Jump to content
Linguaholic

Different Way Of Speaking When Talking To A Superior?


Baburra

Recommended Posts

Is it true that there are Japanese phrases and words used solely for when talking to a senior either in age or rank in work? I'm sure there are, as I do know they use "sang" as a suffix instead of "san" for when speaking to an equal, or for casual conversations. Are there more notable differences besides this, like changes in tones and phrases or manner of speaking?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm not a native speaker but I can say that, having worked in a Japanese company for over 3 years, superiors are referred to by titles like "Shachou" etc. There are suffixes used in casual conversation or when addressing younger people like "-kun" for boys and "-chan" for girls that replace "san". The full formal version of "san" is "sama" and is now used only to refer to royalty.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

When in business, Japanese use keigo. This is actually the aspect of Japanese language that I really find difficulty. Like English, the longer the sentences are, the politer they get (or maybe it's just me). In any case, yes honorifics become different as the ranks go higher.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It is not just you, j-evemstar. Many others are struggling with Keigo as well, as you can see here.

http://linguaholic.com/japanese-language-general-discussion-thread/what-aspect-of-learning-japanese-has-been-the-most-challenging-for-you/

It really must be one of the most difficult aspects of the Japanese language.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Many Japanese even struggle with keigo. Some companies even formally train their new recruits in how to talk to their superiors and people from other companies. The rules regarding employees of other companies are even more complicated than rules regarding your superior. The good thing is that since keigo gives even Japanese people trouble, you'll be forgiven if you make a mistake. As long as you make an effort to speak politely - even just using desu/masu - you'll be fine in most situations.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...