Babies without speech impediments or developmental delays begin to say their first words when they are 7 to 12 months old. However, don’t worry if your child is a little late. These milestones are only indicative benchmarks, based on averages. Many babies pronounce their first “mommy” and “daddy” later than average, without this being a cause for concern.
1. “Mom”, “dad”: at what age does baby say it?
Babies go through the different stages allowing them to express themselves at their own pace. You should not compare babies of the same age to each other, because they are all different, and that is normal. Pediatricians estimate that babies say “mommy” (or rather “mama”) and “daddy” for the first time between 7 and 12 months. The first coherent and constructed sentences will only appear between 2 and 3 years of age. The study Age for onset of walking and prewalking strategies, published by the journal Early Human Development, links the development of language and movement skills: most babies begin to say their first words shortly before take their first steps, around the age of 1 year.
2. The different stages of language in babies
Language learning is a complex and long process, as shown by the stages of Speech and Language Milestones summary table, published in The Reference Manual of Pediatric Dentistry :
- Between 0 and 3 months, infants know how to distinguish their parents’ voices from those of other people, and emit sounds expressing their emotions or needs (fear, hunger, discomfort, fatigue, etc.).
- Between 4 and 6 months, the baby identifies the feelings of those around him with changes in tone. He follows the source of the sounds with his eyes and begins to vocalize, especially with simple sounds like “ma”, “pa”, “ba”.
- Between 7 months and 1 year is the favorite period for parents, because the baby understands basic words and begins to use some words, consciously, and no longer just to exercise and play with his voice.
- From 1 year old, babies understand simple questions and are able to follow the progress of a short story. He acquires new words and begins to formulate sentences, even if they are not grammatically correct.
3. How to help your baby pronounce his first “mom” and “dad”?
The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association indicates, in its article Activities to Encourage Speech and Language Development, the activities to do with your baby to help him learn language between birth and 2 years:
- Interact with your baby when he smiles, laughs and makes faces or makes sounds.
- Pronounce the sounds “ma”, “ba”, “da” and “pa” right in front of him.
- Talk to him, tell him what is happening around him, especially by pointing at objects and people, so that he associates the name and the thing.
- Tell him stories.
Sources
- Speech and Language Developmental Milestones, National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, October 2022
- Age for onset of walking and prewalking strategies, Early Human Development, May 20, 2013
- Speech and Language Milestones, The Reference Manual of Pediatric Dentistry, October 13, 2022
- Activities to Encourage Speech and Language Development, American Speech-Language-Hearing Association