A translation for the Bulgarian word "колбас", less specific than "sausage"

In Bulgarian we have the word "колбас" (kolbas) which means roughly "cooked meat, almost always with additives, usually ground, usually wrapped in an intestine or in something else".

English terms that denote kinds of "kolbas" include:

  • Sausage
  • Salami
  • Bacon
  • Ham

But online dictionaries translate "kolbas" to simply "sausage", which is really only one kind of "kolbas".

Note: I found the cognate "Kiełbasa" which has been borrowed into English from Polish. But it means just a type of sausage.


Solution 1:

According to this definition charcuterie covers most of the prepared meat products listed in the question. It is originally a French term but has been adopted into English so seems like a good translation of kolbas

Solution 2:

Sausage is the generic term covering raw, ground meat and spices in a casing of some sort. (For example, typical Italian sausage, or breakfast links.)

It also refers to those types which are preserved by smoking and drying, like, salamis, summer sausages and pepperoni.

"Sausage" can also be used to describe the myriad German "wursts". (US)