When native speakers of Japanese use おばあさん to refer to an older woman who is not that that individual's own grandmother, does their concept of the woman include any expectation that she would have had children at some point during her life?
1 Answer
Generally speaking, yes, there is that assumption in our minds, but this custom rarely, if ever, causes problems when the older woman addressed as おばあさん by a stranger actually turns out to be someone who has never had a child in her life. That is because it is likely that she herself has been addressing any older lady おばあさん since she was little.
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I can't imagine a woman ever being offended at the term おばあさん based on whether or not she's had children. Far more important is whether or not she feels she's too young for the term. But more importantly, doesn't every culture default to assume that people above a certain age have led a life that includes the expecation of having had children? I'm not sure if the use of おばあさん conveys anything particular that isn't assumed in just about every language. Jan 3, 2014 at 6:59
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@DaveMG, regarding the larger expectation, part of why I bothered asking is that while we do have the term "granny" in English, it is a slightly derogatory term to say about random older women whereas おばあさん is the common term. Moreover, in contemporary English (at least American English), I wouldn't assume "older woman" means she had children at this point in time.– virmaiorJan 3, 2014 at 8:33
:)