Terms of endearment? Are they regional cultural or habit forming?

[diabeticman]

When I was a child my uncles and my Dad would refer to my brothers and I as Big Guy. which to me isn't that strange. I wasn't big but I always looked at it as a way of saying I was growing up.


Now what I find strange is the fact that My wife's family refer to the children by titles of the people addressing them. Like her sister or cousins (the female ones) will call there children Mom, mommy, Mum. Like "What's wrong, Mom" or "aren't you feeling good, Mommy?" During our recent visit to the cousin's house her cousin's husband was feeding the young six month old daughter and he was talking to the child saying "hmmm, you like that Daddy, don't you."

It was very strange to me. But than I heard my wife refer to the kids or address the kids as Aunt.


Now I'm not sure if this is basically an Arab-christian thing but I have heard my mother-in-law tell stories about her father--who was Italian decent and he would refer to her as Dad.

Has anyone else seen or heard this type of endearment being used or is it just something in this culture thing?

I'm not trying to make fun or anything but since it is a weekend I thought I'd ask.

[applegrove]

1. In one small city in Ontario...women would call other women "hon". In the maritimes

people call a man they are telling a story about "buddy". You'll see it in the newspaper as a pronown. It varies. In my genealogical paternal family...the side that went to reunions.... people would call people who married into the family "outlaws" as a term of endearment. Cultural groups can be any size.

[Igel]

3. Old Baltimore had "unisex" "hon."

When I was in certain areas of town I was "hon" to both men and women, but only older ones. It wasn't age. It was just a way of keeping a sentence from ending without some sort of term of friendly address.

Women called women "hon." Men called men "hon." And, of course, men called women (and women called men) "hon." Wasn't offensive at the time.

Then it became offensive. If you called a woman "hon" you were sexist. If you called another member of your sex "hon" you were somehow weighing in on gay issues or were yourself gay. It died a quick and sudden death.

Rather like the use of the word "street arab." ("Arab" wasn't pronounced as the ethnicity, "AIR-rub", but as "AY-rab". But people focused on writing not pronunciation, so "street arab" was considered offensive; it didn't help that the street arabs were a dying breed, anyway.)

[msanthrope]

6. "A-rabber A-rabber" the guy would cry out as his pony and cart passed my house.....

"Hon" is still used by older women with high hair.

I miss Baltimore. I really liked living there.

[HarveyDarkey]

2. When I lived in Louisiana, worked in New Orleans

everybody was referred to as Mr. or Mrs.& their first name. My Cajun neighbors referred to me as "Mr. Keith".
Only place I've ever encountered that.

[Igel]

4. Houston.

Then again, same dialect area with a lot of New Orleans/S. La. folk moving here.

[cali]

5. where I went to school as a little kid we called the teachers by their first names

with either a Mrs, Miss or Mr. in front of the names.