# Redneck terms of endearment for wife/girlfriend **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 9, 2007, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261 "2007-04-09T03:32:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2007, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/21 "2007-04-09T17:42:51Z")
I always thought it wierd that the “old lady” is the wife but the “old man” is a man’s father, never a woman’s husband. My friend, a fellow soldier, always says he needs to ask “Household 6”. ((For those that don’t know, radio callsigns have a relatively standard formula: 6 designates the commander and the word is the element he/she commands. 5 is the XO’s number.)) ---
**Author:** ![rainy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c2a13f/32.png) [@rainy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rainy)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2007, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/22 "2007-04-09T17:57:53Z")
Uh-oh, not that I’m above being a redneck, but I didn’t realize that by calling my wife Momma I was advertising it so prominently. I mean if you want the children to call their mother Momma, you’ve got to model it for them. Makes my skin crawl to hear children call their parents by their first names. I’ll third or fourth the notion that “Old lady” is a biker, non-redneck thing I’ll cite having grown up redneck as my expert qualification. And old man can be either husband (gal speaking) or father (guy speaking), depending on who is saying it. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2007, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/23 "2007-04-09T18:36:14Z")
In one family I knew, the wife was Muzz to her husband and kids. Honeypot. If there are children, Maw. Bitch (and that’s to her face! :eek: ) Dumb cunt (I’ve heard this mostly when the gal wasn’t there, but sometimes to her face.) Woman (One woman I knew told me being addressed as “woman” made her more furious than any insult.) One cowboy told me he calls his wife and all other women “Darlin’.” That way he never called any of them the wrong name in bed. Another redneck, rest his soul, told me if his wife didn’t have that one thing (he made a gesture with his hands,) he wouldn’t let her sleep on the porch. Redneck foreplay: “Get in the truck, bitch!” ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2007, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/24 "2007-04-09T19:09:59Z")
> [@rainy](#): > > Uh-oh, not that I’m above being a redneck, but I didn’t realize that by calling my wife Momma I was advertising it so prominently. I mean if you want the children to call their mother Momma, you’ve got to model it for them. Makes my skin crawl to hear children call their parents by their first names. Kids can figure out at a pretty young age that the rules are different for grown-ups than for kids. I’ve never called my husband “Pop”, except when referring to him when _talking to_ the children (“I don’t know; go ask Pop”). I just call him by his first name (well, actually his middle name, but that’s what everyone else calls him, too. . .). My kids never had any trouble figuring out that they call him Pop, not Name. ---
**Author:** ![T\_SQUARE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9de053/32.png) [@T\_SQUARE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/T_SQUARE)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2007, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/25 "2007-04-09T19:35:34Z")
[QUOTE=Chronos] “Redneck” refers to a particular subculture from rural parts of the US. It’s roughly synonymous with “Hillbilly”. [/QUOTE] Sorry, I can’t agree with this. A hillbilly _might_ be a redneck, but most rednecks are not hillbillies. A hillbilly is dirt poor and from the Ozarks or Appalachia. A redneck can be from anywhere in the world and isn’t necessarily poor, and can even be rich. Rednecks can live in urban areas too. Hillbillies cannot. Hank Hill = Redneck Cletus the Slack Jawed Yokel = Hillbilly ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2007, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/26 "2007-04-09T19:39:48Z")
[QUOTE=IntelSoldier] I always thought it wierd that the “old lady” is the wife but the “old man” is a man’s father, never a woman’s husband. [/QUOTE] Tell that to [Joni MItchell](http://www.lyricsfreak.com/j/joni+mitchell/my+old+man_20075263.html). I’ve got a friend who calls his wife “Head Office” but he’s not a redneck. ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2007, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/27 "2007-04-09T19:44:16Z")
My grandfather used to (sometime jokingly, sometimes not) call gramma “Hen”. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2007, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/28 "2007-04-09T19:48:08Z")
[QUOTE=McNew] My grandfather used to (sometime jokingly, sometimes not) call gramma “Hen”. [/QUOTE] That’s likely a Scottish thing. ---
**Author:** ![Hostile\_Dialect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e495f1/32.png) [@Hostile\_Dialect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hostile_Dialect)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2007, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/29 "2007-04-09T19:48:23Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > “Redneck” refers to a particular subculture from rural parts of the US. It’s roughly synonymous with “Hillbilly”. And “mom” in this context refers not to incest, but (presumably) to “mother of my children”: If the husband calls his wife “mom”, then she probably calls him “dad” or “pop” or an equivalent. On a related note, when I dated a Mexican immigrant I noticed that _every single person_ she was related to, plus me, seemed to be “mami” or “papi” regardless of age and relation. That one was tough to get used to. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2007, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/30 "2007-04-09T20:02:59Z")
[QUOTE=IntelSoldier] I always thought it wierd that the “old lady” is the wife but the “old man” is a man’s father, never a woman’s husband. [/QUOTE] Back in the eighties (when it was still economically attractive to go cross-Canada by rail) on the way home from Toronto I partied between cars over New Year’s with a fellow traveler who told me that she’d split from “the old man” and fucked off with several hundred dollars and an impressive quantity of his hash. It wasn’t until a few days later that I realized she _wasn’t_ a runaway. :smack: (I’m really glad, with hindsight, that I didn’t go for her proposal of disembarking in Edmonton to look for an apartment together.) ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2007, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/31 "2007-04-09T20:23:29Z")
[QUOTE=Struan] That’s likely a Scottish thing. [/QUOTE] I don’t know where he picked it up, but considering how frequently he referred to himself as being henpecked, I think that’s the more likely origin. ---
**Author:** ![illoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a3d4f5/32.png) [@illoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/illoe)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2007, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/32 "2007-04-09T20:28:00Z")
[QUOTE=harmless] My husband refers to me as ‘The Wife’. :dubious: [/QUOTE] That one chaps my hide, too. “My wife” is sweet; “the wife” is insulting. ---
**Author:** ![harmless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/2acd7d/32.png) [@harmless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmless)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2007, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/33 "2007-04-09T20:59:52Z")
[QUOTE=illoe] That one chaps my hide, too. “My wife” is sweet; “the wife” is insulting. [/QUOTE] Exactly. We’ve had that discussion: ‘The Wife’ = ‘Ball and Chain’ type of “endearment”. Ha ha. :dubious: 'Course, everyone knows who I’m referring to when I say ‘The Jackass’ so I guess it evens out. 😉 On a more personal note, (he freely admits he’s not really good with pet names so I doubt these will be common): Snuggler Lover Snugglin’ lover Snugglin’ bug 😛 I address him by: Love Hon(ey) Darlin’ Babe Boo-bear Sick bags are located to your immediate left. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2007, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/34 "2007-04-09T23:09:42Z")
I think this one is a better fit in MPSIMS or IMHO. Let’s try MPSIMS. **samclem** GQ moderator ---
**Author:** ![Telperien](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@Telperien](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telperien)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/35 "2007-04-10T02:16:10Z")
A friend of mine calls his wife “sweet thang,” and if he’s not a redneck, then no one is. One of my uncles calls his wife “baby girl,” which has always creeped me out. ---
**Author:** ![MadTheSwine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MadTheSwine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MadTheSwine)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/36 "2007-04-10T02:24:12Z")
The Ol’ Blister ---
**Author:** ![ASAKMOTSD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/919ad9/32.png) [@ASAKMOTSD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASAKMOTSD)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/37 "2007-04-10T02:27:18Z")
How about “Bubba Ann”? ---
**Author:** ![Triskadecamus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b19c9b/32.png) [@Triskadecamus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Triskadecamus)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/38 "2007-04-10T15:00:41Z")
[QUOTE=IntelSoldier] My friend, a fellow soldier, always says he needs to ask “Household 6”. [/QUOTE] Wow. I never thought I would hear that one again! I knew an old Vietnam era Spec Ops guy who referred to his wife as “home 6.” Evidently he used it to her face, as well, since she was entirely unsurprised when I mentioned it to her, upon meeting her. His endearment for his children was a tad bit less . . . warm. (They lived in Fayetteville, North Carolina, near Ft. Bragg.) He referred to the children as “the Fayette Cong.” Tris ---
**Author:** ![TroubleAgain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e480ec/32.png) [@TroubleAgain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroubleAgain)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/39 "2007-04-10T15:24:39Z")
[QUOTE=Triskadecamus] His endearment for his children was a tad bit less . . . warm. (They lived in Fayetteville, North Carolina, near Ft. Bragg.) He referred to the children as “the Fayette Cong.” [/QUOTE] That’s very punny! ---
**Author:** ![DustyButt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc348/32.png) [@DustyButt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DustyButt)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261/40 "2007-04-10T15:39:33Z")
**Momma** …when referring to your wife is, how do I say… Nasty. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/redneck-terms-of-endearment-for-wife-girlfriend/399261.md?page=3)