Potato in Different Languages
Discover 'Potato' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Potato
Afrikaans aartappel | ||
Albanian patate | ||
Amharic ድንች | ||
Arabic البطاطس | ||
Armenian կարտոֆիլ | ||
Assamese আলু | ||
Aymara ch'uqi | ||
Azerbaijani kartof | ||
Bambara kɔmitɛrɛ | ||
Basque patata | ||
Belarusian бульба | ||
Bengali আলু | ||
Bhojpuri आलू | ||
Bosnian krompir | ||
Bulgarian картофи | ||
Catalan patata | ||
Cebuano patatas | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 土豆 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 土豆 | ||
Corsican patata | ||
Croatian krumpir | ||
Czech brambor | ||
Danish kartoffel | ||
Dhivehi އަލުވި | ||
Dogri आलू | ||
Dutch aardappel | ||
English potato | ||
Esperanto terpomo | ||
Estonian kartul | ||
Ewe nagoti | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) patatas | ||
Finnish peruna | ||
French patate | ||
Frisian ierappel | ||
Galician pataca | ||
Georgian კარტოფილი | ||
German kartoffel | ||
Greek πατάτα | ||
Guarani makychĩ | ||
Gujarati બટાકાની | ||
Haitian Creole pòmdetè | ||
Hausa dankalin turawa | ||
Hawaiian ʻuala | ||
Hebrew תפוח אדמה | ||
Hindi आलू | ||
Hmong qos yaj ywm | ||
Hungarian burgonya | ||
Icelandic kartöflu | ||
Igbo nduku | ||
Ilocano patatas | ||
Indonesian kentang | ||
Irish prátaí | ||
Italian patata | ||
Japanese じゃがいも | ||
Javanese kentang | ||
Kannada ಆಲೂಗಡ್ಡೆ | ||
Kazakh картоп | ||
Khmer ដំឡូង | ||
Kinyarwanda ibirayi | ||
Konkani बटाट | ||
Korean 감자 | ||
Krio pɛtetɛ | ||
Kurdish kartol | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) پەتاتە | ||
Kyrgyz картошка | ||
Lao ມັນຕົ້ນ | ||
Latin capsicum annuum | ||
Latvian kartupeļi | ||
Lingala mbala | ||
Lithuanian bulvė | ||
Luganda lumonde | ||
Luxembourgish gromper | ||
Macedonian компир | ||
Maithili आलू | ||
Malagasy ovy | ||
Malay kentang | ||
Malayalam ഉരുളക്കിഴങ്ങ് | ||
Maltese patata | ||
Maori kūmara | ||
Marathi बटाटा | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯑꯂꯨ | ||
Mizo alu | ||
Mongolian төмс | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) အာလူး | ||
Nepali आलु | ||
Norwegian potet | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) mbatata | ||
Odia (Oriya) ଆଳୁ | ||
Oromo dinnicha | ||
Pashto کچالو | ||
Persian سیب زمینی | ||
Polish ziemniak | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) batata | ||
Punjabi ਆਲੂ | ||
Quechua papa | ||
Romanian cartof | ||
Russian картошка | ||
Samoan pateta | ||
Sanskrit आलूः | ||
Scots Gaelic buntàta | ||
Sepedi letsapane | ||
Serbian кромпир | ||
Sesotho tapole | ||
Shona mbatata | ||
Sindhi آلو | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) අල | ||
Slovak zemiak | ||
Slovenian krompir | ||
Somali baradho | ||
Spanish patata | ||
Sundanese kentang | ||
Swahili viazi | ||
Swedish potatis | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) patatas | ||
Tajik картошка | ||
Tamil உருளைக்கிழங்கு | ||
Tatar бәрәңге | ||
Telugu బంగాళాదుంప | ||
Thai มันฝรั่ง | ||
Tigrinya ድንሽ | ||
Tsonga zambala | ||
Turkish patates | ||
Turkmen kartoşka | ||
Twi (Akan) akiten | ||
Ukrainian картопля | ||
Urdu آلو | ||
Uyghur بەرەڭگە | ||
Uzbek kartoshka | ||
Vietnamese khoai tây | ||
Welsh tatws | ||
Xhosa amazambane | ||
Yiddish קאַרטאָפל | ||
Yoruba ọdunkun | ||
Zulu izambane |
Etymology & Notes
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | The word "aartappel" can also refer to a sweet potato in South Africa, while in the Netherlands it typically refers to a Jerusalem artichoke. |
| Albanian | In Albanian, "patate" can refer to both sweet potatoes and regular potatoes, with no distinction between the two. |
| Amharic | "ድንች" can also refer to a type of traditional bread made from barley flour. |
| Arabic | Known in Arabic as "البطاطس" (al-batatis), the word originated from the Haitian Creole word "batata" for sweet potatoes, which were introduced to Europe by Spanish explorers who mistakenly called them "potatoes". |
| Armenian | In Armenian, "կարտոֆիլ" derives from two Italian words: "tartufolo" (truffle) and "patata" (potato), due to the perceived resemblance of potatoes to the latter. |
| Azerbaijani | In Turkish, the word "kartof" also refers to the sweet potato, while in Azerbaijani it refers to the potato. |
| Basque | The word "patata" in Basque is a loanword from Spanish and also means "puddle". |
| Belarusian | A term of endearment for a child |
| Bengali | The word "আলু" (alu) is derived from the Dravidian word "al" meaning "yam". |
| Bosnian | The word "krompir" is derived from the German word "Grundbirne," meaning "ground pear." |
| Bulgarian | The word "картофи" (potato) in Bulgarian comes from the German word "Kartoffel", which is ultimately derived from the Italian "tartufolo" (truffle). |
| Catalan | In the Catalan dialect of the Occitano-Romance language, patates means 'potatoes' and not 'sweet potatoes' as in Spanish. |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 土豆在英语中还有“小脚趾”的意思。 |
| Chinese (Traditional) | "土豆"在中文中既可以指马铃薯，又可以指一种原产于中国南方、形状类似马铃薯的块茎食物。 |
| Corsican | In Corsican, "patata" comes from the Italian word "patata", which in turn comes from the Spanish word "patata", which is itself derived from the Taíno word "batata". |
| Croatian | The alternate form is 'krumpjer', a loanword from Hungarian (krumpli), which is itself a corruption of the German 'Grundbirne', meaning 'ground pear'. |
| Czech | "Brambor" comes from the German word "Grundbirne" which means "ground pear". |
| Danish | "Kartoffel", the Danish word for "potato", is derived from the Italian "tartufolo", meaning "truffle". |
| Dutch | The word aardappel refers to a "potato" in Dutch and may also be used to describe a "ground apple". |
| Esperanto | The word "terpomo" can also refer to the constellation Orion's Belt. |
| Estonian | The word "kartul" is derived from the Low German "kartoffel" or "kartoffel" and the Russian "картофель" or "kartofel'", all of which ultimately originate from the Italian "tartufo" or "tartufolo". |
| Finnish | The word "peruna" possibly comes from the Estonian word "pirn", meaning "apple". |
| Frisian | The word 'ierappel' is a diminutive of 'ierd', meaning 'earth', and thus literally means 'little earth'. |
| Galician | In Galician, pataca also refers to currency, specifically the former Portuguese pataca in use until the 20th century. |
| Georgian | The word "კარტოფილი" likely originates from the word "artofel" in Polish, which itself originates from the Italian word "tartufolo" meaning "truffle", due to their similar appearances before potatoes were fully domesticated. |
| German | The word "Kartoffel" is thought to have originated from the Italian "tartufolo" (truffle), due to their similar appearance. |
| Greek | Πατάτα (potato): The origin of the Greek word πατάτα is traced to the Nahuatl word |
| Gujarati | The Gujarati word "બટાકાની" can also refer to a variety of potato-shaped objects, such as balls or toys. |
| Haitian Creole | The word "pòmdetè" in Haitian Creole likely originates from the French phrase "pomme de terre", meaning "apple of the earth". |
| Hausa | The Hausa word "dankalin turawa" literally means "white man's groundnut". |
| Hawaiian | 'Uala' originally meant 'yam' in Hawaiian, but it was later also used to refer to the sweet potato introduced by Europeans. |
| Hebrew | The Hebrew word "תפוח אדמה" (potato) literally translates to "apple of the ground". |
| Hindi | The term "आलू" is derived from the Portuguese word "batata" or the Spanish word "patata", denoting "sweet potato". |
| Hmong | The Hmong word for potato ('qos yaj ywm') means 'the big round thing' in Hmong, derived from its size and shape. |
| Hungarian | The Hungarian word "burgonya" can also refer to a type of dumpling made with mashed potatoes and flour. |
| Icelandic | {"text": "Kartöflu stems from the Middle Low German word “kartüffel,” which originally meant "small fruit" or "little pear."} |
| Igbo | In Igbo, the word 'nduku' can also be an adjective that means 'hard or unyielding', which reflects the texture of potatoes. |
| Indonesian | The word 'kentang' is borrowed from Portuguese 'batata' and ultimately from Taino 'batata', originally referring to sweet potato. |
| Irish | 'Prátaí' is the Irish word for potato, but it also refers to other root vegetables like turnips and beetroot. |
| Italian | Patata derives from the Taino word "batata", meaning "sweet potato". |
| Japanese | The word "じゃがいも" is thought to be derived from the Spanish word "papa", meaning "potato", or the Portuguese word "batata", meaning "sweet potato". |
| Javanese | The word "kentang" in Javanese also means "the root of a plant or tree" or "tuber" in general. |
| Kannada | In Kannada, 'ಆಲೂಗಡ್ಡೆ' ('potato') is a compound word that translates to 'underground stem'. |
| Kazakh | The Kazakh word "картоп" (potato) shares the same etymology with an ancient Turkic word for a type of tuber or bulbous plant. |
| Khmer | The word ដំឡូង is also used in Khmer to refer to a tuber used in traditional Chinese medicine. |
| Korean | The word '감자' in Korean was derived from the Nahuatl word 'camotli' through Japanese. |
| Kurdish | In some parts of Kurdistan, "kartol" can also refer to a round-shaped type of Kurdish bread. |
| Kyrgyz | The Kyrgyz word "картошка" also means "potato" in Russian and "Solanum tuberosum" in Latin. |
| Lao | The Lao word "ມັນຕົ້ນ" (potato) is derived from the Khmer word "ម្នាស់" (sweet potato), which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word "मधुर" (sweet). |
| Latin | The Latin name 'Capsicum annuum' refers to the annual pepper plant, not the potato. |
| Latvian | The word "kartupeļi" is derived from the Proto-Germanic word "*kartōn", meaning "small cart" or "wheelbarrow". |
| Lithuanian | The word "bulvė" in Lithuanian comes from the Proto-Indo-European root "bhel-", meaning "to swell". This root is also found in other Baltic languages, such as Latvian "bulba" and Prussian "bulve". |
| Luxembourgish | The word 'Gromper' in Luxembourgish comes from the old French word 'crompir,' meaning 'wrinkled apple,' referring to the gnarled appearance of the vegetable. |
| Macedonian | The word "компир" in Macedonian is closely related to the word "кромпир" in Serbian, both derived from the Bulgarian word "компир" which ultimately comes from the Turkish word "kumpir". |
| Malagasy | In Malagasy, the word "ovy" also refers to a type of tropical tree. |
| Malay | "Kentang" is the Malay word for "potato," derived from the Spanish word "patata" or the Portuguese word "batata." |
| Malayalam | The word 'ഉരുളക്കിഴങ്ങ്' originally referred to the sweet potato, the potato we know today was later named on the basis of resemblance. |
| Maltese | The Maltese word 'patata' is derived from the Italian word 'patata' which in turn comes from the Spanish word 'patata', meaning 'potato'. |
| Maori | In Maori mythology, the kūmara was said to have been created by Rongo, the god of cultivated plants. |
| Marathi | In Marathi, "बटाटा" can also refer to a type of sweet potato. |
| Mongolian | The Mongolian word "төмс" originally meant "a tuber". The meaning was later narrowed and now it exclusively refers to potatoes. |
| Myanmar (Burmese) | "အာလူး" is the Burmese word for "potato". It is derived from the Hindi word "आलू" (aaloo), which in turn is derived from the Spanish word "papa". |
| Nepali | The Nepali word "आलु" (potato) is also used in some parts of India to refer to "yam". |
| Norwegian | In Norwegian, “potet” originates from the Spanish word “patata”, meaning “spud” or “tuber”. |
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | The word "mbatata" is also used in Nyanja to refer to a type of sweet potato known as an orange potato. |
| Pashto | "کچالو" can also refer to a small round stone or ball commonly used in games or as a toy. |
| Persian | The Persian word for "potato," سیب زمینی, literally translates to "apple of the earth." |
| Polish | Ziemniak, in Polish, is a potato-like root vegetable, but its etymology and meanings are different from the English word "potato." |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | "Batata" is a false friend in Portuguese and Spanish. Instead of "bat" (as in the animal), it actually means potato. |
| Punjabi | The word 'ਆਲੂ' can also refer to the shape of something resembling a potato. |
| Romanian | The Romanian word 'cartof', meaning 'potato', is derived from French 'carotte', which originally meant 'carrot'. |
| Russian | The word "картошка" is derived from German "Kartoffel", which itself comes from Italian "tartufolo" meaning "truffle". |
| Samoan | The English word "potato" comes from the Spanish word "patata", which entered English about 1625 while the Samoan "pateta" is likely a late 20th century derivation. |
| Scots Gaelic | The etymology of the Scots Gaelic word "buntàta" is uncertain, but it may derive from the Spanish word "patata" or the Irish word "buntáiste." |
| Serbian | The word "кромпир" in Serbian is derived from the German word "Grundbirne", meaning "ground pear". |
| Sesotho | The word 'tapole' is derived from the Proto-Bantu language and is cognate with the word 'ipatata' meaning 'sweet potato'. |
| Shona | The word "mbatata" also means "tuber" in Shona and can refer to other root vegetables besides potatoes. |
| Sindhi | "آلو" in Sindhi can refer to sweet potatoes, red potatoes, or yams. |
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | "අල" (potato) is also a term for a kind of ginger found in Sri Lanka. |
| Slovak | The word "zemiak" in Slovak originates from the German word "Erdapfel" meaning "earth apple." |
| Slovenian | "Krompir" is a loanword from German "Grundbirne," which literally means "ground pear." |
| Somali | The Somali word 'baradho' is thought to derive from the Sanskrit word 'bhata,' meaning 'rice.' |
| Spanish | "Patata" comes from Taino (an extinct family of Arawakan languages), and meant "sweet potato". |
| Sundanese | The word "kentang" entered Sundanese during Dutch colonial rule through loanwords from Indonesian, where it has the meaning "sweet potato". |
| Swahili | The word "viazi" in Swahili is derived from the Portuguese word "batata", which means "sweet potato". |
| Swedish | The word 'potatis' originates from the Low German word 'potades', which means 'potatoes' or 'pot herbs'. |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | "Patatas" is a loanword from the Spanish language and is unrelated to the native Tagalog word for potato. |
| Tajik | Картошка (potato) entered Tajik from Russian and ultimately came from German "kartoffel" — "earth apple." |
| Telugu | The word “బంగాళాదుంప” literally means “Bengali tuber” and is derived from the fact that potatoes were first introduced to India by traders from Bengal. |
| Thai | The word "มันฝรั่ง" is derived from the Spanish word "patata", which originated from the Quechua word "papa". |
| Turkish | The word "Patates" has also been used as a slang word meaning "money", derived from the potato-shaped Ottoman coin.} |
| Ukrainian | The word картопля, meaning "potato", originated from the Proto-Slavic *kъrtъplь, which also meant "potato", but is ultimately derived from the German word Kartoffel. |
| Urdu | In Sanskrit, the word 'आलु' meant 'yam', which was later borrowed into Persian as 'آلو' and then into Urdu as 'آلو'. |
| Uzbek | The word "kartoshka" comes from the Turkic root "kartoq," meaning "to dig or excavate," likely referring to the process of extracting the potato from the ground. |
| Vietnamese | In Vietnamese, "khoai tây" also refers to sweet potatoes and other root vegetables. |
| Welsh | The word "tatws" may be derived from the Old English word "taw" meaning "taro" or "edible root." |
| Xhosa | The word "amazambane" is originally from Zulu and was adopted into Xhosa. |
| Yiddish | The Yiddish word קאַרטאָפל also means "pot". |
| Yoruba | Historically, ọ̀dùn (year) and ọ̀kùn (hoe) were both called ọ̀dúnkùn as they were harvested at the same time in the year |
| Zulu | Izambane derives from "umbane", a tuber that has been eaten since the earliest times by the Nguni people. |
| English | "Potato" derives from the Taíno word "batata", meaning "sweet potato". |