Number in Different Languages
Discover 'Number' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'number' holds immense significance in our daily lives, often serving as a universal language that transcends linguistic barriers. From mathematics to communication, numbers are an integral part of various cultural contexts worldwide. For instance, in Chinese culture, the number 8 is considered auspicious and lucky, while 4 is considered unlucky. Similarly, in many Western cultures, the number 13 is often viewed with suspicion.
Given this cultural importance, understanding the translation of 'number' in different languages can be a fascinating exploration of cultural nuances and language dynamics. For instance, the word for 'number' in Spanish is 'número', in French it's 'nombre', and in German, it's 'Zahl'.
Delving into these translations not only satiates our curiosity but also provides us with a deeper appreciation of the richness and diversity of global languages and cultures. So, let's embark on this numerical journey and discover how 'number' is translated in a variety of languages.
Number
Number in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | nommer | ||
| In Afrikaans, “nommer” can refer to either a telephone number or a street address. | |||
| Amharic | ቁጥር | ||
| ቁጥር derives from the Old Ge'ez word וקטר ('wəḳtar), which also meant "number" | |||
| Hausa | lamba | ||
| The Hausa word "lamba" is also used in a proverb that means "a person who is always in trouble" | |||
| Igbo | nọmba | ||
| "Nọmba" in Igbo signifies 'total amount' or 'aggregate' and comes from the Proto-Igbo word *nombɔ́, which means 'to count'. | |||
| Malagasy | isa | ||
| "Isa" can also mean "first" or "one" as an ordinal number in Malagasy. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | nambala | ||
| "Nambale" in Chichewa (Nyanja) has connotations of "something to count" and can refer to a specific entity being counted rather than a cardinal value. | |||
| Shona | nhamba | ||
| "Nhamba" also means "count" and may be related to the word "nyamba" which means "cut" or "divide". | |||
| Somali | tirada | ||
| In Somali, "tirada" also means "to walk or travel." | |||
| Sesotho | nomoro | ||
| In Sesotho, 'nomoro' is also used to mean 'name' or 'title', and can refer to a person's given name, surname, or a title such as 'chief' or 'doctor'. | |||
| Swahili | nambari | ||
| Derived from the Arabic word "'adadi" meaning "quantity" or "amount." | |||
| Xhosa | inombolo | ||
| In Xhosa, the word "inombolo" also refers to a specific number between 20 and 50. | |||
| Yoruba | nọmba | ||
| "Nomba" also means "to count" and "to be counted" in Yoruba. | |||
| Zulu | inombolo | ||
| The word 'inombolo' in Zulu derives from the noun 'inombolo' meaning 'a joint' or 'a node', metaphorically referring to the joints or nodes of a counting stick used for keeping track of numbers. | |||
| Bambara | nimɔrɔ | ||
| Ewe | xexlẽdzesi | ||
| Kinyarwanda | nimero | ||
| Lingala | nimero | ||
| Luganda | omuwendo | ||
| Sepedi | nomoro | ||
| Twi (Akan) | nɔma | ||
Number in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | رقم | ||
| The Arabic word "رقم" is thought to derive from "رقم" (raqama), "to mark," and also denotes a "letter" in the Arabic numerals system. | |||
| Hebrew | מספר | ||
| The Hebrew word "מספר" ("mispar") can also mean "story" or "account." | |||
| Pashto | شمیره | ||
| Another meaning of "شمیره" is "an amount of money". | |||
| Arabic | رقم | ||
| The Arabic word "رقم" is thought to derive from "رقم" (raqama), "to mark," and also denotes a "letter" in the Arabic numerals system. | |||
Number in Western European Languages
| Albanian | numri | ||
| Numri in Albanian is derived from the Latin "numerus" (plural "numeri"), which also refers to a "troop of soldiers". | |||
| Basque | zenbakia | ||
| Zenbakia, meaning "number" in Basque, also originates from "zenbat" (how much) from which other related words derive like "zenbait" (some, certain, certain quantity) and "zenbateko" (how many of, percentage). | |||
| Catalan | número | ||
| Catalan "número" has the same origin as "numerable" or "denumerable" in English: all stem from the Latin verb "numerare" or "to count." | |||
| Croatian | broj | ||
| The Croatian word "broj" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *borti, meaning "to count". | |||
| Danish | nummer | ||
| The Danish word "nummer" is derived from the Latin word "numerus", meaning "count", and can also refer to a phone number or a size in clothing. | |||
| Dutch | aantal | ||
| The word "aantal" is related to the English words "account" and "amount", both of which derive from the Old French word "acounter" meaning "to count or to reckon." | |||
| English | number | ||
| Number derives from an Old French word that meant "to count" and is related to the Latin word "numerus," which means both "a number" and "a crowd." | |||
| French | nombre | ||
| In French, the plural form 'nombres' can also refer to a series of exercises given to a student or a set of accounts or figures. | |||
| Frisian | nûmer | ||
| The Frisian word "nûmer" can also mean a numeral or a figure. | |||
| Galician | número | ||
| "Número" (number) comes from the Latin "numerus". The plural, "números", means "melody" too. | |||
| German | nummer | ||
| The word "Nummer" in German is derived from the Latin word "numerus", meaning "group" or "collection". | |||
| Icelandic | númer | ||
| The word "númer" can also refer to a prison cell in Icelandic slang. | |||
| Irish | uimhir | ||
| The Irish word "uimhir" is ultimately derived from the Latin word "numerus" and was originally used to refer to a "multitude" or "troop". | |||
| Italian | numero | ||
| The word "numero" in Italian comes from the Latin word "numerus," which means "number," but it can also mean "issue," "way," or "verse." | |||
| Luxembourgish | zuel | ||
| The Proto-Germanic root of "Zuel" is also found in the English word "tale". | |||
| Maltese | numru | ||
| Numru could derive from Ancient Greek "arithmos" or "numerus" used in Latin and Romance languages | |||
| Norwegian | antall | ||
| In Norwegian, the word "antall" also means a particular collection of things or a quantity of a given kind. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | número | ||
| The word "número" derives from the Latin "numerus," meaning "multitude" or "quantity." | |||
| Scots Gaelic | àireamh | ||
| The Gaelic word "àireamh" can also refer to a gathering or a counting-place. | |||
| Spanish | número | ||
| In Spanish, "número" can also refer to a musical composition or a set of performers. | |||
| Swedish | siffra | ||
| The word "siffra" (number) originally meant "sum," which is cognate with "cipher". | |||
| Welsh | rhif | ||
| The Welsh word "rhif" can also refer to a person's place in a series or order. | |||
Number in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | нумар | ||
| In Belarusian, нумар also means a magazine issue and a telephone number. | |||
| Bosnian | broj | ||
| The word 'broj' is also used figuratively to refer to a person of importance or influence in the community. | |||
| Bulgarian | номер | ||
| The word "номер" in Bulgarian is a false friend, as it means "room" in English. | |||
| Czech | číslo | ||
| The word "číslo" is also a term used in grammar to refer to the singular/plural form of a noun (singular: {"jednotné číslo"}, plural: {"množné číslo"}). | |||
| Estonian | number | ||
| The word "number" in Estonian, "number", can also mean "figure" or "digit". | |||
| Finnish | määrä | ||
| The term "määrä" also refers to a measure or quantity of something, and can be used in a variety of contexts. | |||
| Hungarian | szám | ||
| The Hungarian word "szám" originally meant "account" or "reckoning". | |||
| Latvian | numuru | ||
| The word "numuru" is also a Latvian verb meaning "to name" or "to call". | |||
| Lithuanian | numeris | ||
| The word "numeris" can also mean "mark" or "grade". | |||
| Macedonian | број | ||
| The word "број" (meaning "number" in Macedonian) comes from the Proto-Slavic word *borjь, which is related to the Proto-Germanic word *burjaz (compare: "borrow" in English and "bürde" in German). | |||
| Polish | numer | ||
| "Numer" has multiple meanings: the value, the symbol of the value (a digit) and the street address. | |||
| Romanian | număr | ||
| The Romanian word "număr" comes from the Latin word "numerus", which also means "rhythm", "verse", or "song". | |||
| Russian | количество | ||
| The word "количество" also means "amount" or "quantity" in Russian. | |||
| Serbian | број | ||
| Alternate meanings: the letter б in Old Cyrillic (also known as Cyrillica Bulgarica българа); and also a form of the Cyrillic numeral system for denoting numbers (similar but not equal to the Greek isopsephy system) Фит, Е (700), where the numeral used also had an equivalent letter (e.g. the numeral for 30, which also was the form ю). | |||
| Slovak | číslo | ||
| The word "číslo" in Slovak also means "code" or "cipher". | |||
| Slovenian | številko | ||
| In mathematics, "številko" (number) can also refer to the concept of an abstract object which quantifies objects according to some commonality. | |||
| Ukrainian | номер | ||
| The word "номер" in Ukrainian also means "room" or "issue" of a periodical publication. | |||
Number in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | সংখ্যা | ||
| The word "সংখ্যা" is derived from the Sanskrit word "सङ्ख्या" meaning "counting", and also refers to a "list" or "enumeration". | |||
| Gujarati | નંબર | ||
| "નંબર" is derived from the Latin word "numerus", meaning "set of objects". | |||
| Hindi | संख्या | ||
| संख्या also means "calculation" or "computation" in Hindi. | |||
| Kannada | ಸಂಖ್ಯೆ | ||
| The word "ಸಂಖ್ಯೆ" (samkhye) in Kannada is derived from the Sanskrit word "संख्या" (saṃkhyā), which originally meant "a counting"} | |||
| Malayalam | നമ്പർ | ||
| Marathi | संख्या | ||
| "संख्या "also means "arithmetic" or "mathematics" in Marathi , and can refer to a particular branch of mathematics like "संख्याशास्त्र" (algebra) or "त्रिकोणमिती" (trigonometry). | |||
| Nepali | संख्या | ||
| The Sanskrit word 'संख्या' is related to the Latin word 'numerus', meaning 'group' or 'collection'. | |||
| Punjabi | ਗਿਣਤੀ | ||
| The word "ਗਿਣਤੀ" can also refer to a mathematical operation, such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | අංකය | ||
| The word “අංකය” originates from the Sanskrit word “अंक” which means “to mark” or “to write”. | |||
| Tamil | எண் | ||
| The Tamil root word 'எண்' relates to 'counting', 'measuring', 'thinking', 'supposing' or 'weighing something' | |||
| Telugu | సంఖ్య | ||
| సంఖ్య (Saṃkhyā) comes from Sanskrit and means "reckoning" or "counting" but can also refer to a philosophical system or the female deity associated with it. | |||
| Urdu | نمبر | ||
| The word "نمبر" can also be used to refer to a "telephone number" in Urdu. | |||
Number in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 数 | ||
| The character "数" (number) also means "several", "some" and "a number of". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 數 | ||
| The character "數" (Traditional Chinese for "number") also refers to "mathematics" and "counting". | |||
| Japanese | 数 | ||
| The character "数" can also mean "to count" or "to calculate". | |||
| Korean | 번호 | ||
| The word "번호" ("number") can also mean "ticket" or "license plate". | |||
| Mongolian | дугаар | ||
| The word "дугаар" originally meant "a mark on a bone used for counting." | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | နံပါတ် | ||
| In mathematics, "နံပါတ်" also refers to an element of a set, but only if the set is used to represent numbers. | |||
Number in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | jumlah | ||
| The Indonesian word "jumlah" also means "sum", and like "jumlah" in Arabic and "jumlah" in Malay, it derives from the Arabic "jumla", meaning "total, sum". | |||
| Javanese | nomer | ||
| The root word 'nom' can mean to 'follow', as with the word 'nompo', which refers to the ritual following of another. | |||
| Khmer | ចំនួន | ||
| ចំនួន's Khmer origin comes from ancient Sanskrit, "samkhyā", which is related to the Proto-Austronesian root "-usa", which also gives us "suan" in Thai. | |||
| Lao | ຈໍານວນ | ||
| Malay | nombor | ||
| "Nombor" comes from the Tamil word "numbar" ( | |||
| Thai | จำนวน | ||
| จำนวน is a compound word consisting of two words, จำ (memorize) and นวน (to repeat), referring to the idea of memorizing repeated items. | |||
| Vietnamese | con số | ||
| The word "con số" in Vietnamese can also refer to a figure or amount. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | numero | ||
Number in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | nömrə | ||
| The word "nömrə" in Azerbaijani is derived from the Persian word "numrah", which itself comes from the Arabic word "numāra". It has the alternate meaning of "number" in the sense of a grade or mark, as well as "item" or "piece", for example in the phrase "bir nömrə şəkər" (one piece of sugar). | |||
| Kazakh | нөмір | ||
| The word "нөмір" is also used in Kazakh to refer to a postal code, a phone number, or a license plate number. | |||
| Kyrgyz | номери | ||
| The word "номери" in Kyrgyz can also refer to a type of musical score or a musical instrument similar to a harmonica. | |||
| Tajik | рақам | ||
| The word "рақам" can also refer to a numeral, digit, or a numerical value in Tajik. | |||
| Turkmen | sany | ||
| Uzbek | raqam | ||
| In Uzbek, the term | |||
| Uyghur | سان | ||
Number in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | helu | ||
| "Helu" is also the word for "to count" or "to read" in Hawaiian. | |||
| Maori | tau | ||
| The word "tau" also means "hundred" or "multitude" in Maori. | |||
| Samoan | numera | ||
| The word 'numera' also means 'value', 'worth', or 'importance' in Samoan. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | numero | ||
| In Filipino, "numero" can also refer to a type of lottery. | |||
Number in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | jakhu | ||
| Guarani | papapy | ||
Number in International Languages
| Esperanto | nombro | ||
| The Esperanto word 'nombro' comes from the Latin word 'numerus', meaning not only 'number' but also 'rhythm' or 'melody'. | |||
| Latin | numerus | ||
| The Latin word "numerus" can also refer to a rhythmical arrangement of syllables, a troop of soldiers, or a group of musical instruments. | |||
Number in Others Languages
| Greek | αριθμός | ||
| In Ancient Greek, “αριθμός” also meant a list, a group or a sum. | |||
| Hmong | tus naj npawb | ||
| Although the Hmong word "tus naj npawb" has the primary meaning of "number," it also carries the meaning "quantity" or "amount." | |||
| Kurdish | jimare | ||
| The word 'jimare' is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *ḱm̥t- 'hundred'. | |||
| Turkish | numara | ||
| In Turkish, "numara" also refers to a play or a theatrical performance. | |||
| Xhosa | inombolo | ||
| In Xhosa, the word "inombolo" also refers to a specific number between 20 and 50. | |||
| Yiddish | נומער | ||
| The Yiddish word "נומער" (number) is derived from the German word "Nummer" and also refers to a "room" or "house number". | |||
| Zulu | inombolo | ||
| The word 'inombolo' in Zulu derives from the noun 'inombolo' meaning 'a joint' or 'a node', metaphorically referring to the joints or nodes of a counting stick used for keeping track of numbers. | |||
| Assamese | সংখ্যা | ||
| Aymara | jakhu | ||
| Bhojpuri | संख्या | ||
| Dhivehi | ނަންބަރު | ||
| Dogri | नंबर | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | numero | ||
| Guarani | papapy | ||
| Ilocano | bilang | ||
| Krio | nɔmba | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | ژمارە | ||
| Maithili | संख्या | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯃꯁꯤꯡ | ||
| Mizo | a zat | ||
| Oromo | lakkoofsa | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ସଂଖ୍ୟା | ||
| Quechua | yupay | ||
| Sanskrit | संख्या | ||
| Tatar | саны | ||
| Tigrinya | ቑጽሪ | ||
| Tsonga | nomboro | ||