Shelf in Different Languages
Discover 'Shelf' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Shelf
Afrikaans rak | ||
Albanian raft | ||
Amharic መደርደሪያ | ||
Arabic رفوف | ||
Armenian դարակ | ||
Assamese খলপ | ||
Aymara istanti | ||
Azerbaijani rəf | ||
Bambara mɛ̀mɛ | ||
Basque apalategia | ||
Belarusian палічка | ||
Bengali বালুচর | ||
Bhojpuri ताखा | ||
Bosnian polica | ||
Bulgarian рафт | ||
Catalan prestatge | ||
Cebuano estante | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 架 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 架 | ||
Corsican scaffale | ||
Croatian polica | ||
Czech police | ||
Danish hylde | ||
Dhivehi ހަރުގަނޑު | ||
Dogri आला | ||
Dutch plank | ||
English shelf | ||
Esperanto breto | ||
Estonian riiul | ||
Ewe agba | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) istante | ||
Finnish hylly | ||
French étagère | ||
Frisian shelf | ||
Galician estante | ||
Georgian თარო | ||
German regal | ||
Greek ράφι | ||
Guarani mba'erenda | ||
Gujarati છાજલી | ||
Haitian Creole etajè | ||
Hausa shiryayye | ||
Hawaiian holopapa | ||
Hebrew מַדָף | ||
Hindi शेल्फ | ||
Hmong txee | ||
Hungarian polc | ||
Icelandic hillu | ||
Igbo adị | ||
Ilocano paset ti aparador | ||
Indonesian rak | ||
Irish seilf | ||
Italian mensola | ||
Japanese 棚 | ||
Javanese rak | ||
Kannada ಶೆಲ್ಫ್ | ||
Kazakh сөре | ||
Khmer ធ្នើ | ||
Kinyarwanda akazu | ||
Konkani शॅल्फ | ||
Korean 선반 | ||
Krio shɛf | ||
Kurdish textik | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) ڕەفە | ||
Kyrgyz текче | ||
Lao ຊັ້ນວາງ | ||
Latin pluteum | ||
Latvian plaukts | ||
Lingala etagere | ||
Lithuanian lentynos | ||
Luganda ekitindiiro | ||
Luxembourgish regal | ||
Macedonian полица | ||
Maithili ताक | ||
Malagasy talantalana | ||
Malay rak | ||
Malayalam അലമാര | ||
Maltese ixkaffa | ||
Maori whata | ||
Marathi शेल्फ | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯀꯥꯈꯜ | ||
Mizo chhuar | ||
Mongolian тавиур | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) စင် | ||
Nepali शेल्फ | ||
Norwegian hylle | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) alumali | ||
Odia (Oriya) ଥାକ | ||
Oromo wanta meeshaa irra naqatan | ||
Pashto شیلف | ||
Persian تاقچه | ||
Polish półka | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) estante | ||
Punjabi ਸ਼ੈਲਫ | ||
Quechua estante | ||
Romanian raft | ||
Russian полка | ||
Samoan fata | ||
Sanskrit सन्धाय | ||
Scots Gaelic sgeilp | ||
Sepedi šelefo | ||
Serbian полица | ||
Sesotho shelefo | ||
Shona pasherufu | ||
Sindhi شيلف | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) රාක්කය | ||
Slovak polica | ||
Slovenian polica | ||
Somali shelf | ||
Spanish estante | ||
Sundanese rak | ||
Swahili rafu | ||
Swedish hylla | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) estante | ||
Tajik раф | ||
Tamil அலமாரி | ||
Tatar киштә | ||
Telugu షెల్ఫ్ | ||
Thai ชั้นวางของ | ||
Tigrinya ስካፋለ | ||
Tsonga shelufu | ||
Turkish raf | ||
Turkmen tekje | ||
Twi (Akan) pono so | ||
Ukrainian полиця | ||
Urdu شیلف | ||
Uyghur shelf | ||
Uzbek raf | ||
Vietnamese kệ | ||
Welsh silff | ||
Xhosa ishelufu | ||
Yiddish פּאָליצע | ||
Yoruba selifu | ||
Zulu ishalofu |
Etymology & Notes
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | The Afrikaans word "rak" is cognate with the Dutch word "rek" and the German word "Rack", all three of which ultimately derive from the Latin word "craticula" (a grid). |
| Albanian | The Albanian word "raft" can also refer to a type of flatbread cooked on a baking sheet. |
| Amharic | The word |
| Arabic | The Arabic word "رفوف" (rufūf) is derived from the word "رف" (raf), which means "height" or "elevation", and refers to the raised surface on which objects are placed |
| Armenian | "Դարակ" (shelf) derives from the Middle Persian "dārak" (storehouse), reflecting its original use as a storage unit. |
| Azerbaijani | The word "rəf" is also used in Azerbaijani to describe a shelf-like structure on a boat or a similar platform on a wall where books or other items can be stored. |
| Basque | In Basque, the word "apalategia" can also mean "place" or "container". |
| Belarusian | The word "палічка" can also refer to a small stick or rod in Belarusian. |
| Bengali | "বালুচর" is a derivative of "বালি" meaning sand and "চর" meaning a mound of earth or a sandbank in a river. |
| Bosnian | The word "polica" is used in both Bosnian and Polish to mean "shelf". It's related to the word "pole" which means "field" in both languages. |
| Bulgarian | Bulgarian "рафт" also refers to the platform of a machine or vehicle. |
| Catalan | The term "prestatge" originates from the Latin word "praestantia", meaning "excellence" or "merit" |
| Cebuano | In Cebuano, estante can also refer to a bookshelf, rack, or cabinet. |
| Chinese (Simplified) | Despite being pronounced the same, "架" can also mean frame, support, or a measure of time, e.g., a round of drinks, or a set of a game like tennis. |
| Chinese (Traditional) | 架 (jià) is used as a measure word for books and umbrellas |
| Corsican | "Scaffale" also means "bookcase" in Corsican. |
| Croatian | The word 'polica' (shelf) in Croatian also means 'police', and is derived from the Latin word 'politia', meaning 'government' or 'state'. |
| Czech | "Police" also refers to the police force or a police officer in Czech. |
| Danish | "Hylde" in Danish is related to the word "hyld" (elder tree), as shelves were historically made from its wood. |
| Dutch | In Dutch, "plank" comes from the Old French word "planche," meaning "board," and the verb "planker," meaning "to make flat". |
| Esperanto | The Esperanto word "breto" is derived from the Breton word "brezhoneg", meaning "Breton language". |
| Estonian | The Estonian word "riiul" (shelf) is related to the Finnish word "riuku" (rod, pole), suggesting its initial form might have been used as a beam to hang items from |
| Finnish | The Finnish word "hylly" is cognate with the Estonian "hüll" ("sheath, cover") and the Karelian "hülly" ("cover, case, box"), indicating that its original meaning may have been "cover" or "container". |
| French | The word "étagère" is derived from the Old French word "estaige," meaning "a step" or "a level." |
| Frisian | Frisian "shelf" (shelf) derives from the Old Frisian word "selde", meaning "hut". |
| Galician | The Galician word estante is derived from the Latin word stans, meaning "standing" or "fixed". |
| Georgian | In Georgian, the word "თარო" also means "a flat surface on which objects can be placed" or "a shallow depression in the ground". |
| German | In German, "regal" also means "bookcase" or "set of rules". |
| Greek | The word "ράφι" comes from the Arabic word "رف" (raf), meaning "a high place" or "a shelf." |
| Gujarati | The word "છાજલી" (shelf) also refers to a flat surface attached to a wall for display. |
| Haitian Creole | The word "etajè" is borrowed from the French word "étage" (English: story), as in the étages of a house. |
| Hausa | In the context of 'Alkur'ani', 'shiryayye' can also mean 'column' ('rukun'). |
| Hawaiian | The term holopapa in Hawaiian can also describe the cross-beams of a house or a scaffold to hold plants. |
| Hebrew | The word מַדָף (shelf) comes from the Hebrew root ד.פ.ף, which also means "to beat" or "to strike". |
| Hindi | In English, the word "shelf" comes from the Old English word "scylf", which originally meant "ledge". |
| Hmong | The Hmong word "txee" comes from the root "tseej," meaning "to hang or suspend." |
| Hungarian | The word "polc" also means "plank" or "board" in Hungarian, and is cognate with the English word "plank". |
| Icelandic | The word "hillu" can be traced back to the Old Norse word "hillr", which means "slope" or "incline". |
| Igbo | 'Adị' originates from the word 'ịda', which means 'to put down' and implies a flat surface where an object can be set down. |
| Indonesian | The word "rak" in Indonesian also refers to a frame used to hold clothes or other objects, similar to a wardrobe. |
| Irish | The word “seilf” also means "shelf” in Irish. |
| Italian | Mensola is derived from the Latin word mensula, meaning "small table." |
| Japanese | 棚 (tana) can also mean 'layer' or 'stage', such as 社会の棚 (shakai no tana) or 地元の棚 (chihō no tana). |
| Javanese | "Rak” is also a unit of time in Javanese, specifically a 12-year cycle. In Javanese mythology, the cycle is believed to represent the reincarnation of Batara Kala, the god of darkness and death. |
| Kannada | The word 'shelf' has evolved from the Old English word 'scylfe', which originally meant a ledge or shelf on a wall. |
| Kazakh | The word "сөре" in Kazakh has an alternate meaning of "a flat stone". |
| Khmer | The word "ធ្នើ" in Khmer also refers to a "plank" or a "board" used in construction. |
| Korean | 선반 literally means “boat of x” as 선 (선박) means boat and 반 means x. 선반 has the similar shape with a boat. |
| Kurdish | The word "textik" is also used to refer to a type of wooden box used for storage or transportation. |
| Kyrgyz | The word "текче" is derived from the Proto-Turkic verb "tek-" meaning "to lay down" and originally referred to a flat place for sleeping or sitting. |
| Lao | The Lao word for “shelf” (ຊັ້ນວາງ) is derived from the Pali word “chattāvāraṇa,” which means “a curtain or screen.” |
| Latin | "Pluteus" also referred to a protective barrier used by Roman legionaries and a stage platform in the Roman theatre. |
| Latvian | "Plaukts" is also an archaic Latvian word for "layer", "shelf" or "floor" (of a building), "shelf" (for plants) |
| Lithuanian | The word "lentynos" is derived from the verb "lentinti", meaning "to make slow or lazy", and may also refer to a resting place for a person or object. |
| Luxembourgish | The Luxembourgish word "regal" is cognate with the German word "regal" and the French word "régal", both of which mean "treat" or "feast". |
| Macedonian | The word "полица" can also refer to a "small table" or a "bookstand" in Macedonian. |
| Malagasy | A related meaning of the term "talantalana" is the shelf of a cave or grotto. |
| Malay | "Rak" is a word used in Malay to refer to a shelf or a rack. It is derived from the Arabic word "rahk" which means "container" or "box." |
| Malayalam | It is derived from the Sanskrit word 'alamara' which means 'a wardrobe' or 'a chest of drawers'. |
| Maltese | The word "ixkaffa" could come from the Italian word "scaffa" or the Sicilian word "scafia", both meaning "shelf". |
| Maori | Whata is also a term for the Maori ancestors. |
| Marathi | The word 'shelf' in Marathi, 'सहारा', also means 'support' or 'protection'. |
| Mongolian | The word "тавиур" also has the alternate meaning of "shelf" in Mongolian. |
| Myanmar (Burmese) | In Burmese, the word "စင်" (cin) also means "a stage" or "a platform for religious ceremonies" |
| Nepali | Nepali "शेल्फ" originally meant "a small hut or shed (for cattle)" but is now also used for its English meaning, "a flat board fixed to a wall or standing on legs, on which objects can be placed." |
| Norwegian | The word "hylle" is derived from the Proto-Germanic word *huljô, and is related to the modern German word "Hölle" (hell). |
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | The Nyanja word 'alumali' is cognate with the Swahili word 'rafu', both of which derive from the Arabic 'raf', meaning 'support' or 'elevation'. |
| Pashto | 'شیلف' Pashto is derived from ' shelf' in English with the same meaning |
| Persian | تاقچه originates from the Arabic word |
| Polish | The word "półka" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "*polka", meaning "half", and originally referred to a half-length bed, a bench, or a shelf attached to the wall. |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | Cognate with English 'stay', suggesting a place where something "stays". |
| Punjabi | The word "ਸ਼ੈਲਫ" ("shelf") is derived from the Old English word "scelf", meaning "ledge" or "plank". |
| Romanian | In Romanian, the word "raft" can also mean "raft", referring to a flat structure floating on water. |
| Russian | The word "полка" (polka) also means "polka" in Russian, a type of fast-paced dance. |
| Samoan | The Samoan word "fata" also means "face" and "surface". |
| Scots Gaelic | The word "sgeilp" is derived from the Old Irish word "scelp", which means "rock" or "cliff." |
| Serbian | "Полице" originates from the German word "Platz," meaning "square," and has been used in Serbian since the 19th century to refer to a flat, elevated surface. |
| Sesotho | The word "shelefo" in Sesotho shares the same root as "phela" meaning "to begin or start", hinting at the concept of a shelf as a starting point for storage. |
| Shona | The word “pasherufu” is primarily used for a roofed structure and can also be used to refer to a veranda or the place where a fence begins. |
| Sindhi | The Sindhi word 'شيلف' ('shelf') has origins in the Persian word 'شلف' ('shelf'). |
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | In Sinhala, "රාක්කය", or "rakkaya", also means a shallow wooden box that is traditionally used during childbirth or as a cradle for newborn babies. |
| Slovak | In some regions of Slovakia, 'polica' can also refer to a police officer. |
| Slovenian | In some contexts, the word "polica" in Slovenian can refer to a book or a bookshelf rather than a single shelf. |
| Somali | The word shelf comes from Old English scylfe meaning |
| Spanish | The word "estante" can also refer to a display case or a stall in a market. |
| Sundanese | "Rak" also refers to a traditional Sundanese cupboard with a sliding door. |
| Swahili | The word "rafu" in Swahili also means "a flat surface on which things can be placed or stored." |
| Swedish | The word "hylla" is derived from the Old Norse word "hyll", meaning "ledge" or "projecting board". |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | The word "estante" originally meant "upright", referring to its vertical orientation for storing items. |
| Tajik | The word "раф" also means "the space between two fingers" in Tajik. |
| Tamil | In addition to its primary meaning as a shelf, "அலமாரி" can also refer to a cupboard, cabinet, or wardrobe in Tamil. |
| Telugu | The word "shelf" comes from the Old English word "scylfe," meaning "ledge" or "board." |
| Thai | ชั้นวางของ (chan wang kong) comes from the Sanskrit word "koshthas", meaning "store-house" or "room". |
| Turkish | Raf means "ease" in Arabic and is also used to refer to wooden shelves for prayer books in mosques. |
| Ukrainian | "Полиця" originally referred to a flat wooden shelf on a beam in a Ukrainian hut and comes from the word "пол" (floor). In modern usage, it can also refer to a law enforcement officer or a political body, such as a political police force or a parliament." |
| Urdu | The Urdu word "شیلف" (shelf) is ultimately derived from the Proto-Germanic root *skel- ('to cut') and is thus related to the English "scalpel". |
| Uzbek | The word "raf" can also refer to a layer or level. |
| Vietnamese | The word "kệ" can also refer to a type of rack or stand used to display or store items, such as a bookshelf or display rack. |
| Welsh | The Welsh word "silff" can also refer to a layer or stratum, as in geology. |
| Xhosa | Ishelufu originates from the word 'shelves' in English, adopted into the Xhosa language. |
| Yiddish | The Yiddish "פּאָליצע" also translates to the first part of the Bible, the Torah. |
| Yoruba | The Yoruba word "selifu" initially referred to the raised platform in a traditional Yoruba house where items were stored. |
| Zulu | The Zulu word for shelf is "ishalofu," which derives from the Proto-Bantu root "-salu-," meaning "to carry on one's head." |
| English | Derived from the Old English word “scelf”, meaning a rock ledge or a plank, the word “shelf” has come to refer to a flat surface fixed to a wall or in a piece of furniture, used to store objects. |