ombudsman

See also: ombudsmän

English

WOTD – 25 November 2007

Etymology

Borrowed from Swedish ombudsman (equivalent to ombud (“representative, proxy”) + man), from Old Norse umboðsmaðr.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈɒmbədzmən/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈɑmbədzmən/
• (Philippines) IPA^(key): /ʔomˈbuːds.mɐn/

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

ombudsman (plural ombudsmen)

1. An appointed official whose duty is to investigate complaints, generally on behalf of individuals such as consumers or taxpayers, against institutions such as companies and government departments.
2. A designated internal mediator in an organization whose duty is to assist members with conflict resolution and other problems and to serve as an independent consultant to recommend changes to policies or procedures to improve organization effectiveness, efficiency, and humaneness.

Usage notes

• Derived from Swedish, where the suffix -man is not always gender specific. Nevertheless, the words ombud, ombuds, ombudsperson, and ombudswoman have been coined to remedy the perceived gender-specificity of ombudsman in English.

Derived terms

• ombud
• ombuds
• ombudsperson
• ombudswoman

Translations

official who investigates complaints

• Arabic: أَمِين اَلْمَظَالِم m (ʔamīn al-maẓālim)
• Armenian: օմբուդսմեն (hy) (ōmbudsmen), մարդու իրավունքների պաշտպան (hy) (mardu iravunkʻneri paštpan)
• Bulgarian: омбудсман (bg) (ombudsman)
• Catalan: síndic de greuges (ca) m, defensor del poble
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 申訴專員／申诉专员 (shēnsù zhuānyuán), 調查專員／调查专员 (diàochá zhuānyuán)

• Czech: ombudsman (cs) m
• Danish: ombudsmand (da) c
• Dutch: ombudsman (nl)
• Faroese: umboðsmaður
• Finnish: oikeusasiamies (fi), välimies (fi)
• French: ombudsman (fr) m, médiateur (fr) m, protecteur (fr) m
• Galician: ragador m, meeiro m, avindeiro m, triquiñón m, valedor m
• Georgian: ომბუდსმენი (ombudsmeni), სახალხო დამცველი (saxalxo damcveli)
• German: Ombudsmann (de) m
• Hindi: लोकपाल (hi) (lokpāl), लोकायुक्त (lokāyukt)
• Hungarian: ombudsman (hu)
• Ido: mediacanto (io)
• Indonesian: ombudsman (id)
• Japanese: オンブズマン (ja) (onbuzuman), 苦情調査官 (くじょうちょうさかん, kujō chōsakan)
• Kazakh: омбудсмен (ombudsmen)
• Korean: 옴부즈만 (ombujeuman)
• Kyrgyz: омбудсмен (ombudsmen)
• Macedonian: народен правобранител (naroden pravobranitel), омбудсман (ombudsman)
• Malayalam: ഓംബുഡ്സ്മാൻ (ml) (ōmbuḍsmāṉ)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: ombudsmann (no) m

  Nynorsk: ombodsmann m

• Persian: دادآور (dâd-âvar)
• Polish: ombudsman (pl) m, rzecznik (pl) m
• Portuguese: ombudsman (pt) m, ouvidor (pt) m
• Romanian: ombudsman (ro) m
• Russian: уполномо́ченный по права́м челове́ка m (upolnomóčennyj po pravám čelovéka), омбудсме́н (ru) m (ombudsmén), омбудсма́н m (ombudsmán)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: омбу̀дсман m

  Latin: ombùdsman (sh) m, pȗčkī pravobrànitelj m

• Spanish: , mediador (es), defensor del pueblo
• Swedish: ombudsman (sv)
• Tajik: додовар (dodovar)
• Thai: ผู้ตรวจการแผ่นดิน (pûu-dtrùuat-gaan-pɛ̀n-din)
• Turkish: ombudsman (tr), kamu denetçisi
• Ukrainian: омбудсме́н m (ombudsmén), омбудсма́н m (ombudsmán)
• Urdu: محتسب m (mohtasib)
• Welsh: ombwdsmon m

Cebuano

Etymology

From English ombudsman, borrowed from Swedish ombudsman, from Old Norse umboðsmaðr.

Noun

ombudsman

1. an ombudsman

Czech

Etymology

Borrowed from Swedish ombudsman, from Old Norse umboðsmaðr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈombut͡sman]

Noun

ombudsman m anim

1. ombudsman

Declension

Declension of ombudsman (hard masculine animate)

	singular	plural
nominative	ombudsman	ombudsmani
genitive	ombudsmana	ombudsmanů
dative	ombudsmanovi, ombudsmanu	ombudsmanům
accusative	ombudsmana	ombudsmany
vocative	ombudsmane	ombudsmani
locative	ombudsmanovi, ombudsmanu	ombudsmanech
instrumental	ombudsmanem	ombudsmany

Dutch

Etymology

From Swedish ombudsman, from Old Norse umboðsmaðr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɔm.bʏts.mɑn/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

ombudsman m (plural ombudsmannen, diminutive ombudsmannetje n)

1. ombudsman

Derived terms

• ombudsvrouw
• ombudspersoon, ombudsmens (jocular)

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Swedish ombudsman, from Old Norse umboðsmaðr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɔm.byds.man/, /ɔ̃.byds.mɑ̃/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

ombudsman m or f by sense (plural ombudsmans)

1. an appointed official within an organization whose duty is to investigate complaints against that organization by its customers, taxpayers, and sometimes employees, and often to act as a consultant to improve services and processes

Usage notes

• In Quebec, the office in government services is called protecteur du citoyen. A similar office in France is that of the médiateur, though its precise functions differ.

Indonesian

Etymology

Borrowed from English ombudsman, from Swedish ombudsman (equivalent to ombud (“representative, proxy”) + man), from Old Norse umboðsmaðr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɔmˈbʊts.man/
• Rhymes: -man
• Hyphenation: om‧buds‧man

Noun

ombudsman

1. ombudsman
   1. an appointed official whose duty is to investigate complaints, generally on behalf of individuals such as consumers or taxpayers, against institutions such as companies and government departments.
   2. a designated internal mediator in an organization whose duty is to assist members with conflict resolution and other problems and to serve as an independent consultant to recommend changes to policies or procedures to improve organization effectiveness, efficiency, and humaneness.

Further reading

• “ombudsman” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

Polish

Etymology

Borrowed from Swedish ombudsman.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɔmˈbutsman/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -utsman
• Syllabification: om‧bud‧sman

Noun

ombudsman m pers

1. ombudsman

Declension

Declension of ombudsman

	singular	plural
nominative	ombudsman	ombudsmani/ombudsmany (deprecative)
genitive	ombudsmana	ombudsmanów
dative	ombudsmanowi	ombudsmanom
accusative	ombudsmana	ombudsmanów
instrumental	ombudsmanem	ombudsmanami
locative	ombudsmanie	ombudsmanach
vocative	ombudsmanie	ombudsmani

Further reading

• ombudsman in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• ombudsman in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Portuguese

Etymology

From Swedish ombudsman, from Old Norse umboðsmaðr.

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /õ.bu.d͡ʒizˈmɐ̃/, /õ.bud͡ʒsˈmɐ̃/

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /õ.bu.d͡ʒizˈmɐ̃/, /õ.bud͡ʒsˈmɐ̃/
  • (Rio de Janeiro) IPA^(key): /õ.bu.d͡ʒiʒˈmɐ̃/, /õ.bud͡ʒʃˈmɐ̃/
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /õ.bud͡ʒsˈmɐ̃/, /õ.bu.d͡ʒizˈmɐ̃/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /õ.budʃˈman/ [õ.buðʃˈman]

• Hyphenation: om‧buds‧man

Noun

ombudsman m (plural ombudsmen or ombudsmans or ombudsman)

1. ombudsman (official who investigates complaints)

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from English ombudsman, from Swedish ombudsman, from Old Norse umboðsmaðr.

Noun

ombudsman m (plural ombudsmani or ombudsmeni)

1. ombudsman

Declension

Declension of ombudsman

	singular		plural
	indefinite articulation	definite articulation	indefinite articulation	definite articulation
nominative/accusative	(un) ombudsman	ombudsmanul	(niște) ombudsmani	ombudsmanii
genitive/dative	(unui) ombudsman	ombudsmanului	(unor) ombudsmani	ombudsmanilor
vocative	ombudsmanule		ombudsmanilor

Declension of ombudsman

	singular		plural
	indefinite articulation	definite articulation	indefinite articulation	definite articulation
nominative/accusative	(un) ombudsman	ombudsmanul	(niște) ombudsmeni	ombudsmenii
genitive/dative	(unui) ombudsman	ombudsmanului	(unor) ombudsmeni	ombudsmenilor
vocative	ombudsmanule		ombudsmenilor

See also

• reprezentant

References

• ombudsman in DEX online—Dicționare ale limbii române (Dictionaries of the Romanian language)

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

Borrowed from Swedish ombudsman, from Old Norse umboðsmaðr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ombǔdzman/

Noun

ombùdsman m (Cyrillic spelling омбу̀дсман)

1. ombudsman

   Synonym: pučki pravobranitelj

Spanish

Noun

ombudsman m or f by sense (plural ombúdsmanes)

1. ombudsman

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Swedish umbuds man or ombud (“representative, proxy”) +‎ man. The origin of the word is found in Old Norse umboðsmaðr and the word “umbuds man”, meaning representative. The first preserved use in Swedish is from 1552.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɔm.bʉːdsˌman/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

ombudsman c

1. ombudsman

Declension

Declension of ombudsman
	Singular		Plural
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Nominative	ombudsman	ombudsmannen	ombudsmän	ombudsmännen
Genitive	ombudsmans	ombudsmannens	ombudsmäns	ombudsmännens

Related terms

• barnombudsman
• diskrimineringsombudsman
• jämo
• jämställdhetsombudsman
• justitieombudsman

Descendants

Descendants

• → Armenian: օմբուդսմեն (ōmbudsmen)
• → Dutch: ombudsman
• → English: ombudsman
  • → Russian: омбудсмен (ombudsmen)
• → Georgian: ომბუდსმენი (ombudsmeni)
• → German: Ombudsmann
• → Portuguese: ombudsman
• → Serbo-Croatian: ombudsman

References

• ombudsman in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• ombudsman in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• ombudsman in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

Turkish

Etymology

From English ombudsman, from Swedish ombudsman, from Old Norse umboðsmaðr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /om.buds.mɑn/

Noun

ombudsman (definite accusative ombudsmanı, plural ombudsmanlar)

1. ombudsman

Declension

Inflection
Nominative	ombudsman
Definite accusative	ombudsmanı
	Singular	Plural
Nominative	ombudsman	ombudsmanlar
Definite accusative	ombudsmanı	ombudsmanları
Dative	ombudsmana	ombudsmanlara
Locative	ombudsmanda	ombudsmanlarda
Ablative	ombudsmandan	ombudsmanlardan
Genitive	ombudsmanın	ombudsmanların
Possessive forms Nominative Singular Plural 1st singular ombudsmanım ombudsmanlarım 2nd singular ombudsmanın ombudsmanların 3rd singular ombudsmanı ombudsmanları 1st plural ombudsmanımız ombudsmanlarımız 2nd plural ombudsmanınız ombudsmanlarınız 3rd plural ombudsmanları ombudsmanları Definite accusative Singular Plural 1st singular ombudsmanımı ombudsmanlarımı 2nd singular ombudsmanını ombudsmanlarını 3rd singular ombudsmanını ombudsmanlarını 1st plural ombudsmanımızı ombudsmanlarımızı 2nd plural ombudsmanınızı ombudsmanlarınızı 3rd plural ombudsmanlarını ombudsmanlarını Dative Singular Plural 1st singular ombudsmanıma ombudsmanlarıma 2nd singular ombudsmanına ombudsmanlarına 3rd singular ombudsmanına ombudsmanlarına 1st plural ombudsmanımıza ombudsmanlarımıza 2nd plural ombudsmanınıza ombudsmanlarınıza 3rd plural ombudsmanlarına ombudsmanlarına Locative Singular Plural 1st singular ombudsmanımda ombudsmanlarımda 2nd singular ombudsmanında ombudsmanlarında 3rd singular ombudsmanında ombudsmanlarında 1st plural ombudsmanımızda ombudsmanlarımızda 2nd plural ombudsmanınızda ombudsmanlarınızda 3rd plural ombudsmanlarında ombudsmanlarında Ablative Singular Plural 1st singular ombudsmanımdan ombudsmanlarımdan 2nd singular ombudsmanından ombudsmanlarından 3rd singular ombudsmanından ombudsmanlarından 1st plural ombudsmanımızdan ombudsmanlarımızdan 2nd plural ombudsmanınızdan ombudsmanlarınızdan 3rd plural ombudsmanlarından ombudsmanlarından Genitive Singular Plural 1st singular ombudsmanımın ombudsmanlarımın 2nd singular ombudsmanının ombudsmanlarının 3rd singular ombudsmanının ombudsmanlarının 1st plural ombudsmanımızın ombudsmanlarımızın 2nd plural ombudsmanınızın ombudsmanlarınızın 3rd plural ombudsmanlarının ombudsmanlarının
Predicative forms Singular Plural 1st singular ombudsmanım ombudsmanlarım 2nd singular ombudsmansın ombudsmanlarsın 3rd singular ombudsman ombudsmandır ombudsmanlar ombudsmanlardır 1st plural ombudsmanız ombudsmanlarız 2nd plural ombudsmansınız ombudsmanlarsınız 3rd plural ombudsmanlar ombudsmanlardır