Who Are Mario And Luigi's Parents?

Who are Mario and Luigi's parents? It's an interesting question, isn't it? The two brothers didn't just sprout up out of nowhere, but in the countless Super Mario video games and spin-offs, the topic of their parentage doesn't really play a key part. Believe it or not, however, the origins of Mario and Luigi have been covered, both in video games and in other places. Sort of.

Mario and Luigi's father, Papa Mario, first appeared in an anime called Super Mario Issun-boshi. It was here that fans of the plumber brothers got their first looks at the head of the family. Hilariously, though, Papa Mario's face was never shown. And because of some weird story about how Mario was "gifted" to Papa Mario and his wife, and was small enough to fit in Papa Mario's palm, we never got a full look at Mario and Luigi's dad. He was only seen from behind the shoulder, leaving everything but his puffy cheeks and mustache to the imagination.

Some believe that Papa Mario made another appearance, too; this time on a metal food tray from way back when with characters that look nothing like they do today. It's suspected that Papa Mario is the man with the blue hat, blue overalls, and gray beard in the portrait on the right wall. Though here, he appears to have aged more than the Papa Mario from the Super Mario Issun-boshi anime, but that could be because both Mario and Luigi have aged, too.

And as for the duo's mother? We know her name is, rather appropriately, Mama Mario. But her face has never been seen. And we learned that the silhouette of the woman who picked Mario up at the end of Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island was not Mario and Luigi's actual mother. So Mama Mario's true identity remains a mystery, and Nintendo appears to have no interest in tying up that loose end.

So do we know the names of Mario and Luigi's parents? Yes we do. Would we be able to pick them out of a lineup? Probably not. It's not the most satisfying conclusion to come to, but it's the truth. The parentage of the two brothers just doesn't seem that important to the series; at least in the eyes of Nintendo. And that means we may never get a clear idea of who gave birth to, and who raised, Mario and Luigi.