paternal
adj.related to being a father or coming from the father's side of the family.
adj.relating to or characteristic of a father; inherited from or related through the male parent.
“He felt a paternal urge to protect his younger brother.”
“She spent every summer visiting her paternal grandparents at their farm in the countryside.”
“The manager took a paternal interest in his employees' careers, often offering personal advice that went far beyond the requirements of their professional contracts.”
Typically used attributively before a noun; often contrasted with 'maternal'.
“And he needed too: there is something almost paternal about him and they had the youth that he wanted to lead, to guide.”
“Zareh, which opened in Melbourne in August 2025, is named after Sarafian’s paternal grandfather.”
From Old French paternal (“of a father”) (12th c.), from Vulgar Latin paternālis (“paternal”), from Latin paternus (“of or pertaining to a father, paternal”), from pater (“father”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.