ᎡᎵᏏ
elisi
The Cherokee word for grandma is ᎡᎵᏏ (elisi).
This term is used to refer to a grandmother in an informal way.
Meaning: grandmother (informal) (noun)
How do you pronounce it?
elisi
Did you know?
- The Cherokee syllabary, which is used to write ᎡᎵᏏ, was invented by Sequoyah in the early 1820s, making it one of the few truly indigenous writing systems developed in North America.
- Cherokee kinship terms are often used as general titles of respect for any elder woman in a community, regardless of blood relation.
- Because Cherokee is a polysynthetic language, the concept of 'grandma' can be embedded into larger words to describe actions or states related to the grandmother.
Example conversation
A child is greeting their grandmother at home.
- AᎣᏏᏲ, ᎡᎵᏏ!Osiyo, Elisĭ!Hello, grandma!
- BᎣᏏᏲ, ᎠᏓᏓᏅᏔᏅᎩ!Osiyo, adadanvtanvgi!Hello, grandchild!
- AᎡᎵᏏ, ᎢᏳᎢ ᎢᏳᎢ!Elisĭ, iyu'i iyu'i!Grandma, look at that!
- BᎥᎥ, ᏓᏓᏅᏔᏅᎩ.Vv, dadanvtanvgi.Yes, grandchild.
