Mother:

A mother is a biological and/or social female parent of an offspring.^[1] Because of the complexity and differences of a mothers' social, cultural, and religious definitions and roles, it is challenging to define a mother to suit a universally accepted definition.

Biological mother

In the case of a mammal such as a human, a pregnant woman gestates a fertilized ovum. A fetus develops from the viable fertilised ovum or "embryo". Gestation occurs in the woman's uterus from conception until (assuming the fetus is carried to term) the fetus is sufficiently developed to be born. The woman experiences labor and gives birth. Usually, once the baby is born, the mother produces milk via the lactation process. The mother's breast milk is the source of anti-bodies for the infant's immune system and commonly the sole source of nutrition for the first year or more of the child's life.^[2]^[3]^[4]

Surrogate mother

A surrogate mother is, commonly, a woman who bears the embryo to term for a couple biologically unable to have children. Upon the child’s birth, the surrogate mother surrenders all her rights and responsibilities to the child^[5] with sole intention of surrendering the infant to at least one of the biological parents.^[6]^[7]

Title

The term mother is often given to a woman other than the biological parent, especially if she who fulfills the main social role in raising the child. This is commonly either an adoptive mother or a stepmother (the biologically unrelated wife of a child's father). In lesbian cultures, a non-biological mother, or so-called "othermother" exists.
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 (commonly known as a surrogate) mother (who carries the pregnancy), and it is also poneither will serve as the social mother (the one who rears 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.^[8]

Social role

Mothers have historically fulfilled the primary role in raising children, but since the late 20th century, the role of the father in child care has been given greater prominence and social acceptance in some Western countries.^[9]^[10]

The social role and experience of motherhood varies greatly depending upon location. The organization Save the Children has (controversially) ranked the countries of the world, and found that Scandinavian countries are the safest places to give birth, whereas countries in sub-Saharan Africa are the least safest to give birth^[11]. This study argues a mother in the bottom ten ranked countries is over 750 times more likely to die in pregnancy or childbirth, compared to a mother in the top ten ranked countries, and a mother in the bottom ten ranked countries is 28 times more likely to see her child die before reaching their first birthday.

Mothers are more likely than fathers to encourage assimilative and communion-enhancing patterns in their children.^[12] Mothers are more likely than fathers to acknowledge their children's contributions in conversation.^[13]^[14]^[15]^[16] The way mothers speak to their children is better suited to support very young children in their efforts to understand speech (in context of the reference English) than fathers.^[13]

Since the 1970s, in vitro fertilization has made pregnancy possible at ages well beyond "natural" limits, generating ethical controversy and forcing significant changes in the social meaning of motherhood.^[17]^[18] This is, however a position highly biased by Western world locality: outside the Western world, in-vitro fertilization has far less prominence, importance or currency compared to primary, basic healthcare, womens' basic health, reducing infant mortality and the prevention of life-threatening diseases such as polio, typhus and malaria.

US Motherhood Statistics

Assorted and non-inclusive statistics on motherhood from the U.S. Census Bureau.^[19]

Religious

Nearly all world religions define tasks or roles for mothers through either religious law or through the deification or glorification of mothers who served in substantial religious events. There are many examples of religious law relating to mothers and women.
Major world religions which have specific religious law or scriptural canon regarding mothers include: Christians,^[20] Jews,^[21] and Muslims.^[22] Some examples of glorification or deification include the Madonna or Blessed Virgin Mother Mary for Christians, the Hindu Mother Goddess, or Demeter of ancient Greek pre-Christian belief.
In Islam, the Q'uran dictates the mother occupying an importance and position three times superior to that of the father. However, while the mother is considered the most important member of the family, she is not the head of the family.^{[citation needed]}

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.

Famous motherhood figures

Mother

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