What is wrong with Granny?

[Jane958]

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?

I had a nana and a granny and my nana was a good ten years older than granny. Granny was always fun and youthful, taking us on bikes with her huge Irish setter and taking us on fun holidays and days out, where’s nana was more the type to sit with the fire on with her cat on her lap.
So based on my own experiences I see “nana” as being a much older vibe.

However in the flip side, my boyfriend also had a baba and a granny/grandma and his were the other way around. Granny was very old and slow, his nana was much younger and livelier. So HE sees “nana” as a young thing and “granny” as an old lady.

Surely just personal preference at the end of the day, and not sure what you mean about “plummeting towards the bottom.”

I have never given it a second thought but then I am not a raging snob. I hope you manage to cope when you see cards for "To my dear Nana at christmas" and so on but then you doubtless don't frequent the sort of "common" shops that sell them

It's all very regional. Nanny seems to be the most popular here. Whichever member of if the nursery staff did the hand over when I picked GDD up would always refer to me as Nanny, and my little DGD would correct then and say "no, it's Grandma"

Where I grew up it was Ma-mah or Na-nah, which my mum absolutely hated.

My Nan is 95.

I'm 52 and have never called her anything else.

So you're a snob and she's an inverted snob. I guess you balance each other out.

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.

Because the Queen’s family has done so brilliantly!

You’ve definitely got to find some hobbies.

Im a Nana. My beloved Granny Smith was the one and only Granny in our family. Couldn’t live up to her amazingness and don’t try.

I started off as Nanny but kids learned Nana first and it stuck. They also have an ‘Oma’ but she’s German so I’m hoping it passes the class test.

Really not coming across well at all, OP.

Me too. I love being called Granny and I'm not old or walk with a stick. Definitely wouldn't ever want to be called any of the N words.

You can say cunt on here

My DM prefers Grandma as she says that Nan, Nanna, Gran or Granny makes her sounds ancient (and she says Grandma's a bit more middle class 😅😳, alongside Grandpa too).

I have to say, it is probably a lot of personal preference, but my two grandmothers were Grandma. My MIL is a Nan but only because it sounded better with her name Ann. Nan Ann 😳

DD has/had Granny and Grandpa and a Grandma and Grandad.

It’s up to them surely?

I don’t mind Granny or Grandma and dislike Nanny but I don’t have strong views.

I think that “plummeting to the bottom” because one chooses to use nana is a bit extreme. We have nannie and nana. But surely people should be able to choose their preference.

My parents were nanny and grandad and PIL are grandma and grandpa. This is what they wanted to be called.
Both me and my DIL’s mum are Nanny to our grandson and my DH is grandad. He called my mum
’Nanny+her first name’ and calls my husbands parents granny and grandpa.
I love being a Nanny 😀

Are you Italian?

My four DCs have a Grandma and a Nanny.

The only time it becomes an issue is at Christmas etc when trying to find four different cards in each name can be a marathon (because neither the kids nor the grandmothers would accept cards addressed to Granny or Nana)!

🙄

I was 50 when my first grandchild was born. I was asked what I wanted to be called and opted for Granny. I'm definitely not elderly, frail or a fuddy duddy. I'm going to two rock gigs in the next few weeks and will definitely be in the most pit.

My grandmothers were Dadijaan (urdu for paternal grandmother) and Ouma (dutch/Afrikaans) for my South African grandmother. Both refused to be called ‘nanny’ as that referred to an employed childcare professional. My kids call their UK grandma Nanny, though. I hope to be Ouma when/if my time comes.

My family has always had “Nana” and “Nanny”.

”Grandma” is for great-grandmothers.

That's why mil, dm and step mil all refused to be called granny. They see themselves as hip and young and also two of them have nothing to do with the kids anyway as travelling the globe. Should have asked to be referred to as cousins 🙄

I don’t know why, and I’m sure this will be widely criticised, but ‘Granny’ sounds old and wrinkly, possibly a bit stooped, but kindly. ‘Grandma’ seems friendlier. But equally could apply to a bit of an old crone, possibly because of ‘Grandmama’. ‘Nana’ is a Newfoundland, but is also quite a cosy, chubby grandma who knits. ‘Nan’ is just common. 🫢

I had a Nanna, but absolutely hated it when my cousins would call her Nan instead. I thought it sounded awful.
My DD has a Granny and a Grandma.
I’m not sure what I would want to be called when my DD has children. My friend is a Grammy and I quite like that.

My son has a gran, a nana, a nannie, a papa & a pappy!

I myself only ever had a grandma and a grandad

I have a Nana, she's pushing 90 now so hardly a new concept. I also had a Granny and a Grandma (blended family). My mum is Grannie to my DD and my MIL is Nannie to her.