How do you address your mother & father?

[Beckdawrek]

I noticed something with my husband’s family. My kids referred to them as Mamaw and Papaw. Immediately on their arrival my husband started calling his parents as Mamaw and Papaw. I thought that was strange. My kids called my Daddy by ‘Diddy’. We don’t recall when this occured. I assume they heard me say Daddy, and thats how it happened. They were the first grandkids on both sides so they had the honor of naming them. My grandkids call us Nana and Poppy. When they are around, which is frequent, I hear; Nana, Nana, Nana. It rings in my head after they leave. It’s quite extraordinary.

[Dendarii_Dame]

Mom and Dad

[ExTank]

Dear Departed, R.I.P.

[carnut]

The deceased.

[Hedda_Rosa]

Mom & Dad, and step-parents by their first names. Except when I first answer a call from my mom - that’s always “Hi Mommy!”

[Tim_T-Bonham.net]

@Tamerlane

By their first names.

It seems to be extremely rare to address parents by their name – most people do so by title (Mom, Ma, Mother, etc.). In fact, many seem to feel it somewhat insulting to address them by their name.

I have some friends who switched to addressing their parents by name once they turned 18, just like as most adults address each other. But that was unusual – they were a 60’s hippy family, too.

[StGermain]

My parents are both dead now, but they were Mother and Dad.

StG

[TriPolar]

@Tim_T-Bonham.net

It seems to be extremely rare to address parents by their name – most people do so by title (Mom, Ma, Mother, etc.). In fact, many seem to feel it somewhat insulting to address them by their name.

I have some friends who switched to addressing their parents by name once they turned 18, just like as most adults address each other. But that was unusual – they were a 60’s hippy family, too.

A friend’s parents got that notion back in the 60s. I remember his mother’s name was Bonnie, don’t recall the father’s. I couldn’t bring myself to address them by there first names, despite their insistence I used Mr. or Mrs. Whateveritwas. I was very uncomfortable about the whole notion because if I ever referred to my parents by their first names I’m sure I’d get smacked upside the head and told that I was even more evil than they had already judged me to be.

[Defensive_Indifference]

Mom and Dad. In the last 5 or 10 years of his life, I often called my dad Pop, which is what he called both his dad and my mom’s dad.

I called my maternal grandparents Grandma [first name] and Grandpa [first name]. I called my paternal grandparents Grandma and Grandpa [last name]. I don’t know why. I’m the youngest child of my parents, and I just did what my older brothers did. I don’t know if that’s what my grandparents preferred or it just happened that way.

[suranyi]

@Tim_T-Bonham.net

It seems to be extremely rare to address parents by their name – most people do so by title (Mom, Ma, Mother, etc.). In fact, many seem to feel it somewhat insulting to address them by their name.

I have some friends who switched to addressing their parents by name once they turned 18, just like as most adults address each other. But that was unusual – they were a 60’s hippy family, too.

My cousins address their parents by their names, but they had very unusual childhoods. They were forcibly separated from their parents by an authoritarian regime and made to live with other relatives for the first few years of their lives. They weren’t reunited with their parents until they were several years old. It’s a complicated story, and it happened many decades ago.

[HowSoonIsThen]

Mum and Dad because I’m Australian. For consistency, I would say this is the same as saying Mom and Dad.

[GuanoLad]

Mum and Dad. My father died when I was 14, some 34 years ago now, but I still call him Dad.

Sometimes I will spell it online as Mom only to not confuse Americans, but it’s been a while since I did that, because bugger you all, she’s not your mother.

[TRC4941]

Mommy and Daddy when I was really young. At some point, it changed to Mom and Dad. But when talking to my sisters about them we all still use “Mommy and Daddy”.

My paternal grandparents were Ma & Bup (something I came up with when I first started talking

My maternal grandparents were Gramma (first name) & Bup

I had a paternal great-grandma until I was 12 - I called her Old Ma

[kopek]

@Happy_Lendervedder

Mom and dad.

Grandparents are a more interesting discussion, imo. Growing up, I directly addressed my grandparents all as “grandma” and “grandpa,” but referenced them as “Grandma [lastname]” and “Grandpa [lastname].” But now my kids refer to my dad as “Grandpa [firstname],” my mom as “buscia” (their Polish grandma), my mother-in-law just as “Grandma,” and my father-in-law as “Pa.” My step parents both get “Grandpa/grandma [firstname].” I feel like kids use the first name as reference to their grandparents more now than when I was a kid. For me, it would’ve been weird to refer to any of my grandparents by their first name.

Marriage can bring in interesting aspects as well

Dad = my father (it was how he referred to his father)
mother = my mother
Muvver = my MIL (it comes from my wife’s brother having a speech defect growing up)
Popsi = my FIL (it was what my MIL called her father)

No matter how confused or confusing the conversation the Old Wench and I always knew who was being discussed/mentioned.

[storyteller0910]

When talking about her, “Mom.” When talking to her, “Ma,” in all but the most solemn of circumstances.

Dad is always Dad.

[Ashtura]

Mom and dad. When my son calls me “father” (and he does often), I’m pretty sure he’s insulting me.

[Dorjan]

Mom and Papps.

[Slash1972]

I call my Dad “Dad” and my step-mother by her first name.

[ekedolphin]

Mom and Dad. Sometimes I call Mom “Muv”, because a friend of mine in high school called her mom “Muvver”.

Mom’s parents were Grandma and Grandpa.

Dad’s parents were Nee-Nee and Pop-Pop.

[Nars_Glinley]

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