ਚਚੇਰਾ ਭਰਾChachera BhraCousin (Paternal Uncle's Son)
Chachera Bhra (ਚਚੇਰਾ ਭਰਾ) is your paternal uncle's son — specifically the son of your Chacha, your father's younger brother. Punjabi has no standalone word for cousin: he is named a brother, with the prefix recording exactly which uncle he comes through.
How your Chachera Bhra connects to you
Who is your Chachera Bhra?
Calling a cousin a brother is not politeness — it reflects how Punjabi joint families actually lived. A chacha stayed in the family home, so his sons grew up under the same roof as you, sharing the family name, the land, and often the same grandmother's kitchen. A chachera bhra can stand in for a real brother in ceremonies, and treating him as anything less would be considered a failure of family feeling. Cousins through a taya are strictly tayere, though everyday speech often stretches chachera to cover all paternal-uncle cousins.
How it's used
You use chachera bhra when explaining the relationship to others; face to face he is simply bhra, veer, or his name. Example: "ਮੇਰਾ ਚਚੇਰਾ ਭਰਾ ਮੇਰੇ ਨਾਲ ਹੀ ਵੱਡਾ ਹੋਇਆ ਹੈ" (Mera chachera bhra mere naal hi vadda hoya hai) — "My cousin grew up right alongside me."
Where Chachera Bhra comes from
Chachera adds the cousin suffix -era to chacha: your chacha's son, counted as a brother.
Chachera Bhra vs similar terms
The prefix does all the work: chachera means through your father's younger brother, phuphera through your father's sister, mamera through your mother's brother, and masera through your mother's sister. English collapses all four into cousin; Punjabi keeps the map intact.
Frequently asked questions
What does Chachera Bhra mean in Punjabi?
Chachera Bhra (ਚਚੇਰਾ ਭਰਾ) means the son of your chacha — your father's younger brother. He is a paternal cousin, but Punjabi names him a brother because in joint families such cousins traditionally grew up in the same household.
How do you say cousin in Punjabi?
There is no single word. Punjabi calls every cousin a brother or sister with a prefix showing the connecting relative: chachera/chacheri (father's younger brother's child), phuphera/phupheri (father's sister's child), mamera/mameri (mother's brother's child), and masera/maseri (mother's sister's child).
Related terms
Build your family tree with Chachera Bhra on it
Add real family members and see exactly how each kinship term maps to your relatives.
Start building — free