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What names to call my friends?
As with many cultures, Croatians like to assign nicknames to the people who they are closest to, such as their family members and (especially) their friends. These nicknames can vary widely depending on what relationship they have with that person. For example, when addressing their friends, women tend to have naturally different terms of endearment for each other than men do. A woman might call her friend:
Men usually like to use terms that they think fit their friend’s physical description (purely out of love, of course!). For instance:
buco / debeli → someone who is rounder around the belly area
lima → small one
stari → old one
buraz → brother (in dialect)
frend → male friend
The standard word for a female friend in Croatian is prijateljica, or prijatelj for a male friend.
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What names to call my family members?
The nicknames which Croats use for family members are usually less inventive than the ones which they come up with for their friends, and they tend to be fairly collective terms which are used throughout the whole country. For instance, majka (mother) or otac (father) are rarely used, but mama (mum) or tata (dad) are commonly used as part of our everyday language, as these terms sound more endearing.
There are, however, some dialectal variations to the way in which we address our family members. For example, in Dalmatia the word ćaća is a unique way to say ‘dad’ and is used in place of the word tata. Similarly, while other parts of the country use mama (mum), the Dalmatians use the word mater instead. Here are some other differing ways in which Croatians may address their family members, depending on dialect:
sestra, seka, sekica → sister
brat, buraz, bratec → brother
baka, baba, nona → grandmother
djed, dida, deda, did, nono → grandfather
We often use the vocative case to address people directly. You can read about the vocative case here or try your skills out in our study tool.
What names to call my significant other?
While Croatians have their conventional ways of addressing their family and friends, when it comes to talking to your beloved one, the possibilities are endless! In most cases, lovers will find individual nicknames for each other which are based on experiences that they have shared together. These experiences might include, for example, trips that they’ve been on, friends that they’ve met, or memories that they share. Here are just some examples, all of them are already expressed in the vocative:
mišiću → little mouse
ljepoto / ljepotice (f) → my beautiful
dragi (m) / draga (f) → my darling
prasac (m) / prasice (f) → little pig
tigriću (m) / tigrice (f) → little tiger
mali (m) / mala (f) → my little one
When you’re lost for words around your loved one, a simple Volim te and a tight hug will be enough.
Exercise: See how much of this beautiful love song by Pavel you understand!
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