Harlem

H4A1R1L1E1M3
/ˈhɑː(ɹ)ləm/

proper noun

A neighborhood in northern Manhattan, New York County, New York City, New York State, United States, currently known for its black population and the culture thereof.

“Holonyms: Manhattan < New York < New York < United States < North America < Earth, World”

OriginDutch Nieuw Haarlem →
Less commonScrabble 11
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Meanings

proper noun
  1. A neighborhood in northern Manhattan, New York County, New York City, New York State, United States, currently known for its black population and the culture thereof.

    Holonyms: Manhattan < New York < New York < United States < North America < Earth, World

    1 more example

    This really was Harlem, and now all the stories which I had heard of the city-within-a-city leaped alive in my mind.

    1952, Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man, Penguin Books (2014), page 159
  2. obsoleteObsolete form of Haarlem: a city in Randstad, North Holland, Netherlands.

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
forest park

Origin

  1. DutchNieuw Haarlem“new Haarlem”
  2. EnglishHarlem

(New York City): From Dutch Nieuw Haarlem (“new Haarlem”), the original name of the area under the Dutch control, after Haarlem, a city in the Netherlands.

More words from Dutch

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic هارلم, هارليم
  • هارلم (hārlim)a neighborhood in northern Manhattan
  • هارليم (hārlīm)a neighborhood in northern Manhattan
Chinese Mandarin 哈萊姆 /哈莱姆, 哈林
  • 哈萊姆 /哈莱姆 (Hāláimǔ)a neighborhood in northern Manhattan
  • 哈林 (Hālín)a neighborhood in northern Manhattan
Dutch Harlem
  • Harlema neighborhood in northern Manhattan
Greek Χάρλεμ
  • Χάρλεμ (Chárlem)a neighborhood in northern Manhattan
Hindi हार्लेम
  • हार्लेम (hārlem)a neighborhood in northern Manhattan
Japanese ハーレム
  • ハーレム (Hāremu)a neighborhood in northern Manhattan
Russian Га́рлем, Ха́рлем
  • Га́рлем (Gárlem)a neighborhood in northern Manhattan
  • Ха́рлем (Xárlem)a neighborhood in northern Manhattan

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

MahlerHamlerMahrle
Cite this entry
APA

Harlem. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Harlem

MLA

“Harlem.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Harlem. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Harlem,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Harlem.

Source: Harlem on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.