Russian Words: Family Members

Image of a family having a meal outside — Hinterhaus Productions / Getty Images

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Updated on September 16, 2019

Family is very important in Russian culture. Many families are composed of several generations living under one roof, often in compact apartments, and children can continue to live with their parents long into their twenties, thirties, and even forties. As a Russian learner, you'll need to familiarize yourself with the different names used for all members of the group, including in-laws and extended family.

Russian Word	Translation	Pronunciation	Example
мама	mom	MAmah	Мама, я приезжаю завтра - Mom, I'm arriving tomorrow.
папа	dad	PApah	Папа, это мой друг Джон - Dad, this is my friend John.
бабушка	grandmother	BAbushka	Моей бабушке девяносто лет - My grandmother is 90 years old.
дедушка/дед	grandfather	DYEdushka/DYED	Мой дедушка сражался с фашистами - My grandfather fought the Nazis.
тётя	aunt	TYOtya	Позови свою тётю, пожалуйста - Call your aunt, please.
дядя	uncle	DYAdya	Мой дядя - писатель - My uncle is a writer.
сестра	sister	sysTRA	Моя сестра занимается бальными танцами - My sister does ballroom dancing.
брат	brother	BRAT	Мой брат играет на кларнете - My brother plays the clarinet.
двоюродная сестра	cousin (female)	dvaYUradnaya sysTRA	Моя двоюродная сестра позвонила в понедельник - My cousin rang on Monday.
двоюродный брат	cousin (male)	dvaYUradny BRAT	Я еду в гости к своему двоюродному брату - I am going to visit my cousin.
троюродный брат/троюродная сестра	second cousin male/second cousin female	traYUradny BRAT/traYUradnaya sysTRA	Они - мои троюродные братья и сестры - These are my second cousins.
тёща	mother-in-law (wife's mother)	TYOsha	Я люблю свою тёщу - I love my mother-in-law.
тесть	father-in-law (wife's father)	TYEST'	У меня хорошие отношения с тестем - I have a good relationship with my father-in-law.
свекровь	mother-in-law (husband's mother)	svyKROF'	Мы едем к свекрови - We are going to visit my mother-in-law.
свёкр	father-in-law (husband's father)	SVYOkr	Мой свёкр любит футбол - My father-in-law loves soccer.
сноха	daughter-in-law (in relation to the mother-in-law)	snaHA	Я жду сноху и сына - I'm waiting for my daughter-in-law and my son.
зять	son-in-law (both for mother-in-law and father-in-law)	ZYAT'	Надо поговорить с зятем - I should/I need to talk to my son-in-law.
невестка	daughter-in-law (in relation to the father-in-law); sister-in-law (brother's wife)	nyVYESTka	Мы едем в отпуск с невесткой - We are going on holiday with my/our daughter-in-law/sister-in-law.
золовка	sister-in-law (husband's sister)	zaLOVka	У моей золовки трое детей - My sister-in-law has three children.
деверь	brother-in-law (husband's brother)	DYEver'	Мой деверь - юрист - My brother-in-law is a lawyer.
свояченица	sister-in-law (wife's sister)	svaYAchenitsa	Мне позвонила свояченица - My sister-in-law called me.
шурин	brother-in-law (wife's brother)	SHOOrin	У шурина проблемы на работе - My brother-in-law is having issues at his work.
сватья	mother of daughter-in-law/son-in-law	SVAT'ya	Завтра приезжает сватья - The mother of my daughter-in-law will arrive tomorrow.
сват	father of daughter-in-law/son-in-law	svat	Сват любит рыбачить - My daughter-in-law's father loves to go fishing.
свояк	sibling-in-law (husband of a woman's sister)	svaYAK	Здравствуй, свояк - Hello, brother. (as in 'you're family')
крёстные/крёстная мать/крёстный отец	godparents/godmother/godfather	KRYOSnye/KRYOSnaya MAT'/KRYOSny aTYETS	Это - мои крёстные - These are my god-parents.
кумовья/кум/кума	godparents (in relation to all other relatives)	KoomaVYA / KOOM / kooMA	А что думают кумовья? - And what do the godparents think?
племянница	niece	plyMYAnitsa	Моя племянница поступила в университет - My niece has gotten into college.
племянник	nephew	plyMYAnnik	Мы едем с племянником в Москву - My nephew and I are going to Moscow together.

How to Say Mom and Dad in Russian

The most common way to address your parents in Russian is to say "мама" and "папа." You can also say "мать" (MAT') - "Mother," and "отец" (aTYEts) - "Father", as well as "мамочка" (MAmachka) - Mommy and "папочка" (PApachka) - "Daddy".

Example: Моя мамочка - самая лучшая.
Pronunciation: maYA MAmachka - SAmaya LOOCHshaya.
Translation: My Mommy is the best.

Example: Я не вижусь с отцом.
Pronunciation: ya ny VYzhus' satTSOM
Translation: I don't see my father.

Diminutives for Family Members

Diminutives are used a lot in Russian, and the names of family members are not an exception. Diminutives are formed by changing the ending of a word.

Example: мама - мамочка - мамуля - мамулечка - мамусик
Pronunciation: MAma - MAmachka - maMOOlya - maMOOlychka - maMOOsik
Translation: Mom - Mommy - diminutives of "Mommy"

Example: тётя - тётушка - тётенька
Pronunciation: TYOtya - TYOtushka - TYOtynka
Translation: Aunt - Aunty - Aunty

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Nikitina, Maia. "Russian Words: Family Members." ThoughtCo, Aug. 29, 2020, thoughtco.com/russian-words-family-members-4768487. Nikitina, Maia. (2020, August 29). Russian Words: Family Members. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/russian-words-family-members-4768487 Nikitina, Maia. "Russian Words: Family Members." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/russian-words-family-members-4768487 (accessed June 3, 2023).