These are examples of the language of love for Valentine's Day from France, Spain and Italy - including 'my little cabbage' and 'my little pie'

Busuu are encouraging couples to impress one another with some of these quirky nicknames that translate into phrases like ‘my half an orange’ and ‘my little pie’ and ‘my cabbage’

Languages featured on their cute nicknames list include Spanish, Italian and French, which are ‘Romance languages’ – a branch of Indo-European languages that trace their roots to Latin.

And contrary to the name, these actually have nothing to do with romance!

Busuu are encouraging couples to impress one another with some of these quirky nicknames that translate into phrases like ‘my half an orange’ and ‘my little pie’ and ‘my cabbage’.

A spokesperson from Busuu said: “These languages are known for sounding beautiful and romantic – so what better time of year to incorporate some of these terms of endearment into your vocabulary than on Valentine’s Day?

“Although the origins of Romance languages don’t actually have anything to do with love, these languages are still seen as some of the most romantic.

“The emotive sounds, flow and ease of these languages are what makes them swoon-worthy. Many say languages with harsher pronunciation like German and Russian have the same effect.”

Busuu’s cute nicknames from around the world:

French nicknames

French is known for having some of the best nicknames for significant others that sound super romantic.

L’amour de ma vie - The love of my life

Mon ange - My angel

Mon cœur - My heart

Mon chou - My cabbage

Doudou - Sweetie/darling (no literal translation)

Spanish nicknames

Nicknames in Spanish often include the prefix ‘little’, the perfect term for endearment.

Amorcito - My little love

Cariño - Darling

Mi corazón - My heart

Pastelito - Little pastry/pie/muffin, used like ‘sweetie’

Mi media naranja - My half an orange (like my other half!)

Mi rey (for men) / Mi reina (for women) - My king/my queen

Italian nicknames

Italians have so many creative phrases for nicknames, here are some of our favourite

Amore (mio) - (My) love

Carino, carina - Cute

Dolce metà - Sweet half

Orsacchiotto, orsacchiotta - Big fluffy teddy bear

Piccolo (for men) / Piccola (for women) - Little one

Tesoro, tesorino - Treasure, little treasure