Have you ever wondered how to say FREEDOM in different languages?
Whether you’re passionate about language, exploring diverse cultures, or interested in expressions of liberty worldwide, discovering the word “freedom” across languages can be inspiring and enlightening.
This guide offers translations, pronunciations, and cultural perspectives on “freedom” in over 100 languages.
Why Understanding “Freedom” is Important
The word “freedom” resonates globally, symbolizing autonomy, justice, and personal rights. Learning to express “freedom” in different languages enhances your understanding of its universal and cultural significance.
Saying “Freedom” in European Languages
Western European Languages
- English: Freedom (pronounced FREE-dum)
- French: Liberté (pronounced lee-behr-TAY)
- German: Freiheit (pronounced FRY-hyt)
- Spanish: Libertad (pronounced lee-ber-TAHD)
- Italian: Libertà (pronounced lee-ber-TAH)
- Portuguese: Liberdade (pronounced lee-ber-DAH-deh)
- Dutch: Vrijheid (pronounced FRY-hite)
- Catalan: Llibertat (pronounced yee-ber-TAHT)
Northern European Languages
- Swedish: Frihet (pronounced FREE-het)
- Danish: Frihed (pronounced FREE-hel)
- Norwegian: Frihet (pronounced FREE-het)
- Finnish: Vapaus (pronounced VAH-pows)
- Icelandic: Frelsi (pronounced FREL-see)
Eastern European Languages
- Russian: Свобода (pronounced sva-BOH-da)
- Polish: Wolność (pronounced VOL-nosht)
- Czech: Svoboda (pronounced SVOH-bo-da)
- Hungarian: Szabadság (pronounced SAH-bahd-shahg)
- Slovak: Sloboda (pronounced sloh-BOH-da)
- Ukrainian: Свобода (pronounced sva-BOH-da)
- Bulgarian: Свобода (pronounced svo-BOH-da)
- Serbian: Слобода (pronounced sloh-BOH-da)
Celtic Languages
- Irish Gaelic: Saoirse (pronounced SEER-sha)
- Scottish Gaelic: Saorsa (pronounced SOHR-sah)
- Welsh: Rhyddid (pronounced hree-did)
Other European Languages
- Basque: Askatasuna (pronounced ahs-kah-TAH-soo-nah)
- Maltese: Libertà (pronounced lee-ber-TAH)
- Albanian: Liri (pronounced lee-REE)
Saying “Freedom” in Asian Languages
East Asian Languages
- Chinese (Simplified): 自由 (pronounced zee-yoh)
- Chinese (Traditional): 自由 (pronounced zee-yoh)
- Japanese: 自由 (pronounced JEE-yoo)
- Korean: 자유 (pronounced JAH-yoo)
South Asian Languages
- Hindi: स्वतंत्रता (pronounced swa-TAN-truh-ta)
- Bengali: স্বাধীনতা (pronounced sha-DEEN-oh-ta)
- Tamil: சுதந்திரம் (pronounced soo-thaan-thi-ram)
- Urdu: آزادی (pronounced aa-ZA-dee)
- Punjabi: ਆਜ਼ਾਦੀ (pronounced ah-ZAH-dee)
- Telugu: స్వాతంత్ర్యం (pronounced swa-than-tryam)
- Gujarati: સ્વતંત્રતા (pronounced swa-TAN-truh-ta)
- Kannada: ಸ್ವಾತಂತ್ರ್ಯ (pronounced swa-than-tray)
Southeast Asian Languages
- Thai: อิสระ (pronounced i-sah-rah)
- Vietnamese: Tự do (pronounced tuh-zoh)
- Indonesian: Kebebasan (pronounced keh-beh-BAH-san)
- Malay: Kebebasan (pronounced keh-beh-BAH-san)
- Khmer (Cambodian): សេរីភាព (pronounced say-ree-pheap)
- Burmese (Myanmar): လွတ်လပ်ခြင်း (pronounced loot-lat-chin)
Central Asian Languages
- Kazakh: Еркіндік (pronounced yer-kin-dik)
- Uzbek: Ozodlik (pronounced oh-zod-lick)
- Turkmen: Erkinlik (pronounced air-kin-lick)
- Tajik: Озодӣ (pronounced oh-zo-dee)
Saying “Freedom” in Middle-Eastern Languages
- Arabic: حرية (pronounced hoor-REE-yah)
- Hebrew: חירות (pronounced chey-root)
- Persian (Farsi): آزادی (pronounced ah-zah-dee)
- Turkish: Özgürlük (pronounced oz-gur-LUK)
- Kurdish (Sorani): ئازادی (pronounced ah-zah-dee)
Saying “Freedom” in African Languages
- Swahili: Uhuru (pronounced oo-HOO-roo)
- Zulu: Inkululeko (pronounced in-koo-loo-LEH-ko)
- Afrikaans: Vryheid (pronounced FRY-hayt)
- Amharic: ነፃነት (pronounced neh-tsah-neht)
- Yoruba: Ọmọnike (pronounced oh-moh-nee-keh)
- Igbo: Nwere nnwere (pronounced nweh-reh nweh-reh)
- Hausa: ‘Yanci (pronounced yahn-chee)
- Somali: Xorriyad (pronounced hor-ree-yad)
Saying “Freedom” in Austronesian Languages
- Filipino (Tagalog): Kalayaan (pronounced kah-lah-YAH-an)
- Cebuano: Kagawasan (pronounced kah-gah-wah-sahn)
- Maori: Rangatiratanga (pronounced rahng-ah-tee-rah-tahng-ah)
- Hawaiian: Kūʻokoʻa (pronounced koo-oh-koh-ah)
- Javanese: Kamardikan (pronounced kah-mar-dee-kahn)
- Malagasy: Fahafahana (pronounced fah-ha-fah-nah)
Saying “Freedom” in Indigenous Languages
Native American Languages
- Quechua: Lliwi (pronounced lee-wee)
- Navajo: Nizhóní (used to express independence and beauty)
Australian Aboriginal Languages
- Pitjantjatjara: Mirritja (expressing autonomy)
More Translations of FREEDOM in Different Languages
- Amharic (Ethiopia): ነፃነት (neh-tsah-neht)
- Georgian: თავისუფლება (tah-vih-soo-leh-bah)
- Mongolian: Эрх чөлөө (er-ikh cho-loo)
- Nepali: स्वतन्त्रता (swa-tan-tra-ta)
- Sinhala (Sri Lanka): නිදහස (ni-dah-sa)
- Xhosa (South Africa): Inkululeko (in-koo-loo-LEH-ko)
- Estonian: Vabadus (vah-bah-doos)
- Latvian: Brīvība (BREE-vee-bah)
- Lithuanian: Laisvė (lye-sveh)
- Macedonian: Слобода (sloh-BOH-da)
- Armenian: Ազատություն (ah-zah-too-tyoon)
- French: Liberté (lee-behr-TAY)
- German: Freiheit (FRY-hyt)
- Spanish: Libertad (lee-ber-TAHD)
- Italian: Libertà (lee-ber-TAH)
- Portuguese: Liberdade (lee-ber-DAH-deh)
- Dutch: Vrijheid (FRY-hite)
- Catalan: Llibertat (yee-ber-TAHT)
- Swedish: Frihet (FREE-het)
- Danish: Frihed (FREE-hel)
- Norwegian: Frihet (FREE-het)
- Finnish: Vapaus (VAH-pows)
- Icelandic: Frelsi (FREL-see)
- Russian: Свобода (sva-BOH-da)
- Polish: Wolność (VOL-nosht)
- Czech: Svoboda (SVOH-bo-da)
- Hungarian: Szabadság (SAH-bahd-shahg)
- Slovak: Sloboda (sloh-BOH-da)
- Ukrainian: Свобода (sva-BOH-da)
- Bulgarian: Свобода (svo-BOH-da)
- Serbian: Слобода (sloh-BOH-da)
- Irish Gaelic: Saoirse (SEER-sha)
- Scottish Gaelic: Saorsa (SOHR-sah)
- Welsh: Rhyddid (hree-did)
- Basque: Askatasuna (ahs-kah-TAH-soo-nah)
- Maltese: Libertà (lee-ber-TAH)
- Albanian: Liri (lee-REE)
- Chinese (Simplified): 自由 (zee-yoh)
- Chinese (Traditional): 自由 (zee-yoh)
- Japanese: 自由 (JEE-yoo)
- Korean: 자유 (JAH-yoo)
- Hindi: स्वतंत्रता (swa-TAN-truh-ta)
- Bengali: স্বাধীনতা (sha-DEEN-oh-ta)
- Tamil: சுதந்திரம் (soo-thaan-thi-ram)
- Urdu: آزادی (aa-ZA-dee)
- Punjabi: ਆਜ਼ਾਦੀ (ah-ZAH-dee)
- Telugu: స్వాతంత్ర్యం (swa-than-tryam)
- Gujarati: સ્વતંત્રતા (swa-TAN-truh-ta)
- Kannada: ಸ್ವಾತಂತ್ರ್ಯ (swa-than-tray)
- Thai: อิสระ (i-sah-rah)
- Vietnamese: Tự do (tuh-zoh)
- Indonesian: Kebebasan (keh-beh-BAH-san)
- Malay: Kebebasan (keh-beh-BAH-san)
- Khmer (Cambodian): សេរីភាព (say-ree-pheap)
- Burmese (Myanmar): လွတ်လပ်ခြင်း (loot-lat-chin)
- Kazakh: Еркіндік (yer-kin-dik)
- Uzbek: Ozodlik (oh-zod-lick)
- Turkmen: Erkinlik (air-kin-lick)
- Tajik: Озодӣ (oh-zo-dee)
- Arabic: حرية (hoor-REE-yah)
- Hebrew: חירות (chey-root)
- Persian (Farsi): آزادی (ah-zah-dee)
- Turkish: Özgürlük (oz-gur-LUK)
- Kurdish (Sorani): ئازادی (ah-zah-dee)
- Swahili: Uhuru (oo-HOO-roo)
- Zulu: Inkululeko (in-koo-loo-LEH-ko)
- Afrikaans: Vryheid (FRY-hayt)
- Amharic: ነፃነት (neh-tsah-neht)
- Yoruba: Ọmọnike (oh-moh-nee-keh)
- Igbo: Nwere nnwere (nweh-reh nweh-reh)
- Hausa: ‘Yanci (yahn-chee)
- Somali: Xorriyad (hor-ree-yad)
- Filipino (Tagalog): Kalayaan (kah-lah-YAH-an)
- Cebuano: Kagawasan (kah-gah-wah-sahn)
- Maori: Rangatiratanga (rahng-ah-tee-rah-tahng-ah)
- Hawaiian: Kūʻokoʻa (koo-oh-koh-ah)
- Javanese: Kamardikan (kah-mar-dee-kahn)
- Malagasy: Fahafahana (fah-ha-fah-nah)
- Quechua: Lliwi (lee-wee)
- Navajo: Nizhóní (represents independence and beauty)
- Pitjantjatjara: Mirritja (reflects autonomy)
- French (Canada): Liberté (lee-behr-TAY)
- Haitian Creole: Libète (lee-behr-TAY)
- Romanian: Libertate (lee-behr-TAH-teh)
- Greek: Ελευθερία (eh-lef-the-REE-ah)
- Croatian: Sloboda (sloh-BOH-da)
- Bosnian: Sloboda (sloh-BOH-da)
- Slovenian: Svoboda (svo-BOH-da)
- Esperanto: Libereco (lee-beh-REH-tsoh)
- Latvian: Brīvība (BREE-vee-bah)
- Luxembourgish: Fräiheet (FRY-heit)
- Azerbaijani: Azadlıq (ah-zad-lick)
- Belarusian: Свабода (sva-BOH-da)
- Tatar: Ирек (ih-rek)
- Bashkir: Ирек (ih-rek)
- Macedonian: Слобода (sloh-BOH-da)
- Finnish: Vapaus (VAH-pows)
- Icelandic: Frelsi (FREL-see)
- Basque: Askatasuna (ahs-kah-TAH-soo-nah)
- Estonian: Vabadus (vah-bah-doos)
Pronunciation Guide and Cultural Insights
Understanding how “freedom” is expressed worldwide deepens your connection to each culture’s values and language.
Tips for Proper Pronunciation
- Listen and Repeat: Using apps to hear native speakers improves pronunciation.
- Use Phonetic Spelling: Rely on phonetic guides to match sounds.
- Practice Often: Repetition is key to accuracy.
Cultural Significance
Freedom is a shared aspiration and often tied to cultural identity:
- National Symbols: Many cultures view freedom as part of their history or national identity.
- Literary and Artistic Expression: Freedom is a recurring theme in art, symbolizing autonomy and self-expression.
- Human Rights: In many societies, freedom signifies justice and equality.
Translation, Meaning, and Usage in Sentences
Examples in Different Languages
French
- Translation: Liberté
- Meaning: Freedom
- Sentence: La liberté est précieuse. (Freedom is precious.)
Russian
- Translation: Свобода
- Meaning: Freedom
- Sentence: Свобода — это право каждого человека. (Freedom is everyone’s right.)
Swahili
- Translation: Uhuru
- Meaning: Freedom
- Sentence: Uhuru ni msingi wa jamii. (Freedom is the foundation of society.)
Arabic
- Translation: حرية
- Meaning: Freedom
- Sentence: الحرية حق أساسي. (Freedom is a basic right.)
Hindi
- Translation: स्वतंत्रता
- Meaning: Freedom
- Sentence: स्वतंत्रता सबसे मूल्यवान है। (Freedom is most valuable.)
Conclusion
Exploring how to say “freedom” in various languages provides a powerful reminder of a shared human desire for autonomy and justice across cultures.
Every translation carries unique nuances and reflects the perspectives of different societies, whether through words, phrases, or symbolism.
Learning these translations expands your vocabulary and deepens your appreciation for freedom’s universal significance.
Whether studying languages, exploring cultural insights, or seeking connection across borders, understanding how different communities express “freedom” brings you closer to a global appreciation of one of humanity’s most valued ideals.
Source: Kent State University
