9 Essential Japanese Honorifics: Meanings and How to Use Them Politely

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In the southern United States, calling people “ma’am” and “sir” out of respect is a near-daily occurrence and is still taught in some schools today. Demonstrations of respect through language like this are one way to be polite in the local culture. In Japanese, titles go beyond “Mr.” and “Ms.” Known as Japanese honorifics, they are the key to referring to other people politely in a culture that emphasizes respect. 

The best way to familiarize yourself with how Japanese honorifics tie in to good manners is to use them in conversation with a partner who can offer immediate feedback. With Rosetta Stone Tutoring, you’ll be able to dive deeper into Rosetta Stone’s core lessons with a language expert who can answer your questions in a safe environment.

What are Japanese honorifics?

Japanese honorifics are suffixes (with an occasional short prefix) attached to names to denote the relationship between the speaker and the person they are referring to. They can indicate a relationship among friends, coworkers, people of different ages, and more.

Oftentimes, honorifics in Japanese are gender-neutral. The most common honorific, san (さん), is the closest equivalent to “Mr.” or “Ms.” (and similar) in English, but it doesn’t indicate a person’s gender. Considering that Japanese pronouns are used sparingly to avoid being overly direct, using a name and attached honorific in the second- or third-person in place of a pronoun is not unusual.

Despite the respectful implication of the word “honorific,” these suffixes are not always about courtesy. In some cases, they actually add a sense of familiarity or friendship to a name. Ultimately, the most important thing to remember about honorifics in Japanese is that their usage (or lack thereof) speaks volumes. Learning how to use them properly is key to interacting with others in Japanese culture.

Using honorifics politely

When speaking in Japanese or visiting Japan, understanding Japanese manners and social etiquette is essential, and this includes learning how to use honorifics politely. Here are a few key points to remember:

• Do use the generic honorific san if you’re unsure. It’s better to be overly polite than unintentionally rude.
• Do default to using a person’s surname over their given name unless you are invited to be more casual when speaking with them.
• Do drop respectful honorifics if requested. Continuing to refer to someone with san (the equivalent of Mr. or Ms.) when asked not to may make the relationship seem cold and distant.
• Don’t use respectful honorifics like san to refer to yourself. Showing deference to yourself can come off as arrogant. 

List of Japanese honorifics suffixes

Japanese honorifics meanings can be used in multiple ways, but these are the closest English equivalents. In this chart, honorifics that are only suffixes and require a name before them are written with a ～ attached in Japanese and a hyphen in the English romanization.

5 Japanese honorifics for everyday use

While there are dozens of Japanese honorifics out there, only a handful are used in daily conversation. These five suffixes are the most common.

1. Being polite with san

The most useful and ubiquitous Japanese honorific is san. It can be used for anyone regardless of gender, age, or relation to the speaker. You will rarely go wrong using this honorific, and it’s a good one to default to if you don’t know what honorific is appropriate. If you only remember one honorific, this is the one to commit to memory!

When referring to people who are significantly older, san is a safe option. Showing respect for the elderly is important in Japan, and making sure the proper honorific is used is a good place to start.

San is also attached to several words in such a way that they are simply part of the word. These often come with the polite prefix “o” or “go” (御) which elevates the formality of the word. The polite way to say “mother” is “okāsan” (おかあさん). Without the san, “okā” is just an abbreviation and is rarely used. 

• Keiko no onēsan wa nansai desu ka?（けいこのお姉さんは何歳ですか？）= How old is Keiko’s older sister?

Terms like these that refer to family are likely to be among the first words you learn as a student learning Japanese. If you learn Japanese with Rosetta Stone, the most common words for referring to family are introduced in some of the first few lessons!

2. Saying hello to friends with kun

The honorific kun is primarily for addressing boys or young men. It’s largely informal, often being used between friends—if an honorific suffix is used at all. When implemented in professional contexts, such as at work, you’ll want to remember that it should only be used between equals or from a superior to someone working under them.

When attached to a nickname, kun can be used as a major component to the point where it is merged with the name as though it were one word. This is similar to how someone named “Robert” might be called “Bobby.” The name “Masahiro” might be changed like so:

• Masakun, shukudai shita no?（まさくん、宿題したの？）= Masahiro (Masakun), did you do the homework?

3. Creating cute nicknames with chan

When expressing affection, chan is a great choice of honorific for children, close friends (usually female), romantic partners, and animals. Chan often carries a “cute” connotation and is an informal honorific. For children, a boy will grow to be referred to with kun around the time they begin attending school. 

Like kun, nicknames pair well with chan, some which combine the name and suffix to create a new name. For example, this is how someone named Aya might be called by a close friend, using the first character of their name:

• A-chan, ke-ki taberu?（あーちゃん、ケーキ食べる？）= Aya (Achan), do you want some cake? (Literally: Achan, will you eat cake?)

4. Greeting guests with sama

Only used in formal situations, sama is a highly respectful honorific typically reserved for business customers or formal correspondence in modern Japanese. For example, you may hear it in situations like Japanese tea ceremonies. Historically, it was similar to “Lord” or “Lady” in English. Regardless of the situation, sama remains at the top of the list for Japanese honorifics suffixes in terms of respect.

When used in reference to guests or customers, the language used around the name may or may not use other honorific language such as keigo (敬語). In this case, keigo is being used to signify that the person is being treated with particular respect as a guest.

• Okyakusama, onimotsu o omochimashо̄ ka?（お客様、お荷物をお持ちいたしましょうか？）= May I help you with your luggage, sir/ma’am?

5. Showing respect with shi

Out of the five general honorifics listed here, shi is the most uncommon. It’s typically used in speeches, news articles, legal documents, and other such formal writing where the writer does not personally know the individual being referred to. While it is more often used to refer to men, it can be used to refer to women as well.

• Taisou senshu no shimon bairuzu shi wa kin medal o kakutoku shita.（体操選手のシモン・バイルズ氏は金メダルを獲得した。）= Gymnast Simone Biles won a gold medal.

2 Japanese honorifics to use at school

The five honorifics above are used everywhere, but there are a few that are more common in school settings. These honorifics are special in that they don’t need a name attached to them at all—using the honorific on its own will do!

1. Taking lessons from your sensei

One of the most well-known honorifics is sensei, which is used to refer to teachers, such as elementary school teachers, college professors, private piano instructors, and more. 

Schools are a good example of a place where multiple people will use the same honorific. Just as teachers in universities and colleges in the United States are often called “professors,” native Japanese students and teachers both refer to all teachers using “sensei.”

• Sensei, kyо̄ wa yamamoto sensei ga irasshaimasu ka?（先生、今日は山本先生がいらっしゃいますか？）= Professor, is Professor Yamamoto here today?

Sensei can also be used to refer to doctors and other leaders in their field. Instead of calling a doctor in Japan “Dr. Suzuki,” you would call them Suzuki sensei or just sensei.

2. Looking up to your senpai

The honorific senpai is used to refer to classmates in a higher grade than you or those who have been involved in a particular club or activity for longer. You can also use it when speaking with senior coworkers since senpai is not necessarily restricted by age.

A first year student in a Japanese high school may call a senior by their first or last name with the honorific attached, like “Yuki senpai.” 

• Yuki senpai wa piano o nannenkan hiiteimasu ka?（ゆき先輩はピアノを何年間弾いていますか？）= Yuki, how many years have you been playing the piano?

The reverse of senpai is kо̄hai (後輩), which refers to someone who is in a younger grade or is less experienced in a shared group. However, this can come off as patronizing and is rarely used as an honorific. Rather, it’s more common for kо̄hai to be used when simply stating that someone is a fresh face (or at least less experienced) in the group.

2 Japanese honorifics to use at work

Working in Japanese businesses requires employees to use a higher level of politeness and social etiquette than everyday life. While there are dozens of new rules to remember—in terms of both manners and linguistics—these honorifics are the most useful to remember.

1. Addressing a manager with chо̄

In truth, the honorific suffix chо̄ is only the second half of a suffix. It refers to a managerial rank or category in a company but is always preceded by another term to specify which level of manager the person is. For example, an assistant manager in charge of a team of five people at a large corporation would likely be referred to with the suffix kakarichо̄ (係長). 

When in a work environment, the polite thing to do is to refer to employees in a higher position than you—either to their face or in conversation about them—by their surname and their title attached as an honorific. If the name of the person is mutually understood, just the title will suffice.

• Takeda buchо̄ ni me-ru o okutte kudasai.（武田部長にメールを送ってください。）= Please send an email to (Manager) Takeda.

The same principle applies to other, more specific positions like political offices. For example, the word for the president of a country is daitо̄ryо̄ (大統領), but the term follows the name rather than precedes it, as is done in English.

• Ru-zuberuto daitо̄ryо̄ wa 1993 nen ni shūnin shimashita.（ルーズベルト大統領は１９９３年に就任しました。）= President Roosevelt assumed office in 1933.

2. Referring to groups with onchū

This honorific is used specifically to address a group of people in writing. It is rarely seen outside of a work context. An email to the entire HR Department might look like this:

• Jinjibu onchū: osewa ni natte orimasu.（人事部御中：お世話になっております。）= To the personnel of the HR Department: Thank you for all that you do. 

Key takeaways for understanding honorifics in Japanese

• Japanese honorifics are suffixes added to names to indicate the speaker’s relationship with the person in question.
• The gender-neutral honorific san is the most important and is equivalent to calling someone “Mr.” or “Ms.”
• When in doubt about which honorific is appropriate, use san or ask how someone would like to be addressed.