How to say “I” around the world
5,118 languages · 461 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 | 我 | wǒ | Sino-Tibetan |
| English | I | Indo-European | |
| Spanish | yo | Indo-European | |
| Hindi | मैं | ma͠i | Indo-European |
| Arabic | أَنَا | ʔanā | Afro-Asiatic |
| Bengali | আমি | ami | Indo-European |
| Indonesian | saya | Austronesian | |
| Portuguese | eu | Indo-European | |
| French | je | Indo-European | |
| Russian | я | ja | Indo-European |
| Japanese | 私 | watashi | Japonic |
| Marathi | मी | mī | Indo-European |
| Swahili | mimi | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Turkish | ben | Turkic | |
| Telugu | నేను | nēnu | Dravidian |
| Wu Chinese | 我 | ⁶ngu | Sino-Tibetan |
| Korean | 나 | na | Koreanic |
| German | ich | Indo-European | |
| Vietnamese | tôi | Austroasiatic | |
| Tamil | நான் | nāṉ | Dravidian |
| Cantonese | 我 | ngo⁵ | Sino-Tibetan |
| Urdu | مَیں | ma͠i | Indo-European |
| Italian | io | Indo-European | |
| Egyptian Arabic | انا | ana | Afro-Asiatic |
| Gujarati | હું | hũ | Indo-European |
| Western Farsi | مَن | man | Indo-European |
| Min Nan Chinese | 我 | góa | Sino-Tibetan |
| Hakka Chinese | 𠊎 | ngài | Sino-Tibetan |
| Nigerian Pidgin | mi | Indo-European | |
| Jinyu Chinese | 我 | ghe² | Sino-Tibetan |
| Levantine Arabic | أنا | ʔana | Afro-Asiatic |
| Hausa | nī | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Kannada | ನಾನು | nānu | Dravidian |
| Polish | ja | Indo-European | |
| Yoruba | mo | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Xiang Chinese | 我 | ngo³ | Sino-Tibetan |
| Malayalam | ഞാൻ | ñāṉ | Dravidian |
| Odia | ମୁଁ | mũ | Indo-European |
| Burmese | ကျွန်တော် | kywantau | Sino-Tibetan |
| Moroccan Arabic | آنا | ʔāna | Afro-Asiatic |
| Igbo | mụ | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Ukrainian | я | ja | Indo-European |
| Uzbek | men | Turkic | |
| Sindhi | آئُون | āū̃ | Indo-European |
| Romanian | eu | Indo-European | |
| Dutch | ik | Indo-European | |
| Gan Chinese | 我 | ngo³ | Sino-Tibetan |
| Amharic | እኔ | ʾəne | Afro-Asiatic |
| Thai | ผม | pǒm | Tai-Kadai |
| Lingala | ngáí | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Serbian-Croatian-Bosnian | ја̑ | Indo-European | |
| Khmer | ខ្ញុំ | khñom | Austroasiatic |
| Somali | aniga | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Turkmen | men | Turkic | |
| Cebuano | Ako | Austronesian | |
| Nepali | म | ma | Indo-European |
| Assamese | মই | moi | Indo-European |
| Sinhala | මම | mama | Indo-European |
| Greek | εγώ | egó | Indo-European |
| Kurdish | ez | Indo-European | |
| Bavarian | i | Indo-European | |
| Tajik | ман | man | Indo-European |
| Sylheti | ꠝꠥꠁ | mui | Indo-European |
| Kazakh | мен | men | Turkic |
| Hungarian | én | Uralic | |
| Zulu | mina | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Nyanja | ine | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Tunisian Arabic | آنا | ʔāna | Afro-Asiatic |
| Akan | me | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Southern Pashto | زه | zə | Indo-European |
| Czech | já | Indo-European | |
| Uighur | مەن | men | Turkic |
| Afrikaans | ek | Indo-European | |
| Min Dong Chinese | 我 | nguāi | Sino-Tibetan |
| Haitian | mwen | Indo-European | |
| Dari | مَن | man | Indo-European |
| Swedish | jag | Indo-European | |
| Azerbaijani | mən | Turkic | |
| Bulgarian | аз | az | Indo-European |
| Hiligaynon | ako | Austronesian | |
| Xhosa | ndi- | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Tachelhit | nkki | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Belarusian | я | ja | Indo-European |
| Tigrinya | ኣነ | ʾanä | Afro-Asiatic |
| Neapolitan | i | Indo-European | |
| Central Kurdish | من | min | Indo-European |
| Santali | ᱤᱧ | iñ | Austroasiatic |
| Kashmiri | بہٕ | bụ | Indo-European |
| Kikuyu | nĩ | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Northern Thai | ᩁᩣ | ha | Tai-Kadai |
| Danish | jeg | Indo-European | |
| Slovak | ja | Indo-European | |
| Umbundu | ame | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Wolaytta | taani | Ta-Ne-Omotic | |
| Kabyle | nekk | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Minangkabau | sayo | Austronesian | |
| Finnish | minä | Uralic | |
| Lao | ຂ້ອຍ | khǭi | Tai-Kadai |
| Norwegian | jeg | Indo-European | |
| Tatar | мин | min | Turkic |
| Catalan | jo | Indo-European | |
| Sicilian | jù | Indo-European | |
| Kirghiz | мен | men | Turkic |
| Swiss German | i | Indo-European | |
| Riffian | nešš | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Armenian | ես | es | Indo-European |
| Bambara | n | Mande | |
| Ganda | nze | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Lithuanian | aš | Indo-European | |
| Tok Pisin | mi | Indo-European | |
| Lombard | mi | Indo-European | |
| Georgian | მე | me | Kartvelian |
| Acehnese | lôn | Austronesian | |
| Mazanderani | من | mën | Indo-European |
| Albanian | unë | Indo-European | |
| Ewe | nye | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Mongolian | би | bi | Mongolic-Khitan |
| Chadian Arabic | أنا | ana | Afro-Asiatic |
| Galician | eu | Indo-European | |
| Slovenian | jàz | Indo-European | |
| Bouyei | gul | Tai-Kadai | |
| Esperanto | mi | Artificial Language | |
| Macedonian | јас | jas | Indo-European |
| Sichuan Yi | ꉢ | nga | Sino-Tibetan |
| Piedmontese | mi | Indo-European | |
| Venetian | mi | Indo-European | |
| Zhuang | gou | Tai-Kadai | |
| Rohingya | aññi | Indo-European | |
| Sidamo | ane | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Afar | anu | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Kabardian | сэ | sɛ | Abkhaz-Adyge |
| Limburgan | ich | Indo-European | |
| Latvian | es | Indo-European | |
| Quechua | ñuqa | Quechuan | |
| Scots | A | Indo-European | |
| Chechen | со | so | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Emilian | mé | Indo-European | |
| Estonian | mina | Uralic | |
| Bashkir | мин | min | Turkic |
| Tibetan | ང | nga | Sino-Tibetan |
| Beja | áni | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Tausug | aku | Austronesian | |
| Bakhtiari | مو | mo | Indo-European |
| Gorontalo | wa'u | Austronesian | |
| Central Okinawan | 我ん | wan | Japonic |
| Kachin | ngai | Sino-Tibetan | |
| Kabuverdianu | mi | Indo-European | |
| Mon | အဲ | ʔuə | Austroasiatic |
| Western Frisian | ik | Indo-European | |
| Swabian | i | Indo-European | |
| Iu Mien | yie | Hmong-Mien | |
| South Sudanese Creole Arabic | ana | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Kalmyk | би | bi | Mongolic-Khitan |
| Maranao | ako | Austronesian | |
| Avar | дун | dun | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Talysh | mı | Indo-European | |
| Basque | ni | Isolates | |
| Ga | mi | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Chuvash | эпӗ | ep̬ĕ | Turkic |
| Welsh | mi | Indo-European | |
| Yucatec Maya | tehn | Mayan | |
| Lü | ᦃᦾᧉ | ẋoay² | Tai-Kadai |
| Picard | je | Indo-European | |
| Lezghian | зун | zun | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Rusyn | я | ja | Indo-European |
| Morisyen | mo | Indo-European | |
| Réunion Creole French | moin | Indo-European | |
| Walloon | dji | Indo-European | |
| Kara-Kalpak | men | Turkic | |
| Adyghe | сэ | sɛ | Abkhaz-Adyge |
| Classical Syriac | ܐܢܐ | ʾĕnā | Afro-Asiatic |
| Maltese | jien | Afro-Asiatic | |
| Crimean Tatar | men | Turkic | |
| Occitan | ieu | Indo-European | |
| Vlax Romani | me | Indo-European | |
| Ligurian | mi | Indo-European | |
| Mizo | ka | Sino-Tibetan | |
| Mari | мый | myj | Uralic |
| Tetum | ha'u | Austronesian | |
| Silesian | jo | Indo-European | |
| Asturian | yo | Indo-European | |
| Lahu | ngal | Sino-Tibetan | |
| Yakut | мин | min | Turkic |
| Samoan | aʻu | Austronesian | |
| Sranan Tongo | mi | Indo-European | |
| Fijian | au | Austronesian | |
| Ingush | со | so | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Papiamento | mi | Indo-European | |
| Icelandic | ég | Indo-European | |
| Karachay-Balkar | мен | men | Turkic |
| Friulian | jo | Indo-European | |
| Guianese Creole French | mo | Indo-European | |
| Mapuche | iñche | Araucanian | |
| Tuvinian | мен | men | Turkic |
| Udmurt | мон | mon | Uralic |
| Dzongkha | ང | nga | Sino-Tibetan |
| Zeelandic | ik | Indo-European | |
| Buriat | би | bi | Mongolic-Khitan |
| Māori | au | Austronesian | |
| Extremaduran | yo | Indo-European | |
| Abkhaz | сара | sara | Abkhaz-Adyge |
| Tonga (Tonga Islands) | u | Austronesian | |
| Central Dusun | yoku | Austronesian | |
| Hiri Motu | lau | Pidgin | |
| Navajo | shí | Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit | |
| Komi | ме | me | Uralic |
| Lak | на | na | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Corsican | eiu | Indo-European | |
| Solu-Khumbu Sherpa | ང | nga | Sino-Tibetan |
| Gagauz | bän | Turkic | |
| Irish | mé | Indo-European | |
| Ladino | yo | Indo-European | |
| Aromanian | io | Indo-European | |
| Kashubian | jô | Indo-European | |
| Breton | me | Indo-European | |
| Mwani | omi | Atlantic-Congo | |
| Erzya | мон | mon | Uralic |
| Võro | maq | Uralic | |
| Zaiwa | ngò | Sino-Tibetan | |
| Tabasaran | узу | uzu | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Faroese | eg | Indo-European | |
| Tahitian | au | Austronesian | |
| Kuanua | iau | Austronesian | |
| Zou | kei | Sino-Tibetan | |
| Scottish Gaelic | mi | Indo-European | |
| Mansaka | ako | Austronesian | |
| Southern Altai | мен | men | Turkic |
| Burushaski | ja | Isolates | |
| Sanskrit | अहम् | aham | Indo-European |
| Rutul | зы | zɨ | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Khakas | мин | min | Turkic |
| Ternate | ngori | North Halmahera | |
| Dungan | вә | və | Sino-Tibetan |
| Romansh | jau | Indo-European | |
| Mayo | ínapo | Uto-Aztecan | |
| Motu | lau | Austronesian | |
| Karelian | mie | Uralic | |
| Plains Cree | ᓂᔭ | niya | Algic |
| Livvi | minä | Uralic | |
| Ladin | ie | Indo-European | |
| Naga Pidgin | moi | Indo-European | |
| Aghul | зун | zun | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Hawaiian | au | Austronesian | |
| North Saami | mun | Uralic | |
| Kajtak | ду | du | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Pijin | mi | Indo-European | |
| Rarotongan | au | Austronesian | |
| Central Yupik | wiinga | Eskimo-Aleut | |
| Evenki | би | bi | Tungusic |
| Mirandese | you | Indo-European | |
| Tabaru | ngoi | North Halmahera | |
| Drung | vgò | Sino-Tibetan | |
| Western Apache | shíí | Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit | |
| Upper Sorbian | ja | Indo-European | |
| Tuvalu | au | Austronesian | |
| Cherokee | ᎠᏯ | aya | Iroquoian |
| Yagnobi | ман | man | Indo-European |
| Fala | ei | Indo-European | |
| Bislama | mi | Indo-European | |
| Northern Frisian | ik | Indo-European | |
| Kryz | зын | Nakh-Daghestanian | |
| Louisiana Creole | mo | Indo-European | |
| Niuean | au | Austronesian | |
| Kalo Finnish Romani | me | Indo-European | |
| Zuni | hoˀ | Isolates | |
| Choctaw | ʋno | Muskogean | |
| Aragonese | yo | Indo-European | |
| Nheengatu | ixé | Tupian | |
| Udi | зу | zu | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Hopi | nu' | Uto-Aztecan | |
| Lower Sorbian | ja | Indo-European | |
| North Marquesan | au | Austronesian | |
| Even | би | ʙi | Tungusic |
| Chukchi | гым | Chukotko-Kamchatkan | |
| Siksiká | niisto | Algic | |
| Jejueo | 나 | na | Koreanic |
| Rapanui | au | Austronesian | |
| Dolgan | мин | Turkic | |
| Pitjantjatjara | nganku | Pama-Nyungan | |
| Tokelau | au | Austronesian | |
| Mrassu Shor-Tutal | мен | men | Turkic |
| Cheyenne | na- | Algic | |
| Tsafiki | la | Barbacoan | |
| Moksha | мон | mon | Uralic |
| Lakota | wa- | Siouan | |
| Mòcheno | i | Indo-European | |
| Manx | mee | Indo-European | |
| Interlingua | io | Artificial Language | |
| Nanai | ми | mi | Tungusic |
| Veps | minä | Uralic | |
| Central Carrier | si | Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit | |
| Pipil | naja | Uto-Aztecan | |
| Arapaho | hìnee | Algic | |
| Istro-Romanian | io | Indo-European | |
| Khinalug | зы | zɨ | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Shoshoni | ne | Uto-Aztecan | |
| Archi | зон | zon | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Tlingit | x̱át | Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit | |
| Hadza | ono | Isolates | |
| Taos Northern Tiwa | ną | Kiowa-Tanoan | |
| Lule Sami | mån | Uralic | |
| Cornish | my | Indo-European | |
| Southern Sami | manne | Uralic | |
| Kildin Saami | мунн | munn | Uralic |
| Skolt Sami | mon | Uralic | |
| Cimbrian | ich | Indo-European | |
| Pela | ŋa⁵⁵ | Sino-Tibetan | |
| Narrinyeri | ngapi | Pama-Nyungan | |
| Inari Sami | mun | Uralic | |
| Budukh | зын | zın | Nakh-Daghestanian |
| Judeo-Italian | אִייוֹ | Indo-European | |
| Amur Nivkh | ни | ņi | Nivkh |
| Ulch | би | Tungusic | |
| Ingrian | miä | Uralic | |
| Straits Salish | ESE | Salishan | |
| Udihe | би | Tungusic | |
| Nez Perce | ˀí·n | Sahaptian | |
| Ume Saami | månna | Uralic | |
| Mudburra | ngayi | Pama-Nyungan | |
| Negidal | би | Tungusic |