Mammy, ma, mam, mom, mommy, mum, mummy?

Flashraziel

It was always Mam and Dad for me. Now however they`re the Fat aul` bitch and the Ignorant prick. they are terms of affection i promise you!

octavia-1

My father is dad and mother is mummy as she has never liked mum or mother.

I don't mind calling her mummy even though I'm 32!!

Shinners21

Mam & Dad... I used to call them by their names when I was a kid..

Kernel32

There has been some interesting developments in my son since I started this thread. He turned three in Sept. Up until a month ago he consistently called his mother mammy, which started because we lived in Ireland for 6 months when he was learning to talk. Now suddenly its mom. I know it's because we live in the states and thats what he hears other kids say.

He went through a period some time back where he called me by my first name more than he called me daddy. That stopped and suddenly I was daddy again. Now for the last month or two he calls me by my first name all the time. I have asked him about it, he says and I quote "sometimes I call you daddy and sometimes I call you Alex but mostly I call you Alex". It doesn't bother me really, except a little when we are out and he says it and people must think I am his step-dad or something.

bennyc

My Parents had there 30 Aniversery last year and we got them an enscribed mirror Then the fun began

Me Mum
SIS MAM
Bro1 Mam
Bro2 MA
Bro3 Mammy

Easy to pick out the youngest and also the one that went to boarding school
we are from the north west and ma isnt heard off
We did finally choose mam and dad

luckat

In Dublin in the last few years a lot of mothers have been called mum or mummie, which I think may come from the fact that English newspapers and radio and TV ads refer consistently to "Mum" or "Mummie". A kind of cultural infection that has even spread to some Irish papers.

deisemum

A former acquaintance has a brother who's a psychiatrist and he thinks it's better for children to call their parents by their names. I cannot remember the logic behind it.

In our house if we were refering to our parents it was the auld one or the auld lad. If talking to them it was Dad (RIP) or Mam (now called birth mother).

Exon

I call my parents ma and da.

luckat

Incidentally, I read some years back that every language in the world has a word for mother that's a variant of "Ma", and that this comes from the fact that the first sounds babies make other than cries is "mma-mma".

Cutie18Ireland

i call mine mam... and so do my 3 sisters!! just always been that way i guess and for the rest of them... dad, nanny and grandad!!

joejoem

Mom, mum or mam, occasionally ma

incisor71

I'm keeping Mum.

My youngest brother and second-eldest brother call her "Mother", which to me is too formal and aloof a term.

{Edit: I can't imagine being comfortable with calling her, or my father, by first name.}

octavia-1

I do think Mother is too formal, but I suppose it's what you get used to and what you have been brought up to say. I couldn't imagine calling my mother anything but Mummy, but then that's me

ctrl-alt-delete

i call them mammy and daddy when im talking about them e.g. "where is mammy" and call them ma and da when talking to them e.g. "ma"

embee

My baby is due in 5 weeks, and he/she will be calling me "Mam" or "Mammy".

I detest "Mum".

Rnger

Since when is mam, mammy and ma irish? and more to the point... since when is the rest american!?

I've lived in ireland my whole life and its been mum or mom. I detest ma, mam and mammy

Am I wrong? or, as i would much more prefer it, are you all wrong?

Kernel32

Well mom is definitely American. You would only hear it on TV when I was growing up in the 80's. I think it has become popular with teenagers right up to collage age kids now but I doubt you would hear anyone in Ireland who is 28+ use mom.

Laguna

Well it's mum and dad for me, mummy and daddy when I was less than 5. Then again I'm ENGLISH.

I think it sounds childish when adults call their mother 'Mammy'.

40crush41

Kernel32 wrote:

He went through a period some time back where he called me by my first name more than he called me daddy. That stopped and suddenly I was daddy again. Now for the last month or two he calls me by my first name all the time. I have asked him about it, he says and I quote "sometimes I call you daddy and sometimes I call you Alex but mostly I call you Alex". It doesn't bother me really, except a little when we are out and he says it and people must think I am his step-dad or something.

Thats funny -my cousin did the same thing -bothered my uncle in the same manner. heh, called his dad "Honey" for a bit too copying his ma, hehe, so cute. heh don't kids just say the darnest things?

hmm, for the record, i say Ma and Dad, i'm from the states, so i never used the other variations besides Mom -Mommy never grew on me, I don't remember saying that.

Incidentally, I read some years back that every language in the world has a word for mother that's a variant of "Ma", and that this comes from the fact that the first sounds babies make other than cries is "mma-mma".

mmm -something to do with the sucking I do believe. Interesting random fact eh?

Victor

luckat wrote:

Incidentally, I read some years back that every language in the world has a word for mother that's a variant of "Ma", and that this comes from the fact that the first sounds babies make other than cries is "mma-mma".

I'm not so sure of this, apparently in Finnish there is a much easier word for "mother" for babies. Making a "ma" sound is very difficult for very young babies (babies throat undergo a change at about 6 months). It leads to much calmer Finnish babies who don't end up crying / loosing the rag altogether out of frustration.

In any case, a baby's mind is more advanced than their speech abilty (see how good 1 year olds are at sign language).

40crush41

ah so true victor about the sign language -in the daycare i work in we have a lady who plays the guitar and teaches the kids sign language -amazing how fast their little hands pick it up, even in the 1's room.

i don't really get ur first part, seems a bit too general maybe -afterall, there are many calm babies that i know who don't fret over saying ma. im probably just missing something though, u tend to say smart things.

Nevyn

I think Victor is refering to the fact the that child can communicte better if the sound is easier to say and from an earlier age so it is less frustrated and cries less.

Bettyboop

My son calls me hubbard or biddy for some strange reason.
Havent been called mother or mam or mammy in years:(

tie_mi_shu

ma

luckat

Bunch of friends call their father Pop.

Used to be that Ma and Pa (presumably for Mater and Pater) were common, and of course Mammy and Dad.

Then there's grandparents. Maimeó & Daideó?

StonedParadoX

does it not really depend where your from and how u were brought up?

for instance the inner city dubs - would they not say ma n da? Me feckin ma! n Da! type thing or am i stereotyping?

iv always called my mum mummy or mum ..mom is too american sounding
mum n dad is what i say

mind you i spell it mom so?

"""A manager in work recently was inquiring about a collegues ability to take on a new project and asked of my boss.. " Does he have the bandwidth for the task".... WTF like."""

whats wrong with that.. thats an internet word coming through
dont u use internet words offline?
bit o fun no? ..bit o difference?
bandwidth is in no way american
if it is whats the irish form of bandwidth? .. bet u cant think of it

"""I was recently told by someone that usage of the words mum or mummy was a betrayal of his family's working class roots (which are buried pretty deep at this stage)."""
^ thats just SAD imho

btw im 21

tie_mi_shu

StonedParadoX wrote:

does it not really depend where your from and how u were brought up?

for instance the inner city dubs - would they not say ma n da? Me feckin ma! n Da! type thing or am i stereotyping?

yes

PoppyG

uberwolf wrote:

it abbreviated from mummy to mum when I was around 11 or so. My Dad pulled me up on it and said it was disrespectful, Mum had obviuosly noticed and cared...

she's stilll mum, or if I want to annoy her 'the aul one'.

24 btw

when a guy calls his pops that "the aul one" with a real culchie voice, i love it, such a turn on

PoppyG

tribble wrote:

I call mine Anne.
Always have, that's what my father calls her.

Exactly the same here, though everyone thinks its very strange

ashlynch

I would always refer to my mam as mam but my 9 year old son calls me mom and has done since he went to school, doesn't bother me either way but my brothers (his uncles0 so give him.me a bit of grief about it... saying he is very posh..