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Day 302 of 365 · Week 41

"Mama," "dada," or something else

Last reviewed · 4 min read · 8 sources · Plain-text version

Most babies call a parent by a special name by 12 months, and few or no other clear words at the birthday is normal. Any sound used the same way each time counts. Start the word log.

A South Asian mother kneeling at a living-room coffee table at eye level with her ten-month-old, who stands holding the table edge and babbles at her, the father on the sofa behind with a notebook.

Somewhere in the babble this month there may be a sound that keeps landing on the same thing. Today is what counts as a word, what the lists expect at a year, and a log for catching it.

Heart

By 12 months, most babies call a parent "mama" or "dada" or another special name, but having few or no other clear words at the first birthday is normal (CDC). Trying to say one or two words besides "mama" or "dada" is a 15-month milestone (CDC). The AAP says some babies have 2 or 3 words by their first birthday, but most 12-month speech is babble with the ups and downs of real talk, and any sound your baby uses consistently for the same thing counts as a word (AAP). Your baby is 10 months old. "Mog" for milk, said every time the cup appears, is a word by that rule. "Mamamama" said to the ceiling is still a syllable string, and a fine one.

Head

The string and the name are different skills. By 9 months, most babies make lots of different sounds like "mamamama" and "bababababa" (CDC); the 12-month skill is aiming one of them at a person. What moves a sound toward a name is being answered: in a lab experiment, 9.5-month-olds whose mothers answered their babble right away quickly reshaped it using sounds from their mothers' speech, and babies answered at random times didn't (Goldstein & Schwade, 2008). The one line that isn't a wait: bring it up if your baby isn't babbling lots of different sounds by 9 months or doesn't look when you call their name (CDC).

Body

Name what your baby sees, touches, and eats, the same way each time; keep names consistent ("cat" today, not "kitty" tomorrow), ask questions, and wait for an answer (AAP). When a sound comes, repeat it, add simple words, and describe what they see (CDC). The guide's activity is Talk back with words; today's job is to write down what comes back.

Try today

  1. A close shot of the father's hand writing in a small notebook on the kitchen counter, the baby in a high chair with the harness on beside him reaching for a cup he holds, the mother laughing.

    The word log

    Time: 2 minutes, a few times a day, for a week · When do babies say their first words? in the guide

    1. Put a small notebook where the baby eats. Every time a sound lands on the same thing twice, write the sound, the thing, and the date: "mog, milk, Tuesday."

    2. Count only sounds used the same way each time; by the AAP's rule, that's what makes a word (AAP). "Dadada" to the whole room goes on a separate page as babble.

    3. When a sound is logged, answer it with the real word, right away: "Mog? Milk. Here's your milk" (CDC).

    4. After a week, read the log aloud to whoever else cares for the baby, so they answer the same sounds with the same words.

    Make it work:

    An empty log after a week is a normal log; calling a parent by name has until 12 months, and other words until 15 (CDC; CDC).

Watch for

  • Normal

    "dada" for the dog, the door, and the father; aiming the name at a parent is a 12-month milestone (CDC).

    Bring it up

    if your baby doesn't look when you call their name (CDC).

  • Normal

    a quiet week of pointing and grunting after a loud week of babble.

    Talk with your pediatrician

    if your baby seems not to hear well (AAP).

  • Normal

    a hoarse babble for a day or two with a cold.

    Call your pediatrician right away

    if your baby has trouble breathing that isn't severe, or great trouble swallowing fluids or spit (AAP).

For you

The mother in a dim nursery doorway at night in a T-shirt, one hand on the frame, half-smiling toward a crib where the baby sits up holding the rail, a nightlight glow on the wall.

The first "mama" may come at 3 a.m., from a crib, in a tone that's closer to a summons than a greeting. It still counts; the AAP's rule is the same sound for the same thing, and the thing is you (AAP). Night waking at this age is often separation anxiety, and the advice is to reassure quietly and leave (Nemours KidsHealth), which you can do and still let it land. Write it in the log in the morning. The notebook doesn't care what time it was.

If you're the partner: if "dada" comes first, it's a sound that's easier to make, not a ranking. Log it, answer it, and don't bring it up at dinner more than once.

Sources

This guide is general education that summarizes published research and guidance from groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and the WHO. It isn’t medical advice, and every child develops on their own timeline. Your pediatrician knows your child; if something feels wrong, call them. In an emergency, call 911.

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