hijo e hija
/ixo e ixa/from spelling rules
The English phrase "son and daughter" is translated into Spanish as hijo e hija.
This phrase refers to the children of a person, specifically a male child and a female child.
How does it change in a sentence?
In this phrase, the conjunction y (which means "and") changes to e because it is placed before hija, a word that begins with the "i" sound. This change is made to avoid phonetic clashing between the two vowel sounds.
Did you know?
- The word hijo originates from the Proto-Indo-European root *dʰeh₁(y)-, which is the same root that eventually led to the English word 'do'.
- While hijo means 'son', it is common for Spanish speakers to use mi hijo as a gentle way to address any young person, such as a student or a waiter, regardless of their biological relationship.
- Spanish has no single word for 'siblings' like English does. Instead, it uses hermanos, which literally translates to 'brothers' but covers both brothers and sisters.
Examples in context
- Es un placer conocer a su hija.It's a pleasure to meet your daughter.
Example conversation
Sofía and Mateo are talking about their family.
- SofíaMateo, ¿tienes hermanos?Mateo, do you have siblings?
- MateoNo, pero tengo un hijo e hija.No, but I have a son and daughter.
- Sofía¿Cuántos años tienen ellos?How old are they?
- MateoTienen diez y ocho años.They are ten and eight years old.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries e, hija, hijo, CC BY-SA 4.0.
