Wondering When Will Your Baby Start Saying ‘Mama’ and ‘Dada’?

It is an absolute delight for parents to see their babies utter their first words! However, long before babies start talking, they acquaint themselves with various sounds or babbling and cooing. But the question of when babies can baby start saying words like ‘Mama and ‘Papa’, may pop up in many parents’ minds. Well, if you are wondering when do babies say mama or dada and are interested in knowing more on this topic, we suggest reading the following post!

At What Age Babies Say ‘Mama’ and ‘Dada’

We all know for the fact that all babies may reach different milestones at different times, and the same holds true in this case too. However, at around seven months of age, your munchkin may start making sounds like ‘mamamama’ or ‘dadadada’, but these are more of babbling sounds than actual words. At around nine months of age, your baby may start saying the actual words.

What Will Your Baby Say First- ‘Mama’ or ‘Dada’?

As a mom, you may want your baby to say ‘Mama’ first, but your partner may be secretly wishing for your baby’s first word to be ‘Dada’. Well, usually people often assume that a baby’s first word would be ‘dada’ because ‘da’ sound is easier to make than ‘ma’ sound. However, that may not be the case; rather, some babies may be more interested in saying ‘ma’ sound. So, the probability of your baby saying ‘dada’ or ‘mama’ may depend on which sound the baby latches on, that is if the baby latches on to ‘da’, then he may say ‘dada’ first and vice versa.

Also, the primary caregiver may have the edge over the other, which means if the mom spends more time with the baby, the baby may say ‘mama’ first, and this is why most babies usually say mama!

Do Babies Really Mean It When They Say ‘Mama’ and ‘Dada’?

Though your baby may start babbling words at around seven months of age, he may be uttering actual words by nine months or beyond. However, most parents may actually wonder whether or not their munchkin actually means what he uttered. Well, it is quite unlikely for babies to actually understand or connect with what they say before one year of age. So, be watchful as parents to see when your baby actually starts making sense with words!

Tips to Make Babies Say ‘Mama’ or ‘Dada’

You cannot rush with your baby’s milestones, however, if you feel your baby’s language skills may not be developing according to the expected timeframe, here are some tips that can help your baby develop good language skills:

1. Work With the Senses

Repeating ‘mama’ or ‘dada’ again and again is one of the best ways of encouraging your baby to say these words. However, placing your baby’s hand over your mouth as you utter ‘ma’ may help in getting the feel of the word. Doing this exercise with your baby is a great way of stimulating your baby’s auditory, visual, and tactile skills.

2. Talk to Your Baby

Sometimes parents prefer babbling with their baby instead of talking with them thinking that it’s cute or they may be pretending to be conversing in baby language. Doing so once in a while can be adorable and cute, but doing so on a regular basis may not help with your baby’s language skills. Instead, talk to your baby about things around you, about your day, about what he is doing, etc. or simply sing or point and say the name of objects, and soon the baby will start saying momma or dada too!

3. The ‘Mama’ or ‘Dada’ Photo Album

Make a photo album with ‘Mama’ or ‘Dada’ pictures and every time you show the album to baby, you repeat the ‘Mama’ word. You can do that for every picture in the album and as you do so, point to the picture and to yourself. Doing so several times may help your baby to understand and associate the word with you. The same exercise can be repeated for ‘Dada’ too.

4. The Peek-a-Boo Game

Most parents play peek-a-boo games with their babies, and this fun game is also a great way of teaching ‘Mama’ or ‘Papa’ words to a baby. You can hide behind the door, curtain, or simply hide under the blanket, and every time you pop out from the place of hiding; you can say ‘Mama’. Do this a few times a day and within a few days, your baby may say ‘Mama’ when you pop out, instead of you saying so!

5. Pay Attention to What Your Baby Says

Your baby may be babbling, but he is trying to communicate with you in his own language. You should not ignore what your baby may be trying to communicate, and soon you may notice your munchkin making all the sense and saying the much-awaited words that may be the sweetest sounding words ever, that is ‘Mama’ and ‘Dada’.

As parents, we wait eagerly for our babies to do everything at a fast-pace, but that is not the case. Every baby is special and different in a special way. You may need to exercise patience and sometimes hard work to help your child achieve these milestones and, in this case, talking to your child, reading, playing music and above all being patient will be really helpful!

Also Read:

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When Do Babies Recognise Their Father, Mother and Other People
Baby Talking Milestone