Kinship terms, with the source attached.

Scholar-attested kinship terms across Indian languages. Filter by language, community, or register. Free-text matches both native script and transliteration.

• কাকা

  ben · Beng

  kākā

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Father's younger brother. Distinct lexical slot for FyB.

• মা

  ben · Beng

  mā

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Mother (direct, gen+1, F). Formal: ammā.

• জ্যাঠা

  ben · Beng

  jyāthā

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Father's elder brother. KEY North Indian / Bengali term with no Dravidian cognate.

• দিদি

  ben · Beng

  didi

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Elder sister. Reused for elder female cousins on both sides.

• ভাই

  ben · Beng

  bhāi

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Younger brother / generic brother. Reused for younger male cousins on both sides.

• বোন

  ben · Beng

  bon

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Younger sister. Reused for younger female cousins on both sides.

• মামা

  ben · Beng

  māmā

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Mother's brother. NOT a prescriptive father-in-law (unlike Dravidian). MB-line marriage sapinda-forbidden.

• ঠাকুর্দা

  ben · Beng

  ṭhākurdā

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Paternal grandfather. Maternal GF = dādu. Indo-Aryan side-distinction (Layer 3 refinement).

• ঠাকুর্মা

  ben · Beng

  ṭhākurmā

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Paternal grandmother. Maternal GM = didimā. KEY Indo-Aryan side-distinction.

• দাদা

  ben · Beng

  dādā

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Elder brother. Reused for elder male cousins on both sides — all first cousins are sibling-class.

• মামাতো ভাই

  ben · Beng

  māmāto bhāi

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Mother's brother's son (MBS). Structurally cross-cousin but SIBLING-CLASS — marriage FORBIDDEN.

• বাবা

  ben · Beng

  bābā

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Father (direct, gen+1, M). Formal: pitā.

• কাকাতো ভাই

  ben · Beng

  kākāto bhāi

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Father's brother's son (FBS). Parallel-paternal sibling-class. Marriage FORBIDDEN.

• মামাতো বোন

  ben · Beng

  māmāto bon

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Mother's brother's daughter (MBD). Structurally cross-cousin; MBD-marriage FORBIDDEN under bengali_kayastha.

• মাসি

  ben · Beng

  māsi

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Mother's sister (māsimā more deferential). Generic mother-side aunt.

• স্ত্রী

  ben · Beng

  strī

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Wife (formal/Sanskritic). Casual: bou. Spousal affinal, gen 0.

• ছেলে

  ben · Beng

  chhele

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Son (direct descent, gen-1, M). Sanskritic putra in ritual register.

• মেয়ে

  ben · Beng

  meye

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Daughter (direct descent, gen-1, F). Sanskritic kanyā in ritual register.

• পিসি

  ben · Beng

  pisi

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Father's sister. NOT a prescriptive mother-in-law. FZD marriage sapinda-forbidden.

• কাকাতো বোন

  ben · Beng

  kākāto bon

  bengali kayasthaformalin.wbscholar verified

  Father's brother's daughter (FBD). Parallel-paternal sibling-class. Marriage FORBIDDEN.

• फूफी जी

  pan · Deva

  phūphī jī

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Father's sister. Variant: buā. NOT a prescriptive MIL — FZD sapinda-forbidden.

• मासी जी

  pan · Deva

  māsī jī

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Mother's sister. Same root as Bengali māsi.

• छोटा भाई

  pan · Deva

  chhoṭā bhāī

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Younger brother. Lit. small-brother. Plain bhāī also acceptable.

• ममेरा भाई

  pan · Deva

  mamerā bhāī

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Mother's brother's son (MBS). Cross-cousin structurally but SIBLING-CLASS — marriage FORBIDDEN.

• चचेरा भाई

  pan · Deva

  chacherā bhāī

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Father's brother's son (FBS). Parallel-paternal sibling-class. Marriage FORBIDDEN.

• दादी जी

  pan · Deva

  dādī jī

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Paternal grandmother. Maternal GM = nānī jī. Indo-Aryan side-distinction.

• चाचा जी

  pan · Deva

  chāchā jī

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Father's younger brother. Shared with broader North Indian Hindi belt.

• माँ

  pan · Deva

  māṃ

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Mother (direct, gen+1, F). Diminutive: ammā.

• चचेरी बहिन

  pan · Deva

  chacherī bahin

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Father's brother's daughter (FBD). Parallel-paternal sibling-class. Marriage FORBIDDEN.

• मामा जी

  pan · Deva

  māmā jī

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Mother's brother. NOT a prescriptive FIL — sapinda-forbidden MB-side marriage.

• दादा जी

  pan · Deva

  dādā jī

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Paternal grandfather. Maternal GF = nānā jī. KEY Indo-Aryan side-distinction.

• भाई जी

  pan · Deva

  bhāī jī

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Elder brother (deferential). Modern Punjabi flattens elder/younger; distinguished by baṛā/chhoṭā prefix.

• पिता जी

  pan · Deva

  pitā jī

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Father (direct, gen+1, M). Casual: bābā, pāpā.

• ताया जी

  pan · Deva

  tāyā jī

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Father's elder brother. KEY Punjabi term (also tāū). No Bengali/Dravidian surface cognate.

• बेटा

  pan · Deva

  beṭā

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Son (direct descent, gen-1, M). Sanskritic putra in ritual register.

• ममेरी बहिन

  pan · Deva

  mamerī bahin

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Mother's brother's daughter (MBD). Four-gotra exogamy excludes MB-line. Marriage FORBIDDEN.

• पत्नी

  pan · Deva

  patnī

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Wife (formal/Sanskritic). Casual: bīvī. Spousal affinal, gen 0.

• दीदी

  pan · Deva

  dīdī

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Elder sister. Also: baṛī bahin.

• छोटी बहिन

  pan · Deva

  chhoṭī bahin

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Younger sister. Lit. small-sister.

• बेटी

  pan · Deva

  beṭī

  punjabi khatriformalin.pbscholar verified

  Daughter (direct descent, gen-1, F). Sanskritic kanyā in ritual register.

• மகன்

  tam · Taml

  magaṉ

  iyengar brahminformalin.tnscholar verified

  Son (direct descent, gen-1, M).

• அத்தை

  tam · Taml

  attai

  iyer brahminformalin.tnpublished

  Father's sister. Prescriptive mother-in-law in Dravidian alliance pattern.

• தங்கை

  tam · Taml

  taṅkai

  iyer brahminformalin.tnpublished

  Younger sister. Sibling-class term also applies to parallel-paternal younger female cousin.

• தங்கை

  tam · Taml

  taṅkai

  iyengar brahminformalin.tnscholar verified

  Younger sister. Sibling-class also applies to parallel-paternal younger female cousin.

• சித்தப்பா

  tam · Taml

  cittappā

  iyengar brahminformalin.tnscholar verified

  Father's younger brother — small father. Junior paternal figure.

• அத்தை

  tam · Taml

  attai

  iyengar brahminformalin.tnscholar verified

  Father's sister. Prescriptive mother-in-law in Dravidian alliance.

• பெரியப்பா

  tam · Taml

  periyappā

  iyengar brahminformalin.tnscholar verified

  Father's elder brother — big father. Senior paternal figure.

• மாமா மகள்

  tam · Taml

  māmā magaḷ

  iyer brahminformalin.tnpublished

  Mother's brother's daughter (MBD). Cross-cousin, MARRIAGE-ELIGIBLE — the prescriptive Dravidian cross-cousin marriage. Marriage-eligibility is a Layer 3 verdict, not a Layer 2 term property; surfaced here for context.

• பெரியம்மா

  tam · Taml

  periyammā

  iyer brahminformalin.tnpublished

  Mother's elder sister — 'big mother'. (Relative-age in sig: alter is older than ego's mother in some readings; here keyed by elder-aunt sig.)

• அக்கா

  tam · Taml

  akkā

  iyengar brahminformalin.tnscholar verified

  Elder sister. Sibling-class also applies to parallel-paternal elder female cousin.