Updated on March 6, 2024
Meetings are a fundamental aspect of human communication and collaboration. They provide a platform for people to come together, share ideas, and make decisions. The significance of meetings extends beyond the business world, playing a crucial role in various cultural, social, and political contexts. For instance, in many Indigenous cultures, meetings held in a talking circle are a sacred tradition that emphasizes respect, active listening, and community building.
Given the cultural importance of meetings, it's no surprise that the word has been translated into countless languages around the world. Knowing the translation of meeting in different languages can be a valuable tool for building cross-cultural connections and demonstrating respect for diverse traditions. For example, the French word for meeting is 'réunion,' while in Spanish, it's 'reunión.' In Mandarin Chinese, the word for meeting is '会议' (huìyì), and in Japanese, it's '会議' (kaigi).
In this article, we'll explore the translations of meeting in a variety of languages, shedding light on the fascinating cultural and historical contexts that shape the way we communicate and collaborate.
Afrikaans | vergadering | ||
The word 'vergadering' is derived from the Dutch word 'vergadering', which itself is derived from the Middle Dutch word 'vergaderen', meaning 'to gather' or 'to assemble'. | |||
Amharic | ስብሰባ | ||
Derived from the verb 'to collect' or 'to gather', 'ስብሰባ' often refers to a 'gathering of people' or a 'group discussion'. | |||
Hausa | taro | ||
Taro also means 'the process of asking the whereabouts of someone or something'. | |||
Igbo | nzuko | ||
Nzuko derives from an Igbo word that means 'to hold together', and can mean 'gathering' in addition to 'meeting' | |||
Malagasy | fihaonana | ||
"Fihaonana" also means "to find oneself" or "to meet with" in the sense of "to meet one's fate". | |||
Nyanja (Chichewa) | msonkhano | ||
Msonkhano can also refer to an occasion where people come to pay their last respects to a person who has died or a gathering where elders discuss matters in a traditional Malawian setting. | |||
Shona | musangano | ||
The word 'musangano' can also refer to a social gathering or an assembly. | |||
Somali | kulan | ||
In Somali, "kulan" carries additional meanings such as "gathering" and "assembly". | |||
Sesotho | kopano | ||
Kopano is also used to refer to the physical location where the meeting happens. | |||
Swahili | mkutano | ||
The Swahili word 'mkutano' originates from the verb 'kukutana,' meaning 'to come together'. | |||
Xhosa | intlanganiso | ||
Intlanganiso can also refer to a gathering or assembly. | |||
Yoruba | ipade | ||
The word 'ìpadé' can also mean 'assembly' or 'association' in Yoruba. | |||
Zulu | umhlangano | ||
The word "umhlangano" can also refer to a ritual gathering between Zulu royalty and their subjects. | |||
Bambara | ɲɔgɔnye | ||
Ewe | takpekpe | ||
Kinyarwanda | nama | ||
Lingala | likita | ||
Luganda | okusisinkana | ||
Sepedi | kopano | ||
Twi (Akan) | nhyiamu | ||
Arabic | لقاء | ||
The word لقاء can also refer to an encounter or a meeting of minds. | |||
Hebrew | פְּגִישָׁה | ||
"פְּגִישָׁה" originally meant "impact, encounter" but now means a formal gathering. | |||
Pashto | ناسته | ||
The Pashto word "ناسته" also means "a sitting" or "a session". | |||
Arabic | لقاء | ||
The word لقاء can also refer to an encounter or a meeting of minds. |
Albanian | takim | ||
"Takim" also refers to a set or group, as in the phrase "takim lojes" (team). | |||
Basque | bilera | ||
"Bilera" can also refer to a 'crowd' or 'assembly' in Basque. | |||
Catalan | reunió | ||
The word "reunió" in Catalan is a derivative of the Latin word "reunio", meaning "to gather together" or "to unite." | |||
Croatian | sastanak | ||
The word 'sastanak' also shares a root with the word 'stati' (to stand), implying a physical gathering of people. | |||
Danish | møde | ||
The word "møde" in Danish can also refer to a place where people gather, such as a church or a school. | |||
Dutch | vergadering | ||
The word "vergadering" is derived from the Old Dutch word "gaderunge", meaning "gathering" or "assembly." | |||
English | meeting | ||
Meeting derives from the Old English word “meting,” meaning an assembly or a coming together. | |||
French | réunion | ||
The French word "réunion" ultimately derives from the Latin verb "reunire," meaning "to join or unite again," and is related to the English word "reunion." | |||
Frisian | moeting | ||
The Frisian word "moeting" can also mean "encounter" or "assembly". | |||
Galician | reunión | ||
In Galician "reunión" derives from Latin "reunio" that means "a combining or union". | |||
German | treffen | ||
In Swiss German and other Alemannic dialects, "Treffen" also means "to hit" or "to find". | |||
Icelandic | fundur | ||
"Fundur" in Icelandic derives from the Old Norse word "fundr" meaning "gathering" or "council". | |||
Irish | cruinniú | ||
The word cruinniú is derived from the Proto-Celtic root *kr̥ni- meaning 'to assemble' or 'to gather'. | |||
Italian | incontro | ||
In Italian, the word "incontro" also means "opposite" or "unexpected event." | |||
Luxembourgish | versammlung | ||
"Versammlung" is derived from the Old High German word "samnunga", meaning "gathering" and is also related to the English word "assembly". | |||
Maltese | laqgħa | ||
The Maltese word "laqgħa" can also mean "gathering" or "assembly". | |||
Norwegian | møte | ||
"Møte" is a Norwegian word that can also mean "to encounter" or "to come across". | |||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | encontro | ||
The Portuguese word "encontro" also means "collision", "match", or "encounter". | |||
Scots Gaelic | coinneamh | ||
In Irish folklore, "coinneamh" referred to pre-arranged meetings between fairies and humans that occurred at fairy trees. | |||
Spanish | reunión | ||
The Spanish word "reunión" derives from Latin "re-unio," meaning "a joining together," and also refers to the act of combining two or more substances into a single entity. | |||
Swedish | möte | ||
"Möte" in Swedish can also mean "encounter", "confrontation", or "appointment". | |||
Welsh | cyfarfod | ||
The Welsh word 'cyfarfod' shares a common root with 'co' (with, together) and 'ardd' (high), suggesting a gathering on high ground. |
Belarusian | сход | ||
The word "сход" has an alternative meaning of "mountain descent" and is cognate with the Russian word "сход" which has the same meanings. | |||
Bosnian | sastanak | ||
In Bosnian, the word 'sastanak' also means 'agreement' or 'encounter'. | |||
Bulgarian | среща | ||
The word "среща" can also refer to a "date" or "appointment" in Bulgarian. | |||
Czech | setkání | ||
The word "Setkání" not only means "meeting", but also "setting" and "encounter" in Czech. | |||
Estonian | koosolek | ||
The word "koosolek" is derived from two Estonian words: "koos" which means "together" and "ol" which is a short form of "olema" meaning "to be", and refers to a gathering of people for a specific purpose. | |||
Finnish | tapaaminen | ||
The word "tapaaminen" not only means "meeting" but also "occurrence" or "event." | |||
Hungarian | találkozó | ||
The word "találkozó" in Hungarian has other meanings such as encounter or rendezvous. | |||
Latvian | sapulce | ||
Sapulce is a word of Latin origin, and was originally used to refer to a meeting of the Roman Senate. | |||
Lithuanian | susitikimas | ||
The Lithuanian word "susitikimas" also means "coming together" and is related to the word "susitikti", which means "to meet". | |||
Macedonian | состанок | ||
The word "состанок" comes from the Slavic word "stanъ", meaning "place to stand". | |||
Polish | spotkanie | ||
The Polish word "spotkanie" has the dual meaning of "a gathering" and "an encounter", reflecting the multifaceted nature of human interaction. | |||
Romanian | întâlnire | ||
Întâlnire derives from the Romanian verb "întâlni" meaning "to meet" and is cognate with "antre" (meaning "to enter") in old Romanian. | |||
Russian | встреча | ||
Встреча can also mean 'confrontation' or 'collision' in Russian. | |||
Serbian | састанак | ||
"Састанак" originally referred to a place of gathering, not necessarily to an assembly having a defined objective. | |||
Slovak | stretnutie | ||
"Stretnutie" can also mean a collision of two or more objects. | |||
Slovenian | srečanje | ||
The etymology of "srečanje" comes from the verb "srečati" (to meet) which in turn comes from the Proto-Slavic word "*sъretati" (to encounter). | |||
Ukrainian | зустрічі | ||
The word "зустрічі" is derived from the Slavic root "*sъ-vědъ", meaning "to know, to see". |
Bengali | সভা | ||
Bengali "সভা" (shôbha) can also mean "assembly" or "council", originating from the Sanskrit word "sabhā." | |||
Gujarati | સભા | ||
"સભા" comes from the Sanskrit word "सभा" (sabhā), which originally meant a gathering or assembly but gradually came to refer specifically to a meeting. | |||
Hindi | मुलाकात | ||
The word 'मुलाकात' also means 'encounter', 'interview', or 'visit' in Hindi. | |||
Kannada | ಸಭೆಯಲ್ಲಿ | ||
The word "ಸಭೆಯಲ್ಲಿ" (meeting) also means "in the assembly" or "in the audience" in Kannada. | |||
Malayalam | യോഗം | ||
The word 'യോഗം' also means 'union' or 'connection' in Malayalam. | |||
Marathi | बैठक | ||
The word "बैठक" also refers to a part of the house where people socialize and receive guests. | |||
Nepali | बैठक | ||
"बैठक" may also refer to a type of formal gathering or assembly in Hindu and Jain tradition. | |||
Punjabi | ਮੁਲਾਕਾਤ | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) | රැස්වීම | ||
In addition to gatherings, රැස්වීම may refer to groups of items or the convergence of several things or people | |||
Tamil | சந்தித்தல் | ||
Telugu | సమావేశం | ||
The term "సమావేశం" in Telugu also refers to a confluence of rivers or a joining together of two ends. | |||
Urdu | ملاقات | ||
The word "ملاقات" can also refer to a religious pilgrimage, particularly to a shrine or holy place. |
Chinese (Simplified) | 会议 | ||
The character 会 in 会议 originally signified "gathering guests," while 议 meant "discussing." | |||
Chinese (Traditional) | 會議 | ||
會議一詞源自古代祭祀時使用的「會盟」,有協商、聯盟之意。 | |||
Japanese | 会議 | ||
会議 (kaigi) was originally a term used for an encounter between two or more deities during the performance of a religious ritual. | |||
Korean | 모임 | ||
The Korean word "모임" has a wider meaning than just "meeting." It can refer to any kind of gathering or event. | |||
Mongolian | уулзалт | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) | အစည်းအဝေး | ||
Indonesian | pertemuan | ||
"Pertemuan" is also used to refer to a gathering of people for a specific purpose (e.g. a meeting, an assembly, or a convention). | |||
Javanese | rapat | ||
The Javanese word "rapat" not only means "meeting", but also "compact" or "solid" | |||
Khmer | ប្រជុំ | ||
ប្រជុំ is also used to refer to an assembly of people for a religious or ceremonial purpose. | |||
Lao | ກອງປະຊຸມ | ||
Malay | perjumpaan | ||
Perjumpaan can also mean "collision", especially in the context of traffic accidents. | |||
Thai | การประชุม | ||
The word "การประชุม" (meeting) is a compound noun made up of "การ" (action) and "ประชุม" (to gather or assemble), and it can also refer to a gathering of people for a specific purpose. | |||
Vietnamese | gặp gỡ | ||
"Gặp gỡ" also means "to rendezvous" or "to encounter or engage with a person, place, or idea" | |||
Filipino (Tagalog) | pagpupulong | ||
Azerbaijani | iclas | ||
The word "iclas" also refers to a type of folk festival, similar to a potluck, where participants bring dishes to share. | |||
Kazakh | кездесу | ||
The word | |||
Kyrgyz | жолугушуу | ||
"Жолугушуу" can also be used to refer to a meeting of minds, a coming together of ideas or thoughts. | |||
Tajik | маҷлис | ||
"Маҷлис" is a word Persian in origin and commonly refers to a gathering or an assembly. | |||
Turkmen | duşuşyk | ||
Uzbek | uchrashuv | ||
"Uchrashuv" (meeting) comes from "uch" (three) and "rash" (to go), implying a gathering of three or more people. | |||
Uyghur | يىغىن | ||
Hawaiian | hālāwai | ||
The Hawaiian word "hālāwai" shares a root with "hala", meaning "house" or "gathering place", and also "wai", meaning "water" or "freshwater". | |||
Maori | hui | ||
The Maori word "hui" also carries connotations of gathering, assembly, and community. | |||
Samoan | fonotaga | ||
Samoan word 'fonotaga' originates from 'fono' (talking) and '-taga' (group or gathering), referring to a community meeting. | |||
Tagalog (Filipino) | pagpupulong | ||
"Pagpupulong" is derived from the word root "pulong", which also means assembly as well as talking, speech or discourse. |
Aymara | tantachäwi | ||
Guarani | aty | ||
Esperanto | kunveno | ||
Kunveno derives from the word "konveni", meaning "to be in accordance with", and is related to words like "convention" and "convenient" in English. | |||
Latin | foederis | ||
The Latin word "foederis" can refer to a meeting between individuals or a treaty between states that ensures peace. |
Greek | συνάντηση | ||
The Greek word "συνάντηση" is derived from the verb "συναντάω" meaning "to meet" or "to come together" and ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *kom- meaning "to come". | |||
Hmong | rooj sib tham | ||
"Rooj sib tham" is a Hmong phrase that can refer to a meeting, a gathering, or an assembly. | |||
Kurdish | hevdîtinî | ||
The word "hevdîtinî" in Kurdish can also refer to a gathering of people for a specific purpose, such as a discussion or debate. | |||
Turkish | toplantı | ||
The Turkish word "toplantı" is derived from the verb "toplamak" meaning "to collect" and can also refer to a "gathering" or "assembly" in a broader sense. | |||
Xhosa | intlanganiso | ||
Intlanganiso can also refer to a gathering or assembly. | |||
Yiddish | באַגעגעניש | ||
"באַגעגעניש" also means "the act of meeting" and can refer to the point of intersection of two lines or surfaces. | |||
Zulu | umhlangano | ||
The word "umhlangano" can also refer to a ritual gathering between Zulu royalty and their subjects. | |||
Assamese | মীটিং | ||
Aymara | tantachäwi | ||
Bhojpuri | बईठक | ||
Dhivehi | ބައްދަލުވުން | ||
Dogri | मलाटी | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) | pagpupulong | ||
Guarani | aty | ||
Ilocano | taripnong | ||
Krio | mitin | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) | کۆبوونەوە | ||
Maithili | बैसार | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯃꯤꯐꯝ | ||
Mizo | inhmukhawm | ||
Oromo | marii | ||
Odia (Oriya) | ସଭା | ||
Quechua | huñunakuy | ||
Sanskrit | मेलनम् | ||
Tatar | очрашу | ||
Tigrinya | ኣኼባ | ||
Tsonga | nhlengeletano | ||