Why babies in every country on Earth say 'mama'

Like it or not, cross-cultural use of the word "mama" doesn't spring from some innate appreciation of moms

Baby
(Image credit: ThinkStock/iStockphoto)

Every language has a word for water. In Swahili they call it maji. In Danish, it's vand. The Japanese say mizu. Even though these words describe the most common and plentiful life-giving substance on Earth, they have nothing in common linguistically. But why should they, evolving as they did on three separate continents among people with incredibly diverse histories and traditions?

But there is a word, and only one, spoken the same way in nearly every language known to humankind. That word, of course, is "mama."

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Therese O'Neill

Therese O'Neill lives in Oregon and writes for The Atlantic, Mental Floss, Jezebel, and more. She is the author of New York Times bestseller Unmentionable: The Victorian Ladies Guide to Sex, Marriage and Manners. Meet her at writerthereseoneill.com.