afafine
The Samoan word for daughter is afafine.
afafine is used to refer to a female offspring.
Meaning: female offspring (noun)
Did you know?
- An English speaker might be surprised to learn that afafine can be used as a term of respect for individuals who transcend traditional binary gender roles.
- While afafine means 'daughter', the Samoan language uses different terms for children depending on whether the speaker is the father or the mother.
- Because Samoan is a Polynesian language, afafine shares distant linguistic roots with words for 'female' or 'child' in Maori and Hawaiian.
Example conversation
Tau and Mere are talking about their families.
- TauE iai se afafine oe?Do you have a daughter?
- MereIoe, e tasi lo'u afafine.Yes, I have one daughter.
- TauE fia le matagofie o ia.She must be very beautiful.
- MereFa'afetai, Tau.Thank you, Tau.
