Aunty's and Uncle's

[EarlofShrewsbury]

Another thread got me wondering.

When I was younger my parents siblings and my grandparents siblings were always called aunty or uncle. As in I addressed them as Aunty Susan or Uncle Barry or whatever.

I also had a cousin who was only a couple of years younger than my Dad (Dad was youngest of 9 so his sisters were a lot older). I always addressed him as Cousin Darren, I still do even though I'm nearly 40. I still call everyone aunty and uncle too.

My kids call my brother Uncle Aiden and his girlfriend Aunty Megan but they call their Dads siblings just by their first names.

Is it a dying trend? I assume it's a respect to elders thing but it's so ingrained into me I can't stop.

Do you still use Aunty and Uncle as an adult? Do your kids use it?

*all names changed to protect the innocent 🙂

My family does still use auntie and uncle titles. Pretty typical for a big Irish scouse family tbh.

A lot of it is cultural. I'm a childminder and a family wanted their child to call me Auntie, I felt uncomfortable about this because I'm not.
The child ended up copying the other children anyway and calling my by my first name.

Mine and DH’s siblings are generally Aunty/Uncle, but the great aunt and uncles - of which there are legion are generally known by nicknames… KitKat, MoMo, Anderly, Mags, Dera etc

On my father's side we officially dropped the Uncle and Auntie titles when we were 18. We were a family of 9 cousins of similar age so each year a couple more of us dropped them. If I'm talking about the aunt/uncle to someone I might say 'my auntie Linda' to be clear who I'm talking about. We kept the titles for great aunts as they were older and it seemed more respectful.

On my mum's side I didn't use them as her sister was close to me in age. I think her sister's children used it with my parents for a bit but dropped it as they grew up.

DH's nephews used uncle rather half heartedly, although he still uses aunt and uncle for all of his, but a bit inconsistently. I have one nephew but don't see him much as we live abroad and we haven't really used the title. So I guess it is going out of fashion a bit.

I'm in Australia - here Indigenous people use Aunty and Uncle for all elders , whether you are related or not. It's a term of great respect .

I'm early 60's and I always gave my aunts and uncles this title, but my nieces and nephews did not use it for me. I think it's all part of the general move to less formality. At one time anyone you didn't know well would be Mr, Mrs or Miss Surname not first name. I received a letter this week from my accountant which started Dear Cheese, and was signed with just a first name, 20+ years ago I would have been Mrs Sunflowers.

My husbands family do this and I must admit I always thought/ think it's really childish for an adult to say. My auntie/uncles are just "Barry" Susan" etc

My mums side I still refer to them as uncle but only two of them.

Dad's side, absolutely not! They're all unhinged, two faced, shit stirring assholes 😄. I don't even call my nan 'nan', she's a wish version of Boris Johnson.

My dad is probably the only decent one that side 🤣.

The other day we went to visit a relative who is my parents’ age. Let’s call her Morag. My 6 year old son and my husband hadn’t met her before. I don’t know her very well myself.

Her Dad was my Dad’s (much older) cousin and they were quite close. I always called him and his wife Uncle Fred and Auntie Betty, though the actual family tree was explained to me when I was quite young. I’m conversation with their daughter, I still referred to them as Uncle and Auntie (I’m now pushing 50 and they are both dead).

Completely unprompted, my husband encouraged my son to call Morag “Aunty Morag” as in “Say thank you to Aunty Morag for your drink”.

I’m not sure I’d have done that myself but I really liked it- it showed that he felt it was important for our son to distinguish between adult friends and people we are related to.

However, I have other relatives on a different side of the family who are exactly the same relationship to me as Morag. The difference is that they are in their 20s. We see them a lot and he’s never suggested our son call them Aunty and Uncle. So I guess it’s a gut feeling thing influenced by a combination of age and family proximity.

Interesting!

In 70s / early 80s called everyone aunty and uncle., incl. parents friends. Remember as a teenager not knowing who I was actually related to and my mum getting upset with me about me saying it. (Talking / sharing info was not something they did.)
My dc have always called their uncle by his first name despite their gm always referring to him as uncle *.

We use auntie and uncle when we are talking about them, but just their names when we are talking to them.
I also called my parents friends uncle and aunty, for politeness, as a child but dropped that as an adult

I haven't called my aunts and uncles "auntie" or "uncle" since I was a young teen. I say it to my son who is 6 though.

I always think it is a title children use: plus we don't say "hello Cousin Joe" so weird really

West of Scotland, in my early 40s.

Growing up, I wouldn't have dreamed of calling an adult by their first name: it was either [title] [lastname] or [aunt / uncle] [firstname], depending on the closeness of the relationship.

However, my teenaged niece and nephews call me by my first name, so I think a combination of cultural / generational mores at play here.

Yes we do too. Both my and DH's brothers are known as Uncle name.
My DM is from India so everyone was aunty and uncle when I was growing up.

As a child in Scotland/NI

Aunts and uncles were Auntie/Uncle FirstName
Certain close friends of the family were also Auntie/Uncle FirstName.
Also living great-aunts and great-uncles.
Girlfriends or boyfriends of aunts and uncles were Firstname only until marriage or a loooong time had passed.

Grandparents were Granny and Granda, but if talking to other people they were referred to as Granny/Granda LastName

Cousins were FirstName only.

Auntie and Uncle were only ever used in my family for actual aunts and uncles. Otherwise, when I was a child, it was Mrs/Mr So-and-so. My own dds however would use first names for non-relatives - that would seem be the norm now.

In some cultures any stranger will be called sister, brother, aunt, uncle, grandmother/father, etc., according to age and sex. When I worked in an office in the Middle East, random young blokes who worked nearby would come in asking for a favour - always beginning with, ‘Sister….’ - I rather liked it.

On holiday in Kenya some years later I was ‘Mama’!

I'm 25 and still call all aunties, uncles, and great aunties and uncles, by "Aunty/Uncle XYZ".

My mom still does it to her aunties and uncles, and she's in her 60s.

I can't imagine just using their names on their own!

I'm English for reference

Yes Auntie/Uncle here too, mixed/Asian family. Even friends of family are Auntie/Uncle, hence I grew up thinking all of them were blood relatives! Even after divorcing my uncle 20+ years ago my auntie sue is still my auntie Sue!

DD uses aunty and uncle except for one uncle who has a silly nickname. I did as a child too, and often called family friends uncle and aunty too

I apparently came home from school at about 10 and asked why I didn't have any aunties or uncles. I do, but we've always just used first names, and my kids do the same really. All a bit twee for us!

My children call their actual aunt and uncle aunt and uncle first name and their great aunt and uncle first name but no one else (friends of the family), mine and DH's cousins etc. There are two exceptions, one of my cousins who is more like a sister to me and one distant relation of my dh's who he always called Auntie X.

When I was growing up my parent's friends, cousins and other family friends were always aunt and uncle first name.

Yeh my children call my DB and his wife Auntie and Uncle but they don’t use their first names with it too, that seems strange to me.

Have literally just realised I call my aunty and uncle by their first name, I don’t know when it happened!!!!😂