allomother en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- /ˈæləˌmʌðɚ/ (US)
- /ˈæləˌmʌðə(ɹ)/ (UK)
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der. Proto-Indo-European *h₂élyos Proto-Hellenic *ál͏̌l͏̌os Ancient Greek ᾰ̓́λλος (ắllos)der. English allo- Proto-Indo-European *méh₂tēr Proto-Germanic *mōdēr Proto-West Germanic *mōder Old English mōdor Middle English moder English mother English allomother From allo- + mother.
Meanings
-
A human or other creature that provides some maternal care for the young born of another.
Among the !Kung foragers of the Kalahari, babies are held by a father, grandmother, older sibling or some other allomother maybe 25 percent of the time.
2009 March 3, Natalie Angier, “In a Helpless Baby, the Roots of Our Social Glue”, in New York Times:Within hours of birth, baby langurs are spirited away from their mothers. They spend up to 50 percent of daylight hours passed from allomother to allomother
2000, Sarah Blaffer Hrdy, Mother Nature: Maternal Instincts and how They Shape the Human Species, page 162:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| allomothers | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Relateds
Synonyms
Translations (3)
pt alomãe (one that provides maternal care) · ru са́мка-помо́щница (one that provides maternal care) · fi sijaisäiti (one that provides maternal care)