African
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African
- /ˈæf.ɹɪ.kən/
- /ˈæf.ɹə.kən/
Where it comes from
Attested as a noun in early New English Aphricane, Africans (plural), Middle English as Affrican, Aufrican and Old English as Africanas (“Africans”) (only plural). From Latin āfricānae, from āfricānus, from Āfricus.
The adjective appears in the 16th century, as Affricane, Africane, African.
Latin Āfricus is from Āfri (singular Āfer), the name of an ancient people of North Africa (near Carthage, in Tunisia), with the suffix -icus. āfricānus is formed by addition of the -ānus suffix.
By surface analysis, Africa + -n.
adjective more African · most African · Afrikan · Afric
- Of or pertaining to Africa. Spain’s Melilla, one of two small exclaves of EU land on the African continent, has long been the strongest distillation of fortress Europe.
- Black; (dated, offensive) synonym of negroid. The truth is that I know the guy had African skin and a shirt of some sort.
noun Africans · Afrikan · Afric
-
A native of Africa; also one ethnologically belonging to an African race.
Africans constitute significantly growing populations not only in major urban centers such as New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Los Angeles, Houston, and Atlanta but also in small and midsize cities in states such as Ohio and Maine.
Similar: Aethiopian, African, Afro-, Ethiop, Ethiope, Ethiopian, Libyan, Nubian
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: asian, pan-african, africana, afrikaans, abo, somali, africa, continental, afrika, continent, academy, classical, cfa, the, afro, black
Translations
Every language
adj of or pertaining to Africa
| Español | africano |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 아프리카의 apeurika-ui |
| 日本語 | アフリカの Afurika no |
| 中文 | 非洲的 Fēizhōu de |
| हिन्दी | अफ़्रीकी afrīkī, हब्शी habśī |
| Kiswahili | kiafrika |
| Português | africano |
| Français | africain |
| Deutsch | afrikanisch |
| Italiano | africano |
| Ελληνικά | αφρικανικός afrikanikós |
| Română | african |
| Русский | африка́нский afrikánskij |
| Tiếng Việt | Châu Phi, Phi Châu |
| العربية | إِفْرِيقِيّ ʔifrīqiyy, أَفْرِيقِيّ ʔafrīqiyy |
| עברית | אַפְרִיקַאי afrikái |
noun a native of Africa
| Español | africano, africana |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 아프리카인 apeurikain, 아프리카 사람 apeurika saram |
| 日本語 | アフリカ人 afurikajin |
| 中文 | 非洲人 fēizhōurén |
| हिन्दी | अफ़्रीकी afrīkī, हब्शी habśī |
| Kiswahili | Mwafrika |
| Português | africano, africana |
| Français | Africain, Africaine |
| Deutsch | Afrikaner, Afrikanerin |
| Italiano | africano, africana |
| Ελληνικά | Αφρικανός Afrikanós, Αφρικανή Afrikaní |
| Română | african, africană |
| Русский | африка́нец afrikánec, африка́нка afrikánka |
| Tiếng Việt | người châu Phi, người Phi châu |
| العربية | إِفْرِيقِيّ ʔifrīqiyy, إِفْرِيقِيَّة ʔifrīqiyya |
| עברית | אַפְרִיקַאי afrikái, אפריקאית afrikáit |
Talk about this word "African." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/african. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. African. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/african "African." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/african.Cite this
@misc{african_2026,
title = {African},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/african},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
