amma¹

Meaning

1. Late Latinfemininewet nurse
2. Late Latinfemininea nocturnal bird, perhaps the screech owl
   Haec avis [viz. strix] vulgo amma dicitur, ab amando parvulos; unde et lac praebere fertur nascentibus.This bird is commonly called amma [mum (?)], because it loves its young, and it is also said to offer milk to its hatchlings.c. 600, Isidore of Seville, Etymologiae, XII.vii.42:

Declension

Origins

Pokorny suggests a derivation from Proto-Indo-European *amma-, *ama- (“mother”). Compare Latin amita (“paternal aunt”), Latin anus (“crone”) and Old High German amma (“wet nurse”). It may also represent an infantile modification of mamma.

Meaning

1. Late Latinfeminineamma; a spiritual mother or abbess in early monasticism, a Desert Mother
   Coordinate term: abba
   Vita Ammae TalidaeThe Life of Amma Talida

Declension

Origins

From Classical Syriac ܐܸܡܵܐ (ʾemmā, “mother, abbess”) via Koine Greek ἀμμᾶς (ammâs), ἀμμά (ammá), perhaps reinforced by Etymology 1.