Do Other Languages Use ‘Haha’ for Laughter in Text?

Spanish — jajaja 

In Spanish, the letter “j” sounds similar to the English “h,” but it can vary across different regions — in some countries the sound is soft and breathy, while in others it’s harsher and more similar to the “ch” in the Scottish word “loch.” Spanish speakers write laughter as jajaja, which therefore sounds very similar to the English “hahaha.” Spanish also has variations: Jejeje could suggest playfulness or knowing amusement, while jijiji might imply mischievous or sneaky laughter (depending largely on context). 

Russian — хахаха  

Russian uses the Cyrillic alphabet, in which the letter “х” (pronounced like “kh” or “h”) is the closest equivalent to the English “h.” So хахаха is simply “hahaha” written in Cyrillic. But Russian internet culture also produced one of the most distinctive laughter conventions anywhere: the closing parenthesis. In Russian digital communication, a single ) indicates a smile (or simple politeness), while a string of them — ))))) — represents escalating laughter. The more brackets, the harder someone is laughing.

Greek — χαχαχα 

Greek has the same logic as Russian. The letter “χ” (chi) produces a sound close to the English “h” but harsher, so Greek laughter is written as χαχαχα — again, phonetically very similar to “hahaha,” just rendered in the Greek alphabet. Greek digital laughter also has some alternatives, such as χοχο, which suggests sarcastic humor, and χα0χα0χα0, which is villainous laughter. 

Japanese — www 

In Japan, the most common form of writing laughter is a “w” or a string of “w” letters — wwww — which derives from the Japanese word warai (笑う), meaning “laughter.” The “w” is simply the first letter of that word written in the Latin alphabet, and stacking them indicates increasing hilarity. 

Korean — ㅋㅋㅋ and ㅎㅎㅎ 

Korean uses two main forms of written laughter. ㅋㅋㅋ uses the Korean consonant ㅋ (keu), which produces a sound similar to the laughing “ha.” Then there’s ㅎㅎㅎ, which uses the consonant ㅎ (hee-eut), which is closer to the English “h” — making it the more direct phonetic equivalent of “haha” or “heh-heh” (a gentle chuckle). As in Japanese, more repetitions of the character indicate stronger laughter.

Thai — ฮ่าๆ or 555 

Thai has a number of ways to express laughter in written form. One common option, used in novels and newspapers, is to use use ฮ่าๆ, which would be the equivalent of writing “haha.” Then there’s a popular alternative used on social media: the numeral 5. In Thai, the number five is pronounced as “hah,” making “555” phonetically equivalent to “hahaha.”

Brazilian Portuguese — kkkkk and rsrsrs 

Brazilian internet culture produced two distinct laughter conventions. First, there’s kkkkk. This may seem counterintuitive to English speakers, but in Brazilian Portuguese the letter “k” is pronounced “kah” — so a string of them sounds like a cackling laugh. Then there’s rsrsrs, which comes from the Portuguese word risos, meaning “laughter.” You’ll also see a hybrid version on social media in the form of krkrkrkrkr. 

Arabic — هههههه

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