Slave in Different Languages
Discover 'Slave' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Slave
Afrikaans slaaf | ||
Albanian skllav | ||
Amharic ባሪያ | ||
Arabic عبد | ||
Armenian ստրուկ | ||
Assamese দাস | ||
Aymara jan samarayata | ||
Azerbaijani kölə | ||
Bambara jɔn | ||
Basque esklabo | ||
Belarusian раб | ||
Bengali দাস | ||
Bhojpuri गुलाम | ||
Bosnian rob | ||
Bulgarian роб | ||
Catalan esclau | ||
Cebuano ulipon | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 奴隶 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 奴隸 | ||
Corsican schiavu | ||
Croatian rob | ||
Czech otrok | ||
Danish slave | ||
Dhivehi އަޅުމީހާ | ||
Dogri गुलाम | ||
Dutch slaaf | ||
English slave | ||
Esperanto sklavo | ||
Estonian ori | ||
Ewe kluvi | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) alipin | ||
Finnish orja | ||
French esclave | ||
Frisian slaaf | ||
Galician escravo | ||
Georgian მონა | ||
German sklave | ||
Greek δούλος | ||
Guarani tembiguái | ||
Gujarati ગુલામ | ||
Haitian Creole esklav | ||
Hausa bawa | ||
Hawaiian kauā | ||
Hebrew עֶבֶד | ||
Hindi दास | ||
Hmong qhev | ||
Hungarian rabszolga | ||
Icelandic þræll | ||
Igbo ohu | ||
Ilocano adipen | ||
Indonesian budak | ||
Irish sclábhaí | ||
Italian schiavo | ||
Japanese 奴隷 | ||
Javanese abdi | ||
Kannada ಗುಲಾಮ | ||
Kazakh құл | ||
Khmer ទាសករ | ||
Kinyarwanda imbata | ||
Konkani गुलाम | ||
Korean 노예 | ||
Krio slev | ||
Kurdish xûlam | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) کۆیلە | ||
Kyrgyz кул | ||
Lao ສໍາລອງ | ||
Latin servus | ||
Latvian vergs | ||
Lingala moombo | ||
Lithuanian vergas | ||
Luganda omuddu | ||
Luxembourgish sklaven | ||
Macedonian роб | ||
Maithili गुलाम | ||
Malagasy mpanompo | ||
Malay hamba | ||
Malayalam അടിമ | ||
Maltese skjav | ||
Maori pononga | ||
Marathi गुलाम | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯃꯤꯅꯥꯏ | ||
Mizo sal | ||
Mongolian боол | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) ကျွန် | ||
Nepali दास | ||
Norwegian slave | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) kapolo | ||
Odia (Oriya) ଦାସ | ||
Oromo garba | ||
Pashto غلام | ||
Persian غلام | ||
Polish niewolnik | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) escravo | ||
Punjabi ਗੁਲਾਮ | ||
Quechua punqu | ||
Romanian sclav | ||
Russian раб | ||
Samoan pologa | ||
Sanskrit दासः | ||
Scots Gaelic tràill | ||
Sepedi lekgoba | ||
Serbian роб | ||
Sesotho lekhoba | ||
Shona muranda | ||
Sindhi ٻانهو | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) දාසයා | ||
Slovak otrok | ||
Slovenian suženj | ||
Somali addoon | ||
Spanish esclavo | ||
Sundanese budak | ||
Swahili mtumwa | ||
Swedish slav | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) alipin | ||
Tajik ғулом | ||
Tamil அடிமை | ||
Tatar кол | ||
Telugu బానిస | ||
Thai ทาส | ||
Tigrinya ባርያ | ||
Tsonga hlonga | ||
Turkish köle | ||
Turkmen gul | ||
Twi (Akan) akoa | ||
Ukrainian раб | ||
Urdu غلام | ||
Uyghur قۇل | ||
Uzbek qul | ||
Vietnamese nô lệ | ||
Welsh caethwas | ||
Xhosa ikhoboka | ||
Yiddish קנעכט | ||
Yoruba ẹrú | ||
Zulu isigqila |
Etymology & Notes
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | The word 'slaaf' originates from Old Saxon 'slāpa' meaning 'sleeper', possibly referring to prisoners forced to work after being taken captive during battles. |
| Albanian | The word "skllav" in Albanian is derived from the Greek word "sklávos" meaning both "servant" and "slave". |
| Amharic | Amharic "ባሪያ" can also mean "servant" or "employee". |
| Arabic | In modern literary Arabic, the word 'Abd (عبد) has also come to mean 'servant' or 'worshipper'. |
| Armenian | The word "ստրուկ" in Armenian is derived from the Latin word "strucus", meaning "a pile of logs" or "a framework of timber". |
| Azerbaijani | The word "kölə" in Azerbaijani comes from the Persian word "gula", which means "servant" or "slave". |
| Basque | The word "esklabo" in Basque may derive from the Latin "sclavus" or the Romance "esclau". |
| Belarusian | The word "раб" has also been used to refer to a "serf", a person bound to the land, and in some contexts, to a "hired hand". |
| Bengali | The Bengali word "দাস" also refers to a caste surname. |
| Bosnian | The word 'rob' in Bosnian also refers to a type of forced labor or servitude. |
| Bulgarian | The word "роб" also means "servitude" and derives from the Old Slavonic word "rabъ", meaning "captured" or "servant". |
| Catalan | The Catalan word "esclau" derives from the Latin word "sclavus", which means "person who is owned by another person". |
| Cebuano | The word 'ulipon' in Cebuano language refers to a person who is forced to work without getting paid, or a prisoner of war. |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 奴隶一词在汉语中有多种含义，包括战俘、仆役和劳役人员。 |
| Chinese (Traditional) | "奴" (nü) originally meant "prisoner of war", while "隸" (li) meant "worker". |
| Corsican | The word schiavu also refers to an old Corsican unit of measure, equal to 24 square meters. |
| Croatian | The Croatian word rob, meaning "slave," likely originates from the Proto-Slavic word *orbъ, also meaning "slave" or "serf." |
| Czech | The word "otrok" originally meant "child" or "son". |
| Danish | The Danish word "slave" derives from the Latin word "servus," meaning "servant," and is cognate with the English word "serf." |
| Dutch | The term 'slaaf' can also carry connotations of subservience or weakness. |
| Esperanto | "Sklavo" is derived from the French "esclave", which in turn comes from the Latin "sclavus", a term for slaves from the Balkans. |
| Estonian | The term "ori" in Estonian can also refer to a servant or a person in a dependent position. |
| Finnish | In the Estonian language, "orja" also means "to plow", reflecting its origins in Proto-Finnic agricultural terminology. |
| French | "Esclave" in French comes from the Latin "sclavus", meaning "Slav", as many slaves in medieval Europe came from Slavic-speaking regions. |
| Frisian | In Frisian, "slaaf" also means "soft" or "weak". |
| Galician | The Galician word 'escravo' also means "serf" and, in the past, it was used to refer to people who worked on the farmlands of monasteries. |
| Georgian | The word "მონა" (mona) in Georgian could also mean "serf" or "someone who is dependent on someone else for their livelihood." |
| German | The word “Sklave” derives from the Slavic word “sklav” which could mean either “captive” or “servant”. |
| Greek | The Greek word 'δουλος' has roots in Indo-European, with cognates in Sanskrit and Latin meaning 'servant' or 'bondsman', indicating a broader range of servitude than just chattel slavery. |
| Gujarati | The term "gulam" can also be derived from the Persian word "ghulam", which itself is derived from the Arabic word "ghulaam" (meaning "servant"). |
| Haitian Creole | In Haitian Creole, "esklav" shares a root with the word "esklavaj" (slavery) and originally referred to prisoners of war. |
| Hausa | The word "bawa" also carries the meanings of "captive", "follower", "deputy", and "subject." |
| Hawaiian | The Hawaiian word "kauā" also means "captive" or "prisoner of war". |
| Hebrew | The word עֶבֶד in Hebrew can also refer to a servant or a worshiper depending on the context. |
| Hindi | The Hindi word "दास" (dās) has an alternate meaning: "servant". It is derived from the Sanskrit root "दास" (dās), which means "one who is bound by a debt or obligation". |
| Hmong | The word "qhev" can also refer to a person who is under the control of another person or a person who is forced to work for another person. |
| Hungarian | The word 'rabszolga' likely derives from the Slavic word 'rob' meaning 'work' or 'toiler', referring to the forced labor of slaves. |
| Icelandic | In the Icelandic language, 'þræll' not only means 'slave' but also 'prisoner,' 'peasant,' or 'serf.' |
| Igbo | The word 'ohu' in Igbo can also refer to a descendant or a subject of a king or chief. |
| Indonesian | "Budak" can also refer to "servant" in archaic or literary contexts. |
| Irish | The Irish word for slave is cognate with the Latin "servus" which also refers to slaves, servants and animals |
| Italian | The word "schiavo" is derived from the Latin word "sclavus" and was originally used to refer to a person from the Slavic people, who were often captured and sold as slaves in the Middle Ages. |
| Japanese | "奴隷 " (slave) has been used as an alternative for the word "下僕 " (servant) since the 19th century. |
| Javanese | "Abdi" can also refer to a servant or follower, and is often used in a respectful context. |
| Kannada | The word "ಗುಲಾಮ" can also refer to a person who is subservient to another, or to a person who is exploited or oppressed. |
| Kazakh | The Kazakh word "құл" (slave) originally meant "son-in-law", but its meaning shifted after the Mongol invasion. |
| Khmer | The word "ទាសករ" (slave) in Khmer is derived from the Sanskrit word "dāsa" which means "servant" or "worker". |
| Korean | The Korean word "노예" initially meant "one who belongs to a noble or an upper-class family". |
| Kurdish | The word “xûlam” has been etymologically connected by several scholars including Bedirxan and Jaba to the term “ghulam” and “gholami” that meant slave in Farsi. |
| Kyrgyz | The Kyrgyz word "кул" can also refer to a servant or a vassal. |
| Lao | The word ສໍາລອງ is also used to refer to those who are in bondage or under the control of others, such as prisoners or debtors. |
| Latin | The term 'servus' originally implied willingness to be subservient or of service, rather than being forced labor. |
| Latvian | Latvian word for slave, "vergs", derives from the Proto-Germanic word "wargus" meaning an "outcast" |
| Lithuanian | The Lithuanian word "vergas" has alternate meanings of "serf" or "servant". |
| Luxembourgish | The word "Sklaven" in Luxembourgish derives from the Latin "sclāvus" (Slav) and originally meant "Slavic person" or "person from the Slavic region". |
| Macedonian | The word "роб" in Macedonian can also mean "captured person" or "prisoner of war". |
| Malagasy | The word "mpanompo" in Malagasy is also used to refer to a servant or a subject. |
| Malay | The Malay word "hamba" originally meant "servant" or "follower" and was used to refer to both men and women, regardless of their status. |
| Malayalam | The word "അടിമ" (aṭima) in Malayalam is derived from the Sanskrit word "आत्म" (ātma) meaning "self" or "soul", and was originally used to refer to a person who had surrendered their self or independence to another person. |
| Maltese | The word "skjav" in Maltese has its origins in the Latin word "servus", meaning "servant", and is also related to the word "esclave" in French and "esclavo" in Spanish. |
| Maori | The word 'pononga' in Maori can also mean 'servant', 'employee', or 'worker'. |
| Marathi | The word 'गुलाम' (slave) is derived from the Persian word 'ghulam' which means 'servant' or 'boy'. |
| Mongolian | The word "боол" (slave) in Mongolian is a derivative of the word "боох" (to tie up). |
| Myanmar (Burmese) | In Myanmar, the word "ကျွန်" also has the alternate meaning of "servant" or "follower". |
| Nepali | The word "दास" can also mean "servant" or "follower" in Nepali. |
| Norwegian | The Norwegian word "slave" can also refer to a drudge or toiler. |
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | In the 1860s, when Nyanja (Chichewa) became a literary language, “kapolo” also took on meanings such as “servant” and “employee” and is now often translated as such, especially referring to the role in a religious organization. |
| Pashto | In some dialects of Pashto, "غلام" can also refer to a young boy or servant. |
| Persian | Etymology: 'ghulam' from Arabic 'ghulām', in the sense of 'young servant', or 'youthful attendant' |
| Polish | The word "niewolnik" is derived from the Old Polish word "nie wolny" meaning "not free". |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | The word "escravo" in Portuguese comes from the Medieval Latin "sclavus", which originally meant "Slav" or "person from a Slavic country; captive". |
| Punjabi | The word "ਗੁਲਾਮ" can also refer to a person who is submissive or subservient to another person or group. |
| Romanian | The word "sclav" in Romanian also means "Slavic person" and is derived from the Latin "sclavus", meaning "person from Slavonia".} |
| Russian | The word "раб" is derived from the Old Slavic word "robota" which originally meant work or servitude, not necessarily forced labor. |
| Samoan | Pologa is derived from the word 'polo,' which in Samoan means 'to capture.' |
| Scots Gaelic | The word "tràill" derives from the Old Irish word "tráth", meaning "serf" or "bondsman", and historically referred to unfree laborers who worked on the land. |
| Serbian | The word "роб" also has the meanings of "servant", "peasant", or "prisoner". |
| Sesotho | The word "lekhoba" also denotes 'a person of low rank' and 'a servant.' |
| Shona | "Muranda" derives from the Bantu root "-randa" meaning "to be captured." |
| Sindhi | The Sindhi word "ٻانهو" also means "a person who has been captured in war" |
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | The word 'දාසයා' is derived from the Sanskrit word 'दास' (dāsa), meaning 'servant' or 'bondsman'. |
| Slovak | "Otrok" also can be translated as "child", which is probably its original meaning. |
| Slovenian | The Slovenian word "suženj" also has a historical meaning of "prisoner of war". |
| Somali | The Somali word addoon, meaning 'slave,' also refers to a type of traditional livestock management system. |
| Spanish | The word "esclavo" in Spanish derives from the Medieval Latin "sclavus" which originally meant "a Slavic person". |
| Sundanese | It also means 'child', 'son' or 'daughter', and often carries a connotation of endearment. |
| Swahili | "Mtumwa" derives from the Arabic "matwā" meaning "servant" or "follower" and the Bantu root "-wa" which denotes an active state. |
| Swedish | Slavar can also mean ‘slaving' in the sense of toiling or drudging. |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | In feudal Tagalog society, 'alipin' could refer to slaves captured in warfare or non-paying debtors, and later to serfs assigned to work on nobles' landholdings. |
| Tajik | In Tajik, the word “ғулом” also refers to a respectful way of addressing a male elder. |
| Tamil | The word அடிமை derives from the Proto-Dravidian word *aṭi, meaning 'foot, lower part, base, foundation'. |
| Telugu | "బానిస" is derived from the Sanskrit word "Bhandaki", meaning a member of the lowest caste or servant. |
| Thai | In ancient use, ทาส referred to a debtor who worked off their debt through labour under their creditor's authority. |
| Turkish | Etymology of "köle" is unknown but can also mean "a captive" |
| Ukrainian | The word "раб" in Ukrainian also means "servant of God" and is derived from the Old Slavic word "rabъ" meaning "servant". |
| Urdu | The word "غلام" also refers to a servant or follower, particularly of a religious leader. |
| Uzbek | "Qul" also means "servant" or "employee" in Uzbek. |
| Vietnamese | "Nô lệ" is a Vietnamese word meaning "slave", derived from the French "esclave". |
| Welsh | Derived from Old Welsh 'caeth' ('captive'), the word 'caethwas' can also refer to a serf or bondman. |
| Xhosa | "Ikhoboka" derives from "khoboka," meaning "to tie up" or "to imprison." |
| Yiddish | The Yiddish word 'קנעכט', meaning 'slave,' derives from the Middle High German word 'knecht,' which also means 'servant.' |
| Yoruba | While primarily known as a 'slave' in English, the Yoruba term 'ẹrú' may also refer to a 'serf' - someone compelled to work for the master of an estate and forbidden to leave it or live independent of them. |
| Zulu | Historically 'isigqila' could also refer to captives of war or abducted persons in addition to slaves bought and owned. |
| English | The word "slave" originates from the Latin word "sclavus," which referred to people captured in war or born into slavery. |