How to say “book” around the world
356 languages · 356 in their own spelling
Dots of one colour begin with a similar sound. Colours group words by the class of their first consonant (a sound-class method used in linguistics): words that begin alike share a colour. This shows resemblance, not common origin — proving relationship needs case-by-case comparison. Readable forms come from Wiktionary translation tables; many smaller languages come from the ASJP word lists, in ASJP’s simplified transcription.
| Language | Word | Romanization | Family |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese | 书 | shū | Sino-Tibetan |
| English | book | Indo-European | |
| Spanish | libro | Indo-European | |
| Hindi | किताब | kitāb | Indo-European |
| Arabic | كِتَاب | kitāb | Afro-Asiatic |
| Bengali | বই | boi | Indo-European |
| Indonesian | buku | Austronesian | |
| Portuguese | livro | Indo-European | |
| French | livre | Indo-European | |
| Russian | кни́га | kníga | Indo-European |
| Japanese | 本 | hon | Japonic |
| Marathi | पुस्तक | pustak | Indo-European |
| Swahili | kitabu | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Turkish | kitap | Turkic | |
| Telugu | పుస్తకం | pustakaṁ | Dravidian |
| Wu Chinese | 书 | Sino-Tibetan | |
| Korean | 책 | chaek | Koreanic |
| German | Buch | Indo-European | |
| Vietnamese | sách | Austroasiatic | |
| Tamil | நூல் | nūl | Dravidian |
| Cantonese | 書 | syu¹ | Sino-Tibetan |
| Urdu | کِتاب | kitāb | Indo-European |
| Italian | libro | Indo-European | |
| Egyptian Arabic | كتاب | ketāb | Afro-Asiatic |
| Gujarati | પુસ્તક | pustak | Indo-European |
| Western Farsi | کِتَاب | kitāb | Indo-European |
| Min Nan Chinese | 冊 | chheh | Sino-Tibetan |
| Hakka Chinese | 書 | sû | Sino-Tibetan |
| Jinyu Chinese | 书 | su¹ | Sino-Tibetan |
| Levantine Arabic | كتاب | ktāb | Afro-Asiatic |
| Hausa | littafi | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Kannada | ಪುಸ್ತಕ | pustaka | Dravidian |
| Algerian Arabic | كتاب | ktāb | Afro-Asiatic |
| Polish | książka | Indo-European | |
| Yoruba | ìwé | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Xiang Chinese | 书 | xy¹ | Sino-Tibetan |
| Malayalam | പുസ്തകം | pustakaṁ | Dravidian |
| Odia | ବହି | bahi | Indo-European |
| Burmese | စာအုပ် | caup | Sino-Tibetan |
| Sudanese Arabic | كتاب | kitāb | Afro-Asiatic |
| Moroccan Arabic | كتاب | ktāb | Afro-Asiatic |
| Igbo | akwụkwọ | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Ukrainian | кни́жка | knýžka | Indo-European |
| Uzbek | kitob | Turkic | |
| Sindhi | ڪِتابُ | kitābu | Indo-European |
| Romanian | carte | Indo-European | |
| Dutch | boek | Indo-European | |
| Gan Chinese | 书 | xy¹ | Sino-Tibetan |
| Amharic | መጽሃፍ | mäṣhaf | Afro-Asiatic |
| Thai | หนังสือ | nǎng-sʉ̌ʉ | Tai-Kadai |
| Serbian-Croatian-Bosnian | књи̏га | Indo-European | |
| Khmer | សៀវភៅ | siəw phɨw | Austroasiatic |
| Somali | buug | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Turkmen | kitap | Turkic | |
| Nepali | पुस्तक | pustak | Indo-European |
| Assamese | কিতাপ | kitap | Indo-European |
| Sinhala | පොත | pota | Indo-European |
| Greek | βιβλίο | vivlío | Indo-European |
| Northeastern Thai | ปึ้ง | pụ̂ng | Tai-Kadai |
| Kurdish | pirtûk | Indo-European | |
| Tajik | китоб | kitob | Indo-European |
| Sylheti | ꠛꠂ | boi | Indo-European |
| Kazakh | кітап | kitap | Turkic |
| Hungarian | könyv | Uralic | |
| Kinyarwanda | igitabo | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Zulu | ibhuku | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Nyanja | buku | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Tunisian Arabic | كتاب | ktēb | Afro-Asiatic |
| Southern Pashto | کتاب | ketāb | Indo-European |
| Czech | kniha | Indo-European | |
| Uighur | كىتاب | kitab | Turkic |
| Afrikaans | boek | Indo-European | |
| Min Dong Chinese | 書 | cṳ̆ | Sino-Tibetan |
| Haitian | liv | Indo-European | |
| Swedish | bok | Indo-European | |
| Azerbaijani | kitab | Turkic | |
| Bulgarian | кни́га | kníga | Indo-European |
| Shona | bhuku | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Hiligaynon | tulún-an | Austronesian | |
| Xhosa | incwadi | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Tachelhit | arra | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Belarusian | кні́га | kníha | Indo-European |
| Tigrinya | መጽሓፍ | mäṣḥaf | Afro-Asiatic |
| Neapolitan | libbro | Indo-European | |
| Central Kurdish | کتێب | kitêb | Indo-European |
| Tumbuka | buku | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Kikuyu | rifuku | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Northern Thai | ᨻᩢ᩠ᨷ | Tai-Kadai | |
| Danish | bog | Indo-European | |
| Slovak | kniha | Indo-European | |
| Southern Sotho | buka | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Kabyle | taktabt | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Finnish | kirja | Uralic | |
| Lao | ປຶ້ມ | pưm | Tai-Kadai |
| Norwegian | bok | Indo-European | |
| Tatar | китап | kitap | Turkic |
| Catalan | llibre | Indo-European | |
| Guarani | kuatiañe'ẽ | Tupian | |
| Sicilian | libbru | Indo-European | |
| Kirghiz | китеп | kitep | Turkic |
| Swiss German | Buech | Indo-European | |
| Tswana | buka | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Armenian | գիրք | girkʻ | Indo-European |
| Bambara | gafɛ | Mande | |
| Ganda | ekitabo | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Lithuanian | knyga | Indo-European | |
| Tok Pisin | buk | Indo-European | |
| Lombard | liber | Indo-European | |
| Georgian | წიგნი | c̣igni | Kartvelian |
| Goan Konkani | पुस्तक | pustak | Indo-European |
| Waray | basahon | Austronesian | |
| Albanian | libër | Indo-European | |
| Ewe | agbalẽ | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Shan | ပပ်ႉ | pâ̰p | Tai-Kadai |
| Mongolian | ном | nom | Mongolic-Khitan |
| Chadian Arabic | كتاب | kitāb | Afro-Asiatic |
| Gilaki | کیتاب | kitāb | Indo-European |
| Galician | libro | Indo-European | |
| Slovenian | knjíga | Indo-European | |
| Iban | surat | Austronesian | |
| Swati | íncwadzí | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Esperanto | libro | Artificial Language | |
| Macedonian | книга | kniga | Indo-European |
| Piedmontese | lìber | Indo-European | |
| Venetian | łìbro | Indo-European | |
| Zhuang | saw | Tai-Kadai | |
| Afar | kitab | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Kabardian | тхылъ | txəlˢ | Abkhaz-Adyge |
| Limburgan | book | Indo-European | |
| Latvian | grāmata | Indo-European | |
| Quechua | liwru | Quechuan | |
| Scots | beuk | Indo-European | |
| Chechen | кинчка | kinčka | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Estonian | raamat | Uralic | |
| Bashkir | китап | kitap | Turkic |
| Tibetan | དེབ | deb | Sino-Tibetan |
| Romagnol | lìvar | Indo-European | |
| Urhobo | e̖be | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Newari | सफू | saphū | Sino-Tibetan |
| Central Okinawan | 書物 | Japonic | |
| Kachin | laika buk | Sino-Tibetan | |
| Mon | လိက် အုပ် | lòik up | Austroasiatic |
| Western Frisian | boek | Indo-European | |
| South Sudanese Creole Arabic | kitaab | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Tigre | ክታብ | kətab | Afro-Asiatic |
| Kalmyk | дегтр | degtr | Mongolic-Khitan |
| Avar | тӏехь | tʼex̂ | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Talysh | kitob | Indo-European | |
| Tai Dam | ꪝꪚꪾ | Tai-Kadai | |
| Basque | liburu | Isolates | |
| Chuvash | кӗнеке | kĕnek̬e | Turkic |
| Welsh | llyfr | Indo-European | |
| Yucatec Maya | juʼun | Mayan | |
| Lü | ᦗᦸᧇ | poab | Tai-Kadai |
| Lezghian | улуб | ulub | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Rusyn | кни́га | knýha | Indo-European |
| Morisyen | liv | Indo-European | |
| Walloon | live | Indo-European | |
| Kara-Kalpak | kitap | Turkic | |
| Adyghe | тхылъ | txəlˢ | Abkhaz-Adyge |
| Classical Syriac | ܟܬܒܐ | kəṯāḇā | Afro-Asiatic |
| Maltese | ktieb | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Crimean Tatar | kitap | Turkic | |
| Occitan | libre | Indo-European | |
| Vlax Romani | ginadyi | Indo-European | |
| Ligurian | lìbbro | Indo-European | |
| Mizo | lehkhabu | Sino-Tibetan | |
| Mari | книга | kńiga | Uralic |
| Tetum | livru | Austronesian | |
| Silesian | ksiynga | Indo-European | |
| Asturian | llibru | Indo-European | |
| Yakut | кинигэ | kinige | Turkic |
| Kumyk | китап | kitap | Turkic |
| Sranan Tongo | buku | Indo-European | |
| Mingrelian | სუფარა | supara | Kartvelian |
| Fijian | vola | Austronesian | |
| Dhivehi | ފޮތް | fot̊ | Indo-European |
| Ingush | китаб | kitab | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Papiamento | buki | Indo-European | |
| Icelandic | bók | Indo-European | |
| Karachay-Balkar | китап | kitap | Turkic |
| Friulian | libri | Indo-European | |
| Tuvinian | ном | nom | Turkic |
| Udmurt | книга | kńiga | Uralic |
| Plautdietsch | Buak | Indo-European | |
| Laz | სუპარა | sup̌ara | Kartvelian |
| Kuanyama | embo | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Assyrian Neo-Aramaic | ܟܬܵܒ݂ܵܐ | kṯāḇā | Afro-Asiatic |
| Buriat | ном | nom | Mongolic-Khitan |
| Māori | pukapuka | Austronesian | |
| Extremaduran | llibru | Indo-European | |
| Dongxiang | shu | Mongolic-Khitan | |
| Abkhaz | ашәҟәы | aŝʷqʷʼə | Abkhaz-Adyge |
| Tonga (Tonga Islands) | tohi | Austronesian | |
| Central Dusun | buuk | Austronesian | |
| Navajo | naaltsoos | Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit | |
| Komi | небӧг | ńebög | Uralic |
| Lak | лу | lu | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Corsican | libru | Indo-European | |
| Gagauz | kitap | Turkic | |
| Pennsylvania German | Buch | Indo-European | |
| Irish | leabhar | Indo-European | |
| Ladino | livro | Indo-European | |
| Gilbertese | boki | Austronesian | |
| Aromanian | vivlie | Indo-European | |
| Kashubian | knéga | Indo-European | |
| Breton | levr | Indo-European | |
| Mwani | kitabu | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Erzya | конёвкс | końovks | Uralic |
| Nogai | китап | kitap | Turkic |
| Seselwa Creole French | liv | Indo-European | |
| Atayal | biru' | Austronesian | |
| Tabasaran | китаб | kitab | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Faroese | bók | Indo-European | |
| Chamorro | lepblo | Austronesian | |
| Marshallese | bok | Austronesian | |
| Scottish Gaelic | leabhar | Indo-European | |
| Southern Altai | бичик | bičik | Turkic |
| Sanskrit | पुस्तक | pustaka | Indo-European |
| Abaza | книга | kniga | Abkhaz-Adyge |
| Khakas | кинде | kinde | Turkic |
| Dungan | фу | fu | Sino-Tibetan |
| Romansh | cudesch | Indo-European | |
| Motu | buka | Austronesian | |
| Karelian | kirju | Uralic | |
| Hawaiian | puke | Austronesian | |
| North Saami | girji | Uralic | |
| Kajtak | ттавтта́р | ttavttár | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Evenki | книга | kņiga | Tungusic |
| Mirandese | lhibro | Indo-European | |
| Tohono O'odham | 'o'ohana | Uto-Aztecan | |
| Svan | ლა̈ირ | läir | Kartvelian |
| Western Apache | nałtsoos | Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit | |
| Upper Sorbian | kniha | Indo-European | |
| Tuvalu | tusi | Austronesian | |
| Cherokee | ᏗᎪᏪᎵ | digoweli | Iroquoian |
| Yagnobi | китоб | kitob | Indo-European |
| Fala | libru | Indo-European | |
| Bislama | buk | Indo-European | |
| Northern Frisian | bök | Indo-European | |
| Louisiana Creole | liv | Indo-European | |
| Western Ojibwa | masinahikan | Algic | |
| Aragonese | libro | Indo-European | |
| Udi | ҝирк | gʲirk | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Lower Sorbian | knigły | Indo-European | |
| Jejueo | 첵 | chek | Koreanic |
| Rapanui | puka | Austronesian | |
| Wutunhua | huaiqa | Sino-Tibetan | |
| Yami | vakong | Austronesian | |
| Mrassu Shor-Tutal | ном | nom | Turkic |
| Warlpiri | pipa | Pama-Nyungan | |
| Cheyenne | mȯxe'ėstoo'e | Algic | |
| Moksha | книга | kniga | Uralic |
| Kven Finnish | kirja | Uralic | |
| Lakota | wówapi | Siouan | |
| Manx | lioar | Indo-European | |
| Interlingua | libro | Artificial Language | |
| Nanai | даӈса | daŋsa | Tungusic |
| Veps | kirj | Uralic | |
| Istriot | leîbro | Indo-European | |
| Northern Mansi | кнӣга | knīga | Uralic |
| Tlingit | x’úx’ | Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit | |
| Lule Sami | girjje | Uralic | |
| Cornish | lyver | Indo-European | |
| Southern Sami | gærja | Uralic | |
| Maliseet-Passamaquoddy | wikhikon | Algic | |
| Kildin Saami | кыррьй | kyrr’j | Uralic |
| Pukapuka | lau | Austronesian | |
| Skolt Sami | ǩeʹrjj | Uralic | |
| Inari Sami | kirje | Uralic | |
| Kis | egetabu | Austronesian | |
| Amur Nivkh | питғы | pitγə | Nivkh |
| Cypriot Arabic | varka | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Ingrian | kirja | Uralic | |
| Alabama | holisso | Muskogean | |
| Wymysorys | bihła | Indo-European | |
| Votic | čirjõ | Uralic | |
| Macanese | livro | Indo-European | |
| Prussian | lāiskas | Indo-European | |
| Orok | бичихэ | bičihə | Tungusic |
| Maricopa | onyor | Cochimi-Yuman | |
| Wiradhuri | garrandarang | Pama-Nyungan | |
| Manchu | ᠪᡳᡨᡥᡝ | bithe | Tungusic |
| Ainu | カㇺビソㇱ | kambisosh | Ainu |
| Pawnee | raáwihaakaraaʾit | Caddoan | |
| N||ng | ǂxanisi | Tuu | |
| Chinook Jargon | buk | Chinookan | |
| Aghwan | 𐕁𐔼𐕗 | d'iṗ | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Northern Altai | биджик | bidžik | Turkic |
| Ambonese Malay | buku | Austronesian | |
| Gulf Arabic | كتاب | kitāb | Afro-Asiatic |
| Gilit Mesopotamian Arabic | كِتَاب | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Atong (India) | kitap | Sino-Tibetan | |
| Aymara | panka | Aymaran | |
| Biatah Bidayuh | buk | Austronesian | |
| Chagatai | كتاب | kitab | Turkic |
| Min Bei Chinese | 書 | sṳ́ | Sino-Tibetan |
| Coptic | ϫⲱⲙ | jōm | Afro-Asiatic |
| Dalmatian | lebro | Indo-European | |
| Saterland Frisian | Bouk | Indo-European | |
| Pular | deftere | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Geez | መጽሐፍ | mäṣḥäf | Afro-Asiatic |
| Gothic | 𐌱𐍉𐌺𐍉𐍃 | bōkōs | Indo-European |
| Ancient Greek | βιβλίον | biblíon | Indo-European |
| Kalaallisut | atuagaq | Eskimo-Aleut | |
| Hebrew | סֵפֶר | séfer | Afro-Asiatic |
| Diandongbei-Large Flowery Miao | 𖽐𖼊𖽠𖾑 | Hmong-Mien | |
| Hmong Njua | phoo | Hmong-Mien | |
| Hmong Daw | ntawv | Hmong-Mien | |
| Hunsrik | Buch | Indo-European | |
| Inuktitut | ᕿᒥᕐᕈᐊᑦ | qimirroat | Eskimo-Aleut |
| Old Irish | lebor | Indo-European | |
| Isoko | ụbị | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Javanese | buku | Austronesian | |
| Kawi | tulis | Austronesian | |
| Kazym-Berezover-Suryskarer Khanty | книга | kniga | Uralic |
| South-Central Koongo | búku | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Latin | liber | Indo-European | |
| Lenakel | nauoua | Austronesian | |
| Maru | paug' | Sino-Tibetan |