Mum is one of eight children and Dad is one of five. I have over twenty first cousins and many of them now have their own children and grandchildren. That’s just my directly related family!
Everyone is an auntie or an uncle until you figure out how you are related, and then ideally you use the correct denomination and their name depending on which side of the family they are on. So, here’s a quick summary:
There are also special denominations for the ranking in the family; for example, the eldest brother’s wife is Jethani and younger brother’s wife, Derani. When I was younger, it was all a bit much to try and remember names and relations so we used to give everyone nicknames based on their attributes. My Daya Mami, for example: I think she is my mum’s cousin on her father’s side, hence my mum’s ‘sister’ or Daya Mami. But I was never sure when I was little so I called her Socks Auntie because she always wore socks under her saree. My Sushila Auntie is another example. I never remember how we are related to her but I know it’s very, very distant. My husband asked me once and I didn’t remember so he just called her Across-the-Road Auntie and it’s stuck. My girls called her the same as they were growing up.
