KalamAunt in Arabic
Arabic has two words for aunt. عمة (ʿamma) is your father's sister and خالة (khāla) is your mother's sister; "my aunt" is ʿammti or khālti. Kids say عمتو (ʿammto) and خالتو (khālto), and Egyptians and Lebanese often call a mom's friends طنط (ṭanṭ) or tante.
Literally: “father's sister / mother's sister”
Aunt across the Arab world
Arabic changes from country to country. Here's what you'll actually hear.
عمتي (ʿammatī) is "my paternal aunt"; خالتي (khālatī) is "my maternal aunt."
Kids also say khālto. Women who are a mom's friends or neighbors are called طنط (ṭanṭ).
Levantineعمتو / خالتوʿammto / khāltoThe affectionate forms. In Lebanon, tante (تانت) is common for older women outside the family.
Gulfعمتي / خالتيʿammti / khāltiYa khāla is a polite way to address an older woman you don't know.
Darijaعمتي / خالتيʿemmti / khāltiMoroccan Darija. Khālti is also a respectful address for an older woman.
Other ways to say aunt
How to respond
Auntie's eyes, i.e. "yes, my dear" (Levantine; also ʿyūn ʿammto)
Yes, my dear? (to a girl: ya ḥabībti)
How to say it right
The sounds English speakers find tricky, and how to get them right.
Practise with feedbackʿAmma starts with ع, a tight sound squeezed from the throat. Without it, ʿamma sounds like أمّا (amma), "as for," so it is worth practicing.
The m in ʿamma is doubled: ʿAM-ma. Hold it a beat.
The kh in khāla is the rough sound in Scottish "loch." Hold the long ā: KHAA-la.
In khālti and ʿammti the final a drops before the -ti ending: khāla becomes KHAAL-ti, not "khala-ti."
Example sentences
Auntie, I missed you so much!
LevantineAuntie, mom says hi.
EgyptianMy aunt is visiting us today.
GulfMy aunt is a teacher at an elementary school.
Standard (MSA)My aunt came from France.
DarijaUsing it like a local
The mother's sister holds a special place. A well-known hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari says الخالة بمنزلة الأم (al-khāla bi-manzilat al-umm), "the maternal aunt is in the position of the mother," and many people grow up treating their khāla like a second mom.
Khālto, ʿammto and ṭanṭ stretch well beyond blood relatives. Children call their mother's friends and neighbors khālto or ṭanṭ, and calling an older woman by her first name alone can sound rude.
Get the side right. Calling your father's sister khāla is a common mistake for heritage learners and can sound odd to relatives. ʿAmma goes with ʿamm (father's side), khāla with khāl (mother's side).
What is the difference between ʿamma and khāla?
عمة (ʿamma) is your father's sister and خالة (khāla) is your mother's sister. Arabic always specifies the side of the family, so there is no general word that means just "aunt."
What does khalto mean?
خالتو (khālto) is the affectionate form of khāla, "maternal aunt." Kids in the Levant and Egypt also use it for their mom's friends and neighbors, much like "auntie" in English.
What does tante or tant mean in Arabic?
It comes from French tante, "aunt." Egyptians say طنط (ṭanṭ) and Lebanese say tante for older women who aren't relatives, like a mom's friend. For actual aunts, people use khālto or ʿammto.
How do you say "my aunt" in Arabic?
For your father's sister: ʿammatī (MSA), ʿammti or ʿammto in dialects. For your mother's sister: khālatī (MSA), khālti or khālto in dialects. Egyptians say ʿammiti for a paternal aunt.
Related words & phrases
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