Abstract: Kinship terms as an important aspect of the language are widely used in people’s daily life. This thesis firstly collects a large number of kinship terms both in Chinese and English, then analyzes the differences between them from the cultural aspects; finally explores the causes hidden behind the different kinship terms. This paper hopes to deepen the understanding of the culture connotation and make the cross-cultural communication more smooth and more successful.

Key words: kinship terms; culture; historical factors; family patterns

摘要：亲属称谓语作为语言中最重要的方面被人们广泛的使用。本论文前期收集了大量的英汉亲属称谓语的实例，然后从文化方面分析英汉亲属称谓语的不同点，最后探究引起这些不同点的原因。以加深对英汉两种文化的差异性的了解，更好的促进文化的交流和跨文化交际。

关键词：亲属称谓语，文化，历史因素，家庭因素