Mother

A mother is a biological and/or social female parent of an offspring. In the case of a mammal such as a human, the biological mother gestates a fertilized ovum, which is called first an embryo, and then a fetus. This gestation occurs in the mother's uterus from conception until the fetus is sufficiently developed to be born. The mother then goes into labor and gives birth. Once the child is born, the mother produces milk in a process called lactation to feed the child; often the mother's breast milk is the child's sole nourishment for the first year or more of the child's life.

The title mother is often given to a woman other than biological parent, if it is she who fulfills the social role. This is most commonly either an adoptive mother or a stepmother (the biologically unrelated wife of a child's father). Currently, with advances in reproductive technologies, the function of biological motherhood can be split between the genetic mother (who provides the ovum) and the gestational mother (who carries the pregnancy), and in theory neither might be the social mother (the one who brings up the child).

Mothers have historically fulfilled the primary role in the raising of children, but since the late 20th century, the role of the father in child care has been given greater prominence in most Western countries.

The experience of motherhood varies greatly depending upon location. The organization Save the Children has ranked the countries of the world, and found that Scandinavian countries are the best places to be a mother, whereas countries in sub-Saharan Africa are the worst. A mother in the bottom 10 countries is over 750 times more likely to die in pregnancy or childbirth, compared to a mother in the top 10 countries, and a mother in the bottom 10 countries is 28 times more likely to see her child die before reaching his or her first birthday.

Synonyms and translations
Familiar or colloquial terms for mother in English are:


 * mum or mummy, is used in the UK, most of Canada (especially Eastern Canada), Australia, and New Zealand; and also in some parts of Western Pennsylvania.
 * mom or mommy, in most of North America (especially the U.S.). Mommy is considered baby talk. Most children in these regions switch to the term mom as they approach the teen years. This term is also used in the British West Midlands and in the Philippines; in the latter, mommy is used by many adults.
 * mam or mammy, North Wales, the South Wales valleys, Ireland, North and the East Midlands of England;
 * mama and ma, in parts of the middle east, Latin America, other Spanish-speaking cultures and The Netherlands. Mama is often used in rural areas of the midwest and south eastern regions of the US. Ma is a common term in various parts of the US including the north east.
 * In French the term "Maman" and certain other languages influenced by e.g. "persian".
 * In many other languages, similar pronunciations apply; mama in Polish, māma in Mandarin Chinese, máma in Czech, maman in French, or mamma in Italian, or mãe in Portuguese. Mama, borrowed from the English, is in common use in Japan. In Hebrew the word is eema (אמא), and in many south Asian cultures and the Middle East the mother is known as amma or oma or ammi or "ummi", or variations thereof. Many times these terms denote affection or a maternal role in a child's life.

Legendary & mythological mothers

 * Bithiah
 * Gaia (mythology)
 * Hagar (mother of Ishmael)
 * Isis
 * Jocasta, mother of Oedipus, important in Freudian psychology
 * Juno (mythology)
 * Mary (mother of Jesus)
 * Euripides' Medea
 * Queen Maya
 * Venus (mythology)
 * Demeter