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Original poster

What is wrong with Granny?

418 replies

Jane958 · 14/06/2025 20:05

Both my grannies were Granny.
My mother was Granny.
My sister has chosen Nana, why?
Is this an indication of how far we are plummeting towards the bottom?

OP posts:
Throwitawayagain · 14/06/2025 22:28

Are you drunk OP? You sound a bit disjointed. Either that or you are tying yourself in knots trying to avoid openly expressing your prejudices.
Maybe your sister likes "Nana", isn't seeking to emulate the royals, and loves to piss you off.

PinkSparklyPussyCat · 14/06/2025 22:28

Petitchat · 14/06/2025 22:14

I have a grandcat (dd's cat)

Confused

My mum had one of those. She got fed up with being asked when I was going to 'make her a granny' so she started saying she had a grandson called Harry and just didn't mention the 4 legs and fur!

FedupofArsenalgame · 14/06/2025 22:26

Ketzele · 14/06/2025 20:13

I have a Nanny, partly because my great gran had already taken Granny. IME nannies are either posh people's hired help, or working class grandparents with their own parents still around. This is rather supported by your 'race to the bottom' comment.

My nana ( born 1898) downright refused to be called nanny because she wasn't someone employed to look after someone else's kids ( she had a nanny for her own kids

She got shortened to NL. Nana plus the first initial of her surname

My mum was called grandma

I am nana

BunnyLake · 14/06/2025 22:23

Jane958 · 14/06/2025 21:22

Well, if Granny was good enough for the Queen?
I will leave it there.
I did ask my sister why she didn't go for "Nonna" the Italian version of granny and she thought for a minute and said she had forgotten it was an option.
She is one of those inverted snobs, though :-)

Very weird thread and even weirder outlook. Do you get on your sisters’s nerves generally?

Ahwig · 14/06/2025 22:22

My mum was grandma to my son and grandson ( her choice) . My grandson calls his mum’s mum Nanny and my son and his partner left it to me as to what I wanted to be called. I decided Nanna and when I told them that I also told them that I was calling myself after the dog in Peter Pan . I was a youngish grand parent at 43 and I felt that grandma or granny were too old.

Nanny0gg · 14/06/2025 22:22

Jane958 · 14/06/2025 21:22

Well, if Granny was good enough for the Queen?
I will leave it there.
I did ask my sister why she didn't go for "Nonna" the Italian version of granny and she thought for a minute and said she had forgotten it was an option.
She is one of those inverted snobs, though :-)

As opposed to a straightforward one?

Wheelz46 · 14/06/2025 22:21

Nothing wrong with Granny, Grandma or Nana.

My grandmother was Nana in my younger years, curious as to what you think is wrong with Nana?

jamimmi · 14/06/2025 22:20

@Bettysnow we are also a gangan family for similar reasons, my ds the original started it and all the other grandchildren now call her that 2. Other one is grandma. DS is now 22!

BunnyLake · 14/06/2025 22:19

My kids had two nanas (followed by their name to distinguish) Names were their choices (the nanas).

None of us had any idea we were in the gutter being happy with those names 🙄

GoodOldTrayBake · 14/06/2025 22:19

You sound like shit sister

Sassparilla · 14/06/2025 22:19

Jane958 · 14/06/2025 21:22

Well, if Granny was good enough for the Queen?
I will leave it there.
I did ask my sister why she didn't go for "Nonna" the Italian version of granny and she thought for a minute and said she had forgotten it was an option.
She is one of those inverted snobs, though :-)

It wasn't good enough The Queen was Gan-Gan to her grandchildren.

TrixieFatell · 14/06/2025 22:16

I had a granny, I adored her. I won't be granny though when my children have children. I won't be nanny either. No clue what I'll be 😂

Sonolanona · 14/06/2025 22:16

I'm Granny. Which bumped my Mum up to 'Old Granny' 😂as great granny.
I wasn't overly keen at first I admit, but my DD2 naturally called me Granny to her baby, because my Mum is Granny to her... so the title just passed on.

4 years, two grandchildren later, nothing is sweeter than hearing 'I love you Granny'.

WearyAuldWumman · 14/06/2025 22:15

CuarloDeFonza · 14/06/2025 22:00

In Punjabi culture, Nani (feminine) & Nana (Masculine) are the parents of the Mum, your Babi & Baba are the parents of the Father. Use this system, it's better and simpler then a generic Grandad/Grandma.

In my dad's culture, there's differentiation between paternal and maternal uncles. Maternal and paternal aunts are the same, but there's further differentiation for aunts and uncle through marriage.

Petitchat · 14/06/2025 22:14

I have a grandcat (dd's cat)

Confused
Nanny0gg · 14/06/2025 22:13

Blobbitymacblob · 14/06/2025 20:36

Makes me think of Granny Weatherwax who is exactly what I’d like to be when I grow up.

I'm happy as Nanny0gg

PinkSparklyPussyCat · 14/06/2025 22:10

ToffeePennie · 14/06/2025 20:59

Nope! Granny is so incredibly old fashioned and screams fuddy duddy.
I’m going to be Nannie Pennie (as an example) like my mum who is Nannie First Name.
I had a Nanny and Grandad Smoke (example) because he smoked and a Nanny and Grandad Camping, because they took me camping, a Nanny Surname and a Nanny Conservatory (because it was a massive feature of her house)
My husband had Granny and Nanna.
In our family my husbands mother was determined to be Granny and so she is, and Grandad First Name.
My parents are Nanny First Name and Grandad Nickname, plus Nanny and Grandad Smoke are now Nanny and Grandad Trouble because my oldest once wrote a piece for school called “The biggest Trouble” which featured his great grandad quite heavily.
We don’t have “Nan” and despite me being 36 I still say “Nanny Smoke” and “Nanny Camping” when chatting to the family, as the oldest child I chose their names and they stuck.

I had a Nana Fags as she smoked! She didn't want to be called Grandma or Granny as it made her sound old.

DH's grandchildren call me by my first name. I was asked whether I wanted to be Nana or Granny and I said my first name would be fine!

dynamiccactus · 14/06/2025 22:09

Scrabbelator · 14/06/2025 21:33

Some grannies are a bit sensitive about being old enough to be a granny, so they think that being a nana makes them a young and trendy granny. So basically a nana is just an insecure granny who's in denial about getting older.

Well it probably depends how old you are when you become a grandmother.

I had a grandma and a nana. My nana was significantly younger than my other grandmother. My mum is also nana to my son.

However, as it appears Nana is common, I will now tell my son that if I ever become a grandmother I will expect to be called the grandmater.

I like the Punjabi system.

Themagicfarawaytreeismyfav · 14/06/2025 22:05

Absolutely no way was I going to be called granny…it reminds me of elderly ladies! Im nanny/nana and i would rather have been my actual name!

suki1964 · 14/06/2025 22:04

Im granny. nanny and Suki

My grandchildren arent from birth children so I leave them to decide.

Grandad is grandad to all of them

thiswilloutme · 14/06/2025 22:03

Northern WC class here - we had Grandma "Smith" and Grandma "Jones" back in the 50's-70's. Not sure what the trend there is now.

My very MC, midlands, ex MIL was "Gran" to all her GCs. I think I'll opt for "Gran" (if I get a choice) as it doesn't seem as old, to me, as Grandma or Granny.

all of the "N" alternatives just seem alien to me so I wouldn't naturally go for them

RitaFromThePitCanteen · 14/06/2025 22:02

A lot of it seems to be country-specific or regional. Every Scottish person I have known has had a granny. In Essex, it was nan. In Norfolk it's nanny. In the home counties, I've heard grandma and gran a lot.

CuarloDeFonza · 14/06/2025 22:00

In Punjabi culture, Nani (feminine) & Nana (Masculine) are the parents of the Mum, your Babi & Baba are the parents of the Father. Use this system, it's better and simpler then a generic Grandad/Grandma.

BIossomtoes · 14/06/2025 21:59

WearyAuldWumman · 14/06/2025 21:52

As a step-gran, I wasn't allowed to have an honorific - only my forename. However, the grandmothers on my mum's side of the family are all "Nanny", a tradition first started by my grandmother whose first grandchildren were born in the 1950s.

On the Eastern European side of the family, great-aunts are also grandmothers...so over there I get to be Baba or Baba Weary.

That really stinks. I asked what the “blood” grandmas wanted to be called, neither of them chose Granny so I said I’d have it. The parents then started calling me Granny Myname whereupon I asked if the kids had got another granny. Obviously the answer was no so I said just Granny works fine then.

Floranan · 14/06/2025 21:59

I’m nanny, I had a Nan and and nanny when I was growing up.

my children came along and unfortunately my mum was no longer with us, and MIL wanted granny. That’s was fine, I didn’t mind she be called what she liked. Trouble was she was the world’s worst MIL and was only a granny when it suited her. When my grandchildren came along I just said no to granny I would love nanny or Nan. DIL mum said she would like nana so I said lovely that makes me nanny everyone happy and there’s no granny