Albanian family map: why there are 6 words for ‘uncle’ and how to use

One of the first things that confuses people when learning Albanian is family vocabulary. Very often I hear: “Why do you have so many words for uncle and aunt?” And honestly, this is one of those moments where Albanian culture shows itself very clearly.

In Albanian, family is not just “family.” It matters which side you come from — your mother’s or your father’s. Because of that, we don’t use one general word for “uncle” or “aunt.” We name the relationship precisely.

If you’re talking about your father’s brother, the word is xhaxha. That’s the only word we use. On the other hand, your mother’s brother is called daja. Mixing these two sounds very strange to Albanian ears, because they don’t mean the same thing at all. When someone says xhaxha or daja, we immediately know which side of the family they’re talking about.

The same logic applies to aunts. Your father’s sister is your halla, while your mother’s sister is your teze . Again, these words are never interchangeable. They carry clear meaning and emotional closeness.

So when people say there are “too many” family words in Albanian, I usually smile. For us, they’re not many — they’re normal. We grow up using them, hearing them at home, and associating them with very specific people, roles, and memories.

That’s why translating directly from English doesn’t always work. In English, one word covers many relationships. In Albanian, we prefer clarity. Once you understand the family map, everything becomes much easier — and much more human.

So don’t worry if this feels confusing at first. With time, these words will stop being vocabulary and will start feeling natural, just like they do for us.

From your Albanian teacher, with love,
Elisa