact with.' | |||
| Khmer | កំណត់អត្តសញ្ញាណ | ||
| Lao | ລະບຸ | ||
| The word "ລະບຸ" can also mean "to determine" or "to specify" in Lao. | |||
| Malay | mengenal pasti | ||
| The word 'mengenal pasti' originates from the word 'mengenal' (to know) and 'pasti' (certain), and also means to recognize or distinguish something. | |||
| Thai | แยกแยะ | ||
| แยกแยะ (identify) can also mean 'to separate', 'to distinguish', and 'to sort'. | |||
| Vietnamese | nhận định | ||
| "Nhận định" can also mean "assess", "evaluate", or "determine." | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kilalanin | ||
Identify in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | müəyyənləşdirmək | ||
| Kazakh | анықтау | ||
| 'Анықтау' is derived from the noun 'анық' (clear, distinct) and means 'to make clear or distinct'. It can also mean 'to determine' or 'to ascertain'. | |||
| Kyrgyz | аныктоо | ||
| The word "аныктоо" in Kyrgyz also means "to establish" or "to determine". | |||
| Tajik | муайян кардан | ||
| The word "муайян кардан" can also mean "to determine" or "to specify" in Tajik. | |||
| Turkmen | kesgitlemek | ||
| Uzbek | aniqlash | ||
| The verb "aniqlash" is derived from the verb "anq" meaning "to swear" and can also mean "to determine", "to establish" or "to detect" | |||
| Uyghur | پەرقلەندۈرۈش | ||
Identify in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | hoʻomaopopo | ||
| The Hawaiian word "hoʻomaopopo" also means "to make clear" or "to explain". | |||
| Maori | tautuhi | ||
| The Maori word 'tautuhi' also means 'to write' or 'to sign' | |||
| Samoan | faʻailoa | ||
| The verb 'faʻailoa' derives from the Proto-Samoan root *faʻa, meaning 'cause' or 'make', and the noun 'iloga', meaning 'name' or 'identity'. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | kilalanin | ||
| The Tagalog word "kilalanin" can also mean to know someone well, to be acquainted with them. | |||
Identify in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | uñt'aña | ||
| Guarani | jekuaapyre | ||
Identify in International Languages
| Esperanto | identigi | ||
| The word "identigi" is derived from the Latin word "identidem", meaning "repeatedly" or "constantly". | |||
| Latin | identify | ||
| The Latin verb "identifico" meant "to make known", "to inform" or "to teach". | |||
Identify in Others Languages
| Greek | αναγνωρίζω | ||
| The word “αναγνωρίζω” derives from Greek “γνῶσις” (“knowledge”) and “ἀνά” (“again”), meaning literally “to know again or to recognize”. | |||
| Hmong | txheeb xyuas | ||
| The word "txheeb xyuas" can also mean "to search" or "to look for" in Hmong. | |||
| Kurdish | naskirin | ||
| The word "naskirin" derives from the Proto-Indo-European root "*nos-", "to find, to know". | |||
| Turkish | belirlemek | ||
| Etymology: "belir + le + mek", alternate meaning: specify | |||
| Xhosa | zichonge | ||
| The word 'zichonge' can also mean 'to examine' or 'to investigate'. | |||
| Yiddish | ידענטיפיצירן | ||
| The Yiddish word "ידענטיפיצירן" (identyfiktsir"n) also refers to describing, recognizing, or verifying a person or thing. | |||
| Zulu | khomba | ||
| The word "khomba" can also mean "to recognize" or "to understand". | |||
| Assamese | চিনাক্ত কৰা | ||
| Aymara | uñt'aña | ||
| Bhojpuri | पहचान | ||
| Dhivehi | އައިޑެންޓިޓީ | ||
| Dogri | पंछान करना | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kilalanin | ||
| Guarani | jekuaapyre | ||
| Ilocano | ilasin | ||
| Krio | no | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | دەسنیشانکردن | ||
| Maithili | पहचान | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯁꯛ ꯇꯥꯛꯄ | ||
| Mizo | inhriattir | ||
| Oromo | adda baasuu | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଚିହ୍ନଟ କର | ||
| Quechua | riqsichiy | ||
| Sanskrit | समीकुरुते | ||
| Tatar | ачыклау | ||
| Tigrinya | ኣለሊ | ||
| Tsonga | komba | ||