Relatives

      Be alert to the fact that Cheyenne has a different way of saying some relatives' names when you are speaking TO them than when you are speaking ABOUT them. Technically, we call the word used when speaking to your relative the "addressee" or "vocative" form. We will begin by listing some addressee words. Remember, these are to be used when speaking TO your relative, not about them. These are equivalent to when we say to our mother in English, "Mom!"

      Addressee words (when speaking to someone)

      Nâháa'e Auntie
      Náhko'e Mother
      Ného'e Father
      Néške'e Grandmother
      Nésêsónêhasêstse Siblings


      Relative words (when speaking about someone)

      náhko'éehe my mother
      ného'éehe my father
      namêšéme my grandfather (can be spelled informally as namshim), also can mean 'my father-in-law'
      néške'éehe my grandmother, also, my mother-in-law
      nae'ha my son; nae'haho my sons
      nâhtona my daughter; nâhtónaho my daughters
      néxahe my grandchild(ren), also, my son-in-law, or my daughter-in-law
      naaxaa'éhéme my sister (man speaking); my sister-in-law (woman speaking)
      nâhtataneme my brother (woman speaking)
      navésêsono my siblings (includes cousins)
      nétame my brother-in-law (woman speaking)
      né'tóve my brother-in-law (man speaking)
      na'häme my niece (from sibling of the opposite sex)
      natsénota my nephew (from sibling of the opposite sex)
      naéhame my husband
      nanéso my child; nanésoneho my children
      navóohestoto my relatives

      éhane our father
      nanésonêhaneo'o our (exclusive) children

      neško your mother
      eho your father
      nemêšéme your grandfather, also, your father-in-law
      ésemáhe your younger sibling
      éškeme your grandmother, also, your mother-in-law
      nee'ha your son
      nêstona your daughter
      éxahe your grandchild(ren), also, your son-in-law, or, your daughter-in-law
      ésemáhe your younger sibling

      hee'haho his son(s)
      hestónaho his daughter(s)
      heho his father
      heške his mother
      hemêšemo his grandfather
      hevéškemo his grandmother
      hevéxaho his grandchild(ren)
      hestatanemo her brother(s)
      hemeho his older sister(s)
      hevásemo his younger sibling(s)
      he'neho his older brother(s)
      hevásemo his younger sibling(s)
      hevésêsono his sibling(s)
      heaxaa'éhemo his sister
      hešeho his maternal uncle
      heškamóono his stepmother / his maternal aunt
      hehaeho his paternal aunt
      hevétáme her brother-in-law
      hevé'tovo his brother-in-law
      he'hameho his niece (from sibling of the opposite sex)
      hetsénotaho his nephew (from sibling of the opposite sex)
      heéháme her husband
      henésono his child(ren)
      hestovamo his co-in-law
      hevóohestoto his relative(s)

      héhevóho their father
      henésonêhevóho their children
      heškevóho their mother
      hevéxahevóho their grandchild(ren) / their child(ren)-in-law


      Participles

      tséhéhéto the one who is my father
      tséhéheto the one who is your father
      tséhéhese the one who is his father
      tséhéhétse the one who is our father
      tséhéhestovêstse the one who is father
      tséheškéstovêstse the one who is mother
      tsévéstoemo the one who is my spouse
      tsévéstoemose the one who is his/her spouse (more commonly used now than heéháme)
      tsévéstoemôhtse the one who is your spouse


      Verbs

      Náhee'hahenôtse. He is my son.
      Náhéhenôtse. He is my father.
      Náhestónâhenôtse. She is my daughter.
      Náhešké'tova. I am her mother.
      Náheškenôtse. She is my mother.
      Náhevésemenôtse. He/She is my younger sibling.
      Náhevéškemenôtse. She is my grandmother/mother-in-law.


      Babytalk (or affectionate talk)

      mémééhe grandpa
      ke'éehe grandma


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