ជីតា
cii taa
The Khmer word for grandfather is ជីតា (cii taa). Wiktionary also lists តា (taa) and អយ្យកោ (ayyeakao).
Meaning: grandfather (from either side) (noun)
Ways to say it
| Khmer | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| ជីតា | cii taa |
| តា | taa |
| អយ្យកោ | ayyeakao |
The term is used to refer to a grandfather from either the mother's or father's side of the family.
Which one should you use?
The three forms vary in their level of formality. តា is a shortened version used in casual conversation and អយ្យកោ is a specialized term used in formal or classical settings.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
តា is an informal or casual way to refer to a grandfather. In contrast, អយ្យកោ is highly formal or literary, frequently appearing in religious or classical contexts.
How do you pronounce it?
cii taa
Did you know?
- In Cambodia, the word តា is also used to refer to the guardian spirits of the land, known as តា and យាយ (grandfather and grandmother).
- The formal term អយ្យកោ is not native to the Khmer language but is a loanword from Pali, a classical language used in Buddhist liturgy.
- Although តា is used for 'grandfather', it is also the common word for 'old man' or 'elderly man' in general conversation.
Examples in context
- ជីតាធ្វើការនៅវាលស្រែ។chi ta thveu kar nov veal srae.Grandfather works in the rice field.
- ខ្ញុំនឹកជីតារបស់ខ្ញុំណាស់។khnhom neuk chi ta robos khnhom nah.I miss my grandfather very much.
- ជីតារបស់ខ្ញុំមានអាយុច្រើនហើយ។chi ta robos khnhom mean ayu chreun haey.My grandfather is already quite old.
Example conversation
Narong and Sreyni are looking at an old family photograph.
- ណារ៉ុង Narongនេះគឺជាជីតារបស់ខ្ញុំ។neh keu chea chita robos khnhom.This is my grandfather.
- ស្រីនី Sreynyគាត់មើលទៅចិត្តល្អណាស់។koat merl tov chitt lo-or nah.He looks very kind.
- ណារ៉ុង Narongបាទ ជីតាខ្ញុំជាមនុស្សស្លូតបូត។bat chita khnhom chea monus slot bout.Yes, my grandfather is a gentle person.
- ស្រីនី Sreynyខ្ញុំចង់ជួបគាត់ណាស់។khnhom chong chuob koat nah.I would really like to meet him.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “grandfather” translations and entries តា, អយ្យកោ, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries តា, អយ្យកោ, CC BY-SA 4.0.
