Feminist in Different Languages

I made a t-shirt for my son that says "feminist" in different languages (which you can now shop in The Jawesome Shop), and I gained some interesting insight about feminism around the world.

There are 3 key things I learned:

1. Feminism is a western construct and not because the western world is more progressive.
2. Indigenous cultures don't have a word for "feminist" or "feminism" because they already value women. This article I found gives an excellent explanation for the translation and cultural beliefs in Māori. I wanted to include at least one Native American translation and one Pacific Islander translation, but could not find a trusted translation or resource, except for the one in this NZ Herald article. So, I was able to include "kaikōkiri mana wāhine," which I love because it literally translate to "advocate of mana wāhine." And mana wāhine refers to the "unique power, spiritual essence and mana of women," a concept that is embedded in the Māori world view. There's really so much we could all learn from indigenous cultures. 
3. On the opposite side of the spectrum...if Asian languages have a word for "feminist," then it typically has a negative connotation. I really wanted to include Asian language translations, and ultimately, with much consideration, included the Chinese translation. But when my parents saw it on my son's shirt, my mom was shocked and my dad said it's political. During my research, my cousin wasn't even sure what the translation would be and said it's a term that's just not used. Still, I wanted to include it, because I think that those negative connotations and associations need to change. Even in the west, there once and maybe even still is in some places, an ugliness to the notion of feminism. So I suppose that the inclusion of the Chinese translation is my own rebellion against the patriarchy.

*Note, I of course was not able to, with due diligence, try to find a translation in every language that exists, so these observations are broad. But they're noteworthy and insightful.

What does feminism mean in your culture? Does the word exist?

Shop the "Multilingual Feminist" tee for your toddler. If you'd like one in a non-toddler size (i.e., baby, child, teen, or adult), message me for a custom size.