The title mother is often given to a woman other than the biological parent, if it is she who fulfills the social role. This is most commonly either an adoptive mother or a stepmother (the biologically unrelated wife of a child's father). Also, in both African-American and lesbian cultures non-biological othermothers exist. Currently, with advances in reproductive technologies, the function of biological motherhood can be split between the genetic mother (who provides the ovum) and the gestational mother (who carries the pregnancy), and in theory neither might be the social mother (the one who brings up the child). A healthy connection between a mother and a child form a secure base, from which the child may later venture forth into the world.

Mothers have historically fulfilled the primary role in the raising of children, but since the late 20th century, the role of the father in child care has been given greater prominence in most Western countries.

The experience of motherhood varies greatly depending upon location. The organization Save the Children has ranked the countries of the world, and found that Scandinavian countries are the best places to be a mother, whereas countries in sub-Saharan Africa are the worst. A mother in the bottom 10 countries is over 750 times more likely to die in pregnancy or childbirth, compared to a mother in the top 10 countries, and a mother in the bottom 10 countries is 28 times more likely to see her child die before reaching his or her first birthday.

Synonyms and translations

The proverbial "first word" of an infant often sounds like "ma" or "mama". This strong association of that sound with "mother" has persisted in nearly every language on earth, countering the natural localization of language.

Familiar or colloquial terms for mother in English are:

• mom or mommy, in most of North America (especially the U.S.). It is used widely in the West Midlands, in the UK.
• mum or mummy, is used in the UK, Netherlands, Australia, and New Zealand
• Ma, Mam or Mammy is used in Ireland and sometimes in the UK and the US.
• Maa, Amaa, Maataa is used in India and sometimes in neighboring countries
• "mama" is used in many countries, but is considered a Spanish form of "mother"

In many other languages, similar pronunciations apply:

• mama in Polish and Slovak
• māma in Mandarin Chinese
• máma in Czech
• maman in French and Persian
• mamma in Italian
• mãe in Portuguese
• Ami in Punjabi
• mama in Swahili
• eema (אמא) in Hebrew
• umma (엄마) in Korean
• Mama, borrowed from the English, is in common use in Japan.
• In many south Asian cultures and the Middle East the mother is known as amma or oma or ammi or "ummi", or variations thereof. Many times these terms denote affection or a maternal role in a child's life.