Endonym Atlas NAMES IN THEIR SCRIPTS
Country · NI

Nicaragua in other languages: exonyms, Managua and the 15 departments

Nicaragua is Nicaragua in Spanish, officially the República de Nicaragua, with the ISO codes NI, NIC and 558. Below are the name in 168 languages and variants, the capital Managua in 65, and the 15 departments and two autonomous regions with their seats.

Official languagesSpanish (español)

Checked

ISO 3166-1alpha-2 · alpha-3 · numeric
Flag of Nicaragua
ratio 3:5
alpha-2
NI
alpha-3
NIC
numeric
558
Nicaragua Spanish · Latin

República de Nicaragua

English
NicaraguaRepublic of Nicaragua
Capital
ManaguaManagua

ISO 3166-1, checked 28 October 2026. Flag: the Wikimedia Commons drawing, linked as a file because of its size.

01 · Exonyms

Nicaragua in other languages: list of exonyms

Nicaragua in 168 languages and variants, grouped where the spelling is shared, with ISO 639-3 codes and romanisation
LanguagesISO 639-3NameRomanised
English, Afrikaans, Aragonese, Asturian, Breton, Catalan, Danish, Estonian, Finnish, Kven, French, Galician, Hungarian, Interlingua, Italian, Jersey Norman French, Ladin, Dutch, Norwegian, Occitan, Romansh, Romanian, Sicilian, Northern Sami, Spanish, Swedish, Võroeng / afr / arg / ast / bre / cat / dan / est / fin / fkv / fra / glg / hun / ina / ita / jnf / lld / nld / nor / oci / roh / ron / scn / sme / spa / swe / vorNicaraguasame as written
Czech, Lower Sorbian, Basque, Faroese, Guarani, Upper Sorbian, Igbo, Indonesian, Javanese, Novial, Polish, Slovak, Albanian, Saterland Frisian, Swahili, Tagalog, Turkish, Zazakices / dsb / eus / fao / grn / hsb / ibo / ind / jav / nov / pol / slk / sqi / stq / swa / tgl / tur / zzaNikaraguasame as written
Cornish, Haitian Creole, Kinyarwanda, Maltese, Kirundicor / hat / kin / mlt / runNikaragwasame as written
Crimean Tatar, Gagauz, Karakalpak, Slovio, Turkmencrh / gag / kaa / slo / tukNikaragua / НикарагуаNikaragua
Croatian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Latgalian, Slovenianhrv / lav / lit / ltg / slvNikaragvasame as written
Aymara, Quechua, Yucatec Mayaaym / que / yuaNikarawasame as written
German, Luxembourgish, Low Germandeu / ltz / ndsNikaragua, Nicaraguasame as written
Welsh, Wallooncym / wlnNicaragwasame as written
AzerbaijaniazeNikaraqua / НикарагуаNikaraqua
BambarabamNikaraguwasame as written
BosnianbosNikaragva / Никарагва / نٖىقاراغواNikaragva
EsperantoepoNikaragvosame as written
Franco-ProvençalfrpNicaragoasame as written
West FrisianfryNikaragûasame as written
FriulianfurNicaraguesame as written
Scottish GaelicglaNiocaraguasame as written
IrishgleNicearaguasame as written
ManxglvYn Nickeraagsame as written
IcelandicislNíkaragva, Níkaragúasame as written
Kurmanji KurdishkurNîkaragwa, Nîkaragûasame as written
LatinlatNicaragua, Nicaraquasame as written
LingalalinNikalagwasame as written
MalagasymlgNikaragoasame as written
MoldovanmolNicaragua / НикарагуаNicaragua
MalaymsaNicaragua / نيكاراݢواNicaragua
NahuatlnahNicānāhuacsame as written
Norman FrenchnrmNicaragùasame as written
PortugueseporNicaráguasame as written
Kalderash RomanirmyNikaragua / निकारागुआNikaragua
AromanianrupNicaragvasame as written
SamogitiansmgNėkaragvasame as written
SamoansmoNikarakuasame as written
Somali, Wolofsom / wolNikaraaguwasame as written
SardiniansrdNicaràguasame as written
SilesianszlŃikaraguasame as written
TetumtetNikaráguasame as written
UzbekuzbNikaragua / Никарагуа / نىكەرەگۇئەNikaragua
VietnamesevieNi-ca-ra-goasame as written
VolapükvolNikaraguvänsame as written
Abaza, Altai, Avar, Bulgarian, Khakas, Komi, Karachay-Balkar, Kumyk, Lezgi, Meadow Mari, Mongolian, Russian, Yakut, Tuvan, Udmurt, Kalmykabq / alt / ava / bul / kjh / kom / krc / kum / lez / mhr / mon / rus / sah / tyv / udm / xalНикарагуаNikaragua
Bashkir, Chechenbak / cheНикарагуа / NikaraguaNikaragua
Rusyn, Ukrainianrue / ukrНікараґуаNikaragua
AbkhazabkНикарагәаNikaragwa
BelarusianbelНікарагуа / NikarahuaNikarahua
ChuvashchvНикарагуӑNikaraguă
KazakhkazНикарагуа / نيكاراگۋا / NïkaragwaNïkaragwa
KabardiankbdНикарагуэNikaraguă
KyrgyzkirНикарагуа / نىكاراگۇا / NikaraguaNikaragua
Kurdish (Caucasus)kmrНикарагуа / Nîkaragûa, Никараго / NîkaragoNîkaragûa, Nîkarago
MacedonianmkdНикарагваNikaragva
OssetianossНикарагуӕNikaraguä
SerbiansrpНикарагва / NikaragvaNikaragva
TatartatНикарагуа / Nikaragua / نىكاراگۇئاNikaragua
TajiktgkНикарагуа / نیکرگوؤه / NikaraguaNikaragua
Arabicaraنيكاراغوا, نيكارغوا, نيكاراجوا, نيكارجواNīkārāġuwā, Nīkāraġwā, Nīkārāguwā, Nīkāragwā
South Azerbaijaniazbنیکاراقوا / NikaraquaNikaraqua
Sorani Kurdishckbنیکاراگۆ / NîkaragoNîkarago
Persianfasنیکاراگوآ / Nikârâguâ, نیکاراگوا / NikârâguvâNikârâguâ, Nikârâguvâ
Western PunjabipnbنکاراگواNikārāgvā
DariprsنیکاراگواNīkārāgvā
Pashtopusنيکاراګوا, نکاراګواNīkārāgwā, Nikārāgwā
Uyghuruigنىكاراگۇئا / Nikaragua / НикарагуаNikaragua
UrduurdنکراگواNikarāgvā
DhivehidivނިކަރާގުއާNikarāguā
Hebrewhebניקרגואה, ניקאראגואהNīqaragūʾah, Nīqārāgūʾah
Ladinoladניקאראגואה / NikaraguaNikaragua
YiddishyidניקאַראַגואַNikaragua
AmharicamhኒካራጉዋNikaraguwa
GreekellΝικαράγουαNikarágoya
ArmenianhyeՆիկարագուաNikaragoua
Georgian, Mingreliankat / xmfნიკარაგუაNikaragua
Lazlzzნიკარაგუა / Nik’araguaNik’aragua
Hindihinनिकारागुआ, निकारगुआNikārāguā, Nikāraguā
Bengalibenনিকারাগুয়া, নিকারাগোয়াNikārāguyā, Nikārāgoyā
GujaratigujનિકારાગુઆNikārāguā
OdiaoriନିକାରାଗୁଆNikārāguā
PunjabipanਨਿਕਾਰਗੁਆNikāraguā
SinhalasinනිකරගුවාNikaraguvā
KannadakanನಿಕರಾಗುವNikarāguva
Malayalammalനിക്കരാഗ്വNikkarāgva
Tamiltamநிக்கராகுவா, நிகராகுவாNikkarākuvā, Nikārakuvā
Telugutelనికరాగ్వాNikarāgvā
Chinesezho尼加拉瓜Níjiālāguā
JapanesejpnニカラグアNikaragua
Koreankor니카라과Nikaragwa
Tibetanbodཉི་ཁ་ར་གྭ།, ཉིས་ཅ་ལ་གྭ།, ནི་ཀ་ར་གུ་ཝ།Ñi.kʰa.ra.gwa, Ñis.ča.la.gwa, Ni.ka.ra.gu.wa
BurmesemyaနီကာရာဂွာNikaẏagwa
ThaithaนิการากัวNikārākuā
Khmerkhmនីការ៉ាហ្គ័រNīkārāhkŏr

Nahuatl gives the name its older form, Nicānāhuac; Aymara, Quechua and Yucatec Maya write Nikarawa.

02 · NamesU+00FC LATIN SMALL LETTER U WITH DIAERESIS

Nicaragua, Nikaragva, Nicānāhuac

Nicaragua is spelled the same in Spanish, English, French, Italian and most Latin-script languages, so the table is short on variety at the top and long on detail further down. The shifts come from the gu: languages without that spelling write Nikaragwa (Maltese, Haitian Creole, Cornish), Nikaragva (Croatian, Slovene, Latvian, Lithuanian) or Nicaragwa (Welsh and Walloon). Portuguese adds an accent, Nicarágua, Faroese, Polish, Czech and others use k.

Nahuatl writes Nicānāhuac, and three Indigenous languages of the Andes and Yucatán, Aymara, Quechua and Yucatec Maya, agree on Nikarawa. In Cyrillic the common form is Никарагуа, Ukrainian has Нікараґуа with ґ, and Serbian and Macedonian Никарагва. Arabic lists four spellings, Hebrew two, and Persian two pairs in Arabic and Latin script.

03 · Managua

Managua in other languages

Managua in 65 languages and variants, grouped where the spelling is shared, with ISO 639-3 codes and romanisation
LanguagesISO 639-3NameRomanised
English, French, Latin, Spanish, German, Luxembourgish, Low German, Irisheng / fra / lat / spa / deu / ltz / nds / gleManaguasame as written
Icelandic, Latvian, Lithuanian, Samogitianisl / lav / lit / smgManagvasame as written
Haitian Creole, Tagalog, Kurmanji Kurdishhat / tgl / kurManagwasame as written
Moldovan, Turkmenmol / tukManagua / МанагуаManagua
Portuguese, Tetumpor / tetManáguasame as written
AzerbaijaniazeManaqua / МанагуаManaqua
BosnianbosManagua / Манагва / ماناغواManagua
EsperantoepoManagvosame as written
MalaymsaManagua / ماناݢواManagua
NahuatlnahManāhuacsame as written
QuechuaqueManawasame as written
SomalisomManaaguwasame as written
UzbekuzbManagua / Манагуа / مەنەگۇئەManagua
Bulgarian, Mongolian, Russianbul / mon / rusМанагуаManagua
BashkirbakМанагуа / ManaguaManagua
BelarusianbelМанагуа / ManahuaManahua
ChuvashchvМанагуӑManaguă
KazakhkazМанагуа / ماناگۋا / ManagwaManagwa
KabardiankbdМанагуэManaguă
KyrgyzkirМанагуа / ماناگۇا / ManaguaManagua
SerbiansrpМанагва / ManagvaManagva
TatartatМанагуа / Managua / ماناگۇئاManagua
TajiktgkМанагуа / منگوؤه / ManaguaManagua
UkrainianukrМанаґуаManagua
Arabicaraماناغوا, مناغوا, ماناجوا, مناجواMānāġuwā, Manāġuwā, Mānāguwā, Manāguwā
South Azerbaijaniazbماناقوا / ManaquaManaqua
Persianfasماناگوآ / ماناگوئا / Mânâguâ, ماناگوا / MânâgvâMânâguâ, Mânâgvâ
PashtopusماناګواMānāgwā
Uyghuruigماناگۇئا / Managua / МанагуаManagua
UrduurdماناگواMānāgvā
Hebrewhebמנגואה, מאנאגואהManagūʾah, Mānāgūʾah
YiddishyidמאַנאַגואַManagua
AmharicamhማናጓManagʷa
GreekellΜανάγκουαManágkoya
ArmenianhyeՄանագուաManagoua
GeorgiankatმანაგუაManagua
HindihinमानागुआMānāguā
NepalinepमनागुवाManāguvā
Bengalibenমানাগুয়াMānāguyā
PunjabipanਮਨਾਗੁਆManāguā
KannadakanಮನಾಗುವManāguva
Malayalammalമനാഗ്വManāgva
Tamiltamமனாகுவா, மனகுவாMaṉākuvā, Maṉakuvā
TelugutelమనాగువాManāguvā
Chinesezho馬那瓜/马那瓜Mǎnāguā
JapanesejpnマナグアManagua
Koreankor마나과Managwa
ThaithaมานากัวMānākuā
Khmerkhmម៉ាណាហ្គា, មែនណាហ្គ័រMāṇāhkā, Mænṇāhkŏr
04 · Departments

The 15 departments and 2 autonomous regions of Nicaragua

Nicaragua is divided into 15 departments (departamentos) on the Pacific side and in the centre, and two autonomous regions on the Caribbean coast. The English column follows ISO 3166-2, which translates some names: Nueva Segovia is New Segovia, Río San Juan Saint John River.

Nicaragua, ISO 3166-2:NI: 15 departments and 2 autonomous regions
ISO 3166-2SpanishEnglishAdministrative centreChange
Departments departamentos15
NI-BO Departamento de Boaco Boaco BoacoBoaco
NI-CA Departamento de Carazo Carazo JinotepeJinotepe
NI-CI Departamento de Chinandega Chinandega ChinandegaChinandega
NI-CO Departamento de Chontales Chontales JuigalpaJuigalpa
NI-ES Departamento de Estelí Estelí EstelíEstelí
NI-GR Departamento de Granada Granada GranadaGranada
NI-JI Departamento de Jinotega Jinotega JinotegaJinotega
NI-LE Departamento de León León LeónLeón
NI-MD Departamento de Madriz Madriz SomotoSomoto
NI-MN Departamento de Managua Managua ManaguaManagua
NI-MS Departamento de Masaya Masaya MasayaMasaya
NI-MT Departamento de Matagalpa Matagalpa MatagalpaMatagalpa
NI-NS Departamento de Nueva Segovia New Segovia OcotalOcotal
NI-RI Departamento de Rivas Rivas RivasRivas
NI-SJ Departamento de Río San Juan Saint John River San CarlosSan Carlos
Autonomous regions regiones autónomas2
NI-AN Región Autónoma de la Costa Caribe Norte North Caribbean Coast Puerto CabezasPuerto Cabezas (Bilwi) 2018 ISO renames Atlántico Norte to Costa Caribe Norte
NI-AS Región Autónoma de la Costa Caribe Sur South Caribbean Coast BluefieldsBluefields 2018 ISO renames Atlántico Sur to Costa Caribe Sur

Codes and names: ISO 3166-2:NI on the ISO Online Browsing Platform, as tabulated in Wikipedia's ISO 3166-2:NI, checked 28 October 2026; the 2018 entry renamed both autonomous regions. Seats: Wikipedia, Departments of Nicaragua, same date.

05 · Changes

From Atlántico to Costa Caribe

The autonomous regions on the Caribbean coast changed their names. Until the 2010s they were the Región Autónoma del Atlántico Norte and Sur, RAAN and RAAS; today they are the Región Autónoma de la Costa Caribe Norte and Sur, RACCN and RACCS. ISO 3166-2 followed on 20 April 2018 and kept the codes NI-AN and NI-AS.

The northern seat goes by two names, Bilwi and Puerto Cabezas. Carazo is governed from Jinotepe and Chinandega from the city of the same name.

06 · Towns

The ten largest towns

  • Managua
  • León
  • Chinandega
  • Masaya
  • Estelí
  • Tipitapa
  • Matagalpa
  • Granada
  • Ciudad Sandino
  • Juigalpa
07 · Questions

Questions about the names and departments of Nicaragua

How many departments does Nicaragua have?

15 departments and 2 autonomous regions, 17 units in ISO 3166-2:NI.

What were RAAN and RAAS?

The former names of the two Caribbean autonomous regions, Atlántico Norte and Atlántico Sur. They are now Costa Caribe Norte and Costa Caribe Sur.

What are the ISO codes of Nicaragua?

NI (alpha-2), NIC (alpha-3) and 558 (numeric) in ISO 3166-1.