farbror
common gender
The Swedish word for uncle is farbror. Wiktionary also lists onkel and fars svåger.
Meaning: brother (or brother-in-law) of someone’s parent (noun)
Ways to say it
| Swedish | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| farbror | common gender | |
| onkel | common gender | |
| fars svåger | common gender | |
| ingift farbror | common gender | |
| morbror | /ˈmʊrˌbrʊr/ /ˈmʊrbrʊr/ |
common gender |
| mors svåger | /mɔrs ˈsvoːɡər/ (word by word) | common gender |
| ingift morbror | common gender |
In Swedish, you typically specify whether the uncle is on the father's or mother's side rather than using a generic term.
What does it mean word for word?
The word farbror is a compound of far (father) and bror (brother). Similarly, morbror is a compound of mor (mother) and bror (brother).
Which one should you use?
Swedish distinguishes between paternal and maternal uncles using specific terms. Use farbror for a father's brother and morbror for a mother's brother. Other variations include fars svåger and mors svåger. If the uncle is a brother-in-law, you can use ingift farbror or ingift morbror.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In the region of Skåne, the term onkel is sometimes used instead of the standard Swedish word for uncle.
How does it change in a sentence?
All provided forms are common-gender nouns.
Did you know?
- The word onkel is a loanword that traveled from Latin avunculus through French oncle and German Onkel before entering Swedish.
- In Swedish culture, the distinction between farbror and morbror is maintained even in adulthood to provide immediate genealogical context.
Examples in context
- Var bor din morbror?Where does your uncle live?This sentence is useful for asking about the location of a morbror.Tatoeba #4075736 by malinef, translation #17412 by CK
- Hur gammal är din morbror?How old is your uncle?This sentence is useful for asking about the age of a morbror.Tatoeba #2158346 by herrsilen, translation #70997 by CK
- Hotellet drivs av hans farbror.The hotel is run by his uncle.This sentence is useful for identifying who runs a hotel using the form farbror.Tatoeba #921400 by Tximist, translation #49876 by CK
- Tack så mycket för hjälpen, morbror!Thank you very much for your help, uncle!
- Jag ska besöka farbror idag.I'm going to visit my uncle today.
- Jag träffade min onkel igår.I met my uncle yesterday.
- 17 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends are talking about a family gathering.
- AliceKommer din farbror också på festen?Is your uncle coming to the party too?
- OscarJa, min farbror kommer med.Yes, my uncle is coming along.
- AliceVad trevligt att träffa honom igen.How nice to see him again.
- OscarHan är en väldigt snäll man.He is a very kind man.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “uncle” translations and entries farbror, onkel, morbror, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (mors, svåger) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries farbror, fars, ingift, onkel, svåger, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
