torjumaan

Torjumaan, also transliterated tarjuman, is a term in Persian, Arabic, Urdu, and related languages that denotes a translator or interpreter. It derives from the Arabic tarjama, “to translate,” with the agent noun form tarjumān meaning “one who translates.” In Urdu and Hindi, the word is commonly written as tarjuman or torjumān; in Persian as tarjuman; in Arabic as tarjamān. The term historically referred to a person who rendered texts and spoken language between speakers of different languages, a role essential in courts, diplomacy, trade, and scholarship.

In religious and literary contexts, tarjumān has designated individuals who render scriptures or scholarly works into another language, as well as professionals who interpret at meetings or during travel. The title has also appeared in various languages as a professional designation, a surname, or part of institutional names, reflecting the centrality of translation in cross-cultural communication.

In contemporary usage, torjumaan remains a common job title for translators and interpreters within multilingual societies, international organizations, media, and government. The word also endures in the names of translation companies and in historical or literary works that reference translation as a social practice. See also: tarjama, tarjuman, translation studies.