How to Say "Bastard Child" in Spanish

hijo bastardo

/ixo bastaɾdo/from spelling rules

The English phrase 'bastard child' is translated into Spanish as hijo bastardo.

This phrase refers to a child born to parents who are not married to each other.

What does it mean word for word?

The phrase is composed of hijo (son) and bastardo (bastard).

Which one should you use?

While hijo bastardo is a direct translation, you may encounter hijo natural in specific legal contexts to refer to a child born out of wedlock to parents who could have legally married, distinguishing them from hijos ilegítimos.

Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?

In legal or formal contexts, hijo ilegítimo is often used instead of the more pejorative hijo bastardo. If you wish to be formal, you can use hijo/a ilegítimo/a or hijo/a no reconocido/a (unacknowledged child). The phrase hijo/a bastardo/a is considered more informal.

How does it change in a sentence?

The phrase changes gender to match the child: use hija bastarda for a daughter and hijo bastardo for a son.

Did you know?

The word hijo is a linguistic relative of the English word 'filial', as both descend from the Latin 'filius'.
In many Spanish-speaking countries, the word bastardo has evolved from a legal descriptor to a general insult used to describe someone who is mean, wicked or unfair.

Examples in context

María es hija ilegítima de Juan y Ana.
Maria is the illegitimate daughter of Juan and Ana.
El hijo no reconocido lleva el apellido de su madre.
The unacknowledged child bears the surname of their mother.
Él fue considerado un hijo bastardo en esa época.
He was considered a bastard child in those times.
El hijo bastardo no tenía derechos legales.
The bastard child had no legal rights.
A veces se referían a él como un hijo bastardo.
Sometimes they referred to him as a bastard child.

Example conversation

Two people are discussing a historical novel.

María

El protagonista es un hijo bastardo.
The protagonist is a bastard child.
Javier

¿Cómo afecta eso a su herencia, María?
How does that affect his inheritance, María?
María

No puede heredar el título del padre.
He cannot inherit the father's title.
Javier

Eso hace la trama más interesante, Javier dice.
That makes the plot more interesting, Javier says.

Sources

IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
Word origins: Wiktionary entries hijo, CC BY-SA 4.0.

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How to Say “Bastard Child” in Spanish