This article will give you all of the knowledge you desire on the Spanish word mija, including its translation and definition, usage, origin, synonyms, and more!
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Kevin
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March 12, 2021
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What does the Spanish word mija mean?
According to Dictionary.com, the Spanish word mija is a friendly and informal term used by Spanish speakers and writers as a colloquial term of endearment for friends and romantic partners. It can also be used by an older person to address someone younger than them, including female pets and children. This word is considered a term of affection, but if it is used by male peers to refer to their female friends or colleagues, some may find it belittling. In that context, it would be the English equivalent of calling a coworker, “little miss” or “missy.” This term is pronounced “mee-ha.”
According to Spanish Dict, in the Spanish language the term mija translates to dear, darling, or sweetie. Urban Dictionary and iTalki state that the word mija is a portmanteau of two other Spanish words: “mi hija.” In Spanish, “mi” means “my” and “hija” means “daughter.” Therefore, the word directly translates to a slang version of “my daughter.” It can be used as an informal way to refer to a younger woman, as well as a term of endearment among friends. There is also one variation, mijita, which translates to “my little daughter.” Here, the suffix -ita is added onto the end of the word “mija.” According to Spanish Dict, in Spanish, the suffixes -ito and -ita can either form diminutives or create terms of endearment, like “gatito” would be either a term of endearment for a cat or “gato” or it could be used to refer to a kitten.
While the term mija is reserved exclusively for use with regard to women and girls, there is also a masculine form of the word. When referring to men or boys with a term of endearment, one can use “mijo.” This word was formed in the same way as mija, but as a portmanteau of the words “mi hijo” – “mi” meaning “my” and “hijo” meaning “son.” This is used very similarly to the word “mija” as an affectionate was to refer to men and boys, like dear, honey, sweetie, or buddy when used between friends. This term is pronounced “mee-ho” and can take on the same variation as mija and mijita. In this case, mijo would turn into mijito because it is a masculine word.
What are synonyms for the Spanish word mija?
There are many different Spanish terms of endearment one can use to refer to someone who is younger than them. Some of these terms used to refer to children are used in different countries – a Mexican person might use a different term than a Venezuelan person in the same way that an American English speaker has different colloquialisms than a British or Australian English speaker. A list of these different terms for children is below, provided by Spanish Dict.
- El niño (m), la niña (f)
- El chaval (m), la chavala (f) – Spain
- El pibe (m), la pibe (f) – Bolivia, Argentina
- El chiquillo (m), la chiquilla (f)
- El muchacho (m), la muchacha (f)
- El escuincle (m), la escuincla (f) – México
- El guagua (m), la guagua (g) – Ecuador
- El chamo (m), la chama (f) – Venezuela
- El nene (m), la nena (f) – Latin America
- El jovencito (m), la jovencita (f)
- El mozo (m), la moza (f)
- El chamaco (m), la chamaca (f)
- El chico (m), la chica (f)
There are also a plethora of different terms of endearment that one can use to refer to people of any age or demographic, not specifically reserved for use with children. Fluent in Three Months lists many of these!
- Vato
- Corazón
- Amor, or mi amor
- Dulzura
- Cielo
- Bebé
- Cariño
How can the Spanish word mija be used in a sentence?
The Spanish word mija can be used in many different contexts as a term of endearment for a woman or girl, often one who is younger than the speaker. In the below example, the term mija will be used by an aunt who is speaking to her niece. Here, Maya is talking to her aunt Daniela at a family reunion.
Maya: ¡Hola tía! ¡Te he extrañado mucho!
(English – Maya: Hi auntie! I’ve missed you so much!)
Daniela: ¡Hola mija! Yo también te he extrañado. ¡Mira lo alto que eres!
(English – Daniela: Hi mija! I’ve missed you too. Look how tall you are!)
Maya: Ha pasado tanto tiempo. Pero voy a ir a la universidad cerca de ti, así que espero que podamos vernos más.
(English – Maya: It’s been so long. But I am going to be going to college near you so hopefully we will be able to see each other more.)
Daniela: ¡Por supuesto! Será mejor que vengas todos los fines de semana y me cuentes todos los chismes. Guau. No puedo creer que mi pequeña vaya a la universidad. ¡Recuerdo cuando naciste!
(English – Daniela: Absolutely! You had better come over every weekend and tell me about all the gossip. Wow. I cannot believe my little girl is going to college. I remember when you were born!)
Overall, the Spanish word mija directly translates to “my daughter” and is used as a term of endearment to refer to friends, romantic partners, or children. Mija is an informal term and is most often used by an older person to refer to someone younger than the, Spanish speakers use this term often in many different countries throughout Latin America.
Sources:
- https://www.spanishdict.com/translate/mija
- https://www.dictionary.com/e/translations/mija/#:~:text=Mija%20is%20a%20friendly%2C%20informal,to%20address%20a%20younger%20woman.&text=Mijo%20is%20used%20just%20like,buddy%E2%80%9D%20among%20close%20male%20friends.
- https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=mija
- https://www.italki.com/post/question-103512?hl=en
- https://www.spanishdict.com/answers/104268/adding-ito-and-ita-to-the-end-of-words
- https://www.spanishdict.com/thesaurus/chamaco https://www.fluentin3months.com/terms-of-endearment/
