JP Honorifics Explained

[welovehina]

Well, Japanese honorifics can be tricky, but this is your pal welovehina's guide to them.
I am copying them out of a negima book

-san:the most common honorific. Equal to Mr., Miss, Ms., or Mrs. All purpose honorific.

-sama: One level higher then "-san". used to confer great respect.

-dono: This comes from the word "tono" which means lord. Higher level of respect then sama and confers utmost respect.

-kun: This is used at the end of boys names to express familiarity. Sometimes used by men among friends or adressing someone of a younger station.

-chan: Used to express endearment, mostly toward girls. it can be used for little boys, pets, and even among lovers. It gives a sence of childish cuteness.

Bozu: informal way of refering to a boy. similar to the english terms "kid" and "squirt"

Sempai/Senpai: Used for one's senoir in a group or orginization. Most often used in schools when underclassmen adress an upperclassmen.

Kohai: Oppisite of "sempai" and is used toward underclassmen.

Sensei: Literally meaning "one who has come before", this title is used for teachers, doctors, or masters of any profession or art.

Anesan (or nesan): a generic term for a girl, usually older, that means sister.

Ojosama: A way of referring to the daughter or sister of someone with high political or social status.

[blank]: this is usually forgoton in these lists, but it is prehaps the most significant differance between Japanese and English. The lack of an honorific means that the speakerhas permission to adress the person in a very intamate way. Usually, ony family, spouse, or very close friends have permission to use this. Known as "yobisute", it can be gratifying when someone who has earned the intimace starts to call one by one's name without an honorific. But when that intamacy has not been earned, it can be very insulting.


Well, i hope that this list will help you folks out with your JP honorifics. Have fun using them on the forum.

Your friendly neighborhood spiderman,
-welovehina

[Vladimir]

There's also
-tan: a cuter version of chan (slang).

[dowyale]

i learn a little arigatou

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[deminyun]

Originally Posted by welovehina

-dono: This comes from the word "tono" which means lord. Higher level of respect then sama and confers utmost respect.

-kun: This is used at the end of boys names to express familiarity. Sometimes used by men among friends or adressing someone of a younger station.

-chan: Used to express endearment, mostly toward girls. it can be used for little boys, pets, and even among lovers. It gives a sence of childish cuteness.

Sempai/Senpai: Used for one's senoir in a group or orginization. Most often used in schools when underclassmen adress an upperclassmen.

Kohai: Oppisite of "sempai" and is used toward underclassmen.

Anesan (or nesan): a generic term for a girl, usually older, that means sister.

-dono: This is an old-fashioned one, people these days dont use it anymore. can be used toward men or women, means 'lord' or 'lady'

-kun: you can use it to people at the same age with you, such as your classmates. of course, only to male not female. but i found in some japanese movie, a highschool teacher use ~kun to both female and male student.....but i guess it's not common way to use it.

-Sempai/Senpai: also can be use in wider place, like workplace. you can call your senior at workplace 'senpai'. it also means 'someone who got much experience than yourself'

-Kohai: Opposite of "sempai" and is used toward underclassmen, but you cant use 'kohai' to call your juniors. it's not very polite and a little bit offensive. it's better to call your junior using kun/chan, or by their name if you close to them

-Anesan (or nesan): it's not a generic term for a girl; and i think it's onesan/ nesan, not anesan. 'ane' means 'my elder sister'. it also can be use as a polite way to call a woman that you know (or guess) is older than you, but you dont know her name; as in "excuse me miss, you drop your keys" you can say "excuse me, oneesan, you drop your keys"

*sorry, it's a long post

[deminyun]

big brother:
onisan/nisan or aniki (use by boys)
ani-ue (very polite and oldfashioned)

[Hayate]

if you go that far shouldn't these be in the list too?
Aniki: usually said to boys/man in a higher position but non-formal / or said to a older real brother

Shisho: meaning something on the line of Mentor, Master, teacher

ane-ue: basically the same as ani-ue but for older sisters

guess we should make this a collection thread, as there are surely still some things missing.

[Venchi]

Souhou is apparently what you call the head of a (old) powerful/important family

[Hayate]

hmm never heard of it...
I've heard of sonchou or the like for something like that.
Where did you hear that? I want to learn too.

[Venchi]

I have heard it in Kaze no stigma, only there so far though. So I might be wrong