Whose in Different Languages
Discover 'Whose' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
Whose is a possessive form of who, used to indicate that a noun or pronoun belongs to or is associated with a person or people. It's a simple word, but one that carries significant weight in language and culture. Understanding whose in different languages can help us appreciate the nuances of how different cultures express possession and association.
For example, in Spanish, whose translates to cuyo (masculine singular), cuya (feminine singular), cuyos (masculine plural), and cuyas (feminine plural). In French, whose translates to dont, while in German, whose translates to wessen.
The word whose has a rich history, dating back to Old English. Its various translations in different languages offer a fascinating glimpse into the cultural and linguistic diversity of the world. Whether you're a language enthusiast, a cultural explorer, or simply curious, learning the translations of whose in different languages is a rewarding journey.
Whose
Whose in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | wie se | ||
| The Afrikaans "wie se" can mean "whose" in English but can also be "who is" when referring to an unknown person. | |||
| Amharic | የማን | ||
| "የማን" means both "whose" and "who". | |||
| Hausa | waye | ||
| The word "waye" in Hausa can also mean "who" and is related to the word "wani" meaning "one". | |||
| Igbo | onye | ||
| The Igbo word "onye" can also mean "person" or "soul". | |||
| Malagasy | izay | ||
| The word "izay" in Malagasy also means "which" and "what". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | amene | ||
| The word "amene" in Nyanja can also mean "very" or "even". | |||
| Shona | waani | ||
| The word "waani" in Shona can also be glossed as "by whom" or "through whom". | |||
| Somali | yaa leh | ||
| "Yaa leh" can also mean "where" (geographically) in Somali. | |||
| Sesotho | eo | ||
| The word 'eo' in Sesotho is derived from the Proto-Bantu word '*ya', which also means 'of' and 'belonging to'. | |||
| Swahili | ya nani | ||
| The word "ya nani" can also be used as a polite form of address, similar to "sir" or "madam" in English. | |||
| Xhosa | kabani | ||
| The word "kabani" in Xhosa can also mean "the one who has" or "the one who owns." | |||
| Yoruba | tani | ||
| The word 'tani' used as a question word can also be employed as a possessive pronoun to indicate a person or thing as belonging to a known person and also shows the gender of the noun modified. | |||
| Zulu | kabani | ||
| The Zulu word "kabani" (whose) is also used to refer to people or things that belong to someone or something. | |||
| Bambara | jɔn ta | ||
| Ewe | ame ka tᴐ | ||
| Kinyarwanda | ninde | ||
| Lingala | oyo | ||
| Luganda | -aani | ||
| Sepedi | yoo | ||
| Twi (Akan) | a ne | ||
Whose in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | ملك من | ||
| Hebrew | של מי | ||
| The Hebrew word "של מי" means "whose" and is related to the Arabic word "شَل (shel)", meaning "who". | |||
| Pashto | د چا | ||
| Also can mean 'belonging to', 'of', or 'that of' | |||
| Arabic | ملك من | ||
Whose in Western European Languages
| Albanian | të cilit | ||
| The word "të cilit" can also mean "of which", "of whom" or "that" in Albanian. | |||
| Basque | zeinen | ||
| The word "zeinen" in Basque can also mean "which" or "what" depending on the context. | |||
| Catalan | de qui | ||
| In Catalan, "de qui" can also mean "from whom" or "by whom". | |||
| Croatian | čija | ||
| In older Croatian, 'čija' referred to male or female ownership of an object and was only used in questions. | |||
| Danish | hvis | ||
| Hvis (whose) is a relic case form of who, which can only be used as a complement. | |||
| Dutch | van wie | ||
| In Middle Dutch, "van wie" meant "of which person". | |||
| English | whose | ||
| ''Whose'' derives from Old English ''hwæs'', meaning ''who'' or ''which'', and is related to ''who'' and ''which''. | |||
| French | dont | ||
| Contraction of de + ont, i.e., "of" + "they have". | |||
| Frisian | waans | ||
| Galician | de quen | ||
| The Galician word 'de quen' (whose) has the same origin as the Latin 'de quoin'. | |||
| German | deren | ||
| In German, "deren" (plural genitive feminine pronoun) is related to "der" (masculine) and "die" (feminine), and also to the demonstrative "derjenige" (that one). | |||
| Icelandic | hvers | ||
| Hvers is derived from the Old Norse “hverr,” meaning “who” or “which,” and is also related to the English “where.” | |||
| Irish | a bhfuil a | ||
| Italian | di chi | ||
| "Di chi" in Italian can mean "whose" or "of which". | |||
| Luxembourgish | deenen hir | ||
| The word "deenen hir" is also used in the context of ownership, indicating "owned by" or "one whose something is." | |||
| Maltese | li | ||
| In Maltese, 'li' can also be used to indicate an object or animal. | |||
| Norwegian | hvem sin | ||
| The Norwegian word "hvem sin" is an old genitive form of the word "hvem" (who). | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | de quem | ||
| The word "de quem" is also used in Portuguese to ask "who?"} | |||
| Scots Gaelic | cò | ||
| The Scots Gaelic word "cò" and the Irish word "cé" both derive from the Proto-Celtic word "ko-yo-s". | |||
| Spanish | cuyo | ||
| The word "cuyo" also means "of which" or "of whom" in Spanish. | |||
| Swedish | vars | ||
| In English, "vars" is used as a pronoun meaning "of whom", whereas in Swedish it can be used as a pronoun meaning "of which". | |||
| Welsh | y mae ei | ||
| The root of the word "y mae ei" is the interrogative word "pa" meaning "who". | |||
Whose in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | чый | ||
| "Чый" is also used in the sense of "which" or "what". | |||
| Bosnian | čiji | ||
| Bulgarian | чия | ||
| The word "чия" in Bulgarian can also refer to the chia plant or chia seeds | |||
| Czech | jehož | ||
| The word "jehož" can also be used as a preposition meaning "of whom" or "whereof". | |||
| Estonian | kelle oma | ||
| The Estonian word "kelle oma" has the same origin as the interrogative pronouns "kes" and "mis" and is related to the Finnish word "ken" (who). | |||
| Finnish | jonka | ||
| The word "jonka" can also mean "of which" or "that." | |||
| Hungarian | akinek | ||
| The word 'akinek' can also mean 'whoever' or 'whomever'. | |||
| Latvian | kuru | ||
| Despite meaning "whose" in Latvian, "kuru" can also mean "to dry off" in Russian. | |||
| Lithuanian | kurio | ||
| Curio is possibly related to the Latin words "cura" (care) and "curia" (a meeting of the Roman senate). | |||
| Macedonian | чиј | ||
| In Serbo-Croatian and Macedonian, "чиј" can also mean "which". | |||
| Polish | którego | ||
| "Którego" can also mean "which". | |||
| Romanian | a caror | ||
| The Romanian word "a caror" is derived from the Latin word "cuius", which also means "whose". | |||
| Russian | чья | ||
| The possessive pronoun "чья" in Russian can also be used to refer to inanimate objects, while in English "whose" is typically only used for people or animals. | |||
| Serbian | чији | ||
| The word "чији" can also mean "which" or "what" in Serbian and is related to the word "чиј" meaning "whose" in Bulgarian. | |||
| Slovak | ktorého | ||
| Ktorého originates from the Proto-Slavic word *kterъ and the Sanskrit words katara "which" and katham "how", as well as the Latin word quot "how many". | |||
| Slovenian | čigar | ||
| Čigar can also mean "whose" or "whosever," with the former being its predominant use | |||
| Ukrainian | чия | ||
| "Чия" is a possessive pronoun in Ukrainian that can also be used as a reflexive pronoun to indicate whose something is. | |||
Whose in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | কার | ||
| "কার" also refers to "Brahman", a spiritual concept in Hinduism. | |||
| Gujarati | જેનું | ||
| The Gujarati word 'જેનું' (whose) can also mean 'of which' or 'of whom'. | |||
| Hindi | किसका | ||
| Hindi "किसका" can also mean "who's" or "whom's", and originated from "कस्य", an oblique case form of "कः" (who). | |||
| Kannada | ಯಾರ | ||
| In Kannada, "ಯಾರ" can also refer to a person's name or a title implying respect. | |||
| Malayalam | ആരുടെ | ||
| Marathi | ज्याचे | ||
| Nepali | जसको | ||
| 'को' at the end of words denotes 'who' and is often seen in Hindi words borrowed in Nepali. | |||
| Punjabi | ਜਿਸਦਾ | ||
| The Punjabi word "ਜਿਸਦਾ" can also refer to "of whom" or "of which". | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | කාගේද? | ||
| කාගේද? in Sinhala can also mean "who is he?" or "who is she?". | |||
| Tamil | யாருடைய | ||
| The Tamil word யாருடைய ("whose") originally meant "to desire." | |||
| Telugu | ఎవరిది | ||
| The word "ఎవరిది" can also refer to something that belongs to a group or an organization. | |||
| Urdu | کس کی | ||
| The word "کس کی" can also refer to a person's share or portion of something. | |||
Whose in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 谁的 | ||
| In Classical Chinese, “谁的” (shuí de) could also be read as “shuòdǐ”, meaning “to ask who” or “to inquire after someone’s identity”. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 誰的 | ||
| 「誰的」在文言文中可指「誰是」或「誰在」 | |||
| Japanese | その | ||
| "その" can also refer to a place or time instead of a person, as in "その場所" (that place) or "その瞬間" (that moment). | |||
| Korean | 누구의 | ||
| "누구의" originally meant "whose" but was later used to denote "who is the owner of?" or "who has?". | |||
| Mongolian | хэний | ||
| The word "хэний" can also be used to refer to a "belonging to" relationship or to indicate possession. | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ဘယ်သူလဲ | ||
Whose in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | yang | ||
| Yang can also mean 'who' or 'which' and is often used in formal or written language. | |||
| Javanese | sing sapa | ||
| "Sapa" also means the first consonant in a Javanese syllable, e.g. "s" in the word "siji". | |||
| Khmer | ដែល | ||
| The word "ដែល" ("whose") in Khmer is also used as a relative pronoun meaning "who", "which", or "that". | |||
| Lao | ທີ່ | ||
| The word "ທີ່" can also mean "the one who" or "the one that". | |||
| Malay | yang | ||
| The word "yang" in Malay can also mean "which" or "that". | |||
| Thai | ซึ่ง | ||
| The word "ซึ่ง" (whose) in Thai is derived from the Pali word "so" (who), and can also mean "which" or "that". | |||
| Vietnamese | ai | ||
| "Ai" can also be used as a noun meaning "love" or "affection" in Vietnamese. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kaninong | ||
Whose in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | kimin | ||
| The word "kimin" in Azerbaijani is derived from the Persian word "kem" meaning "who" and the Azerbaijani suffix "-in" indicating possession. | |||
| Kazakh | кімдікі | ||
| The Kazakh word "кімдікі" (kimdiki) is derived from the root "кім" (kim) meaning "who" and the suffix "-дікі" (-diki) indicating possession. | |||
| Kyrgyz | кимдики | ||
| The word "кимдики" has an etymology with the word “ким”, which means "who". | |||
| Tajik | ки | ||
| The word "ки" can also refer to the word "what" in Tajik. | |||
| Turkmen | kim | ||
| Uzbek | kimning | ||
| In some dialects of Uzbek, "kimning" can also mean "who's". | |||
| Uyghur | كىمنىڭ | ||
Whose in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | ka mea nāna | ||
| In Hawaiian, "ka mea nāna" can also refer to the subject or possessor of a verb or noun. | |||
| Maori | na wai hoki | ||
| The term "na wai hoki" can also be used to express surprise or disbelief, similar to the English phrase "who would have thought?" | |||
| Samoan | o ai e ana | ||
| As well as meaning "whose", "o ai e ana" can also be used as an interrogative phrase asking "who is it?" | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | kanino | ||
| The word "kanino" can also be used to ask "who" in a question. | |||
Whose in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | uka | ||
| Guarani | máva mba’épa | ||
Whose in International Languages
| Esperanto | kies | ||
| "Kies" is also used in questions to mean "Which", as in "kies filo?" ("Which file?") | |||
| Latin | cuius | ||
| "Cuius" can also mean "his" or "her" depending on the gender of the noun it modifies | |||
Whose in Others Languages
| Greek | του οποίου | ||
| In Greek the pronoun 'τού' (which) and the relative 'οποίος' can both translate as 'whose' in English, but 'τού' is used when 'the thing possessed' comes first in Greek. | |||
| Hmong | leej twg | ||
| The Hmong word "leej twg" is derived from the verb "leej", meaning "to belong to" or "to own", and the question word "twg", meaning "who". | |||
| Kurdish | yê wan | ||
| The Kurdish word "yê wan" has a similar root to the Armenian word "yovn" (his, hers, yours), which may have come from Akkadian. | |||
| Turkish | kimin | ||
| The word "kimin" can also refer to a type of Turkish yogurt soup made with wheat or barley. | |||
| Xhosa | kabani | ||
| The word "kabani" in Xhosa can also mean "the one who has" or "the one who owns." | |||
| Yiddish | וועמענס | ||
| As an indefinite pronoun, the word can also refer to an unknown or indefinite person, and is often translated as "someone" or "somebody" in English. | |||
| Zulu | kabani | ||
| The Zulu word "kabani" (whose) is also used to refer to people or things that belong to someone or something. | |||
| Assamese | কাৰ | ||
| Aymara | uka | ||
| Bhojpuri | केकर | ||
| Dhivehi | އެމީހެއްގެ | ||
| Dogri | कोहदा | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kaninong | ||
| Guarani | máva mba’épa | ||
| Ilocano | asinno | ||
| Krio | udat | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | هی کێ | ||
| Maithili | केकर | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯀꯅꯥꯒꯤ | ||
| Mizo | tu ber | ||
| Oromo | kan | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଯାହାର | ||
| Quechua | piqpa | ||
| Sanskrit | कस्य | ||
| Tatar | кем | ||
| Tigrinya | ናይ መን | ||
| Tsonga | swa mani | ||