The Planets in Afrikaans and Other Space Vocabulary
If you're into space themes or other astronomy topics and are wanting to talk about such themes with others in Afrikaans, then this is the page for you! By scrolling below, you'll find all sorts of Afrikaans space vocabulary ranging from general space words like asteroid, universe, and black hole, to named objects like the sun, moon, and all the planets of our solar system.
The first list you'll find when scrolling below is the general list of space terms in Afrikaans. After this, you'll find the list of all the planets in our solar system, translated from Afrikaans to English (many of which are in fact the same spelling-helpful!). Toward the bottom of the page you'll find a third list of vocabulary that gives the translations for quite a few other named objects of space.
To help you navigate this page, we've added some quick links below to bring you to the specific vocabulary you are most interested in. Or you can just scroll down as normal and learn it all as it comes up!
Afrikaans Planet Names and Other Space Terms:
Words in bold added during the last update. You can also view this list of planets and space words from English to Afrikaans.
Quick links:
General List of Space Terms in Afrikaans
Planet Names in Afrikaans
Afrikaans Words for Other Named Space Objects
General List of Space Terms in Afrikaans
Here is a list of several general space terms in Afrikaans. (If you are looking for translations for named space objects or planets, those are further down the page.)
Asteroïed ➔ Asteroid
Asteroïedgordel ➔ Asteroid belt
Astronomie ➔ Astronomy
Astronomiese eenheid (AE) ➔ Astronomical unit (AU)
Bruindwerg ➔ Brown dwarf (star)
Donker materie ➔ Dark matter
Donkermaan (lit. Dark moon) ➔ New moon
Dubbelster ➔ Binary star
Dwergplaneet ➔ Dwarf planet
Dwergster ➔ Dwarf star
Eksoplaneet ➔ Exoplanet
Gasreus ➔ Gas giant (Uranus & Saturn)
Geeldwerg ➔ Yellow dwarf (star)
Heelal ➔ Universe
Komeet ➔ Comet
Kwark ➔ Quark
Kwasar ➔ Quasar
Ligjaar ➔ Light year
Maan ➔ Moon
Maansverduistering ➔ Lunar eclipse
Meteoor ➔ Meteor
Meteoorreën ➔ Meteor shower
Meteoriet ➔ Meteorite
Meteoroïde ➔ Meteoroid
Newel ➔ Nebula
Nova ➔ Nova
Planeet ➔ Planet
Rooidwerg ➔ Red dwarf (star)
Rooireus ➔ Red giant (star)
Ruimtevaarder ➔ Astronaut
Satelliet ➔ Satellite
Sonnestelsel ➔ Solar system
Sonsverduistering ➔ Solar eclipse
Spiraalsterrestelsel ➔ Spiral galaxy
Ster ➔ Star
Sterrebeeld ➔ Constellation
Sterrekunde ➔ Astronomy
Sterrestelsel ➔ Galaxy
Sterreswerm ➔ Star cluster
Supermassiewe swartkolk ➔ Supermassive black hole
Supernova ➔ Supernova
Swartkolk ➔ Black hole
Teleskoop ➔ Telescope
Volmaan ➔ Full moon
Weesplaneet ➔ Orphan planet
Wentelbaan ➔ Orbit
Witdwerg ➔ White dwarf (star)
Ysreus ➔ Ice giant (Neptune & Uranus)
Planet Names in Afrikaans
Interesting to note that Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Uranus, and Pluto are spelled the same in both Afrikaans and English. This makes this particular list much easier to remember. Most of the other planet names are pretty close too.
Mercurius ➔ Mercury
Venus ➔ Venus
Aarde ➔ Earth
Mars ➔ Mars
Jupiter ➔ Jupiter
Saturnus ➔ Saturn
Uranus ➔ Uranus
Neptunus ➔ Neptune
Pluto ➔ Pluto (dwergplaneet / dwarf planet)
Afrikaans Words for Other Named Space Objects
These are the named space objects from around the universe. Many of them can be found within our solar system, plus there's also some translated constellation names.
Andromeda-sterrestelsel ➔ Andromeda Galaxy
Barnard se Ster ➔ Barnard's Star
Die Maan ➔ The Moon
Die Son ➔ The Sun
Groot Beer (lit. Big Bear) ➔ Ursa Major / Big Dipper (constellation)
Groot Rooi Vlek ➔ Great Red Spot (on Jupiter)
Halley se Komeet ➔ Halley's Comet
Hubble-ruimteteleskoop ➔ Hubble Space Telescope
Internasionale Ruimtestasie (IRS) ➔ International Space Station (ISS)
Jagter ➔ Orion / The Hunter (constellation)
James Webb-ruimteteleskoop (JWRT) ➔ James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)
Kassiopeia ➔ Cassiopeia (constellation)
Klein Beer (lit. Little Bear) ➔ Ursa Minor / Little Dipper (constellation)
Krapnewel ➔ Crab Nebula
Kuipergordel ➔ Kuiper Belt
Melkweg ➔ Milky Way (galaxy)
Oerknal ➔ Big Bang (theory)
Oortwolk ➔ Oort Cloud
Saturnus se ringe ➔ Saturn's rings
Tweeling ➔ Gemini (constellation)
This list of Afrikaans planets and space terms was first created on July 29, 2025.
Next Up
Random Words in Afrikaans: Learn how to say random Afrikaans words and phrases.
Perhaps you want to learn space words in these other languages?
Afrikaans, Dutch, Filipino, Lithuanian and Spanish.
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