ਦੋਹਤਾDohtaGrandson (Daughter's Son)
Dohta (ਦੋਹਤਾ) is your daughter's son — a maternal grandson in Punjabi. He is the grandchild who calls you Nana ji or Nani ji, unlike a pota, who is a son's son. Some Punjabi speakers also say dohtra, and the term matches Nawasa in other registers.
How your Dohta connects to you
Who is your Dohta?
Punjabi never lumps grandchildren together, because the two lines mean different things: a pota carries the family name forward at home, while a dohta belongs to his father's family and comes to his mother's parents as a cherished guest. That is exactly why the nanke ghar — the maternal grandparents' home — is proverbially the place of pure pampering. Nana and Nani get all the joy of a grandson with none of the duties of discipline, and Punjabis joke that a child is never more spoiled than at his nanke.
How it's used
Maternal grandparents and their household use dohta when talking about their daughter's boy; face to face they just use his name or a pet name. Example: "ਸਾਡਾ ਦੋਹਤਾ ਛੁੱਟੀਆਂ ਵਿੱਚ ਨਾਨਕੇ ਆਇਆ ਹੋਇਆ ਹੈ" (Saada dohta chhuttian vich nanke aaya hoya hai) — "Our grandson has come to stay at his maternal grandparents' home for the holidays."
Where Dohta comes from
Dohta descends from the Sanskrit dauhitra, 'daughter's son' — Punjabi carefully separates a son's children (pota/poti) from a daughter's (dohta/dohti).
Dohta vs similar terms
Dohta and pota are both grandsons, but the line differs completely: pota is your son's son and calls you Dada or Dadi, while dohta is your daughter's son and calls you Nana or Nani. His sister is a dohti, the daughter's-side counterpart of poti.
Frequently asked questions
What does Dohta mean in Punjabi?
Dohta (ਦੋਹਤਾ) means your daughter's son — a maternal grandson. He addresses his grandparents as Nana ji and Nani ji, and their home is his nanke, famous in Punjabi culture for spoiling grandchildren.
What is the difference between Dohta and Pota?
A pota is a grandson through your son and grows up carrying your family name, while a dohta is a grandson through your daughter and belongs to his father's family. Punjabi keeps these separate because the paternal and maternal lines have distinct roles.
Related terms
Build your family tree with Dohta on it
Add real family members and see exactly how each kinship term maps to your relatives.
Start building — free