Poor in different languages

Poor in Different Languages

Discover 'Poor' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.

Updated on March 6, 2024

The word 'poor' carries a profound significance, as it refers to those who lack the necessary resources to live a comfortable life. This term extends beyond mere finances, encompassing a range of societal and cultural contexts. Throughout history, the poor have been variously perceived as victims of circumstance, agents of change, or even as a necessary evil. The concept of poverty has fueled revolutions, inspired philanthropy, and challenged the conscience of societies worldwide.

Given its far-reaching implications, understanding the word 'poor' in different languages can be a fascinating exploration of cultural nuances and societal attitudes. For instance, the Spanish equivalent, 'pobre', also denotes a sense of humility or modesty, while the German 'arm' carries a connotation of powerlessness. Meanwhile, the Chinese character for poor, '穷' (qióng), is composed of two parts: ' Rice' and 'Stalk', symbolizing the struggle for survival.

Join us as we delve into the translations of 'poor' in various languages, offering a glimpse into the diverse ways poverty is perceived and addressed across the globe.

Poor


Poor in Sub-Saharan African Languages

Afrikaansarm
In Afrikaans, the word "arm" can also refer to the physical extremity or a unit of length.
Amharicድሆች
In Amharic, ድሆች or 'd'ho'ch' also refers to people who have been excluded from society.
Hausatalakawa
The word 'talakawa' in Hausa originated from the Arabic word 'talaka', which means 'to set free' or 'to divorce'
Igboogbenye
The word 'ogbenye' in Igbo also means 'an unfortunate person', indicating a deeper connection between poverty and misfortune.
Malagasymahantra
The word "mahatra" in Malagasy can also refer to humility or lack of ostentation.
Nyanja (Chichewa)osauka
The word 'osauka' can also refer to a person who is unfortunate or unlucky.
Shonamurombo
The word "murombo" in Shona derives from the verb "kurova", meaning to beg or plead.
Somalifaqiir
In the original Somali language, the term « Faqiir » also refers to a religious or spiritual expert.
Sesothomofutsana
In Sesotho, "mofutsana" can also mean "a small village" or "a person who is not wealthy but is not destitute either."
Swahilimaskini
Swahili 'maskini' likely derives from Arabic 'miskin', a term for a poor or humble person.
Xhosaihlwempu
The word “ihlwempu” is a diminutive form of “umhlwempu”, the original word used to describe a person who is poor, especially an elderly person.
Yorubatalaka
The word "talaka" can also mean "beggar" or "needy person" in Yoruba.
Zulumpofu
In Zulu, "mpofu" means "one who is lacking," but can also refer to a young woman who is not yet married.
Bambarafaantan
Eweda ahe
Kinyarwandaabakene
Lingalamobola
Luganda-aavu
Sepedidiila
Twi (Akan)hia

Poor in North African & Middle Eastern Languages

Arabicفقير
In Persian, "فقير" (faqīr) refers to a Sufi mystic while in Turkish, it can mean "witty" or "humorous."
Hebrewעני
The word "עני" (pronounced "ani") has several meanings in Hebrew, including "poor," "humble," and "meek."
Pashtoغریب
The Pashto word 'غریب' can also refer to a stranger or foreigner.
Arabicفقير
In Persian, "فقير" (faqīr) refers to a Sufi mystic while in Turkish, it can mean "witty" or "humorous."

Poor in Western European Languages

Albaniani varfer
The word "i varfer" in Albanian can also mean "weak" or "unfortunate".
Basqueeskasa
The Basque word "eskasa" also means "lacking," "insufficient," or "deficient."
Catalanpobre
In Catalan, "pobre" has a broader meaning than "poor", also referring to "miserable" or "unfortunate".
Croatiansiromašna
The etymology of 'siromašna' ('poor') is 'sir' ('cheese'), meaning originally 'lacking cheese'.
Danishfattige
The word "fattige" originates from the Old Norse word "fátækr" meaning "needy" or "poor in spirit."
Dutcharm
The Dutch word "arm" (poor) is derived from the Old English word "earm" (miserable, wretched)
Englishpoor
The word "poor" originates from the Latin "pauper", meaning "beggar" or "needy person."
Frenchpauvre
The French word "pauvre" originally meant "afraid" and still carries that connotation in some contexts.
Frisianearm
The Frisian word "earm" is cognate with the English "arm", and originally meant "weak" or "defective".
Galicianpobre
The word "pobre" in Galician comes from Latin "pauper" meaning "poor", but can also mean "humble", "simple", or "small" depending on the context.
Germanarm
The etymology of "arm" is disputed, with one possibility deriving it from the Old High German word "aram" meaning "wretched" while another suggests Indo-European roots meaning “affliction.”
Icelandicléleg
The Icelandic word "léleg" (poor) derives from the Old Norse "hljóðr" (loud), which in turn comes from the Proto-Germanic "*hluđaz" (loud).
Irishbocht
In Irish, the word "bocht" also means "soft" or "tender".
Italianpovero
The Italian word "povero" can also mean "unlucky" or "wretched"
Luxembourgishaarm
The word "aarm" can also refer to a feeling of misery or wretchedness, like in the expression "Ech sinn aarm dran", meaning "I'm miserable about it."
Maltesefqir
The word "fqir" in Maltese is derived from the Arabic word "faqīr" meaning "poor", and also has the additional meaning of "monk" or "dervish".
Norwegiandårlig
"Dårlig" is a cognate and false friend of English "dear". The word has retained the meaning "dear" in archaic contexts like the toponyms "Dårli"
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil)pobre
In Portuguese, "pobre" can also mean "unfortunate" or "miserable."
Scots Gaelicbochd
The word "bochd" in Scots Gaelic also has meanings of "wretched" and "miserable".
Spanishpobre
In Spanish, the word "pobre" also has a colloquial meaning of "cute" or "adorable".
Swedishfattig
The word "fattig" is possibly derived from the Proto-Germanic word "*fatôgaz", meaning "beggar" or "poor person".
Welshdruan
Druan can also mean 'pitiable' or 'wretched'

Poor in Eastern European Languages

Belarusianбедны
The term "бедны" in Belarusian is derived from the Proto-Slavic root *będъ, meaning "poor" or "miserable".
Bosniansiromašna
The word 'siromašna' is derived from the Proto-Slavic word '*siro' and originally meant 'orphan' or 'needy'.
Bulgarianбеден
The word "беден" in Bulgarian also means "unfortunate" and "weak".
Czechchudý
The word "chudý" also means "thin" in Czech.
Estonianvaene
The word "vaene" derives from the Proto-Uralic root *waɣe-, meaning "lacking, poor."
Finnishhuono
The word "huono" can also mean "bad" or "low quality" in Finnish.
Hungarianszegény
The word "szegény" also means "narrow" or "tight" in Hungarian, indicating a lack of wealth or space.
Latviannabadzīgs
"Nabagazds" also means a house without a man
Lithuanianvargšas
The Lithuanian word "vargšas" is linked to "vargas", a word for "trouble", and also "vargti", which means "to suffer" or "to toil."
Macedonianсиромашен
The word "сиромашен" is derived from the Proto-Slavic root *sъromъ, meaning "orphan" or "miserable".
Polishubogi
The Polish word "ubogi" derives from the Proto-Slavic "bogъ", meaning "god, wealth", thus originally denoting someone lacking divine protection and hence fortune.
Romaniansărac
The word 'sărac' is derived from the Latin word 'saracu', meaning 'to beg'
Russianбедных
The Russian word "бедных" can also be used to refer to people with low social status, or those who are disadvantaged or marginalized.
Serbianсиромашни
The word "сиромашни" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "siro", meaning "orphan".
Slovakchudobný
"Chudobný" in Slovak derives from the Proto-Slavic "xudь" (hunger), while the word for "poor" in Czech, Polish, etc., comes from a distinct root meaning "humble"
Slovenianubogi
In Old Church Slavonic, "ubogi" meant "poor" but also "deserving of pity", which is closer to its meaning in Slovenian and reflects social values of the past.
Ukrainianбідний
Ukrainian 'бідний' derives from Proto-Slavic 'bydьnь', which meant 'alone' or 'solitary' as opposed to 'rich' which connoted 'abundant' or 'fertile' land.

Poor in South Asian Languages

Bengaliদরিদ্র
দরিদ্র originates from Sanskrit 'daridrā', referring to a beggar's staff, which symbolises poverty.
Gujaratiગરીબ
The word 'ગરીબ' also has a more metaphorical meaning, referring to someone who is unfortunate or disadvantaged.
Hindiगरीब
The word "गरीब" (poor) is derived from the Sanskrit word "गरिमा" (weight), and originally meant "heavy" or "burdened."
Kannadaಬಡವರು
The word "ಬಡವರು" (poor) in Kannada comes from the Dravidian word "ಪಡು" (to fall), implying a state of fallenness or helplessness.
Malayalamദരിദ്രർ
The word "ദരിദ്രർ" (daridrar) in Malayalam stems from the Sanskrit word "daridra," which can also mean "beggar" or "needy."
Marathiगरीब
The Marathi word " गरीब" traces its roots to the Sanskrit word "गुरू" (teacher) and initially referred to someone who was financially dependent, rather than someone who was impoverished.
Nepaliगरीब
The word "गरीब" (poor) may also refer to a person suffering from a specific disease or calamity.
Punjabiਗਰੀਬ
The word "ਗਰੀਬ" is derived from the Persian word "gharīb" meaning "foreigner" or "stranger".
Sinhala (Sinhalese)දුප්පත්
"දුප්පත්" also means "low" or "inferior" and is related to the Sanskrit word "durbala" which means "weak".
Tamilஏழை
The word "ஏழை" (ēḻai) is derived from the Proto-Dravidian word "*ēṯ- " meaning "to beg" or "to be needy".
Teluguపేద
The word "పేద" (pronounced "payda") can also mean "wretched" or "miserable" in Telugu.
Urduغریب
In addition to its primary meaning of "poor," "غریب" can also mean "stranger" or "foreigner" in Urdu.

Poor in East Asian Languages

Chinese (Simplified)较差的
The Chinese word "较差的" can also mean "comparatively bad" or "relatively worse".
Chinese (Traditional)較差的
The traditional Chinese word 較差的 is more ambiguous than English "poor" and can describe something weak or inferior; lacking in quality.
Japanese貧しい
貧しい (binbōshii) is also used as a term of endearment, particularly towards children and pets.
Korean가난한
The Korean word '가난한' comes from the Middle Korean '가난ㅎ다', meaning 'to have insufficient resources' or 'to be unable to provide for oneself'.
Mongolianядуу
The word "ядуу" can also mean poor in quality.
Myanmar (Burmese)ဆင်းရဲတယ်

Poor in South East Asian Languages

Indonesianmiskin
Some scholars of Indonesian etymology associate the word with Arabic, "miskin" which means "needy" or "poor."
Javanesemlarat
The word "mlarat" in Javanese also means "to be at a disadvantage" or "to be unlucky."
Khmerក្រីក្រ
The Khmer word "ក្រីក្រ" (poor) can also refer to something that is weak or feeble.
Laoທຸກຍາກ
The word "ທຸກຍາກ" (poor) in Lao is derived from the Pali word "dukkha", meaning "suffering" or "pain".
Malaymiskin
The word "miskin" is derived from the Arabic word "miskin" which means "weak" or "feeble".
Thaiน่าสงสาร
The term "น่าสงสาร" can also mean "pitiable" or "pathetic" in Thai.
Vietnamesenghèo
The word "nghèo" in Vietnamese derives from the Sino-Vietnamese word "nghèo" which initially described the sound of raindrops hitting water.
Filipino (Tagalog)mahirap

Poor in Central Asian Languages

Azerbaijanikasıb
The word
Kazakhкедей
The Kazakh word "кедей" also refers to the legendary Kazakh hero who gave his life to save his people.
Kyrgyzкедей
"кедей" (poor) in Kyrgyz is related to the Turkish word "kede" (to need).
Tajikкамбизоат
The Russian word "камбизоат" ("poor") can also refer to a person with a low social status.
Turkmengaryp
Uzbekkambag'al
The word "kambag'al" in Uzbek is derived from the Persian word "kambiz", meaning "needy" or "poor."
Uyghurنامرات

Poor in Pacific Languages

Hawaiianʻilihune
'Ili Hune means 'moving joints', referring to the trembling caused by malnutrition in those who experience severe hunger.
Maorirawakore
"Rawakore" also means "hungry" and "needy" in Maori.
Samoanmativa
The word "mativa" can also mean "unfortunate" or "unlucky" in Samoan.
Tagalog (Filipino)mahirap
The word "mahirap" can also mean "difficult" or "hard to do" in Tagalog, implying that poverty is not just a lack of resources but also a struggle.

Poor in American Indigenous Languages

Aymarapisin jakiri
Guaranimboriahu

Poor in International Languages

Esperantomalriĉa
The word "malriĉa" is derived from "mal-" (bad) and "riĉa" (wealthy), which conveys the sense of a lack of wealth rather than just poverty.
Latinpauper
In Latin, "pauper" stems from the word "paucus," meaning "few," signifying a lack of possessions.

Poor in Others Languages

Greekφτωχός
Φτωχός comes from the word πτοέω (ptoeo) which means 'frighten, terrify, dismay'.
Hmongneeg pluag
The word "neeg pluag" can also be used as an adverb meaning "poorly" or "inadequately"
Kurdishbelengaz
The word "belengaz" is also used to refer to a type of Kurdish folk dance.
Turkishyoksul
The word “yoksul” can also mean “orphan” in Turkish, reflecting the historical association between poverty and lack of familial support.
Xhosaihlwempu
The word “ihlwempu” is a diminutive form of “umhlwempu”, the original word used to describe a person who is poor, especially an elderly person.
Yiddishנעבעך
The word "nebbish" derives from the Yiddish word "nebekh," which conveys a sense of pity rather than destitution.
Zulumpofu
In Zulu, "mpofu" means "one who is lacking," but can also refer to a young woman who is not yet married.
Assameseদুখীয়া
Aymarapisin jakiri
Bhojpuriगरीब
Dhivehiފަޤީރު
Dogriगरीब
Filipino (Tagalog)mahirap
Guaranimboriahu
Ilocanonapanglaw
Krio
Kurdish (Sorani)هەژار
Maithiliगरीब
Meiteilon (Manipuri)ꯂꯥꯏꯔꯕ
Mizorethei
Oromohiyyeessa
Odia (Oriya)ଗରିବ
Quechuawakcha
Sanskritनिर्धनः
Tatarярлы
Tigrinyaድኻ
Tsongavusweti

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