Silver in Different Languages
Discover 'Silver' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Silver
Afrikaans silwer | ||
Albanian argjend | ||
Amharic ብር | ||
Arabic فضة | ||
Armenian արծաթե | ||
Assamese ৰূপ | ||
Aymara qullqi | ||
Azerbaijani gümüş | ||
Bambara warijɛ | ||
Basque zilarra | ||
Belarusian срэбра | ||
Bengali রূপা | ||
Bhojpuri चांदी | ||
Bosnian srebro | ||
Bulgarian сребро | ||
Catalan plata | ||
Cebuano pilak | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 银 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 銀 | ||
Corsican argentu | ||
Croatian srebro | ||
Czech stříbrný | ||
Danish sølv | ||
Dhivehi ރިހި | ||
Dogri चांदी | ||
Dutch zilver | ||
English silver | ||
Esperanto arĝento | ||
Estonian hõbe | ||
Ewe klosalo | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) pilak | ||
Finnish hopea | ||
French argent | ||
Frisian sulver | ||
Galician prata | ||
Georgian ვერცხლისფერი | ||
German silber- | ||
Greek ασήμι | ||
Guarani viru | ||
Gujarati ચાંદીના | ||
Haitian Creole ajan | ||
Hausa azurfa | ||
Hawaiian kālā | ||
Hebrew כסף | ||
Hindi चांदी | ||
Hmong nyiaj | ||
Hungarian ezüst | ||
Icelandic silfur | ||
Igbo ọlaọcha | ||
Ilocano pirak | ||
Indonesian perak | ||
Irish airgead | ||
Italian argento | ||
Japanese 銀 | ||
Javanese perak | ||
Kannada ಬೆಳ್ಳಿ | ||
Kazakh күміс | ||
Khmer ប្រាក់ | ||
Kinyarwanda ifeza | ||
Konkani रुपें | ||
Korean 은 | ||
Krio silva | ||
Kurdish zîv | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) زیو | ||
Kyrgyz күмүш | ||
Lao ເງິນ | ||
Latin argenti | ||
Latvian sudrabs | ||
Lingala palata | ||
Lithuanian sidabras | ||
Luganda effeeza | ||
Luxembourgish sëlwer | ||
Macedonian сребро | ||
Maithili चांदी | ||
Malagasy silver | ||
Malay perak | ||
Malayalam വെള്ളി | ||
Maltese fidda | ||
Maori hiriwa | ||
Marathi चांदी | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯂꯨꯄꯥ | ||
Mizo tangkarua | ||
Mongolian мөнгө | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) ငွေ | ||
Nepali चाँदी | ||
Norwegian sølv | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) siliva | ||
Odia (Oriya) ରୂପା | ||
Oromo nahaasii | ||
Pashto سلور | ||
Persian نقره | ||
Polish srebro | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) prata | ||
Punjabi ਸਿਲਵਰ | ||
Quechua qullqi | ||
Romanian argint | ||
Russian серебряный | ||
Samoan siliva | ||
Sanskrit रजत | ||
Scots Gaelic airgead | ||
Sepedi silibera | ||
Serbian сребро | ||
Sesotho silevera | ||
Shona sirivha | ||
Sindhi چاندي | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) රිදී | ||
Slovak striebro | ||
Slovenian srebro | ||
Somali qalin | ||
Spanish plata | ||
Sundanese pérak | ||
Swahili fedha | ||
Swedish silver- | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) pilak | ||
Tajik нуқра | ||
Tamil வெள்ளி | ||
Tatar көмеш | ||
Telugu వెండి | ||
Thai เงิน | ||
Tigrinya ነሓስ | ||
Tsonga silivhere | ||
Turkish gümüş | ||
Turkmen kümüş | ||
Twi (Akan) sereba | ||
Ukrainian срібло | ||
Urdu چاندی | ||
Uyghur كۈمۈش | ||
Uzbek kumush | ||
Vietnamese bạc | ||
Welsh arian | ||
Xhosa isilivere | ||
Yiddish זילבער | ||
Yoruba fadaka | ||
Zulu isiliva |
Etymology & Notes
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | The word "silwer" is derived from the Old English word "seolfor", meaning "money" or "treasure". |
| Albanian | The word "argjend" comes from the Proto-Indo-European root *h₂erǵ- which also meant "white", "shining", or "light". |
| Amharic | The word "ብር" (silver) in Amharic is also used to refer to "money" or "currency". |
| Arabic | "فضة" is also the name of a type of sweet dough filled with cream |
| Armenian | The word 'արծաթե' ('silver') in Armenian derives from the Proto-Indo-European root '*h₂erǵ-/*h₂reǵ-' ('shine, bright') and is related to the Persian word 'arziz' ('silver, wealth'). |
| Azerbaijani | The word "gümüş" comes from the Persian word "sim", which also means "silver". |
| Basque | The root of the Basque word zilar is thought to be related to the Proto-Indo-European root *ser-, meaning shine or glitter. |
| Belarusian | The word "срэбра" ("silver") comes from the Indo-European root *ser- (*shining), also found in words like "зiрка" ("star") and "свiтаць" ("to dawn"). |
| Bengali | The word "রূপা" (silver) derives from the Sanskrit word "रूप" (form) and refers to the metal's malleability and ability to take different forms. |
| Bosnian | The word 'srebro' in Bosnian ultimately comes from the Proto-Indo-European root *h₂erǵ-ent- (meaning 'white') |
| Bulgarian | The word "сребро" is also used in Bulgarian to denote a "coin". |
| Catalan | The Catalan word 'plata' comes from the Latin 'platta' and also means 'platter' |
| Cebuano | "Pilak" is an alternate Cebuano spelling of the Spanish word "plata", also meaning "silver"} |
| Chinese (Simplified) | In Chinese, "银" originally meant "white" and was later used to refer to silver due to its white color. |
| Chinese (Traditional) | 銀 has alternate meanings of "money" or "bank" in Chinese. |
| Corsican | In Corsican, "argentu" has the alternate meaning of "money" and is derived from the Latin "argentum" meaning "silver". |
| Croatian | In Old Church Slavonic the same word meant gold, but in Slavic languages that preserve the Proto-Slavic nasal vowels, gold is called "zlato" and silver "srebro" |
| Czech | The word "stříbrný" originates from the Proto-Slavic word "*sьrebro" meaning "silver" or "money". |
| Danish | The word "sølv" is related to the Old Norse word "sylfr", which means both "silver" and "treasure". |
| Dutch | "Zilver" (silver) comes from the Old Dutch "silubar", ultimately deriving from the Proto-Indo-European word for "shining, bright". |
| Esperanto | A shortened form of 'argentum', Latin for 'silver money'. |
| Estonian | The word "hõbe" is derived from the Proto-Finnic word *hopea, which also means "moon". |
| Finnish | The word 'hopea' is also used to refer to hope in Finnish, likely due to the association between silver and wealth or prosperity. |
| French | The word 'argent' in French can also refer to money or wealth. |
| Frisian | Frisian "sulver" derives from a Proto-Germanic term related to sunlight. |
| Galician | In Spanish, the word “plata” denotes a specific silver coin minted in the Americas between the 16th–19th centuries. |
| German | The word "Silber-" in German has been used to refer to both silver and money since the Middle Ages, and is related to the Old English word "seolfor" meaning "silver". |
| Greek | The Greek word "ασήμι" also has a secondary and poetic meaning as "moonlight". |
| Gujarati | ચાંદીના' is a Gujarati word that originated from the Sanskrit word 'Chandana'. It does not mean 'silver' in Gujarati. |
| Haitian Creole | In Haitian Creole, "ajan" can also refer to a type of small, silver-colored fish. |
| Hausa | The Hausa word 'azurfa' is also the name of a fish species known for its silvery scales. |
| Hawaiian | A secondary meaning for kālā is 'to cause to be white' |
| Hebrew | כסף can also mean "money" in slang Hebrew, likely from its historical association with coins. |
| Hindi | The Hindi word "चांदी" has been theorized to have originated from the Sanskrit word "चन्द्र" (chandra), meaning "moon". |
| Hmong | The Proto-Hmong word "*ŋuŋ" is also a homophone for "coin" in Hmong and in many other Mienic languages such as Biao Min and Kim Mun. |
| Hungarian | The Hungarian word "ezüst" likely derives from the Proto-Turkic *kümüş, which also gave rise to the Slavic words for silver (such as Russian "серебро") and the Persian word "سیم". |
| Icelandic | An Icelandic saying states that when the elves make noise in the mountains, they're said to be "counting their silfur," or money. |
| Igbo | The Igbo word “ọlaọcha” also means “white” and is used as a name for the moon. |
| Indonesian | Perak is also the name of a state in Malaysia and a river in Sumatra. |
| Irish | The word "airgead" can also mean "money" in Irish, similar to the word "argent" in French and "argentum" in Latin, both of which originate from the Proto-Indo-European root *h₂erǵ-. |
| Italian | The word "argento" comes from the Latin word "argentum", which originally meant "white" or "shining". |
| Japanese | The kanji 銀 (silver) can also refer to money or financial matters in Japanese. |
| Javanese | In Javanese, perak is also used as a name for a variety of objects made of silver, such as jewelry, utensils, and coins. |
| Kannada | The term "ಬೆಳ್ಳಿ" is derived from the Prakrit word "veḷi" and is also associated with the Sanskrit word "veṇu," meaning "reed or flute". This connection alludes to the belief that silver resembles or sounds like a flute in certain contexts. |
| Kazakh | In 13th century Turkic lexicon it also had the meaning of "gold" and in modern Turkish the word "gümüş" still means "silver". |
| Khmer | In Thai, the cognate "prāk" (ปราก) also means "money" and is thought to have descended from an Austroasiatic word for "exchange or trade." |
| Korean | The Korean word "은" (silver) is also used to refer to money, especially in the context of a certain amount of money. |
| Kurdish | Some linguists suggest that "zîv" also means "adornment". |
| Kyrgyz | Kyrgyz күмүш 'silver' is borrowed from Mongolian 'silver' and ultimately derives from Middle Chinese 'metal'. |
| Lao | The word ເງິນ (literally meaning 'silver') was derived from the Pali word 'rajata', which also means 'silver'. |
| Latin | The etymology of 'argenti' (silver) is unclear, and some propose its connection to the Greek 'argos' (shining) or 'argidamara', a plant used in silverworking. |
| Latvian | The word "Sudrabs" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *h₂erǵ- "white" and is cognate with the Lithuanian word "sidabras" and the Old Prussian word "sirabis". |
| Lithuanian | The Lithuanian word "sidabras" also means "money" or "wealth". |
| Luxembourgish | 'Sëlwer' is the Luxembourhish form of 'silver', but can also refer to a silvery or shiny appearance or to the colour grey or white. |
| Macedonian | In Macedonian, the word "сребро" also means "money" or "wealth". |
| Malagasy | The Malagasy word for "silver" originates from Arabic and is also used in Somali to describe white hair or a horse's gray coat. |
| Malay | "Perak" also refers to the state in Malaysia and a river that flows through Thailand and Malaysia, both named after the silver-bearing ores once mined in the area. |
| Malayalam | The word "വെള്ളി" in Malayalam also refers to Friday, the day of the week named after the planet Venus. |
| Maltese | The word "fidda" in Maltese is derived from the Arabic word "fidda", meaning "silver", and also refers to money in general. |
| Maori | In Maori, 'silver' (hiriwa) also means 'to make a sound' or 'to be noisy'. |
| Marathi | The word "चांदी" is thought to have derived from the Prakrit word "चांदि" and Sanskrit word "चांद", both meaning "shining". |
| Mongolian | In addition to "silver", "мөнгө" also means "money" in Mongolian, as it was the most valuable currency in the past. |
| Myanmar (Burmese) | In Burmese, “ငွေ” can also refer to currency in general, not just silver coins. |
| Nepali | The word "चाँदी" is derived from the Sanskrit word "चंद्र" (candra), meaning "moon". |
| Norwegian | "Sølv" also refers to a plant or coin bearing silver or a colour, tone or note resembling the metallic element. |
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | The word "siliva" in Nyanja is derived from the Portuguese word "prata", ultimately coming from the Greek word "arguros". |
| Pashto | The word "سلور" can also refer to the color silver (as opposed to the metal). |
| Persian | The word "نقره" is ultimately derived from the Akkadian word "kparu", meaning "refined metal". |
| Polish | The word "srebro" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *sьrebro, which is related to the Sanskrit word "çilpara." Both words mean "bright" or "shiny." |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | In Sanskrit, 'prata' is 'to expand' or 'to spread out'; in Latin, it is 'argentum' (silver). |
| Punjabi | The word "ਸਿਲਵਰ" in Punjabi refers to both the element silver and the color silver, and is derived from the Sanskrit word "silavra," which means "white". |
| Romanian | The word "argint" may also refer to a traditional type of Romanian embroidery or to the name of an old Romanian coin. |
| Russian | The word "Серебряный" can also mean "silvery" or "made of silver". |
| Samoan | The word "siliva" in Samoan has a secondary meaning of "money" or "currency". |
| Scots Gaelic | The Gaelic word "airgead" also refers to "money", which derives from the value of precious silver. |
| Serbian | The Serbian word "сребро" (silver) shares the same Proto-Slavic root "sьrebro" with "среда" (Wednesday) and "средина" (middle), indicating its ancient association with the middle day of the week and the central point of a circle. |
| Sesotho | 'Silevera' in Sesotho comes from the Vulgar Latin 'silibra,' ultimately from the ancient Greek 'shekel,' possibly from the Assyro-Babylonian 'siqlu'. |
| Shona | The Shona word "sirivha" is thought to be derived from the Proto-Bantu root *-liva-, meaning "to shine" or "to be white". |
| Sindhi | In Sindhi, the word "چاندي" is also associated with the concept of good fortune and prosperity. |
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | The word "රිදී" (silver) in Sinhala is derived from the Sanskrit word "रजत" (rajata), meaning "silver" or "shining". |
| Slovak | The word "striebro" comes from the Old Slavic word "srebro", meaning "bright" or "shining". |
| Slovenian | In Polish, the word "srebro" also means "money". |
| Somali | The term "qalin" in Somali not only denotes silver but also holds cultural significance, representing wealth and prosperity. |
| Spanish | The Spanish word "plata" derives from the Greek "pláta," meaning "flat," and shares a root with the English word "plate" |
| Sundanese | The word "pérak" also means "shining" or "glittering" in Sundanese. |
| Swahili | In Arabic, 'fidda' means 'silver', 'wealth' or 'ransom' and entered Swahili via Omani traders. |
| Swedish | In Swedish, "silver-" can also refer to the color grey or to a type of fish called a vendace. |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | The word "pilak" in Tagalog (Filipino) is also used to refer to a silvery sheen or luster. |
| Tajik | The word "нуқра" in Tajik derives from the Sanskrit word "nakram" or "nīla" meaning "blue" |
| Tamil | The word 'வெள்ளி' can also refer to Friday, a period of 48 minutes, or wealth |
| Telugu | The Telugu word "వెండి" comes from the Prakrit word "vendi", which in turn comes from the Sanskrit word "vedana", meaning "knowledge" or "wisdom". |
| Thai | The word "เงิน" can also refer to "money" in a broader sense, encompassing both physical and digital forms of currency. |
| Turkish | In Ottoman Turkish, 'gümüş' also meant 'money' as in 'gümüş para' (silver money). |
| Ukrainian | "Срібло" (literally: " серебро" in Russian) originally meant "gold" in the Proto-Slavic language. |
| Urdu | The word "چاندی" in Urdu is derived from the Sanskrit word "chandr" meaning "moon". |
| Uzbek | In Uzbek, the word "kumush" is etymologically related to words for "moon" in other Turkic languages, indicating its association with the lunar metal. |
| Vietnamese | The word "bạc" can also mean "hoary" or "gray" in Vietnamese. |
| Welsh | The word arian is a descendant of the Proto-Celtic term *arganto, meaning both metal, especially silver, and money |
| Xhosa | "Isilivele, isilivere." Literally, "that which shines." |
| Yiddish | The word "זילבער" (zilber) in Yiddish can be used to refer to both the chemical element and the color silver, as well as to a type of coin minted from silver. |
| Yoruba | Yoruba word for 'silver' (fadaka) may originate from a word meaning 'white cowrie' |
| Zulu | The Zulu word 'isiliva' can also refer to a type of traditional necklace or a grey horse. |
| English | The word 'silver' derives from the Middle English 'silver', which itself comes from the Proto-Germanic 'silubr', cognate with 'silver' in most other Germanic languages. |