Aunt — Mediated Wiki

{{Other uses|auntie (disambiguation)}} {{Short description|Female relative who is sibling of one's parent}} {{more citations needed|date=March 2019}}

[[File:Aunt & Niece (7936230820).jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|An aunt and her niece in Tigray, Ethiopia]] [[File:Isabel and Leopoldina (cropped).jpg|thumb|Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil (right) with her nephew Prince Pedro Augusto sitting on her lap. At left, Isabel's sister Princess Leopoldina holding her son Prince Augusto Leopoldo, c. 1868]] An '''aunt''' is a female individual who is a sibling of a parent or married to a sibling of a parent. Aunts who are related by birth are second-degree relatives. Alternate terms include '''auntie''' or '''aunty'''.

Aunt, auntie, and aunty also may be titles bestowed by parents and children to close friends of one or both parents who assume a sustained caring or nurturing role for the children.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bashir |first=Imani |date=2019 |title=When an auntie is not actually a relative|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2019/02/04/when-an-auntie-is-not-actually-relative/ |access-date=29 January 2025 |website=washingtonpost.com}}</ref> Children in some cultures and families may refer to the cousins of their parents as aunt or uncle due to the age and generation gap. The word comes from {{langx|la|amita}} via Old French ''ante'' and is a family relationship within an extended or immediate family.

The male counterpart of an aunt is an uncle, and the reciprocal relationship is that of a nephew or niece. The gender-neutral neologism '''pibling''', a shortened form of ''parent's sibling'', is used for both aunts and uncles.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Straussman |first=Min |date=2021 |title=Piblings & Niblings: Do You Know These Words For Aunts, Uncles, Nieces, & Nephews? |url=https://www.dictionary.com/e/aunt-uncle-niece-nephew-words/ |access-date=26 July 2021 |website=dictionary.com}}</ref> thumb|Aunts by generation

==Types== * A '''half-aunt''' is a half-sister of a parent. * A '''maternal aunt''' is the sister of one's mother. * A '''paternal aunt''' is the sister of one's father. * An '''aunt-in-law''' is the wife or female partner of one's uncle.<ref>"Aunt-in-law, ''N''." ''Oxford English Dictionary'', Oxford UP, December 2024, https://doi.org/10.1093/OED/1008652953</ref> * A parent's first cousin may be called a '''second aunt'''. * A '''great-aunt'''<ref>{{cite web |title=Definition of great-aunt in English by Oxford Dictionaries |url=https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/great-aunt |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190424114042/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/great-aunt |url-status=dead |archive-date=24 April 2019 |website=oxforddictionaries.com |access-date=24 April 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Google Ngram Viewer of relative versions of name |url=https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=%5Bgreat+-+aunt%5D%2Cgreat+aunt%2C%5Bgrand+-+aunt%5D%2Cgrandaunt%2Cgreataunt%2Cgrand+aunt&case_insensitive=on&year_start=1800&year_end=2008&corpus=15&smoothing=10&share=&direct_url=t4%3B%2C%5Bgreat%20-%20aunt%5D%3B%2Cc0%3B%2Cs0%3B%3Bgreat%20-%20aunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BGreat%20-%20Aunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BGreat%20-%20aunt%3B%2Cc0%3B.t4%3B%2Cgreat%20aunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%2Cs0%3B%3Bgreat%20aunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BGreat%20Aunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%3Bgreat%20Aunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BGreat%20aunt%3B%2Cc0%3B.t4%3B%2C%5Bgrand%20-%20aunt%5D%3B%2Cc0%3B%2Cs0%3B%3Bgrand%20-%20aunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BGrand%20-%20aunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BGrand%20-%20Aunt%3B%2Cc0%3B.t4%3B%2Cgrandaunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%2Cs0%3B%3Bgrandaunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BGrandaunt%3B%2Cc0%3B.t4%3B%2Cgreataunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%2Cs0%3B%3Bgreataunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BGreataunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BGreatAunt%3B%2Cc0%3B.t4%3B%2Cgrand%20aunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%2Cs0%3B%3Bgrand%20aunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BGrand%20Aunt%3B%2Cc0%3B%3Bgrand%20Aunt%3B%2Cc0 |website=Google Ngram |access-date=24 April 2019}}</ref> or '''grandaunt'''<ref>{{cite web |title=Grandaunt definition and meaning {{!}} Collins English Dictionary|url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/grandaunt |website=collinsdictionary.com |access-date=24 April 2019}}</ref> (sometimes written '''grand-aunt'''<ref>{{cite web |title=Definition of grand-aunt in English by Oxford Dictionaries |url=https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/grand-aunt |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190424114036/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/grand-aunt |url-status=dead |archive-date=24 April 2019 |website=oxforddictionaries.com |access-date=24 April 2019}}</ref>) is the sister of one's grandparent. * A '''double half-aunt''' is the half-sister of one's both parents. She is the daughter of one's paternal grandfather and maternal grandmother or of one's paternal grandmother and maternal grandfather.

==Genetics and consanguinity== {{Unreferenced section|date=February 2022}} Aunts by birth (sister of a parent) are related to their nieces and nephews by 25%. As half-aunts are related through half-sisters, they are related by 12.5% to their nieces and nephews. Non-consanguineous aunts (female spouse of a relative) are not genetically related to their nieces and nephews.

==Cultural variations== In some cultures, such as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples of Australia, respected senior members of the community, often also referred to as elders, are addressed as "uncle" (for men) and "aunt" for women, as a mark of seniority and respect, whether related or not,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pmc.gov.au/resource-centre/indigenous-affairs/communicating-aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-audiences|title =Communicating with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Audiences|website =Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (Australia) |date=23 February 2016}}</ref><ref >{{cite web | last=Browning | first=Daniel | title='I called him Uncle': Remembering iconic theatre great Uncle Jack Charles | website=ABC News| publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation| date=14 September 2022 | url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-09-14/uncle-jack-charles-aboriginal-artist-indigenous-elder-leader/101437098 | access-date=16 September 2022}}</ref> such as Aunty Kathy Mills.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mills |first=Aunty Kathy |title=You belong to my heart |url=https://www.spunstories.net/kathy-mills |access-date=16 September 2022 |website=Spun: True Stories Told in the Territory |language=en}}</ref>

In several cultures, no single inclusive term describing both a person's kinship to their parental female sibling or parental female in-law exists. Instead, there are specific terms describing a person's kinship to their mother's female sibling, and a person's kinship to their father's female sibling, per the following table:{{cn|date=September 2022}} {| class="wikitable" |+ Terms for aunt |- ! Language !! Mother's sister !! Father's sister |- | Albanian|| teze || hallë |- |Kurdish |Xaltîk ('''''IPA''': xɑːltiːk'') |Metik ('''''IPA''': mɛtɪk'') |- |Arabic |خالة (''khālah'') |عمّة (''ʿammah'') |- |Assamese |Mahi |Pehi |- |Bengali |Mashi, খালা (''khala''){{Efn|Muslims, not Hindus{{citation needed|date=May 2026}}}} |Pishi, ফুফু (''phuphu''){{Efn|Muslims, not Hindus{{citation needed|date=May 2026}}}} |- |Finnish |Täti |Täti |- |Hindi || Mausi || Bua |- |Korean |이모 (''Imo'') |고모 (''Gomo'') |- | Marathi|| Mavashi || Aatya |- | Persian|| (خاله)khaleh || (عمّه)ammeh |- | Polish|| ciocia (diminutive: ciotka) || stryjna (diminutive: stryjenka) |- | Swedish|| moster || faster |- | Turkish|| teyze || hala |- | Ukrainian|| вуйна / vujna || стрийна / stryjna |}

==In popular culture== Aunts in popular culture have not always been portrayed as positive roles. Childless aunts are often subjected to othering in popular culture and presented as exotic or as having a second-best role, with motherhood preferred.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Jones|first=Anna|title='Aunt with no kids': The women redefining family roles|url=https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20211208-aunt-with-no-kids-the-women-redefining-family-roles|access-date=13 December 2021|website=www.bbc.com|date=9 December 2021 |language=en}}</ref>

Aunt Flo is a popular euphemism referring to the menstrual cycle.<ref>Cornog, M. (1986). Naming sexual body parts: Preliminary patterns and implications. ''The Journal of Sex Research'', ''22''(3), 393–398. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1080/00224498609551318</nowiki></ref>

In the United Kingdom, An '''agony aunt''' is a colloquial term for a female advice columnist.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hastings |first=Anastasia |date=2023-02-07 |title=Agony Aunts: A Brief History of a Unique Profession |url=https://www.thehistoryreader.com/world-history/agony-aunts-a-brief-history-of-a-unique-profession/ |url-status=live |access-date=2026-05-14 |website=St. Martin's Publishing Group, The History Reader |language=en-US}}</ref>

Fictional aunts include: * Aunt Agatha and Aunt Dahlia, both aunts to Bertie Wooster in the Jeeves stories of P. G. Wodehouse: Aunt Agatha is haughty and fearsome, while Aunt Dahlia is more genial. * May Parker, the aunt of Spider-Man. * Eunice, the abusive aunt of Joker. * Auntie Mame, title character in the novel and film. * Petunia Dursley, the aunt of the protagonist of ''Harry Potter'' by J. K. Rowling. * Vivian Banks, the aunt of the main character in ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air''. * Aunt Sally, a character in the ''Worzel Gummidge'' books and TV series. * Auntie Em, the aunt of Dorothy Gale in the Oz books and film. * Aunt Spiker and Aunt Sponge, the villainous aunts of James Trotter in ''James and the Giant Peach''. * Diane, the tomboyish aunt of Daniel in ''Chicago Party Aunt''. * Karasu and Washi, the twin aunts of Kubo from ''Kubo And The 2 Strings''.

==See also== * {{lookfrom|Aunt}} – includes many articles with titles "Aunt [name]." * Auntie (disambiguation) (also includes "Aunty")

== Notes == {{Notelist}}

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== * {{Wiktionary-inline|aunt}} * {{Wiktionary-inline|grandaunt}} * {{Wiktionary-inline|great-aunt}}

Category:Family Category:Terms for women Category:Kinship and descent