identity

English

Etymology

Middle French identité, from Latin idem (“the same”). See identical and idem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /aɪˈdɛntəti/

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

Noun

identity (countable and uncountable, plural identities)

1. Sameness, identicalness; the quality or fact of (several specified things) being the same.
   • 1997, Hydrothermal Vent Fauna, in Advances in Marine Biology: The Biogeography of the Oceans, page 111:

     […] suggesting the two are different stages of the same species. The identity of the two species is further suggested by allozyme analysis […]

2. The difference or character that marks off an individual from the rest of the same kind, selfhood.
   • (The addition of quotations indicative of this usage is being sought):
3. A name or persona—the mask or appearance one presents to the world—by which one is known.

   This criminal has taken on several identities.

4. Sense of who one is.

   I've been through so many changes, I have no sense of identity.

   This nation has a strong identity.

5. (algebra, computing) Any function which maps all elements of its domain to themselves.
6. (algebra) An element of an algebraic structure which, when applied to another element under an operation in that structure, yields this second element.
7. (Australia, New Zealand) A well-known or famous person.
   • 1887 July 19, "Drowned at Williamstown", The Age (Melbourne)

     The body of a well known old identity named James Conroy […] was found in the water yesterday afternoon…

   • 2013 April 4, "Cricket identities consult lawyers", New Zealand Herald
   • 2016 January 13, "Kings Cross identities arrested in connection with murder", The Sydney Morning Herald

Synonyms

• (sameness): See also Thesaurus:sameness
• (difference that marks off an individual): individuality, selfhood; see also Thesaurus:selfhood
• (mathematics): identity function
• (famous person): celebrity, personality

Derived terms

Terms derived from "identity"

• additive identity
• identity card
• identity of indiscernibles

• identity theft
• law of identity
• left identity

• mistaken identity
• multiplicative identity
• personal identity
• quasiidentity
• right identity
• superidentity

Related terms

Terms etymologically related to "identity"

• identic
• identical

• identification
• identify

Translations

the sameness some individuals share to make up the same kind or universal

• Arabic: مُطَابَقَة‎ f (muṭābaqa)
• Bashkir: үҙаң (üðañ)
• Bulgarian: еднаквост (bg) f (ednakvost)
• Catalan: identitat (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 個性 (zh), 个性 (zh) (gèxìng), 身分 (zh) (shēnfen), 身份 (zh) (shēnfen)

• Czech: totožnost f, identita (cs) f
• Dutch: identiteit (nl) f
• Finnish: identiteetti (fi)
• French: identité (fr) f
• German: Identität (de) f, Gleichheit (de) f
• Greek: ταυτότητα (el) f (taftótita)
• Hebrew: זהות‎ (he) f
• Hungarian: azonosság (hu)
• Irish: ionannas m
• Italian: identità (it)

• Japanese: 同一 (ja) (どういつ, dōitsu)
• Latvian: tāpatība f
• Macedonian: идентитет m (identitet)
• Maltese: identità f
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: identitet m

  Nynorsk: identitet m

• Polish: tożsamość (pl) f
• Portuguese: identidade (pt) f
• Romanian: identitate (ro) f
• Russian: тожде́ственность (ru) f (toždéstvennostʹ), иденти́чность (ru) f (idɛntíčnostʹ)
• Scottish Gaelic: ionannachd f
• Spanish: identidad (es) f
• Tagalog: kasiyangaan
• Ukrainian: іденти́чність (uk) (identýčnistʹ), тото́жність (totóžnistʹ)
• Vietnamese: tính đồng nhất

the difference or character that marks off an individual from the rest

• Arabic: هُوِيَّة‎ f (huwiyya)
• Bashkir: үҙаң (üðañ)
• Basque: nortasuna
• Bulgarian: индивидуалност (bg) f (individualnost)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 同一性 (zh) (tóngyīxìng), 個性 (zh), 个性 (zh) (gèxìng), 特性 (zh) (tèxìng), 身分 (zh) (shēnfen), 身份 (zh) (shēnfèn)

• Czech: identita (cs) f
• Danish: identitet c
• Dutch: persoonlijkheid (nl)
• Finnish: identiteetti (fi)
• French: identité (fr) f
• Georgian: ვინასობა (vinasoba)
• German: Identität (de) f
• Greek: ταυτότητα (el) f (taftótita)
• Hebrew: זהות‎ (he) m
• Hungarian: személyazonosság (hu), kilét (hu)

• Japanese: 身元 (みもと, mimoto), 同一性 (どういつせい, dōitsusei), アイデンティティ (ja) (aidentiti), アイデンティティー (ja) (aitentitī)
• Maltese: identità f
• Maori: tuakiri
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: identitet m

  Nynorsk: identitet m

• Polish: tożsamość (pl) f
• Portuguese: identidade (pt) f
• Russian: иденти́чность (ru) f (idɛntíčnostʹ), индивидуа́льность (ru) f (individuálʹnostʹ)
• Spanish: identidad (es) f
• Tagalog: kasiyangaan
• Turkish: hüviyyet (tr)
• Ukrainian: особи́стість (osobýstistʹ), індивідуа́льність (indyviduálʹnistʹ)
• Vietnamese: cá tính (vi) (referring to personality), đặc tính (vi)

name or persona

• Arabic: هُوِيَّة‎ f (huwiyya)
• Bulgarian: самоличност (bg) f (samoličnost)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 身分 (zh) (shēnfen), 身份 (zh) (shēnfen)

• Czech: totožnost f, identita (cs) f
• Danish: identitet c
• Dutch: identiteit (nl) f
• Finnish: henkilöllisyys (fi)
• French: identité (fr) f
• German: Identität (de) f
• Greek: ταυτότητα (el) f (taftótita)
• Hebrew: פֶּרְסוֹנָה‎ f

• Hungarian: személyiség (hu), identitás (hu)
• Japanese: 氏名 (ja) (しめい, shimei), 素性 (すじょう, sujō)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: identitet m

  Nynorsk: identitet m

• Polish: tożsamość (pl) f
• Portuguese: identidade (pt) f
• Romanian: identitate (ro) f
• Russian: ли́чность (ru) f (líčnostʹ), ли́чные да́нные n pl (líčnyje dánnyje)
• Spanish: identidad (es) f
• Swedish: identitet (sv) c
• Ukrainian: особи́стість (osobýstistʹ)

knowledge of who one is

• Bulgarian: идентификация f (identifikacija)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 個性 (zh), 个性 (zh) (gèxìng), 特性 (zh) (tèxìng)

• Czech: totožnost f, identita (cs) f
• Danish: identitet c
• Dutch: identiteit (nl) f, identiteiten (nl) pl
• Finnish: identiteetti (fi)
• French: identité (fr) f
• Georgian: ვინასობა (vinasoba)
• German: Identität (de) f
• Hebrew: זהות‎ (he) f

• Hungarian: identitás (hu), önazonosság, hovatartozás (hu)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: identitet m

  Nynorsk: identitet m

• Persian: هویت‎ (fa) (hoviyyat)
• Portuguese: identidade (pt) f
• Russian: индивидуа́льность (ru) f (individuálʹnostʹ), ли́чность (ru) f (líčnostʹ)
• Scottish Gaelic: dearbh-aithne f
• Spanish: identidad (es) f
• Swedish: identitet (sv)

algebra: function — see identity function

algebra: element — see identity element

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Albanian: ^{(please verify)} identitet (sq)
• Estonian: ^{(please verify)} identiteet
• Hebrew: ^{(please verify)} זהות‎ (he) f (zehut)
• Hungarian: (3) ^{(please verify)} identitás (hu), (4) ^{(please verify)} egységelem (hu)
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} identità (it) f
• Korean: ^{(please verify)} 동일성 (dongilseong) (1), ^{(please verify)} 신원 (ko) (sinweon)
• Latin: ^{(please verify)} identitas f, (genitive) ^{(please verify)} identitatis

• Persian: ^{(please verify)} برابری‎ (fa) (barâbari), ^{(please verify)} همانی‎ (fa) (hamâni), ^{(please verify)} شناسایی‎ (fa) (šenâsâyi)
• Romanian: ^{(please verify)} identitate (ro) f
• Serbo-Croatian: ^{(please verify)} identitet (sh) m
• Slovak: ^{(please verify)} identita f
• Swedish: ^{(please verify)} identitet (sv) c
• Turkish: ^{(please verify)} kimlik (tr)

Further reading

• identity in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• identity in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911