баба

See also: Appendix:Variations of "baba"

Avar

Etymology

From Proto-Avaro-Andian: *babV (~ -o-), from Proto-Avaro-Andian: *babV (~ -o-)

Alternative forms

• буба (buba)

Noun

баба • (baba)

1. mother; mom, mum

See also

• эбел (èbel)

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Bulgarian

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *baba.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbabə/

Noun

ба́ба • (bába) f

1. grandmother, grandma, granny, gran
2. old woman, goody, granny
3. mother-in-law (one’s wife’s mother)
4. midwife, wise woman
5. wise woman, sorceress, witch
6. woman, weakling, milksop, mollycoddle, molly, old maid
7. monkey

Inflection

Inflection of баба

	singular	plural
indefinite	баба	баби
definite	бабата	бабите
vocative form	бабо	баби

Further reading

• баба in Речник на българския език

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Kazakh

Cyrillic	баба (baba)
Arabic	بابا‎

Noun

баба • (baba)

1. grandfather

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Macedonian

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *baba.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈbaba]

Noun

баба • (baba) f (plural баби)

1. grandmother, grandma, granny, gran
2. old woman, goody, granny
3. mother-in-law (one’s wife’s mother)
4. midwife

Inflection

Declension of баба

	singular	plural
indefinite	баба	баби
definite unspecified	бабата	бабите
definite proximal	бабава	бабиве
definite distal	бабана	бабине
vocative	бабо	баби

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Old Church Slavonic

Alternative forms

• (Glagolitic): ⰱⰰⰱⰰ (baba)

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *baba.

Noun

баба • (baba) f

1. grandmother
2. midwife
3. wet nurse

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Old East Slavic

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *baba.

Noun

баба (baba) f

1. married woman
2. midwife
3. fortune teller, hex
4. (in the plural) women

Descendants

• Russian: ба́ба (bába)
• Ukrainian: ба́ба (bába)

References

• Sreznevskij, I. I. (1893), “баба”, in Materialy dlja slovarja drevne-russkago jazyka po pisʹmennym pamjatnikam [Materials for the Dictionary of the Old Russian Language According to Written Monuments] (in Russian), volume 1, Saint Petersburg: Imperial Academy of Sciences, page 35

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Russian

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *baba.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈbabə]

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

ба́ба • (bába) f anim or f inan (genitive ба́бы, nominative plural ба́бы, genitive plural баб)

1. (childish) grandma, granny (short for ба́бушка (bábuška))

   Ма́ма, а где ба́ба? ― Máma, a gde bába? ― Mom, where’s grandma?

2. (informal or archaic) old woman (short for ба́бушка (bábuška))

   Жи́ли-бы́ли дед да ба́ба. ― Žíli-býli ded da bába. ― There once lived an old man and his old woman.

3. (colloquial, slang, derogatory) woman, female, broad; countrywoman

   Кто э́та ба́ба? ― Kto éta bába? ― Who's that broad?

   Все ба́бы — ду́ры; все мужики́ — сво́лочи (contemporary Russian saying)

   Vse báby — dúry; vse mužikí — svóloči

   "Every woman is stupid, every man is a bastard"

4. (obsolete) peasant’s wife, peasant woman
5. (derogatory) milksop, old woman (weak man)
6. (technical) ram (of a pile driver)
7. (technical) drop weight
8. (cooking) baba (tall, cylindrical cake), bundt cake, Gugelhupf

   ро́мовая ба́ба ― rómovaja bába ― rum baba, rum cake

9. in expressions

   сне́жная ба́ба ― snéžnaja bába ― snowman

   ка́менная ба́ба ― kámennaja bába ― primitive stone statue

Declension

Declension of ба́ба (bian fem-form hard-stem accent-a) 

	singular	plural
nominative	ба́ба bába	ба́бы báby
genitive	ба́бы báby	ба́б báb
dative	ба́бе bábe	ба́бам bábam
accusative animate inanimate	ба́бу bábu	ба́б báb
		ба́бы báby
instrumental	ба́бой, ба́бою báboj, báboju	ба́бами bábami
prepositional	ба́бе bábe	ба́бах bábax

Related terms

• ба́бушка (bábuška), бабёнка (babjónka)
• Ба́ба-Яга́ (Bába-Jagá), Ба́бий Яр (Bábij Jar)
• бабу́ся (babúsja), ба́бка (bábka), ба́бник (bábnik), бабство (babstvo)
• ба́бий (bábij), бабский (babskij)

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Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *baba.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bâba/
• Hyphenation: ба‧ба

Noun

ба̏ба f (Latin spelling bȁba)

1. grandmother
2. granny, grandma
3. (usually derogatory) old woman
4. (derogatory) female person

Declension

Declension of баба

	singular	plural
nominative	ба̏ба	бабе
genitive	бабе	ба̑ба̄
dative	баби	бабама
accusative	бабу	бабе
vocative	бабо	бабе
locative	баби	бабама
instrumental	бабом	бабама

Synonyms

• (grandmother; grandma): ба́ка, нена

References

• “баба” in Hrvatski jezični portal

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Ukrainian

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *baba.

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

ба́ба • (bába) f anim (genitive ба́би, nominative plural баби́)

1. grandmother, granny, old woman (in some cases maternal grandmother only).
2. name of a special, delicate ritual bread that is blessed by a priest at Easter (also called бабка, babka).
3. a name given to сніп (snip) at Christmas, a sheaf of grain (wheat or rye), brought into the home for Christmas Eve supper (svjatá večérja), placed in a corner of the room and later fed to livestock or cattle.
4. a fortune teller or witch, practising the art of віск зливати (wax pouring).
5. sexy bitch (girlfriend or wife).

Declension

Declension of ба́ба

	singular	plural
nominative	ба́ба bába	баби́ babý
genitive	ба́би báby	баб, бабі́в bab, babív
dative	ба́бі bábi	баба́м babám
accusative	ба́бу bábu	баб, бабі́в bab, babív
instrumental	ба́бою báboju	баба́ми babámy
locative	ба́бі bábi	баба́х babáx
vocative	ба́бо bábo	баби́ babý

References

• баба in Bilodid I. K., editor (1970–1980) Slovnyk ukrajinsʹkoji movy, Kiev: Naukova Dumka