The Chinese family tree may seem overwhelming at first, with its many specific terms for different family members and relationships.
But don't worry – we've got you covered! This guide will help you navigate the 家谱 (jiā pǔ), or Chinese family tree.
[Photo/Unsplash]
Chinese Family Tree
To start, let's learn how to say "family" in Chinese:
家庭jiā tíngfamily; household
家人jiā rénfamily member
亲戚qīn qirelatives
NOTE
To mention how many people are in your family, you can say:
我家有······口人。Wǒ jiā yǒu……kǒu rén.There are......people in my family.
The character "口" (kǒu) is a measure word used to count people in a family.
1. Immediate Family
01. Parents
Now let's take a look at your immediate family members, starting with parents (父母 fù mǔ).
母亲mǔ qīnmother
父亲fù qīnfather
NOTEThese characters are more formal terms, most children call their parents "dad" (爸爸 bà ba) or "mom" (妈妈 mā ma).
02. Siblings
Now, let's take a look at siblings (兄弟姐妹 xiōng dì jiě mèi).
哥哥gē geelder brother
弟弟dì diyounger brother
姐姐jiě jieelder sister
妹妹mèi meiyounger sister
03. Grandparents
Here are the Chinese names of grandparents.
爷爷yé yegrandfather (father's side)
外公wài gōnggrandfather (mother's side)
奶奶nǎi naigrandmother (father's side)
外婆wài pógrandmother (mother's side)
2. Your Own Family
01. Wife and Husband
When you have your own family, these are the terms to address your partner:
妻子qī zǐwife
丈夫zhàng fuhusband
NOTEIn informal settings, you can use 老婆 (lǎo pó) for "wife" and 老公 (lǎo gōng) for "husband."
02. Children
孩子hái zichildren
儿子ér zison
女儿nǚ érdaughter
03. Other Relatives
Now, let's level up and learn how to address other family relatives.
01. Uncle
伯伯bó bofather's older brother
叔叔shū shufather's younger brother
舅舅jiù jiumother's brother
The terms for uncles on the mother's side are the same regardless of age.
02. Aunt
姑姑gū gufather's sister
姨yímother's sister
03. Cousins
As for other family relatives, the terms for cousins vary based on the side of the family:
Father's side:
堂兄 (táng xiōng) - elder male cousin堂弟 (táng dì) - younger male cousin堂姐 (táng jiě) - elder female cousin堂妹 (táng mèi) - younger female cousin
Mother's side:
表兄 (biǎo xiōng) - elder male cousin表弟 (biǎo dì) - younger male cousin表姐 (biǎo jiě) - elder female cousin表妹 (biǎo mèi) - younger female cousin
来源：That's Mandarin编辑：万月英