If you've just learned that you're going to become a grandfather, you have cause to rejoice. Modern grandfathers are often just as involved in their grandchildren's lives as the grandmothers. They may be called upon to help out the new parents in a variety of ways. They also may choose to be known by non-traditional grandfather names, although many find the time-honored tags perfectly serviceable.
Those opting for the traditional still have their pick of an almost endless number of variations on the traditional Grandpa, some evidently caused by childish mispronunciation, some perhaps derived from grandfather names in other languages. Some families, especially those with multiple grandparents, choose to add the given name or the last name to the grandparent name, arriving at combinations such as Grandpa Will or Poppa Fisher.
Traditional Grandfather Names:
- Grandfather
- Grandpa
- Grampa
- Grandpappy
- Gramps
- Granddad
- Granddaddy
- Grandpop
- PawPaw
- Big Paw
- Peepaw
- Papadaddy
- Pop
- Poppa
- Pops
- Pop-Pop
- Poppy
- Big Daddy
- Boom-pa
- Bompa
- Bumpy
- Boppa
The tendency among some grandmothers to opt for younger-sounding names has its counterpart among grandfathers but is a considerably smaller contingent. The list of modern grandfather names is short but can be expected to grow as the baby boomer generation increasingly become grandparents.
Modern Grandfather Names
- Chief
- Captain
- G
- G-Daddy
- G-Pa
- Duke
- Buddy
Some grandfathers choose names favored by different nationalities or cultures. A listing of grandfather names taken from other languages is complicated by the fact that such names usually occur in several different spellings when translated into English, especially when they are taken from a language which uses a different alphabet. In addition, many languages have both a formal and an informal term for grandfather. The following list, therefore, is not complete and authoritative, but is offered as as a starting point.
Grandfather in Other Languages
- Chinese: YehYeh
- Filipino: Lolo
- Flemish: Bompa
- French: Grandpere
- French Canadian: Pepe
- German: Opa
- Greek: Papu
- Hawaiian: Tutu kane
- Hebrew: Saba
- Italian: Nonno
- Japanese: Ojiisan
- Korean: Halabeoji
- Polish: Dzia Dzia
- Portuguese: Avo
- Russian: Dedushka
- Spanish: Abuelo
- Yiddish: Zayde
One disadvantage that grandfathers have is that their names are easily modified into something less than flattering. Gramps, for example, has been known to morph into Grumps, whereas Poppy and Poopy are a little too close for comfort. When spoken by an adoring grandchild, however, even such names have their charms.
