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- 🧑 San (さん) The simplest translation would be "Mr" or "Mrs" (so this is a unisex suffix), but it signifies much more than that. "- San" is used with someone we respect and with whom one is not especially close, for example a colleague or boss, customers or anyone you don’t know very well.
- 🧒 Kun (君，くん) This is a less formal title with a lower level of politeness. In fact the symbol or kanji is the same as that of "kimi", like "you" in its familiar form or the French "tu" (especially between couples).
- 👧 Chan (ちゃん) "-Chan" performs a function similar to "kun", except that it is used mainly with girls. It's quite an affectionate word, which might be used with a friend, a classmate, a little sister, a baby, a grandmother, a girl or a woman to let her know you think she is sweet.
- 🧑💼 Senpai (先輩、せんぱい) This signifies that a person in a group has more experience such as a senior colleague or a high school senior if you’re in a lower grade.
Mar 20, 2016 · The origins of -san, -sama, -chan and -kun. One characteristic of Japanese is that it's an agglutinative language. This means we have some letters forming a root word and then we can add some stems that act as branches to form a sentence. Adding other stems (like leaves) right after the original word modifies the meaning, making it more specific.
- San
- Kun
- Chan
- Sama
- Sensei
- Senpai
San is essentially the default honorific, and it’s the most common. The closest word in English would be “Mr./Ms./Mrs.,” etc., except that san is gender-neutral and used in a much, much broader series of social contexts. San is for almost everyone. You can use it with bosses or a friend’s moms, but it doesn’t have to refer to someone older or highe...
Kun is one of the gender-associated honorifics. It’s much more casual than san and is typically used for young or teenage boys—”Shinji-kun!” or “Kawaoru-kun!,” for example. However, you can use kun for a girl you’re very close to. Actually, kunis a good choice in general for people who are close to you. I (half-jokingly) refer to my partner with “k...
Chan is kinda-sorta like the female version of kun, except that it’s cuter-feeling. It also can be a bit broader than kun, gender-wise, in referring to any child or pet—specifically because of that cuteness connotation. Chan also carries a vibe of sweetness and innocence. As such, chan can also be a term of endearment, especially for older women. F...
Sama is basically the intense version of san. Like san, it’s gender-neutral, but it holds a much higher degree of deference. As such, it’s often used to reflect social rank and tacked onto people like kings (“Bossu-sama,” like the king in Ranking of Kings), princesses (“hime-sama” – think Zelda), or god (“kami-sama,” like God Eneru in One Piece). I...
Sensei literally means “teacher.” As such, it’s a plain old noun, but it’s also an honorific. Watch any anime which takes place in a school, and you’ll notice students refer to their teachers not with san, but with sensei. And since sensei is also gender neutral, it’s a rather nice alternative to the “Ms. / Mrs. / Miss / ?!?!” debacle I had to put ...
Critical to the high school romance genre, senpai is for someone who is your “senior” in some way. Perhaps they are a higher grade in your high school. Perhaps they’ve worked at your office for longer. Both would be acceptable senpai situations. But a senpai is still in your social strata—a fellow employee, but not your boss. Don’t go calling your ...
What does San mean in Japanese? San (さん) is derived from sama, is the most common honorific, and is a title of respect normally used between equals of any age. Although the closest analogue in English is the honorifics "Mr.", "Miss" or "Madam". San is almost universally added to a person's name, in both formal and informal contexts.
Jan 19, 2019 · There are many more Japanese honorifics, but some of the most common ones are: Buchou (部長), Kachou (課長), Shachou (社長) or Kaichou (会長), which refer to specifically ranked people in a company; and there are also honorifics used mostly in a school context like Senpai (先輩, older person), Kouhai (後輩, younger person) or Sensei ...
Apr 20, 2022 · If you add san to a first name, it sounds friendly but still polite. When you add it to the last name, it’s a neutral way to address someone you don’t know or older than you. So, in Japanese san means “mister,” “miss” or “mrs.”. 2. さま / Sama. Usage Summary: Used in business situations and when addressing customers.
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Sep 22, 2023 · Here's your go-to guide on Japanese honorifics. Photo by Ryoji Iwata on Unsplash. Rule Number One. Never refer to yourself with an honorific. Use your name only. 1. San. You can add the honorific san for people you've just met, ideally with their last name (if they introduced themselves as such). San is used for strangers and for people with ...
