Nan/Nana/Nanny

I had a nanny and pop. My parents are nana and poppie to my DC, I'm grandma to my DGD.

As children we had nanny and grandad for mum's mum and dad, as we lived above Dads parent they became nanny/ grandad downstairs, I am nanny to DGD , will also be nanny to new DGD due June, and nanny P to my surrogate DGD

I’m Nanny although I prefer Nana. We are Nanny and Nandad, SIL’s parents are Granny and Grandad .

I am Nanny to my only grandchild, and suggested recently that, as he is getting older now, he might like to shorten it to Nan. He was horrified! “But you've always been Nanny - I like Nanny!” So Nanny I remain.

I had a Nan and Gramfer as a child.

I am now a Nan or Nanny and hubby is Pampher no idea why it just happened .

I had two grandmas and one grandpa. Grandmas were distinguished by their names. Grandma Mary was one. I am a Grandma and DH a grandpa. Our opposites are Nana (male) and Nanu as they are Bengali
I dislike Nanny as I always associate it with goats

I don't think it really matters what a grandparent is called, as long as it isn't insulting. I employed trained nannies for the first three years of my daughters' life – an expense I couldn't really afford, but needs must when the devil drives. I was a bit iffy about grandmothers being called nannie – maybe even slightly snobby (never let it be said). My mother-in-law chose to be called Nan and that is still how my daughter thinks of her, even though she has now died. My mother, rather bizarrely, chose to be called Grandmum and that is also how my daughter thinks of her. My eldest grandson decided I was Granna and that is how all six of my grandchildren address me. Their other grandmother is, more conventionally, Grandma.

When said daughter was born, my husband telephoned my mother and asked if he was talking to "grandma absent" in an attempt to be funny. My Ma solemnly replied, "No, she has been dead for many years", meaning MY grandmother. The joke failed.

I had a granny and grandad who were older and more sedentary than my Nanny and Hossy ( couldn’t say Horace) who did everything with me so I certainly always associate Granny or Gran with old people and for me coming from a working class background Grandma was very posh and connected with lace mob caps and long black dresses and maids and kitchen staff
I think these names may have a class significance they would definitely be Grandma in the ‘big house’ as they probably would have a Nanny to look after them
By choice I ve been Nana when little and Nan when older to all of my grandkids two of them have a another Nanny and Pops so I m Nanny plus my name to them

My great grandmother was Nana to my mother more than 100 years ago. It's nothing new
Yes, Nanny is the term used for someone employed to look after children, and Nana is the nursemaid dog in Peter Pan, but there are many words in the English language that have more than one meaning. Fair is a good example: 1) Complexion or hair colouring; 2) reasonable or just; 3) a public event, e.g. a craft fair.

LadyGracie , we had a Nandad too - that brought back some memories .

I had never heard of Nana before I married, everyone I knew used Granny or Grandma.

I am Nanna (2 nn's please). I love the sound of it warm and comforting like my Nanna was. DH likes to be called by his name he doesn't like being called Uncle or anything like that but youngest GS calls him Grandpa P** whether he likes it or not! GS can do whatever he likes as far as I'm concerned as long as I get all the hugs.

We are Nanna and Grampy to 2 of the dgc the other 2 call me Nanny. They also have a ggdad and he is Opa. My parents were Nanna and Grandad and I had a granny a grandma and a grandad.

Isn’t the Welsh for one of the grandparents (can’t remember which) Nain? A grandad here can often be called Didie - no idea of its origins.

I had a Nana and a Granny. You'll have guessed that I am a Granny!

I had a Gran and a Granny. Both Grandads dead so always referred to as Grandfathers. My DDs had Grandad and Granny (surname) + Granpa and Granny (surname). We are Granny and Granpa as are the other set, with First names added if there is a need to distinguish. DH is sometimes called 'Granpal'. Here in Scotland almost all my friends are 'Granny' except two with French speaking DGC who are Grandmere.

DGD1 had a Yorkshire DGM and she was called Nana. The only other Nana I knew was my friend's DGM who was also from Yorkshire.

My Nana was a Yorkshire woman too!

I grew up in the East Mids and Nanny, Nann-arr and Mamm-arr were very popular titles.
Grandma and granny were rarely used.

When my siblings and I where young we always had a Nannie & Grandpa.
All my DGCs call me Nana my choice of title as I felt too young when my first DGS was born to be called Grandma.

I think it may be partly a regional thing. My sister's Scottish MiL was always Nanny, my S England mother was Granny. At least you knew who you were talking about.

My Gdcs have two grannies, so they have to add Granny X or Y. But they have a Grandpa and a Granddad, so no need to differentiate.

My father’s parents both died long before I was born so I only had one set of grandparents, Nana and Gramps.

My own mother decided she would be Granny, but my children called her Gan-gan, later shortened to Gan.

My granddaughter calls me Nana and it’s music to my ears. Her name for my late DH was ‘Gammy’ as she couldn’t get her tongue around grandpa.

Maltese children call their grandparents Nanna and Nannu, similar to the Italian Nanna and Nonno.

Definitely there are class differences! I live in an area where there is a dialect word for grandfathers - so you can tell who the 'incomers' are! The grandmothers are nearly all 'nanny' with a few 'Nannas' which seems fairly widespread. The children who lived in the 'big houses' has Grandmas and grandpas!

When I was 19, my flatmate became an auntie. I can still recall her mother, saying in a very posh voice 'A nanny is either a goat or a woman employed to care for children. I am neither'. I found it upsetting and a bit tactless, as my own much loved Nanny had just died. Not long ago, my friend confessed ( having waited until she thought I would laugh at it) that her mother had been concerned about the flat-share, as I was 'a bit common'.
I did laugh, as I've been 'middle class' for most of my adult life!

As a child I used to be very confused with the poem (Little Boy kneels) from 'When we are young', where he can see 'nanna's dressing gown on the door......' Could never understand why his grandmothers dressing gown would be on the door of his room!!!
My mother was Nanna to my children (my hubbie's mum Grandma), so when my eldest. g.child was born it was felt that (for my children) there was only one Nanna - although she was long dead by them), so I became Grandma., and have remained so for all my g.children.
It is very normal when I am out with them for someone else to refer to me as Nanna to them.

I am Granny. Both my grandmothers were Nana when I was growing up. My MIL wanted to be Grandma to my children but I always said I would hate to be called that.

Both my GMs were Nanna (it was Yorkshire as well!) followed by the surname. My mum was Nanna and still alive when my GCs were born so I became Granny so as not to cause any confusion

Two of my DGS call me Nanna Maggie. When the little one gets excited it often becomes Nagger Maggie, which my family members seem to find amusing. I’ve no idea why.