Marrying into an Uzbek family, or marrying an Uzbek, brings a new set of words: for your spouse’s parents, for their brothers and sisters, and for the two families together. Many of them are built the same way, with the prefix qayin- in front of a family word you may already know. The one grammar idea on this page is that prefix, and how the same relationship gets a different word depending on whose side you are speaking from.
This page is part of Uzbek for heritage learners, the guide for the Uzbek diaspora and families abroad.
Parents-in-law, kelin and kuyov
| Uzbek | Sounds like | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Qaynona | qay-no-NA | Mother-in-law (your husband’s or your wife’s mother) |
| Qaynota | qay-no-TA | Father-in-law (your husband’s or your wife’s father) |
| Kelin | ke-LIN | Daughter-in-law (a son’s wife); also a bride |
| Kuyov | ku-YOV | Son-in-law (a daughter’s husband); also a groom |
| Qaynonam | qay-no-NAM | My mother-in-law |
| Qaynotam | qay-no-TAM | My father-in-law |
| Bu mening qaynonam. | BU me-NING qay-no-NAM | This is my mother-in-law. |
| Bu mening qaynotam. | BU me-NING qay-no-TAM | This is my father-in-law. |
| Bu mening kelinim. | BU me-NING ke-li-NIM | This is my daughter-in-law. |
| Bu mening kuyovim. | BU me-NING ku-yo-VIM | This is my son-in-law. |
| Bu mening erim. | BU me-NING e-RIM | This is my husband. |
| Bu mening xotinim. | BU me-NING kho-ti-NIM | This is my wife. |
These are mostly words for talking about a person. What a family calls its in-laws to their face differs from family to family, so listen to what the people around you say.
Brothers, sisters and their spouses
| Uzbek | Sounds like | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Qayinaka | qa-yi-na-KA | Spouse’s older brother |
| Qayinuka | qa-yi-nu-KA | Spouse’s younger brother |
| Qayinopa | qa-yi-no-PA | Spouse’s older sister |
| Qayinsingil | qa-yin-sin-GIL | Spouse’s younger sister |
| Pochcha | poch-CHA | Older sister’s husband |
| Yanga | yan-GA | Older brother’s wife |
| Qayinakam | qa-yi-na-KAM | My spouse’s older brother |
| Qayinukam | qa-yi-nu-KAM | My spouse’s younger brother |
| Qayinopam | qa-yi-no-PAM | My spouse’s older sister |
| Qayinsinglim | qa-yin-sing-LIM | My spouse’s younger sister |
| Pochcham | poch-CHAM | My older sister’s husband |
| Yangam | yan-GAM | My older brother’s wife |
| Bu mening yangam. | BU me-NING yan-GAM | This is my older brother’s wife. |
Quda, and meeting a new family
| Uzbek | Sounds like | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Quda | qu-DA | The parent of your child’s spouse; the two sets of parents are quda to each other |
| Qudalar | qu-da-LAR | The parents of the two families, together |
| Qudamiz | qu-da-MIZ | Our quda |
| Tanishganimdan xursandman. | ta-nish-ga-nim-DAN khur-sand-MAN | Nice to meet you. |
| Hammangiz bilan tanishganimdan xursandman. | ham-man-GIZ bi-LAN ta-nish-ga-nim-DAN khur-sand-MAN | Nice to meet you all. |
| Xush kelibsiz! | khush ke-lib-SIZ | Welcome! |
| Rahmat, siz juda mehribonsiz. | rah-MAT, SIZ ju-DA meh-ri-bon-SIZ | Thank you, you are very kind. |
| Yordam beraymi? | yor-DAM be-ray-MI | Shall I help? |
| Siz menga onamdeksiz. | SIZ men-GA o-nam-dek-SIZ | You are like a mother to me. (only if you mean it) |
| Siz menga otamdeksiz. | SIZ men-GA o-tam-dek-SIZ | You are like a father to me. (only if you mean it) |
For congratulations and the words of a wedding (toʻy), see weddings and holidays.
The qayin- prefix, and whose side you are on
- qayin + aka, uka, opa, singil: qayinaka, qayinuka, qayinopa, qayinsingil. The prefix means “of the spouse”. The relative word after it keeps the older or younger choice you know from aka and uka, opa and singil. It is the same word for a husband’s side and a wife’s side.
- qaynona, qaynota: the same idea in a shortened form (qayin- becomes qayn-), so these two are best learned as whole words.
- kelin and kuyov: the same relationship has a different word from each side. You call your spouse’s mother qaynona; she calls you kelin if you are a son’s wife, or kuyov if you are a daughter’s husband. When you say “my” the usual endings apply: qaynonam, kelinim, qayinsinglim (singil drops its i).
- pochcha and yanga: these two do not use qayin-. They name the husband of an older sister and the wife of an older brother.
- quda and qudalar: the word is for the relationship between the two sets of parents, so each side calls the other quda.
Meeting the family
Nodir: Oyi, bu mening xotinim Anna.
Mum, this is my wife, Anna.
Anna: Assalomu alaykum. Tanishganimdan xursandman.
Hello. Nice to meet you.
Oyi: Va alaykum assalom. Xush kelibsiz, qizim.
Hello. Welcome, my dear.
Anna: Rahmat. Yordam beraymi?
Thank you. Shall I help?
Oyi: Rahmat, qizim. Oʻtiring, choy ichamiz.
Thank you, dear. Sit down, we’ll have tea.
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