West in Different Languages
Discover 'West' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
West
Afrikaans wes | ||
Albanian perendim | ||
Amharic ምዕራብ | ||
Arabic الغرب | ||
Armenian արևմուտք | ||
Assamese পশ্চিমে | ||
Aymara inti jalanta tuqiru | ||
Azerbaijani qərb | ||
Bambara tilebin fɛ | ||
Basque mendebaldean | ||
Belarusian захад | ||
Bengali পশ্চিম | ||
Bhojpuri पश्चिम के ओर बढ़ल बा | ||
Bosnian zapad | ||
Bulgarian на запад | ||
Catalan oest | ||
Cebuano kasadpan | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 西方 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 西方 | ||
Corsican oeste | ||
Croatian zapad | ||
Czech západ | ||
Danish vest | ||
Dhivehi ހުޅަނގަށް | ||
Dogri पश्चिम च | ||
Dutch west | ||
English west | ||
Esperanto okcidente | ||
Estonian läänes | ||
Ewe ɣetoɖoƒe gome | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) kanluran | ||
Finnish länteen | ||
French ouest | ||
Frisian west | ||
Galician oeste | ||
Georgian დასავლეთი | ||
German westen | ||
Greek δυτικά | ||
Guarani kuarahyreike gotyo | ||
Gujarati પશ્ચિમ | ||
Haitian Creole lwès | ||
Hausa yamma | ||
Hawaiian komohana | ||
Hebrew מַעֲרָב | ||
Hindi पश्चिम | ||
Hmong sab hnub poob | ||
Hungarian nyugat | ||
Icelandic vestur | ||
Igbo odida anyanwu | ||
Ilocano laud | ||
Indonesian barat | ||
Irish thiar | ||
Italian ovest | ||
Japanese 西 | ||
Javanese mangulon | ||
Kannada ಪಶ್ಚಿಮಕ್ಕೆ | ||
Kazakh батыс | ||
Khmer ខាងលិច | ||
Kinyarwanda iburengerazuba | ||
Konkani अस्तंतेक | ||
Korean 서쪽 | ||
Krio na di wɛst pat | ||
Kurdish rojava | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) ڕۆژئاوا | ||
Kyrgyz батыш | ||
Lao ທິດຕາເວັນຕົກ | ||
Latin occidens | ||
Latvian uz rietumiem | ||
Lingala na wɛsti | ||
Lithuanian vakarų | ||
Luganda amaserengeta | ||
Luxembourgish westen | ||
Macedonian запад | ||
Maithili पश्चिम | ||
Malagasy west | ||
Malay barat | ||
Malayalam പടിഞ്ഞാറ് | ||
Maltese punent | ||
Maori hauauru | ||
Marathi पश्चिम | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯋꯦꯁ꯭ꯇꯇꯥ ꯂꯩꯕꯥ ꯌꯨ.ꯑꯦꯁ | ||
Mizo chhim lam | ||
Mongolian баруун | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) အနောက်ဘက် | ||
Nepali पश्चिम | ||
Norwegian vest | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) kumadzulo | ||
Odia (Oriya) ପଶ୍ଚିମ | ||
Oromo dhihaatti | ||
Pashto لویدیځ | ||
Persian غرب | ||
Polish zachód | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) oeste | ||
Punjabi ਪੱਛਮ | ||
Quechua inti chinkaykuy ladoman | ||
Romanian vest | ||
Russian запад | ||
Samoan sisifo | ||
Sanskrit पश्चिमाम् | ||
Scots Gaelic iar | ||
Sepedi bodikela | ||
Serbian западно | ||
Sesotho bophirimela | ||
Shona madokero | ||
Sindhi اولهه | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) බටහිර | ||
Slovak západ | ||
Slovenian zahodno | ||
Somali galbeed | ||
Spanish oeste | ||
Sundanese kulon | ||
Swahili magharibi | ||
Swedish västerut | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) kanluran | ||
Tajik ғарб | ||
Tamil மேற்கு | ||
Tatar көнбатыш | ||
Telugu పడమర | ||
Thai ทิศตะวันตก | ||
Tigrinya ንምዕራብ | ||
Tsonga evupela-dyambu | ||
Turkish batı | ||
Turkmen günbatar | ||
Twi (Akan) atɔe fam | ||
Ukrainian захід | ||
Urdu مغرب | ||
Uyghur west | ||
Uzbek g'arb | ||
Vietnamese hướng tây | ||
Welsh gorllewin | ||
Xhosa bucala ngasekunene | ||
Yiddish מערב | ||
Yoruba ìwọ-westrùn | ||
Zulu entshonalanga |
Etymology & Notes
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | "Wes" is a loanword from Dutch and also means "to be" or "to stay" in Afrikaans. |
| Albanian | The word "perendim" is also used to refer to the "afternoon" or "sunset". |
| Amharic | The Amharic word "ምዕራብ" also means "evening" or "sunset". |
| Arabic | In addition to "west," الغرب can also mean "sunset," "the west wind," or "the place where the sun sets." |
| Armenian | The word 'արևմուտք' literally means 'the place where the sun goes down', and is also used to refer to the evening or sunset. |
| Azerbaijani | The word "qərb" is rooted in the Persian word "gharb" and Arabic word "غرب" (gharb), all meaning "west" or "sunset side." |
| Basque | The word "mendebaldean" comes from the Basque words "mende" (mountain) and "bal" (die), and originally referred to the western side of a mountain, where the sun sets. |
| Belarusian | The Belarusian word "захад" (west) is derived from the Proto-Slavic root *xodъ, meaning "to go" or "to travel", and is related to the words "уход" (departure) and "ходьба" (walking). |
| Bengali | The word "পশ্চিম" (west) in Bengali is derived from the Sanskrit word "प्रतीची" (pratichi), meaning "towards the sunset". |
| Bosnian | The word "zapad" in Bosnian has origins in the archaic Proto-Indo-European root "*wes-/*wos-", meaning "to shine, set, die". |
| Bulgarian | "На запад" can also figuratively mean "to move on", "to progress". |
| Catalan | The Catalan word "oest" is related to the Basque word "hego" and the Spanish word "oeste," meaning "south." |
| Cebuano | Although "kasadpan" means "west," it can also be used to refer to the "sunset" or to a "general direction of movement."} |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 西方“亦指佛教净土 |
| Chinese (Traditional) | "西方" in Traditional Chinese can also refer to Heaven or Buddhism. |
| Corsican | In Corsican, the word "Oeste" is often used to refer to the western region of the island, which is known as "Cismonte" |
| Croatian | The word 'Zapad' is derived from Slavic roots, meaning both 'west' and 'sunset'. |
| Czech | The word "Západ" also refers to the sunset as a noun. |
| Danish | The Danish word "vest" can also refer to a sleeveless garment worn under a jacket. |
| Dutch | "West" in Dutch can also mean "jacket". |
| Estonian | "Läänes" in Estonian can mean both "west" and "sunset". |
| Finnish | "Länteen" is also used to refer to the sunset or evening. |
| French | In French, « Ouest » (west) derives from a Latin root meaning « to burn », which refers to the sunset in the West. |
| Frisian | The Frisian word "west" can also refer to the direction "northwest" or the province of "West Friesland" in the Netherlands. |
| Galician | The Galician word "oeste" ("west") derives from the medieval Latin "oestum", meaning "sunset" or "evening". |
| German | The word "Westen" is derived from the Old High German "westar" meaning "sunset", and it can also refer to the Occident or the Western world. |
| Greek | Δυτικά comes from the word δύνω, meaning 'to set' (as the sun), and refers to the direction where the sun sets. |
| Gujarati | The word "પશ્ચિમ" (west) is derived from the Sanskrit word "pratichi," which means "facing the back"} |
| Haitian Creole | "Lwès" et "lwèt", en créole, représentent respectivement les notions de "Ouest" et d'“Étranger". |
| Hausa | "Yamma" shares an etymological origin with "yamma" meaning "left" in Arabic, indicating the cultural association between the direction of left and the westerly |
| Hawaiian | The word "komohana" is cognate with "komo" ("to enter") and "hana" ("direction of the setting sun"), referring to the west where the sun sets into the ocean. |
| Hebrew | The Hebrew word 'ma'arav' (מַעֲרָב), meaning 'west', is also used figuratively to refer to 'sunset' and 'the western world'. |
| Hindi | The word "पश्चिम" also refers to the regions on the west side of rivers and the direction "behind". |
| Hmong | In Hmong, "sab hnub poob" also means "sunset" or "the place where the sun goes down", reflecting its relation to the direction of the west. |
| Hungarian | The Hungarian word, nyugat, comes from the Proto-Indo-European word, *nekwt- "night", sharing a common origin with "north" (észak) and "twilight" (homály) |
| Icelandic | The word "vestur" also means "left" in Icelandic, as the left side of the compass was traditionally associated with the west. |
| Igbo | "Odi da anyanwu" in Igbo literally means "where the sun sets," alluding to the direction of the west. |
| Indonesian | "Barat" can also refer to the western direction in traditional Javanese terminology. |
| Irish | "Thiar" evolved from "teis" (literally "to the right") |
| Japanese | The character "西" can also mean "evening" or "death" in Japanese. |
| Javanese | "Mangulon" also means "to take turns," referring to the alternation of day and night. |
| Kannada | ಪಶ್ಚಿಮಕ್ಕೆ refers to both the cardinal direction "west" and the Western region of India, particularly the states of Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Goa. |
| Kazakh | The Kazakh word "батыс" originates from the Old Turkic word "bat" meaning "to sink, set" (referring to the sun setting in the west). |
| Khmer | The Khmer word "ខាងលិច" has a second meaning of "afternoon" or "sunset". |
| Korean | The word "서쪽" can also be used to refer to the direction "left" or a person's "back." |
| Kurdish | Rojava's name comes from the Kurdish word "roj", meaning "sun", and is a reference to the region's location to the east of Kurdistan. |
| Kyrgyz | The word “батыш” also means |
| Latin | Occidens, meaning "west" in Latin, also connotes "setting" or "end," referring to the sun's descent in the west. |
| Latvian | The word "uz rietumiem" in Latvian can also mean "to the future" or "towards progress". |
| Lithuanian | The word "vakarų" derives from the word "vakaras", meaning "evening". In ancient Lithuanian culture, the west was associated with the setting sun and the end of the day, hence the name. |
| Luxembourgish | Westen is also the name of a commune and a village in Luxembourg. |
| Macedonian | The word "запад" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *zapadъ*, meaning "sunset" |
| Malagasy | In Malagasy, the word "andrefana" is cognate with "avaratra" ("north") and "atsimo" ("south"), suggesting a possible shared root with these cardinal directions. |
| Malay | The Malay word 'barat', meaning 'west', shares a common root with the Sanskrit term 'parvata', which signifies 'mountain'. |
| Malayalam | 'പടിഞ്ഞാറ്' is also used to refer to the left side or direction of something, indicating a lateral position. |
| Maltese | The word 'punent' in Maltese originated from the Latin word 'ponens', which also means 'west'. |
| Maori | The word 'hauauru' also means 'wind' and is thought to originate from the sound of the westerly wind. |
| Marathi | "पश्चिम" का अर्थ "मृत्यु" भी होता है, जो हिंदू धर्म में अंत का प्रतीक है. |
| Mongolian | The word "баруун" in Mongolian also refers to the masculine gender. |
| Nepali | The word 'पश्चिम' ('west') is a compound of Sanskrit words 'पश्' meaning 'behind' and 'चिम्' meaning 'to collect' or 'to heap', referring to the direction where the sun appears to set and gather. |
| Norwegian | The Norwegian word "vest" can also refer to a sweater or a sleeveless jacket. |
| Pashto | The Pashto word لویدیځ, besides meaning west, also historically meant 'left', and 'northwest'. |
| Persian | The Persian word "غرب" can also mean "sunset" or "evening." |
| Polish | "Zachód" is cognate with the Russian "západ" (запад) and originates from the Proto-Slavic root *zаpadъ (meaning 'fall, go down'), as it refers to the setting sun." |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | "Oeste" comes from the Latin "occidentalis", meaning "toward the setting sun". In Portuguese, it can also refer to the western part of a country, region, or city. |
| Punjabi | The term "ਪੱਛਮ" (pachcham) in Punjabi is believed to be derived from Sanskrit where it originally meant "behind" or "after", signifying the geographical direction facing away from the rising sun and towards the setting sun. |
| Romanian | The Romanian word "vest" ultimately derives from the Latin word "vestis", meaning "garment", but has also come to mean "west" due to its position relative to the Balkans. |
| Russian | The verb "западать" (zapadat') and the noun "запад" (zapad) initially meant "falling down," but later referred to the sunset. |
| Samoan | Samoan word "sisifo" refers to either "west" or a type of traditional Samoan house |
| Scots Gaelic | The word 'Iar' is cognate with the Irish word 'Iarthar', which also means 'west'. It is thought to derive from the Proto-Celtic word *i̯es-ro-s. |
| Serbian | The word "западно" can also refer to the Roman Catholic Church in Serbian. |
| Sesotho | The word "bophirimela" in Sesotho is likely derived from the Bantu root "-bo" meaning "to boil" and "-rima" meaning "to turn," perhaps referring to the position of the sun at sunset. |
| Shona | The word 'madokero' was derived from the verb '-dokera' meaning 'to go down because of gravity'. As the sun sets in the west, the movement resembles sinking or going down. |
| Sindhi | "اولهه" is derived from the Sanskrit word "अवरः" meaning lower or western. |
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | The word “බටහිර” also has another meaning in Sinhala, which is "the person who eats on a plate at a funeral or other ceremony"} |
| Slovak | In addition to the geographical direction, "západ" in Slovak can also mean "demise" or "decline". |
| Slovenian | In some contexts, "zahodno" can mean "from the back" or "rear" in a less formal or slangy way. |
| Somali | The word "galbeed" is also used in Somali to refer to the direction of the south-west. |
| Spanish | Oeste, the Spanish word for "west," also means "backstage" in theatrical contexts. |
| Sundanese | The word "kulon" also means "left" in Sundanese. |
| Swahili | The Swahili word "magharibi" ultimately derives from an Arabic word meaning both "western" and "place of sunset". |
| Swedish | Etymology: From väster and -ut, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *wes- "to dwell". |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | The Tagalog word "kanluran" for "west" originates from the Proto-Austronesian word *ka-lalud, which means "sunset, evening, west". |
| Tajik | Etymology: from Arabic غَرْب ‘gharbun’ ‘west’. Also means: sunset; side of a mountain that faces down; the West; in traditional Persian poetry, a metaphor for youth and freshness. |
| Telugu | The word "పడమర" also means "the side where the sun sets". |
| Thai | The Thai word for "west", ทิศตะวันตก, literally means "direction of the setting sun". |
| Turkish | Batı originates from the Old Turkic word "batı", meaning "to decline", |
| Ukrainian | "Захід" also means "event" in Ukrainian, like "public event," "sporting event," "cultural event," etc. |
| Urdu | The word "مغرب" can also refer to the time of sunset or the land of the setting sun (the direction in which one prays in Islam). |
| Uzbek | The word "g'arb" in Uzbek is derived from the Arabic word "gharb", meaning "sunset" or "the region where the sun sets." |
| Vietnamese | "Hướng Tây" means "west" in Vietnamese, but can also refer to the afternoon or the general direction of "out there" or "over there". |
| Welsh | Gorllewin is derived from the word gorlleu which means 'to face', so gorllewin means 'the direction of facing'. It is cognate with gorllewin in Breton and gorlech in Cornish. |
| Xhosa | The word "bucala ngasekunene" literally means "the direction where the sun sets", and is cognate with the Zulu word "entshonalanga" and the Swati word "nentshonalanga" |
| Yiddish | Yiddish word "מערב" can also mean "sunset" or "evening". |
| Yoruba | The Yoruba term for "west," ìwọ̀-òrùn, also translates to "the face of the sun" or "sun's abode." |
| Zulu | In Zulu, the term "entshonalanga" also conveys the notion of "evening" or "sunset" due to its association with the western horizon where the sun sets. |
| English | West is also a homonym, referring to the Western Hemisphere, as in "the West". |