Aunt

An aunt is a person who is the sister, half-sister, step-sister, or sister-in-law of a parent, or the wife of one's uncle or aunt, but can also be an affectionate title for an older nurturing woman. Aunts are second-degree relatives and share 25% genetic overlap when they are the full sister of the parent. Known alternate terms include Auntie or Aunty. A half-aunt is a half-sister of one's parent and is a third-degree relative with 12.5% genetic overlap. If the aunt is a step-sister or sister-in-law, direct genetic overlap will typically be 0%, as this person entered the family through marriage and typically is not a blood relative.

A grand-aunt (sometimes written as grand aunt, grandaunt, or great-aunt) is the sister, half- or step-sister, or sister-in-law of a grandparent, or the wife of one's grand-uncle or grand-aunt. The male equivalent of an aunt is an uncle, and the reciprocal relationship is that of a nephew or niece.

Aunts in popular culture

Due to the loving image of an old but wise and friendly aunt in many cultures, the word has been used as a loving nickname for many people. Various female children's TV hosts have used "aunt" as their nickname, including Hannie Lips ("Tante Hannie"), Lily Petersen ("Tante Lily") and Terry Van Ginderen ("Tante Terry"). Some female writers have used it too, like Laura Valentine ("Aunt Louisa"), Harriette Newell Woods Baker ("Aunt Hattie"), Elma Dalhuijsen-Nuis ("Tante Kaat") and Henriette Roland Holst ("Tante Jet"). New Zealand radio presenter Aunt Daisy is another example.

Some musicians have used it as well, such as Dutch singer Helena Polder (Tante Leen), American folk singer Aunt Molly Jackson, country singer Aunt Sap, Hawaiian musician Aunty Genoa Keawe, Auntie Alice Namakelua and Auntie Nona, the rock bands Auntie Christ and Aunt Mary, the disco band Aunty Disco Project and the jazz band Aunt Ruby's Sweet Jazz Babies. One particular pornographic actress, Juliet Anderson, named herself Aunt Peg, while YouTube personality Felicia A. O'Dell named herself Auntie Fee.

Due to its inviting image several buildings have also used the word "aunt" in their name, such as the Italian safe house Aunt Anna's and the Dutch restaurant Tante Koosje. Companies like the BBC (Auntie Beeb), Auntie Anne's, Aunt Bessie's, Aunt Carrie's, Aunty Green Hotel, Aunt Jemima, Aunt Judy's Magazine, Aunt Nellie's Red Cabbage, Spry Vegetable Shortening (Aunt Jenny), Aunt Lute Books and Club Penguin (Aunt Arctic) use it for the same reasons. An Aunt Sally is a dummy of an old woman's head, which players throw sticks or battens to.

Wise or otherwise eccentric aunts are also popular in works of fiction.

See also

• All pages beginning with Aunt – includes many articles with titles "Aunt [name]."
• Auntie (disambiguation) (also includes "Aunty")
• Cousin

References

External links

• The dictionary definition of aunt at Wiktionary
• The dictionary definition of grandaunt at Wiktionary
• The dictionary definition of great-aunt at Wiktionary