What do we call the children? Familial terms of address in Polish and English

The paper addresses cultural differences between Polish and English as they pertain to familial terms of address. Using corpus data, I demonstrate that Polish parents frequently address their children using hypocoristic forms of the terms syn ‘son’, corka ‘daughter’ and dziecko ‘child’. These forms convey affection and emphasize familial ties. English parents, on the other hand, use children’s names, nicknames, or terms of endearment. I argue that these differences follow from underlying contrasts in cultural scripts: English individualism and Polish warmth.