ᐅᑳᐑᒫᐤ
okâwîmâw
The Cree word for mother is ᐅᑳᐑᒫᐤ (okâwîmâw).
This noun refers to a female human who gives birth to or parents a child.
Meaning: female (human) who gives birth to or parents a child (noun)
How do you pronounce it?
okâwîmâw
Did you know?
- The concept of motherhood in Cree culture is often inextricably linked to the land, where certain terms for 'mother' can carry a spiritual weight similar to 'Mother Earth'.
- Cree writing often uses the syllabic system, where the characters in ᐅᑳᐑᒫᐤ represent a combination of a consonant and a vowel in a single symbol.
- Cree uses a complex system of animacy where ᐅᑳᐑᒫᐤ is classified as an animate noun, which dictates how verbs and adjectives must be conjugated when referring to her.
Example conversation
A child is talking to a friend about their family.
- Aᑕᓂᐣᐄᐤ ᓂᐣᐄᐤ ᐅᑳᐑᒫᐤ?Tananīw ninīw ukāimāw?Where is your mother?
- Bᐅᑳᐑᒫᐤ ᓂᐣᐄᐤ ᒫᐣᐄᐤ ᒫᐣᐄᐤ.Ukāimāw ninīw mānīw mānīw.My mother is at home.
- Aᓂᐱᐑ ᒫᒥᐤ ᓂᐣᐄᐤ ᒫᐣᐄᐤ ᒫᐣᐄᐤ.Nipiw māmi ninīw mānīw mānīw.My mom is here too.
- Bᒥᐣᐄᐤ ᓂᐣᐄᐤ ᒫᐣᐄᐤ.Minīw ninīw mānīw.That is very good.
