9+ Relationships In Nepali: Interesting Twists And Angles

In Nepal, many relationships exist even outside the family members. Of course, family is first and most important. But the doorman, housekeeper, launderer, mailman, and milkman also have a relation to the family – so they have relationship names. In this article, we’d like to dig deeper into relationships in Nepali and what they mean.

Let our title of the article not deter you! We are not referring to boyfriends and girlfriends or the other man or woman in a marriage. By “other relationship names,” we actually hint towards the Nepali culture of making literally everyone a family member.

Nepal And The Nepali Language

Nepali is similar to Hindi, but they are not completely the same. They come from similar origins, and as neighboring countries, they share a lot in their culture, food, way of life, and ways to relate to others around them.

The language is about 500 years old. The current version of the language results from settlers that came to these valleys and settled a long time ago. Nepal has some of the most breathtaking sights and is popularly known for mountain climbing, trekking, and river rafting.

Nepali Family Words

Here is the usual list of family members that can be commonly seen in Nepali homes.

English	Nepali	Pronunciation	Sound
younger sister	कान्छी बहिनी	Kānchī bahinī	Play
younger sister’s husband	कान्छी बहिनीको श्रीमान्	Kānchī bahinīkō śrīmān	Play
younger brother’s wife	कान्छो भाइको श्रीमती	Kānchō bhā’ikō śrīmatī	Play
husband’s younger sister	श्रीमानको कान्छी बहिनी	Śrīmānakō kānchī bahinī	Play
younger brother	कान्छो भाइ	Kānchō bhā’i	Play
elder brother	दाइ	Dā’i	Play
elder sister	दिदी	Didī	Play
elder sister’s husband	जेठी बहिनीको श्रीमान्	Jēṭhī bahinīkō śrīmān	Play
elder brother’s wife	जेठो दाजुकी श्रीमती	Jēṭhō dājukī śrīmatī	Play
daughter in law	बुहारी	Buhārī	Play
sister in law	भाउजु	Bhā’uju	Play
father in law	ससुरा	Sasurā	Play
brother in law	भाइ	Bhā’i	Play
spouse’s relatives	पति/पत्नीका आफन्तहरू		Play
mother in law	सासु	Sāsu	Play
son in law	ज्वाई	Jvā’ī	Play
sister	बहिनी	Bahinī	Play
brother	भाइ	Bhā’i	Play
siblings	दाजुभाइ	Dājubhā’i	Play
husband	श्रीमान्	Śrīmān	Play
grandfather	हजुरबुबा	Hajurabubā	Play
grandmother	हजुरआमा	Hajura’āmā	Play
uncle	काका	Kākā	Play
aunt	काकी	Kākī	Play

Other Relationships In Nepali

In a Nepali family, those who are not part of the immediate family or nuclear and even extended family are also referred to by family names. First of all, the age of the person must be taken into consideration. If older than you, consider calling the person how you would call your elder brother or elder sister in Nepali. Here are some more interesting examples of other relationships in Nepali:

English	Nepali	Pronunciation	Sound
milkman brother	दूधवाला भाइ	Dūdhavālā bhā’i	Play
house helper sister	घरको नोकर बहिनी	Gharakō nōkara bahini	Play
watchman uncle	पहरेदार काका	Paharēdāra kākā	Play
traffic policeman uncle	ट्राफिक प्रहरी काका		Play
janitor uncle	चौकीदार काका	Caukīdāra kākā	Play
bus driver brother	बस चालक भाइ	Basa cālaka bhā’i	Play
Neighbor (man)	छिमेकी काका	Chimēkī kākā	Play
Neighbor (woman)	छिमेकी दिदी	Chimēkī didī	Play
gardener uncle	माली काका	Mālī kākā	Play

Sentences Referring To Other Relationships In Nepali

English	Nepali	Pronunciation	Sound
The neighbor aunty said we had a visitor.	छिमेकी काकीले भनिन्, हामीसँग आगन्तुक छ ।	Chimēkī kākīlē bhanin, hāmīsam̐ga āgantuka cha.	Play
Janitor uncle is not well today.	चौकीदार काकाको आजकल ठिक छैन ।	Caukīdāra kākākō ājakala ṭhika chaina.	Play
Our bus driver brother helped me with my bag.	हाम्रो बस चालक भाइले मलाई मेरो झोला दिएर मद्दत गर्नुभयो।	Hāmrō basa cālaka bhā’ilē malā’ī mērō jhōlā di’ēra maddata garnubhayō.	Play
The milkman brother will not come during holidays.	दूधवाला भाइ बिदामा आउँदैनन्।	Dūdhavālā bhā’i bidāmā ā’um̐dainan.	Play
Gardener uncle brought some flowers in.	माली काकाले केही फूल ल्याए।	Mālī kākālē kēhī phūla lyā’ē.	Play
The taxi uncle was so kind.	ट्याक्सी काका धेरै दयालु हुनुहुन्थ्यो।	Ṭyāksī kākā dhērai dayālu hunuhunthyō.	Play
Watchman uncle is having his lunchbreak.	चौकीदार काका खाजा खादै हुनुहुन्छ।	Caukīdāra kākā khājā khādai hunuhuncha.	Play

Learn Nepali With Ling

As you can see, a potential family-level relationship can be made among Nepali people at every corner and turning you take! It makes their culture and way of life even more interesting. Just remember that Nepalis are very respectful towards people older in age, even through relationships. For example, you must refer to a friend or colleague’s wife as भाभी bhabi or elder sister even if she is much younger in age. Relationships and politeness or respect pretty much go hand in hand!

If you are interested in the Nepali language, let us make a recommendation for you. We have an excellent mobile app that can take you through this language and make you an expert in a matter of days, if not two weeks maximum! Friends, meet Ling! Ling is an all-rounder, making it a great resource for quickly learning Nepali and 60+ other languages!

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So what are you waiting for? We are ready to be your travel buddy and guide for an enriching experience in Nepal and other countries! Start your language learning journey and allow us at Ling to be a part of it.