Roligt telefonsamtal med barn i bingolotto

What does “morfar” mean in Swedish?

Swedish has no single word for “grandfather.” It builds four words from two simple parts: mor (mother) and far (father). Put them together and you know exactly which grandparent you mean — morfar is your mother’s father, farfar is your father’s father. The fun part: the same man can be morfar to one grandchild and farfar to another, depending on whose kid the parent is.

The four words: morfar (mother’s father), mormor (mother’s mother), farfar (father’s father), farmor (father’s mother). Mor and far are the older words for mamma and pappa. Swedes say mamma and pappa in everyday talk, but the short forms live on inside these family words. In the clip, a small child answers the phone, fumbles out that pappa is “på toa” (on the toilet), and the caller turns out to be morfar — funny because the kid clearly had no clue who was calling.