I have seen many videos on TikTok and YouTube where an infant persistently pronounces the word “dada” instead of “mama” despite how much the mother tries. Sometimes, the mother becomes obviously displeased about the child’s seeming preference for the father.
What exactly do you think the reason is for a child to continuously say “dada” even when the mother is the one prompting him/her to say “mama”? Before you, as a mother, become offended and disappointed at your child for saying “dada” first or more than “mama”, this post will open your eyes to what is actually going on.
Normal Childhood Developmental Milestones
Having done paediatrics while in medical school, I am well aware of the normal developmental milestones. These are developmental stages or capabilities that children pick up while they grow up from birth.
The developmental milestones can be classified into motor milestones, social/emotional milestones, language and communication, and cognitive milestones.
By the fourth month, your child can smile back at you, babble and copy sounds he hears, control his neck without support, and hold food with his hand to his mouth. These are some normal expected milestones for that age. The child’s abilities become more complex and more developed as the child gets older.
Failure of a child to attain the milestones appropriate for his/her age can be a pointer to some underlying medical condition that needs urgent attention. Failure to attain developmental milestones within the appropriate time can also predict a defect in the child’s mental capacity in adult life.
Your child is expected to start saying two-syllabic words like “dada” and “mama” around 8 to 12 months. On the question of why a child is always saying “dada”, we will look at some reasons why that is so.
Why your child only says “dada” instead of “mama”
I can totally relate to how frustrating it can feel after carrying your child for 9 months, and thereafter putting them to breast and other daily routines afterwards, only to hear them shout “dada” without ever pronouncing “mama” for a couple of months.
Fortunately, it is not intentional. Babies do not say “dada” first because they want to punish you for what you didn’t do.
Several explanations have been proposed as to why babies say “dada” before “mama” as they begin to speak. Some linguistic specialists have explained that babies say “dada” before “mama” because at that age they do not yet see themselves as a separate entity from their mother. It therefore stands to reason that there is no need to call somebody else their own name.
That explanation sounds plausible but it might not be so reasonable because identifying as the mother should not stop the child from ever pronouncing the name.
A more plausible explanation is that babies are linguistically able to pronounce “dada” before “mama”.
Recall the developmental milestones I introduced earlier, there are different ages for different developmental tasks. As simple as the distinction between “dada” and “mama” can make that obvious.
However, experts still have mixed opinions on whether it is easier for babies to say “dada” than “mama”.
Classical theories by the Russian linguist Roman Jakobson found that the sound of “m” (for “mama”) is easier for babies to make because they can easily pronounce it when their mouths are fastened to a bottle or breast. On the other hand, Breyne Moskowitz, PhD, described that nasal sounds such as “m” are actually more difficult.
In the real sense, saying “dada” should be easier for babies to say at that age. This is because apart from having undeveloped speech areas in the brain, the child is also required to have well-formed mouthparts; which prompts me to accept the proposition by Breyne Moskowitz, PhD, that babies say “dada” first because they cannot actually pronounce “mama” at that time.
How does a baby learn “dada” or “mama”?
Now that you know that your baby is not intentionally punishing you for a crime you didn’t commit as the mother, have you ever wondered who teaches babies “dada” and “mama”? Do they invent the words by themselves? How come different babies in different parts of the words use these same words?
Sometimes I wonder if it was adults or babies who invented the words “mummy” and “daddy” because babies seem to already have used those words since they started babbling.
Between the ages of 4 and 6 months, infants start babbling as a way to test their articulatory skills. They are curious about making different sounds within their capabilities. These are the two bisyllabic bables which can be repeated several times or mixed. For example, “dadada”, “badaba”, etc.
However, once again, infants are more likely to sound “da” because that does not require the child to force air through their nose.
When do babies actually mean the words “mama” and “dada”?
We all know that babies will eventually give the real meaning to those words someday. Initially, it’s just mama and dada as they explore two-syllabic words as though their mouth is itching them to speak.
So, at what age do they understand the true meanings of these words?
Your baby can start saying “mama” and “dada” as early as 6-8 months but it only actually begins to make sense to him or her at around 11-12 months. That is when they begin to know the difference between the words and how they apply to the respective individuals.
Conclusion
It’s not a big deal if your baby says “mama” or “dada” first. This competition does not seem like a fierce one because there is often a clear winner. Babies often always say “dada” before being able to say “dada”.
However, some mothers may expect the opposite. As if to assert their own peculiarity from other mothers, such mothers would want to challenge the status quo to do all they can to make their infant say the word “mama”.
Unfortunately, no matter how many times you repeat the word “mama” to your baby, he or she will still end up saying “dada” more until they are ready to say “mama”.
This article examines the reasons why that is so, and why this happens.
