Alternative names for "mother"

[JustSkipIt]

Hi everyone. My partner and I are trying to get pregnant and this is a concern... She is going to have the baby(ies eventually) so she got first dibs and wants to be called mama or mommy. What else could the baby/child call me? We're open to other languages etc. Any suggestions appreciated.



Thanks. Debra

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"Love involves a peculiar, unfathomable combination of understanding and misunderstanding." -- Diane Arbus

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"War may be a necessary evil. But no matter how necessary it is always evil." - President Jimmy Carter after receiving the Nobel Peace Prize

Edited by: JustSkipIt at: 2/4/03 8:04:02 pm

[Dumbsaint]

You know, my partner and I have been pondering this question as well, and we haven't come up with much of anything yet. Although I kind of like "Ama" which I think means mother in Hindi. I am probably wrong about that. :x Maybe "Mommy" and "Ama." Or do you think those are two closely related with the "mmm" phonetics?



I'll be really interested to hear what other Kittens have come up with on this one.

Spank me, I'm Julia.

[La]

Omma (with the "o" not like "oh" but somewhere between "uh" and "aw") is mom in Korean. In Germany mommy is "mutti" (pronounced like moo-tee).



Or maybe you could use a nicknamey version of your name. The whole way I ended up with the nickname La (my real name is Lauren) is that my friend's baby brother called me Lala since he couldn't say my name.

~La



"A science-fiction movie? I think I have made a science-fiction movie:

Chasing Amy. Because you go ask any lesbian--that'll never happen."

~Kevin Smith

[Hushpuppy]

Well, my partner and I haven't decided either (our little bundle of joy is one month old!!). We're both "mama" right now, but someone asks me about this every day so we're always thinking about it. I'm thinking maybe Oma, but some of these names are more for grandmas or aunts traditionally so it's hard to decide.



Our friends went with mommy and maymay (not sure about that spelling).



If you don't choose one your child may choose one for you.

That could get scary.... I have an awful potty mouth and I'm afraid my child's first word will be mutha!!

[xita]

btw, this is completely on topic as it is an issue of specific and important interest to lesbians. Unfortunately, I have nothing to contribute, hee, in spanish it's mama, which is only different in pronounciation.

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Baby you make my love come down

Oh you make my love come down

Make it come all the way down -
Evelyn Champagne King

[Pixie gishmock]

Huh. Interesting question. I've been thinking about this too. I can't remember which fic it is, but one I've read recently had the child call Willow "Mom" and Tara "Mama". (Maybe There You Are by DarkWiccan?) I had a student a few years ago who called one parent "Mom" and the other "Eema", which is Hebrew for "mom". I've thought about that for myself if my gf and I have kids, (especially because I am Jewish and she's not) but there's a part of me that has always wanted to be "mom/mommy". I love when my nephew calls my sister "mommy". So...... I'm interested to know what other kittens think.

Life is full of changes...The better you are at letting go of things, the freer your hands will be to catch something new. ~from Off The Map by Joan Ackerman
"It's good to be a chicken casserole," Tara murmured before passing out. ~from "Answering Darkness" by Sassette

[Blue Athame 1]

Hi, I rarely wander over to the kitten board...I guess I should more often. Glad I stopped by when I did. I am a mom with a four year old adopted dtr named Emma. Soon I shall have another...doing it yet again. My partner and I decided to keep it simple...she is mommy Sue and I am mommy Jo or mommy Joey (when Em decides to elongate). It has been simple enough for her and descriptive enough for us...gotta know who is on deck...particularly when they begin to talk. As a now experienced parent I vote go for ease and comfort in all things including names...do what works for you in your life...and quite simply think about what you would like to be called. I love hearing "mommy joeyyyyy" come sailing through the house like a little song. It fills my heart every day. I am sure you will find the names that feel right...we have been remarkably well received...even when Emma introduces us to strangers in the grocery store. Then of course there are those days she likes to call me daddy...usually in a public place and with a very loud voice. So I guess in the end it may not matter...because they always chose anyway.



Good Luck,

Let us know what you decide.



Joy (Blue Athame)

[skittles]

I had some friends from school who were Sunni Muslims from Bangladesh and I called their mother, Amma (pronounced AH-MAH). It always seemed appropriate to call her that and it was what she wanted me to call her.



I couldn't speak much Bengali & she couldn't speak much English, but we always could communicate. It was wonderful.

skittles



"These woods are lovely, dark, and deep, But I have promises to keep,

And miles to go before I sleep. And miles to go before I sleep."

-- Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost

[Rane018]

Well, growing up i called my mum *mami* (in spanish ie "mamee"), or "ima" (eema) in hebrew (like pixie pointed out cause we're two cool jews ), but now i mainly call her mimi or mims.

"We're forgetting about the troll.

Let's pay attention to the troll." Tara, Triangle



*never attribute to malice what can be explained by incompetence*

[cassiopeia191]

A friend of mine calls her Mom Mamschi (Mom-shi) and I think that's kinda sweet...about Oma: that's only the German word for grandmother. Mami, Mom, Mamà...you'll work it out. I'm really happy for you!

[drlloyd11]

A friend of mine uses their first names with "mama"

so its "mama amy" and "mama erika". Their daughter was 2 and it worked great

[lucidusgirl]

Friends of mine are called mommy and mamu by my goddaughter and it works just fine, even for me, I mean I don't get confused either....

Edited by: lucidusgirl at: 2/5/03 6:10:57 am

[MaClayMagic]

I have friends where the one is called mamma and the other moogy (or is that moogie?). All very "Deep Space 9" Ferengi!

[tkheaven]

Blue Athame, that's too cute...my gf and I are hoping to have children some day. We talk about it, figuring out who would be mommy/momma...



growing up I called my mom 'mami' (spanish) ... after a while I called my gf that (it's a hispanic thing) or 'mama' (not as is mom bur rather in a cute way, you stress it differently) and called my mom 'mima'...



In DW's "There You Are", Emily called Willow 'Mama' and Tara 'Mommy'

Tk's new and improved "GrrArgg"...

---

"I've become really protective of her. I want to make sure if Tara comes back, it's for good reason." -Amber Benson
Tara ate her, devoured her from beneath. -The Edge of Silence giving new meaning to this season's catch phrase.
"Don't get me wrong. I kinda like being the quirky nympho chick." - Michelle in 'American Pie 3'

[Sela]

I call my mother "maman" sometimes. It's french for mom, which is weird because I'm actually hispanic. I guess it's because my mother learned french in college--she got both my sister and I into that habit.



--Sela

[BBOvenGuy]

Like drlloyd, I know a couple that uses "mama" for both and added their first names. "Mama Mary" and "Mama Renee."

"If you are going to give a new message to the world, you will do so without being conscious of it yourself. If you set out to do it consciously, you will fail because you will be trying to pose; and the man who poses is insincere." - Charles V. Stanford

[atse28]

This certainly is an interesting question, I was only thinking of this the other day for when my partner and I have children.



In Cantonese, mother is prounced Ma-mee so maybe we'll use a Mummy and a Ma-mee but most likely Mummy Alison and Mummy Ada I guess.



Ada

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Unofficially, I have no idea what you are talking about...


Offically?

[hellmouthhottie20]

I used to call my mum Ma-mee.

Just thought i would tell you that, lol



Caz

There are many things worth living for, there are a few things worth dying for but there is nothing worth killing for.

[JustSkipIt]

Wow, what great responses from everyone. I am really excited to see such an array of suggestions.



Dumbsaint – I think that I read somewhere that there is a word “Amae” or something like that in Japanese which means one who is treasured and loved. When I read that I wondered if there is a word for the one doing the loving. If so, maybe from the same root at Ama? Thanks for the suggestion.



La - I like that suggestion. Yeah, I considered just letting it be Debba. That’s what my nephew called me when he first started talking and I liked it but don’t want it to be too close to my child calling me by name. I want it clear that I’m a mother. You know?



HushPuppy – Congradulations! That is so awesome and I hope to be in your place in about 10 months. Crossing fingers now (ok, it takes more than that ).



Pixie – Yeah, I think mama and mom or mama and mommy are too close. But the Hebrew suggestion is awesome. I was raised Jewish so I’m a little embaraased that I didn’t think of it. But that’s a great suggestion.



Joy – Yeah, I’d be happy with Mommy Debra and Mommy Rachel but I think that Rachel is pretty committed to being just mommy. But you are right too; the child will probably call us whatever he/she wants. My sister & brother decided to be mama & papa and that went well for a while but once my nephew went to preschool, he mixes mama, mommy, mom, and papa, daddy, dad, or any combination.



skittles – I really like the sound of that. Thanks for the suggestion.



Rane, cassiopeia, drlloyd, lucidsgirl, sela, tkheaven, bbovenguy, ada, Caz – Great suggestions.



MaClayMagic – is that a star trek word? I’m not a trekkie but sounds cool.



Oh and, Caz - Totally awesome signature line!

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"War may be a necessary evil. But no matter how necessary it is always evil." - President Jimmy Carter after receiving the Nobel Peace Prize

[MaClayMagic]

JustSkipIt, 'Moogie' (I think that's the spelling) is the name that in Trek's 'Deep Space 9' Quark, Rom and the Ferengi call their mothers! My friends are very VERY big Trek fans! But I don't think they share the same size of ear lobes that the Ferengi sport! I'd hope not!!

[AmberEyedDragon]

Most of what I could think of have already been mentioned by our all too wonderful kitties....but there is also always okaasan and haha, which are Japanese...haha is only for little kids, okaasan is a very respectable mother. I have to admit, just reading through this thread makes me happy. Just seeing so many kitties and their partners having/expecting kids, I dont know, it makes me feel good. My girlfriend and I both know we want kids, but we'll cross the "mom/mommy" bridge when we come to it.

~Sara~ Self Proclaimed Wonderbra Girl o' D00m

We don't need their shallow popularity; we'll build our palaces in the dark and beautiful places they forgot to look.



"Giles! I made them laugh, did you hear? I did....the joke thing"

[EffieBlue]

My Daughter sort of came up with her own names, over a period of time as she started to talk.



Her Birth Mom she called Mom, and me she called Mommy Mom.



That changed when her Mom decided that being a mom wasn't really her thing and she left.



Now I'm just Mom, Mam or MOTHER! when I embarrass her in front of her friends..

[Shadow ALH]

I love this thread! My gf might disagree, however, as I went to bed last night going on and on about how much I want to have a baby and soon. She insists (correctly, of course) that we wait a few years until we can actually afford to have kids.



When we do eventually have a baby we will probably go by Mama Andrea and Mama Carly. I don't think a little kid will be able to say my name for quite a while though, so we will probably just let him or her decide and go with it. Kids come up with better things than I probably ever could anyway.

[tkheaven]

wow, a little over a week sinse the last post. Not completely OT as is still has to do with babies BUT a little something for those mommies to be or already are...this was too cute to pass up: Dirty Baby

Tk's new and improved "GrrArgg"...

---

"I've become really protective of her. I want to make sure if Tara comes back, it's for good reason." -Amber Benson
Tara ate her, devoured her from beneath. -The Edge of Silence giving new meaning to this season's catch phrase.
"Don't get me wrong. I kinda like being the quirky nympho chick." - Michelle in 'American Pie 3'

[engtchr]

Hey JustSkipIt,



My partner and I are about 6 weeks away from a baby boy, and we have decided he will call me Mom or Mother and my partner Mama. We both decided we didn't feel comfortable with using our names - that just seemed too "unparentee" for us.



Good luck to you and your partner!







tkheaven! Thanks for the "Dirty Baby" laugh!

Edited by: engtchr at: 2/15/03 6:29:14 pm

[JustSkipIt]

MaclayMagic – Hmmm, not a very big trek fan so couldn’t imagine using a Trek word but good suggestion. Thanks.



Sara – Both good suggestions. I feel the same way. Seeing so many kittens who have or want kids is so warming.



EffieBlue – Sorry about the other mom taking off. But glad that your daughter is able to make her way through the words. That’s really cool.



Shadow ALH – Ha ha. Sorry to your gf. It’s hard when you want kids but know it’s not the right time. We were there last year. Yeah we’ve through of the Mama Rachel and Mama Debra thing. Kids always make our names Debba and Aja to start and then Debba and Racher. At least Mama is easy to pronounce.



tkheaven – That’s pretty funny!



engtchr – Congratulations to you! I agree about the first names being unparentee but we’ve gotten some good suggestions here.

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"War may be a necessary evil. But no matter how necessary it is always evil." - President Jimmy Carter after receiving the Nobel Peace Prize

[celticqueen1965]

At first I was to be Mummy and my partner Mum, but we thought that sounded too much alike, so I'm Mama and she's still Mum (she even had a little tattoo put on her chest in a heart that says Mum). But right now to our 14 month old we're both Mummummum.

[EffieBlue]

justskipit I've always been her 'Mom' as she pointed out to me the other day, ....

but....

now she's 12 I'm a lot more other 3 letter words too.



But you know something??? I wouldn't change it for the world.

[jixer]

Hello Kittens-



EffieBlue, thank you. I know you and the rest of the mom and dad Kittens of all kinds probably don't think about it much, what with the time magnets you have in your lives, but its the courage of those who reach out for a child as much as those who reach for the stars that defines the best in us as humans. The fact that a child sleeps tonight knowing they are loved that makes hope burn bright.



I just think that needed to be said.



Jixer

[jadedixon]

why can't the child just call you by your first names. I never got the whole, mom, mommy, dad ect thing. Parents don't refer to thier children as "son" or "daughter." It seems to me that that making your child refer to you by title is just a way of displaying superiority over them. I don't think that is something you should do to someone you love.