Words for Love Around the World – The Linguistics of Love

.Today on Word Nerd, we will explore several languages’ love words in honor of Valentine’s Day.

Greek love words

Eros, agape, philia, and storgé were Greek words for love. Philia is love for people and certain pastimes. The suffix –phil– means attraction or affinity. Hemophilia denotes “an affinity toward bleeding profusely.”

Storgé is innate affection between family members or pets. Spiritual love is agape.

Romantic, carnal eros. The Greek deity of love, Eros, has a Roman equivalent, Cupid.
Love Words Worldwide

The Kamasutra, a Sanskrit treatise on sexuality, sensuality, and emotional fulfillment, uses kama to mean eros.

In some Islamic beliefs, ishq—the Arabic term for inspiration—inspired creation. Habb, a term of endearment for men and women, is one of numerous Arabic phrases meaning love.

Chesed, in Hebrew, is love or kindness from God or people. It is one of the Kabbalistic tree of life’s 10 emanations.

In Romanian, dragoste means family, romantic, affectionate, and fondness.

Milovat, from mily, meaning “kind or dear,” and the suffix –ovat, which turns nouns and adjectives into verbs, is used in Czech.

Pacific love

Aroha means “to have empathy for, to feel compassion for, to love or feel concern for” in Māori. Murimuri aroha expresses wanting even more deeply, including grief-related yearning. The word “whakaipo” means “to cherish, woo or treat with affection.”

Aloha is a Hawaiian greeting that expresses a calm, loving affinity with others and the natural environment.

Sri Lanka’s Tamil language has around 40 terms for love, including ones for unrequited love, delusion, and embracing someone in your arms.
English Love History
These descriptive English words could be useful! We have one word for love, from the proto-Indo-European root leubh, meaning “to care, desire.” Amorous, from Old French amoros and Latin amor, and passion, from Latin passio, signify “to suffer.”

The Chinese symbols meaning “I love you” are wài ni, but they are rarely spoken or used. Instead of words, people display their love via acts. Younger folks text each other “I love you” and “520” since they sound similar.

Nordic Love Language

Elske—usually in verb form—is the Nordic term meaning love. This is reserved for the most strong feelings, therefore people usually say, “I like you” or “I am glad of you” or “you make me happy.” Norwegian has one word for boyfriend or girlfriend, kjæreste, which means “beloved.”

I hope this exploration taught you about love in many lovely languages. Discover more methods to say I Love You around the world and interesting Valentine’s trivia!