# بابا
## Arabic
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /baː.baː/

### Etymology 1

From Latin pāpa.

#### Noun

بَابَا • (bābā) m (plural بَابَوَات (bābawāt) or بَابَاوَات (bābāwāt))
* (Christianity) pope, patriarch

##### Usage notes

* The Bishop of Rome is often specified as بَابَا ٱلْفاتِيكان (bābā l-fātīkān, literally “Pope of the Vatican”) to distinguish him from the Coptic pope.

##### Related terms

* بَابَوِيّ (bābawiyy)
* بَابَوِيَّة (bābawiyya)

### Etymology 2

From baby talk.

#### Noun

بَابَا • (bābā) m
* (childish) papa, daddy, father

##### Declension
## Hijazi Arabic
### Etymology

From baby talk.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /baː.ba/, [bɑː.bɑ]

### Noun

بابا • (bāba) m (plural بَابَوَات (bābāwāt) or بَابَهات (bābāhāt))
* papa, daddy, father
    Synonyms: أبو (abu), والد (wālid)

#### Usage notes

The mentioned plurals are rarely used, while the most common plural is أَبَّهات (abbahāt) which stems from the Classical Arabic word أَبْ (ʔab).

## Khalaj
### Noun

بابا (bâba) (definite accusative باباݧ, plural بابالار)
* Arabic spelling of bâba (“father”)

#### Declension
## Old Anatolian Turkish
### Noun

بَابَا • (baba)
* Alternative form of بَبَا (baba)
** 14th Century, anonymous author, Bursa Manuscript: Kitāb-ı Dedem Ḳorḳud Alā Lisān-ı Tāife-i Oġuzān:اُوغُلْ دَخيٖ نَيْلَسُونْ بَابَا اُولُوبْ مَالْ قَالْمَسَهoġul daḫı näyläsün baba ölüp māl qalmasawhat is for a son to do if [his] father dies and leaves no goods

## Ottoman Turkish
### Etymology

Inherited from Old Anatolian Turkish بَبَا (baba), of onomatopoeic origin.

### Noun

بابا • (baba)
* papa, daddy, father
    Synonyms: پدر (peder), والد (vâlid), آتا (ata)
* a post of stout timber set upright, a stanchion

#### Derived terms

* آق بابا (ak baba, “vulture”)

#### Related terms

* انا (ana, “mother”)

#### Descendants

* Turkish: baba
** → German: baba
* → Albanian: baba
* → Armenian: (Constantinople) պապա (papa), (Van) բաբա (baba)
* → Laz: ბაბა (baba)

### Further reading

* Nişanyan, Sevan (2002–) “baba”, in Nişanyan Sözlük
* Redhouse, James W. (1890) “بابا”, in A Turkish and English Lexicon‎, Constantinople: A. H. Boyajian, page 314

## Pashto
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /bɑˈbɑ/

### Noun

بابا • (bābā́) m
* (informal) dad, daddy
* grandfather

#### Synonyms

* (father): پلار

## Persian
### Alternative forms

* بابو (bâbo) (dialectal, Shiraz)
* ببا (bobâ) (dialectal)
* بوا (bovâ) (dialectal, Kazerun, Bushehr, Khesht, Konartakhteh, Dashtestan)
* ببو (bobo) (dialectal, Abadeh)
* بو (bow) (dialectal, Kazerun)

### Etymology

Originally from baby talk, see mama and papa.

### Pronunciation

* (Classical Persian) IPA: [bɑː.ˈβɑː]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [bɑː.bɑ́ː], [bɑː.bɑ́ːj]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [bɑː.bɑ́ː], [bɑː.bɑ́ːj]
** (Kabuli) IPA: [bɑː.bɑ́ː], [bɑː.bɑ́ːj]
** (Hazaragi) IPA: [bɔː.bɔ́ː], [bɔː.bɔ́ːj]
* (Iran, formal) IPA: [bɒː.bɒ́ː]
* (Tajik, formal) IPA: [bɔ.bɔ́]
* Audio (Iran):(file)

### Noun

بابا • (bâbâ)
* (colloquial) dad, daddy, father
    Synonym: پدر (pedar, “father”)
** c. 1260s, Jalāl ad-Dīn Mohammad Rūmī, translated by Reynold A. Nicholson, مثنوی معنوی [Masnavi-ye-Ma'navi], volume III, verse 1174:بعد از آن گفتند ای مادر بیا / گور بابا کو تو ما را ره نماba'd az ân goftand ey mâdar biy-â / gur-e bâbâ ku to mâ râ rah namâAfterwards they said, "Come, O mother, where is our father's grave? Do thou show us the way."
* (colloquial) grandpa, grandfather
    Synonyms: بابابزرگ (bâbâ-bozorg), پدربزرگ (pedar-bozorg, “grandfather”)
* (colloquial) fellow

#### Derived terms

* ای بابا (ey bâbâ)
* بابا نوئل (Bâbâ No'el)
* بابابزرگ (bâbâ-bozorg)

#### Descendants

* → Khalaj: bâba

#### See also

* When referring to older family members, both بزرگ (buzurg) and کلان (kalān) are correct, but the latter is more common in Afghanistan.
* In many dialects, cases of word final ـا (-ā) may be shortened to ـه (-a).
* In many dialects, all family names ending in ـه (-a) may have an epenthetic ـی (-y) added, e.g. عمه (amma) -> عمی (ammay) (unrelated to ezafe).

## South Levantine Arabic
### Etymology 1

From Latin pāpa.

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /bˤaː.bˤa/, [ˈbˤɑː.bˤɑ]
* Audio (Ramallah):(file)

#### Noun

بابا • (ḅāḅa) m
* (Christianity) pope
* (popularly) patriarch, priest

### Etymology 2

From baby talk.

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /bˤaː.bˤa/, [ˈbˤɑː.bˤɑ]
* Audio (Ramallah):(file)

#### Noun

بابا • (ḅāḅa) m
* dad, papa
* an affectionate form of address used by a father to his child

##### Alternative forms

* يابا (yāba)

### See also

* أب (ʔabb, “father”)
* ماما (ṃāṃa, “mom”)

## Urdu
### Noun

بابا • (bābā) m (Hindi spelling बाबा)
* papa, daddy, father

## Ushojo
### Etymology

From Pashto بابا (bābā).

### Noun

بابا (bābā)
* elder, grandfather