I feel everone should use this thread for adressing everone else.
San is often translated as "Mr.", "Ms.", "Mrs.", and the like.
it also could be used as a combination of his job title. example: "Honya-san" (Mr. Bookseller.)
San is also used when talking about entities such as companies and could also be used to some foods.
Kun is an informal and intimate honorific primarily used towards males (It is still used towards females, but rarely.) It is used by persons of senior status in addressing those of junior status, by males of roughly the same age and status when addressing each other, and by anyone in addressing male children.
Chan is the hypocoristic suffix, used to refer to children, animals, and people whom one has known since they were children. To use chan for adults whom one has not known since their childhood requires considerable intimacy, less for women than for men. Furthermore, attaching chan to a modified stem is more intimate than attaching it to the full form of the basic name. Chan may also used for celebrities as a title of affection. For example, Arnold Schwarzenegger gained the nickname Shuwa chan in Japanese.
Senpai is used by students to refer to or address senior students in an academic or other learning environment, in athletics and sports clubs, and also in business settings to refer to those in more senior positions. Kōhai is the reverse of this. It is used to refer to or address juniors, though it might be considered somewhat insulting or overly condescending in some circles to refer to someone as kōhai directly.
Sensei (derived from Mandarin Chinese xiān shēng, meaning Mister) is used to refer to or address teachers, practitioners of a profession such as doctors and lawyers, politicians, and other authority figures.
Sama is the formal version of san. This honorific is used primarily in addressing persons much higher in rank than oneself and in commercial and business settings to address and refer to customers. It also appears in words used to address or speak of persons or objects for which the speaker wishes to show respect or deference, such as okyaku-sama (customer) or Tateishi-sama (a stone revered as a deity). Additionally, Japanese Christians will refer to God in prayer as Kami-sama. People will also affix sama to the names of personages who have a special talent or are considered particularly attractive, though this usage can also be tongue-in-cheek, exaggerated, or even ironic. Examples include "Tanaka-sama" to refer to a young man named Tanaka who is considered rather handsome by his admirers and the "Leo-Sama" (or "Reo-sama") that has become the media's pet name for Leonardo DiCaprio.
Shi is used in formal writing, and sometimes in very formal speech, for referring to a person who is unfamiliar to the speaker, typically a person known through publications whom the speaker has never actually met.
Dono and tono roughly mean "lord". This title is no longer used in daily conversation, though it is still used in some types of written business correspondence. It is also seen on drug prescriptions, certificates and awards, and in written correspondence in tea ceremonies.
San is often translated as "Mr.", "Ms.", "Mrs.", and the like.
it also could be used as a combination of his job title. example: "Honya-san" (Mr. Bookseller.)
San is also used when talking about entities such as companies and could also be used to some foods.
Kun is an informal and intimate honorific primarily used towards males (It is still used towards females, but rarely.) It is used by persons of senior status in addressing those of junior status, by males of roughly the same age and status when addressing each other, and by anyone in addressing male children.
Chan is the hypocoristic suffix, used to refer to children, animals, and people whom one has known since they were children. To use chan for adults whom one has not known since their childhood requires considerable intimacy, less for women than for men. Furthermore, attaching chan to a modified stem is more intimate than attaching it to the full form of the basic name. Chan may also used for celebrities as a title of affection. For example, Arnold Schwarzenegger gained the nickname Shuwa chan in Japanese.
Senpai is used by students to refer to or address senior students in an academic or other learning environment, in athletics and sports clubs, and also in business settings to refer to those in more senior positions. Kōhai is the reverse of this. It is used to refer to or address juniors, though it might be considered somewhat insulting or overly condescending in some circles to refer to someone as kōhai directly.
Sensei (derived from Mandarin Chinese xiān shēng, meaning Mister) is used to refer to or address teachers, practitioners of a profession such as doctors and lawyers, politicians, and other authority figures.
Sama is the formal version of san. This honorific is used primarily in addressing persons much higher in rank than oneself and in commercial and business settings to address and refer to customers. It also appears in words used to address or speak of persons or objects for which the speaker wishes to show respect or deference, such as okyaku-sama (customer) or Tateishi-sama (a stone revered as a deity). Additionally, Japanese Christians will refer to God in prayer as Kami-sama. People will also affix sama to the names of personages who have a special talent or are considered particularly attractive, though this usage can also be tongue-in-cheek, exaggerated, or even ironic. Examples include "Tanaka-sama" to refer to a young man named Tanaka who is considered rather handsome by his admirers and the "Leo-Sama" (or "Reo-sama") that has become the media's pet name for Leonardo DiCaprio.
Shi is used in formal writing, and sometimes in very formal speech, for referring to a person who is unfamiliar to the speaker, typically a person known through publications whom the speaker has never actually met.
Dono and tono roughly mean "lord". This title is no longer used in daily conversation, though it is still used in some types of written business correspondence. It is also seen on drug prescriptions, certificates and awards, and in written correspondence in tea ceremonies.
