Waipo
/ˈwaɪ.poʊ/noun
A Chinese term, increasingly used in English, for one’s maternal grandmother.
Did you know?In traditional Chinese kinship terminology, 外婆 distinguishes the mother’s mother from the father’s mother, reflecting a lineage system organized around the parental side of the family.
Etymological Timeline
Old Chinese
Old Chinese
外
“Outside; external; belonging to the maternal or non-patrilineal side”
Old Chinese
Old Chinese
婆
“An older woman; grandmother or elderly woman”
Middle Chinese
Middle Chinese
外婆
“Maternal grandmother”
Modern Mandarin
Mandarin
wàipó
“Maternal grandmother; literally, “outside grandmother””
20th–21st Century
English
waipo
“A Chinese kinship term used in English, especially in multilingual and diasporic communities”