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Mama in Mandarin Chinese literally means mother.
by brisance 13y ago
Mama in Mandarin Chinese literally means mother.
- slygent 13y agoStrictly speaking, "ma1ma" is equivalent to "mummy/mommy" and "mu3" is the formal "mother".
- rimantas 13y agoThe same in Lithuanian. The more formal version is "motina".
- gurkendoktor 13y agoI always assumed that it was a loanword though, and that 娘, 母親 were the "original" words for mother. Curiously, "ma" is always the first syllable that is taught to students of Mandarin (to explain the tones).
- gurkendoktor 13y agoApparently it is not a Western loanword - http://wold.livingsources.org/word/77161647552647739 http://wold.livingsources.org/word/77161647552647739