Is it first word or just coincidence?

[Priscilla]

Cameron, who's 8.5months has been saying what sounds like "ma ma" and sometimes "mum mum". I do say to him "ma ma" and "mum mum" to teach him. The thing is, he's been saying that for about two months now, and with an emphasis on the m - like "mmmmmmmma mah" or "mmmmmmmmum". He'll being going ma ma over and over again and when I go pick him up, he'll stop for a little while and then start up again. Sometimes he says it in a whingy voice and sometimes EVERYTHING is ma ma.

Lately he's been putting the m in front of other sounds like "mmmbah" and "ummm-mah" (as in two syllables).

Just now he was circling around me in his walker going "mmmah mmmah" over and over. He was playing with the buttons on the stroller and looking at his own reflection in the glass door but sounded like he was trying to get my attention. So i picked him up and now he's stopped. But i don't if he's stopped because the laptop screen has distracted him or if it's that i picked him up.

Anyway, what do you think? Is it coincidence? :detective:

[kymmy]

All the sounds a baby makes is for practice.
If he is looking at u then he is probably meaning u=mum

[Taylahsmum]

Gday,

Im also interested in everyones response because my almost 6 month old babbles, and in the middle of it all says dada and dad clear as day...???

(sorry to intrude)

[poppet]

My DD is saying exactly the same things you are talking about and she's 6 months, I think she means me, and others who have seen and heard her reckon its for me also, so i'm taking it as her first word, she also calls it out when she wakes in the middle of the night:D

[annb]

I was told it was a developmental thing, all babies start to say those sort of sounds at that age and that its really not until about 11-12mths that they can actually say the mummm mammma word and associate it with a thing or person

[SassyMummy]

DD is 10 months now, and says all sorts of things...including "mmmbah" and "ummm-mah"...sometimes she walks around saying "Mum Mum Mum" or "ma-ma" (and of course, Dada). She also says "Da-Doh" and "Doh-Doh" and "Th" and "t" (not, TEE but t...if that makes sense).

I don't believe she's talking. She says Mum to me, and says ma-ma to me all the time...but I don't think she knows that I am Mum. She calls me Dad too...and dada and da-doh and such, so I just think she's saying stuff.

DD also pretty much points to EVERYTHING and says "dada"...lol.

[mum33]

i've heard DS say something that sounded like mum and bubba.. but it was more to do with him learning how to make sounds rather than him calling me mum or knowing what a bubba is.

[lukaelmo]

Yes, Luka does the mum mum mum and dadadada thing too.

When babies start to babble, we pick out the sounds we recognise and repeat them and give meaning to them for our babies. Baby says "mumumumum" and we get excited and say "yes, mum, say mum", the baby sees we are pleased and this reinforces the behaviour. If we were Japanese we would be picking out different sounds that we recognise and reinforcing them.

For babies, it is easy to say "m" and "d" sounds with a vowel combination, hence why in a lot of languages, the words for mother and father are much like the sounds of babies babble: mum in English, mamma in French, mae in Portuguese ect.

As to whether your bubba is saying mum and meaning it, it really depends on what you want to think :D . When Luka says mum I get all excited and don't care if it is just him babbling.

[Mum2Lucas]

DS lucas does those sorts of things. He goes around the room going "BA" at everything or he and i sit there and play games and repeat ba ma da na and he does it back. He says dada to no one in particular because we dont speak to his dad and he's not quite up with associating bub to a baby yet but definitely knows mum and nanna. But babies like the sound of their voices and if they know certain words and syllables go around repeating them for practice.

[Taylors_mum]

My DD is almost 8 months and she says Dad, mum, nan and Ta when she wants something. And she has just started reaching for things and say "dat" as in whats that.