Quality in different languages

Quality in Different Languages

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

Updated on March 6, 2024

Quality is a term that holds great significance across cultures and languages. It represents the standard of excellence, the degree of excellence, or a characteristic that makes something or someone distinctive. From a business perspective, quality is a critical factor in building a reputable brand and ensuring customer satisfaction. In the realm of art and culture, quality is often associated with mastery, creativity, and originality.

Interestingly, the concept of quality has been pondered upon by philosophers and scholars throughout history. Aristotle, for instance, discussed quality as one of the ten categories of predicables in his work 'Categories'. In modern times, quality has become a buzzword in various fields, including manufacturing, education, healthcare, and technology.

Understanding the translation of quality in different languages can be a fascinating exploration of cultural nuances and linguistic diversity. For instance, in Spanish, quality translates to 'calidad', while in French, it is 'qualité'. In German, it is 'Qualität', and in Japanese, it is 'kusure' or 'jouken'.

In this article, we delve into the translations of quality in various languages, shedding light on the cultural significance of this universal concept.

Quality


Quality in Sub-Saharan African Languages

Afrikaanskwaliteit
Kwaliteit originally meant "property", with many senses, including "bad property".
Amharicጥራት
"ጥራት" comes from the Ge'ez adjective "ጣራ" (ṭāra), which means "choice," "select," or "excellent."
Hausainganci
Inganci (quality) originates from the Arabic word (انقان).
Igboogo
Ogo can also mean 'dignity', 'status', or 'respect' depending on the context.
Malagasykalitao
The word 'kalitao' is derived from the Arabic word 'kualitas' and the French word 'qualité'.
Nyanja (Chichewa)khalidwe
The word “khalidwe” is also used to refer to a person's character or reputation.
Shonamhando
The Shona word "mhando" can also mean "excellence" or "goodness".
Somalitayada
The word 'tayada' in Somali also refers to the 'best' or 'most excellent' version or type of something.
Sesothoboleng
Boleng can also refer to a precious gemstone, such as a diamond.
Swahiliubora
While the Swahili word "ubora" commonly translates to "quality," it also refers to the "excellence" or "fineness" of something.
Xhosaumgangatho
The Xhosa word "umgangatho" derives from the verb "umgangatho," meaning "to arrange, to set in order, to put in a particular quality or condition."
Yorubadidara
The Yoruba word "didara" can also refer to the notion of "goodness" or "excellence" in a moral sense.
Zuluikhwalithi
The Zulu word "ikhwalithi" shares a root with the word "kwazi", which means "to know" or "to understand". This suggests that the concept of quality in Zulu culture is closely linked to knowledge and understanding.
Bambarakalite
Ewenyonyo
Kinyarwandaubuziranenge
Lingalandenge ezali
Lugandaomutindo
Sepediboleng
Twi (Akan)papa

Quality in North African & Middle Eastern Languages

Arabicجودة
The word "جودة" (goodness, excellence, quality) shares the same root as the word "جود" (generosity, beneficence), suggesting a connection between the two concepts in Arabic thought.
Hebrewאיכות
איכות (quality) derives from אכ (eat), implying that something of good quality is fit for consumption.
Pashtoکیفیت
In Pashto, "کیفیت" can also refer to a "condition" or "situation."
Arabicجودة
The word "جودة" (goodness, excellence, quality) shares the same root as the word "جود" (generosity, beneficence), suggesting a connection between the two concepts in Arabic thought.

Quality in Western European Languages

Albaniancilësia
The word 'cilësia' is etymologically related to Latin 'qualitas' and means 'condition', 'nature'. It also translates to 'goodness' in some religious or philosophical texts.
Basquekalitatea
The word "kalitatea" in Basque also refers to the nature of a person and their actions.
Catalanqualitat
The Catalan word "qualitat" originates from the Latin word "qualitas", meaning "nature, property, or characteristic".
Croatiankvaliteta
Croatian word "kvaliteta" can also refer to "metal quality" or "hardness of steel".
Danishkvalitet
Historically, "kvalitet" could also be used in the meanings "violence" or "pain" but those meanings are now obsolete.
Dutchkwaliteit
"Kwaliteit" is a loanword from French that originally meant "condition, property."
Englishquality
The word 'quality' originates from the Latin word 'qualis', meaning 'of what kind'.
Frenchqualité
The French word 'qualité' comes from the Latin word 'qualitas' which means 'characteristics or nature of a thing'.
Frisiankwaliteit
It is etymologically related to the Dutch word "kwaad" (bad)
Galiciancalidade
In Galician, "calidade" also means "temperature" or "weather conditions," akin to Spanish "calidad."
Germanqualität
The word "Qualität" derives from the Latin "qualitas" meaning both "attribute" and "kind"
Icelandicgæði
The word gæði in Icelandic derives from the Old Norse word gæðr, meaning 'excellence' or 'goodness'.
Irishcáilíocht
From the Old Irish word "cáil," meaning "suitability, fitness," and is cognate with the English word "quality."
Italianqualità
Qualità can also mean "ability" or "nature" in Italian.
Luxembourgishqualitéit
Maltesekwalità
The Maltese word "kwalità" ultimately derives from the Latin word "qualitas", meaning "property" or "nature".
Norwegiankvalitet
The Old Norse word "hvāldi" which originally meant "authority, power," also serves as the root of "kvalitet".
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil)qualidade
In Portuguese, "qualidade" can also mean "characteristics" or "property".
Scots Gaeliccàileachd
The Scots Gaelic word "càileachd" also refers to a woman past the age of childbearing or an old woman.
Spanishcalidad
The Spanish word "calidad" derives from the Latin word "qualitas," meaning "nature" or "character."
Swedishkvalitet
The word "kvalitet" in Swedish originated from the Latin word "qualitas", meaning "nature, property, or characteristic."
Welshansawdd
The Welsh word "ansawdd" can also refer to a person's status or reputation.

Quality in Eastern European Languages

Belarusianякасць
The word "якасць" in Old Belarusian meant "good" or "better". Only by the end of the 19th century did it begin to mean exclusively "quality".
Bosniankvaliteta
The word "kvaliteta" is derived from the Latin word "qualitas," which means "characteristic," "property," or "nature."
Bulgarianкачество
“Качество” (kachestvo) means both “quality” and “as” in Bulgarian.
Czechkvalitní
The word "kvalitní" (quality) in Czech is derived from the Latin word "qualitas", meaning "property" or "nature".
Estoniankvaliteeti
The word "kvaliteeti" entered the Estonian language through German "Qualität" in the early 20th century, influenced by Russian "качество".
Finnishlaatu
The word "laatu" in Finnish is a derivation of the Proto-Germanic word *lagō which also gave rise to the English word "law".
Hungarianminőség
The word "minőség" originally meant "the act of examining or estimating something's value or worth" in Hungarian.
Latviankvalitāte
The word "kvalitāte" means "quality" in Latvian, and is derived from the German word "Qualität".
Lithuaniankokybė
The Lithuanian word "kokybė" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *kwekw- meaning "to boil, to bubble" and also means "fermentation, yeast".
Macedonianквалитет
The Macedonian word "квалитет" is derived from the Latin word "qualitas", ultimately meaning "property" or "characteristic".
Polishjakość
The word 'jakość' is derived from the Proto-Slavic word 'kako', meaning 'how', and its cognates are found in many other Slavic languages, such as Czech, Slovak, and Russian.
Romaniancalitate
The word "calitate" has the same Latin root "qualitas" as "quality" in English.
Russianкачество
The word "качество" in Russian can also mean "grade" or "level".
Serbianквалитет
The word "квалитет" in Serbian comes from the Latin word "qualitas", meaning "property".
Slovakkvalita
"Kvalita" is a loanword from Latin "qualitas" which also means "characteristic" or "attribute."
Sloveniankakovost
In colloquial Slovene, "kakovost" also denotes bad or poor quality (kakovost).
Ukrainianякість
The Ukrainian word "якість" derives from the Proto-Slavic "kakъ", meaning "good, suitable, or proper".

Quality in South Asian Languages

Bengaliগুণ
"গুণ" can also refer to the attributes of a deity, the virtues of a person, the essence of something, or even a factor in mathematics.
Gujaratiગુણવત્તા
In Sanskrit, the word 'guna' means 'excellence', 'virtue', or 'attribute'.
Hindiगुणवत्ता
In Sanskrit, "गुणवत्ता" means "goodness", from "गुण" (good quality)
Kannadaಗುಣಮಟ್ಟ
The word "ಗುಣಮಟ್ಟ" ("quality") in Kannada can also refer to a person's virtues or characteristics.
Malayalamഗുണമേന്മയുള്ള
The Malayalam word "গুণমেধয়" is borrowed from the Sanskrit word "गुणावत्ता" (guṇāvatta) and is related to the word "गुण" (guṇa, "quality" or "excellence").
Marathiगुणवत्ता
The word "गुणवत्ता" can also mean "virtue" or "merit" in Marathi.
Nepaliगुण
"गुण" also refers to the three fundamental qualities that form the basis of the universe, namely sattva (goodness), rajas (passion), and tamas (ignorance).
Punjabiਗੁਣ
"ਗੁਣ" can also refer to a character trait or attribute of a person or thing in Punjabi.
Sinhala (Sinhalese)තත්ත්ව
The word තත්ත්ව, originating from Pāli tatta-va ("thatness"), can also denote "condition" or "principle".
Tamilதரம்
The word "தரம்" (taram) also means "standard" or "grade" in Tamil, and is often used in contexts related to measurement or comparison.
Teluguనాణ్యత
The word 'నాణ్యత' can also refer to 'character', 'worth' or 'excellence'
Urduمعیار
The word "معیار" is derived from the Arabic root ق-و-ر (q-w-r), meaning "to establish" or "to determine".

Quality in East Asian Languages

Chinese (Simplified)质量
In early Classical Chinese, '质量' meant 'heavy', 'important'.
Chinese (Traditional)質量
Besides meaning "quality," 質量 can also refer to "mass" in a physics context.
Japanese品質
In modern Japanese, 品質 can refer not only to inherent attributes or objective measures but also to consumer satisfaction or perceived value.
Korean품질
품질 is an example of a word that means 'good quality' or 'bad quality', depending on the context.
Mongolianчанар
The word "чанар" in Mongolian is related to the concept of goodness and is also used to describe the quality of something.
Myanmar (Burmese)အရည်အသွေး

Quality in South East Asian Languages

Indonesiankualitas
The word "kualitas" in Indonesian is derived from the Dutch word "kwaliteit" and has similar meanings in both languages, referring to the level of excellence or worth of something.
Javanesekualitas
The word "kualitas" in Javanese also means "kind" or "type".
Khmerគុណភាព
The word "គុណភាព" (quality) is derived from the Sanskrit word "guṇaprabhāva", which literally means "effect of virtue" or "influence of goodness."
Laoຄຸນນະພາບ
ຄນຈ຋ບ຋ຄມິສປາ จัน "เลือง" ไทยเคมีย "ตอนเม็ิ" ล้านค้นี้ลัก
Malaykualiti
In Malay, "kualiti" also means "sort" or "type", and is related to the word "kelas" meaning "class".
Thaiคุณภาพ
The word "คุณภาพ" in Thai is derived from the Pali word "guṇa", meaning "characteristic" or "attribute".
Vietnamesechất lượng
From Sino-Vietnamese 質量, from Chinese 質量, from 質 (“substance, matter”) and 量 (“quantity, amount”).
Filipino (Tagalog)kalidad

Quality in Central Asian Languages

Azerbaijanikeyfiyyət
The word "keyfiyyət" in Azerbaijani is derived from the Arabic word "kayfiyyah", which means "state, condition, or manner".
Kazakhсапа
The word "сапа" can also refer to a certain type of shovel used for gardening or construction.
Kyrgyzсапат
The Kyrgyz word "сапат" also has a meaning of "condition, state" and comes from the Arabic "صفت" ( sifat ).
Tajikсифат
The Persian word "صفة" (sefat) has several meanings such as attribute, quality, and form.
Turkmenhili
Uzbeksifat
"Sifat" also means "adjective" and is used in grammar.
Uyghurسۈپەت

Quality in Pacific Languages

Hawaiianmea e like ai
The Hawaiian word "mea e like ai" literally translates to "an item to be desired," emphasizing the value and desirability of an item.
Maorikounga
Kounga (often spelt in different variations) derives from the Polynesian language and was widely used by the Maori people before English was introduced into New Zealand, with various different meanings across the islands and tribes.
Samoanlelei
The Samoan word 'lelei' can also mean 'good' or 'well'.
Tagalog (Filipino)kalidad
The Tagalog word "kalidad" is derived from the Spanish word "calidad" and originally meant "nobility" or "honorable conduct".

Quality in American Indigenous Languages

Aymarasuma
Guaraniporãngue

Quality in International Languages

Esperantokvalito
The word "kvalito" is derived from the Latin "qualitas", meaning property or characteristic.
Latinqualis
The Latin word 'qualis' can also mean 'how much' or 'how many', and it is related to the English word 'quantity'.

Quality in Others Languages

Greekποιότητα
The term ποιότητα initially indicated the social class of a person but took its meaning of "quality" only later
Hmongzoo
In Hmong, "zoo" is a suffix that can also mean "to become," "to be," or "to do something frequently."
Kurdishçêwe
The word "çêwe" in Kurdish can also refer to a type of fabric or cloth.
Turkishkalite
In Turkish, "kalite" originally meant "essence" or "nature" and also took the meaning of "category" or "type" in Ottoman Turkish.
Xhosaumgangatho
The Xhosa word "umgangatho" derives from the verb "umgangatho," meaning "to arrange, to set in order, to put in a particular quality or condition."
Yiddishקוואַליטעט
In Yiddish, "קוואַליטעט" can also refer to the traits of a good or the level of its perfection.
Zuluikhwalithi
The Zulu word "ikhwalithi" shares a root with the word "kwazi", which means "to know" or "to understand". This suggests that the concept of quality in Zulu culture is closely linked to knowledge and understanding.
Assameseগুণমান
Aymarasuma
Bhojpuriगुण
Dhivehiކޮލިޓީ
Dogriम्यार
Filipino (Tagalog)kalidad
Guaraniporãngue
Ilocanokalidad
Kriokwaliti
Kurdish (Sorani)کواڵیتی
Maithiliगुण
Meiteilon (Manipuri)ꯃꯒꯨꯟ
Mizonihphung
Oromoqulqullina
Odia (Oriya)ଗୁଣବତ୍ତା
Quechuaallin kasqan
Sanskritगुणवत्ता
Tatarсыйфат
Tigrinyaፅፈት
Tsongankoka

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