Mother in Different Languages
Discover 'Mother' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Mother
Afrikaans moeder | ||
Albanian nënë | ||
Amharic እናት | ||
Arabic أم | ||
Armenian մայրիկ | ||
Assamese মা | ||
Aymara tayka | ||
Azerbaijani ana | ||
Bambara bamuso | ||
Basque ama | ||
Belarusian маці | ||
Bengali মা | ||
Bhojpuri माई | ||
Bosnian majko | ||
Bulgarian майка | ||
Catalan mare | ||
Cebuano inahan | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 母亲 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 母親 | ||
Corsican mamma | ||
Croatian majka | ||
Czech matka | ||
Danish mor | ||
Dhivehi މަންމަ | ||
Dogri मां | ||
Dutch moeder | ||
English mother | ||
Esperanto patrino | ||
Estonian ema | ||
Ewe nᴐ | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) ina | ||
Finnish äiti | ||
French mère | ||
Frisian mem | ||
Galician nai | ||
Georgian დედა | ||
German mutter | ||
Greek μητέρα | ||
Guarani sy | ||
Gujarati માતા | ||
Haitian Creole manman | ||
Hausa uwa | ||
Hawaiian makuahine | ||
Hebrew אִמָא | ||
Hindi मां | ||
Hmong niam | ||
Hungarian anya | ||
Icelandic móðir | ||
Igbo nne | ||
Ilocano inang | ||
Indonesian ibu | ||
Irish máthair | ||
Italian madre | ||
Japanese 母 | ||
Javanese ibu | ||
Kannada ತಾಯಿ | ||
Kazakh ана | ||
Khmer ម្តាយ | ||
Kinyarwanda nyina | ||
Konkani आवय | ||
Korean 어머니 | ||
Krio mama | ||
Kurdish dê | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) دایک | ||
Kyrgyz эне | ||
Lao ແມ່ | ||
Latin mater | ||
Latvian māte | ||
Lingala mama | ||
Lithuanian motina | ||
Luganda maama | ||
Luxembourgish mamm | ||
Macedonian мајка | ||
Maithili मां | ||
Malagasy reny | ||
Malay ibu | ||
Malayalam അമ്മ | ||
Maltese omm | ||
Maori whaea | ||
Marathi आई | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯃꯃꯥ | ||
Mizo nu | ||
Mongolian ээж | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) အမေ | ||
Nepali आमा | ||
Norwegian mor | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) mayi | ||
Odia (Oriya) ମା | ||
Oromo haadha | ||
Pashto مور | ||
Persian مادر | ||
Polish matka | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) mãe | ||
Punjabi ਮਾਂ | ||
Quechua mama | ||
Romanian mamă | ||
Russian мать | ||
Samoan tina | ||
Sanskrit माता | ||
Scots Gaelic màthair | ||
Sepedi mma | ||
Serbian мајко | ||
Sesotho mme | ||
Shona amai | ||
Sindhi ماء | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) මව | ||
Slovak matka | ||
Slovenian mati | ||
Somali hooyo | ||
Spanish madre | ||
Sundanese indung | ||
Swahili mama | ||
Swedish mor | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) ina | ||
Tajik модар | ||
Tamil அம்மா | ||
Tatar әни | ||
Telugu తల్లి | ||
Thai แม่ | ||
Tigrinya ኣዶ | ||
Tsonga manana | ||
Turkish anne | ||
Turkmen ejesi | ||
Twi (Akan) maame | ||
Ukrainian мати | ||
Urdu ماں | ||
Uyghur ئانا | ||
Uzbek ona | ||
Vietnamese mẹ | ||
Welsh mam | ||
Xhosa umama | ||
Yiddish מוטער | ||
Yoruba iya | ||
Zulu umama |
Etymology & Notes
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | The Afrikaans word "moeder" is cognate with the English word "mother", and both derive from the Proto-Germanic word *môðēr. |
| Albanian | "Nënë" is thought to be derived from the Proto-Indo-European word for "mother-in-law". |
| Amharic | "እናት" is also used to mean "source of water" or "origin". |
| Arabic | أم (umm) in Arabic is also used as a term of endearment for a woman or as a prefix to indicate a female relative. |
| Armenian | "Մայրիկ" (mother in Armenian) is cognate with Parthian *māder, which in turn comes from Old Iranian *mātar-" |
| Azerbaijani | The term "ana" in Azerbaijani also refers to "grandmother" and can be used as a respectful form of address for older women. |
| Basque | "Ama" also means "wet nurse" or "godmother" in Basque. |
| Belarusian | The word "маці" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "*mati", which also means "mother" |
| Bengali | The Sanskrit word "mā" may be an origin of the feminine name "Maya" meaning "illusion" |
| Bosnian | In Bosnian, "majko" has a slightly negative connotation when used as a form of address, but it is also used as a term of endearment. |
| Bulgarian | The word "майка" (mother) in Bulgarian also has the alternate meaning of "a natural source of something" or "a place where something originates". |
| Catalan | The Catalan word “mare” can also mean "sea" or "pool". |
| Cebuano | The term "inahan" in Cebuano can refer to a birth mother, a step-mother, a maternal guardian, or a female ancestor. |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 母親 (mother) is also used as a respectful term of address to a woman roughly the same age as one's own mother. |
| Chinese (Traditional) | 母親, "mother" in Traditional Chinese, means "parent" in Classical Chinese or "mother" and "child" in Old Chinese. |
| Corsican | In Corsican, "mamma" is also an expression of tenderness and affection. |
| Croatian | The Croatian word "majka" derives from the Proto-Slavic word *mati, meaning "mother", and is also related to the Latin word "mater", meaning "mother". |
| Czech | In Czech, the word "matka" can refer to the biological mother, adoptive mother, or godmother of a person |
| Danish | In Danish, "mor" is sometimes used figuratively to refer to a woman who is a source of comfort or guidance. |
| Dutch | Dutch 'moeder' is derived from Proto-Germanic *mōdēr, meaning 'womb', and is related to English 'mother' and German 'Mutter'. |
| Esperanto | "Patrino" also means "godmother" in Esperanto, as it is derived from the Latin word "pater" meaning "father". |
| Estonian | "Ema" also means "a little" in Estonian. |
| Finnish | "Äiti" is also a colloquial term for "grandmother" or "wife". |
| French | In Middle French, "mère" could also mean "stepmother" or "mother superior". |
| Frisian | The Frisian word for 'mother', 'mem', is cognate with other West Germanic languages, but originally meant 'foster-mother'. |
| Galician | "Nai" is also a colloquial term for "girl" in Galician. |
| Georgian | The word |
| German | The word "Mutter" in German is derived from the Proto-Germanic word "mōdēr", meaning "mother or parent", and is related to the English word "mother". |
| Greek | "Μητέρα" can also refer to a stepmother, godmother, or other female caretaker in Greek. |
| Gujarati | "માતા" (mother) can also mean "mumps" in traditional Indian medicine, an illness that was perceived as a goddess. |
| Haitian Creole | The Haitian Creole word 'manman' also means 'mama,' 'mom,' 'lady,' or 'auntie' depending on its usage in a sentence. |
| Hausa | The word "uwa" in Hausa can also refer to an elderly woman or a female ancestor. |
| Hawaiian | It can be broken into maku, which refers to offspring, and wahine, the Hawaiian word for woman. |
| Hebrew | The word "אִמָא" (ima) comes from the root "אם" (em), which also means "mother" in Arabic and many other Semitic languages. |
| Hindi | The Hindi word "मां" has a root in the Sanskrit word "मम्" meaning "mine" |
| Hmong | The Hmong word "niam" for "mother" is cognate with the Proto-Hmong-Mien word *ɲaːm² "female, mother, grandmother" and is also used to refer to female animals. |
| Hungarian | The Hungarian word "anya" is likely derived from the proto-Altaic word *en(n)e, meaning "mother" or "female elder." |
| Icelandic | The word 'móðir' is also used to refer to the female head of a household without children. |
| Igbo | The Igbo word "nne" can also mean "sister" or "auntie" depending on the context in which it is used. |
| Indonesian | "Ibu" also has another meaning, "head of something", which is cognate with "ulu" in Malay and "ibu" in other Austronesian languages |
| Italian | The Italian word "madre" comes from the Latin word "mater", and its plural form is "madri". |
| Japanese | The character '母' can also mean 'female' or 'source' in Japanese. |
| Javanese | In the 14th century, "ibu" also referred to the "king". |
| Kannada | The word "ತಾಯಿ" (mother) in Kannada is derived from the proto-Dravidian word "*tayi" meaning "to give birth". |
| Kazakh | The word "ана" ("mother") in Kazakh derives from the ancient Turkic word "ene" with the same meaning, also appearing in other Turkic languages such as Turkish and Kyrgyz. |
| Khmer | The word "ម្តាយ" in Khmer also denotes a goddess or a female deity. |
| Korean | The word 어머니 (mother) is also used as an interjection expressing surprise or exasperation, similar to "oh my goodness!" |
| Kurdish | In Kurdish, the word 'dê' can also mean 'life' or 'home', reflecting the deep-rooted bond between mothers and the nourishment they provide. |
| Kyrgyz | "Эне" also refers to the Milky Way and, by extension, the world, the universe. |
| Lao | The word "ແມ່" ("mother") in Lao is also used as a prefix to denote respect for women, similar to the English "Mrs." |
| Latin | "Mater" also means "matter" in Latin, sharing a common root with words like "material" and "matrix". |
| Latvian | The word "māte" also means "stepmother" or "widow". |
| Lithuanian | In some dialects, "motina" can also mean "stepmother" or "aunt". |
| Luxembourgish | In Luxembourgish, the word "Mamm" can also refer to a female goat, as the first syllable in "Mamm" is derived from "Muhme" (goat) |
| Macedonian | "Мајка" is also a term of endearment for an older woman in the Macedonian language. |
| Malagasy | The word "reny" can also mean "female" or "woman" in Malagasy. |
| Malay | "Ibu" also means "centre" in Malay, implying the importance of the mother as the centre of the family. |
| Malayalam | The word "അമ്മ" in Malayalam is related to the Sanskrit word "अम्बा" (ambā), which means "mother" or "goddess." |
| Maltese | The Maltese word "omm" also means "wet nurse" or "stepmother" in some contexts. |
| Maori | "Whaea" in Maori may also refer to a female elder, an ancestor, or the personification of a natural force. |
| Marathi | The Marathi word |
| Mongolian | "Ээж" is derived from the proto-Mongolic word for "breast" and can also have the metaphorical meaning of "home". |
| Myanmar (Burmese) | "အမေ" is also an affectionate term for an older woman, such as a grandmother or aunt. |
| Nepali | The Nepali word "आमा" is related to Sanskrit "ambe," which is an appellation of Parvati, the Hindu goddess and Shiva's wife. |
| Norwegian | In Nynorsk, "mor" can also mean "aunt" |
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | Nyanja distinguishes between two words for "mother" "Amayi" for one's biological mother and "Mayi" for the mothers of one's father's and mother's siblings. |
| Pashto | The word "مور" (mother) in Pashto is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root "*méh₂tēr, |
| Persian | The Persian word مادر (mādar) originates from the Proto-Indo-European word *méh₂tēr, meaning "mother". |
| Polish | The word 'matka' also has metaphorical meanings, such as 'source' or 'origin'. |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | The word 'mãe' is a cognate of the Spanish 'madre' and the Italian 'madre', all ultimately deriving from the Latin word 'mater'. |
| Punjabi | The word "ਮਾਂ" is also used as a term of endearment for close female friends and relatives. |
| Romanian | The word "mamă" in Romanian is thought to come from the Latin "mamma" |
| Russian | The Russian word "мать" (mother) also means "checkmate" in chess and can be used as a swear word for "damn." |
| Samoan | Tina is derived from the Proto-Austronesian word *tina, meaning 'female breast' or 'milk', and is cognate with the Tagalog word ina, the Malay word ibu, and the Indonesian word ibu. |
| Scots Gaelic | The word "màthair" can also refer to a goddess, a female ancestor, or a spiritual guide in Gaelic tradition. |
| Serbian | The Serbian word "мајко" is derived from the Proto-Slavic "*mati", meaning "mother", and has a secondary meaning of "a woman who is like a mother" or "a nurse". |
| Sesotho | The word 'mme' in Sesotho can also refer to a female ancestor or a respected older woman. |
| Shona | "Amai" is a respectful way in Shona to call or refer to an older woman, including one's mother, aunts or sometimes teachers. |
| Sindhi | The word "ماء" in Sindhi can also mean "water," but it is derived from the Arabic word for "mother." |
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | The term "මව" also refers to the feminine aspect of the divine in ancient Sri Lankan culture |
| Slovak | In Slovak, the word "matka" can also refer to a glass jar or a clay oven. |
| Slovenian | The word "mati" can also refer to a midwife, godmother, or abbess in Slovenian. |
| Somali | The word "hooyo" is also used to refer to a female elder or relative, and is a term of respect. |
| Spanish | In Spanish, "madre" also refers to a female ancestor, a nun, or a metaphorical figure representing a protective or nurturing force. |
| Sundanese | "Indung" is also used as a term of endearment for women of high rank. |
| Swahili | "Mama" in Swahili can also refer to a maternal aunt, paternal grandmother, or any older respected woman. |
| Swedish | The Swedish word "mor" originates from the Proto-Indo-European root *méh₂tēr and signifies the maternal progenitor within the family unit. |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | The Tagalog word "ina" (mother) is derived from the Proto-Austronesian word "*inaq", which also means "grandmother". |
| Tajik | The word "модар” also means "source, foundation" and "basis" in Tajik. |
| Tamil | The word "அம்மா" can also refer to a goddess or a deity in Tamil culture. |
| Telugu | The word "తల్లి" also means "nature" or "the earth" in Telugu. |
| Thai | In Thai slang, "แม่" can also refer to a strong or respected woman, similar to the English term "queen." |
| Turkish | The Turkish word "anne" is cognate with the English word "aunt" and ultimately derives from the Proto-Indo-European word for grandmother. |
| Ukrainian | In Ukrainian, 'mati' can also refer to 'wet nurse' or 'godmother'. |
| Urdu | In addition to its primary meaning, "ماں" can also mean "the earth" or "the source of life" in Urdu, highlighting the sacred and nurturing role mothers play in society. |
| Uzbek | The word "Ona" in Uzbek also has the alternate meaning of "womb" or "uterus". |
| Vietnamese | The Sino-Vietnamese word “mẹ” also means mold in Vietnamese. |
| Welsh | The word "mam" can also be used as a term of endearment for a female friend or relative. |
| Xhosa | Xhosa 'umama' derives from 'mama,' a Bantu term also meaning 'breast' or 'milk'. |
| Yiddish | The Yiddish word "מוטער" derives from the Proto-Germanic word for "mother," from which the English term "mother" also came. |
| Yoruba | Iya, when doubled and pronounced 'Iya-Iya', means 'grandma' in Yoruba. |
| Zulu | In addition to its main meaning, "umama" also means "female elder" or "respected woman" in Zulu. |
| English | The term 'mother' is thought to originate from the Proto-Indo-European root *méh₂tēr, which also means 'maker'. |