Amah (occupation)

An amah or ayah (, German: Amme, Medieval Latin: amma; or ayah Hindi: āyā or amma, Portuguese: aia, Latin: avia, Tagalog: yaya) is a girl or woman employed by a family to clean, look after children, and perform other domestic tasks.

It is a domestic servant role which combines functions of maid and nanny. The term, resembling the pronunciation for "mother", is considered polite and respectful in the Chinese language when it is used to refer to a maid. They may often be required by employers to wear a uniform.

The word amah may have originated from the Portuguese ama meaning "nurse". Some however argued that it is the English form of the Chinese word ah mah (ah is a common Chinese prefix, and mah means "little mother"), while others say that it originated as nai mah (wet nurse in Chinese, literally "milk mother"). This word is common in East Asia, South East Asia and India to denote a maidservant or nursemaid. In India, ayah is the more common variant, and this Anglo-Indian word originated from the Portuguese aia meaning "nurse", feminine form of aio meaning "tutor".

Variants such as Amah-chieh or mahjeh (chieh or jeh means elder sister in Chinese dialects) have also been used in some countries. In China, amah may even refer to any old lady in general. In Taiwan and southeastern China where the Minnan language is spoken, amah refers to the paternal grandmother. Similar terms in the same context includes ah-yee (Aunt), yee-yee (aunt), or jie-jie (elder sister). Since the mid-1990s, it has become more politically correct in some circles to call such a person a 'helper' rather than a maid or ayah.

...
Wikipedia