In this guide
One of the things I enjoy listening for in Japanese is the way people use each other's names. Honorifics are endings added to names, such as さん (san), くん (kun) and ちゃん (chan). They can express respect, familiarity or affection, so a small name ending can tell you something about how people relate to each other.
Choosing a name ending for someone you've just met takes a little more care. Their close friends may use an affectionate name, but you're still getting to know them. I find it helpful to leave room for that difference, and to pay attention to what the person would like to be called.
This guide will help you choose among さん, くん and ちゃん in everyday situations. We'll begin with a respectful way to address someone new, then look at where more familiar endings fit. You'll also practise using people's names in short introductions, so the choice becomes part of something you can say.
さん: a respectful place to start
さん is a respectful ending used across genders, ages and marital status. Put it after the name: 山田さん is Yamada-san. English sometimes translates さん as Mr or Ms, but the Japanese ending doesn't tell you someone's gender or whether they're married.
Imagine you've just met a colleague named Yamada. Surname + さん is a common choice for this new relationship. おはようございます means ‘good morning.’
山田さん、おはようございます。
やまださん、おはようございます。
Good morning, Yamada-san.
If a new adult classmate asks you to use the given name Aki, you can say あきさん. You've changed the name you're using while keeping the same respectful ending.
あきさん、おはようございます。
Good morning, Aki-san.
Meet a new classmate
You're meeting an adult classmate whose surname is Yamada. You don't know them yet, and they haven't requested a different name or title. Choose the most suitable starting form.
How would you address Yamada?
Your own name: just add です
For a simple, polite self-introduction, put です after your name. エマ is Emma, so エマです means ‘I'm Emma.’ Leave さん off your own name in an ordinary introduction.
エマです。
えまです。
I'm Emma.
Keep that short pattern in mind. Later, you can use it to introduce yourself and someone else.
くん: familiar address, with limits
Riku is an established classmate who has asked you to call him りくくん. You're friends and are greeting him before class. おはよう is a casual ‘good morning.’
りくくん、おはよう。
Morning, Riku-kun.
The Japanese honorific kun often marks familiar address to boys or men of similar or lower age or status. You may hear it between classmates or from a senior person to a junior. Some workplaces and institutions use くん for women too. It's a relationship pattern, rather than a male version of さん.
Now imagine you've just joined a workplace. A manager calls a colleague 佐藤くん. You don't yet share the manager's relationship with Sato, so I'd greet that colleague as 佐藤さん while learning their preference and the workplace's habits.
佐藤さん、おはようございます。
さとうさん、おはようございます。
Good morning, Sato-san.
The distinction I keep in mind is that a familiar name can be familiar to my ears before it's familiar between us.
Does the manager’s choice become yours?
You've just joined a workplace. A manager calls a colleague 佐藤くん. Sato hasn't asked you to use くん, and you don't yet know any workplace convention requiring it. Choose your respectful starting form when greeting Sato.
Which name would you use?
ちゃん: affection works when it’s welcome
Your close friend Yuu, an adult man, has asked you to call him ゆうちゃん at your gatherings with friends. You can greet him like this:
ゆうちゃん、おはよう。
Morning, Yuu-chan.
ちゃん adds affection and familiarity. It's common for children and established close friends, across genders. With an adult, it can sound warm when it's welcome and overly familiar or diminishing when it isn't.
Being friends doesn't require a change to ちゃん. Some friends keep さん, and others agree on a nickname or use a name with no suffix. You can ask what someone likes instead of trying to measure how close you've become.
何と呼べばいいですか means ‘What should I call you?’ Learn it as a whole phrase for now.
何と呼べばいいですか。
なんと よべば いいですか。
What should I call you?
Use a friend’s requested name
Your close friend Yuu, an adult man, has asked you to call him ゆうちゃん at this gathering with friends. Choose the form that follows his request here.
How would you address Yuu?
When the setting changes
A person may welcome a nickname at a weekend gathering and prefer surname + さん at work. Check which setting their request covers. This is a new choice even when you already know the person well.
A weekend name at work
Your colleague Sato asks friends to call them はるちゃん at weekend gatherings. You're greeting Sato in a formal work meeting, and don't know a different work preference or title. Choose your starting form here.
Which name would you use at work?
Put the names into two introductions
You already have your own name + です. To introduce a person beside you, use こちらは + their name + です. こちらは means ‘this person here’ in this introduction; its は is pronounced wa.
Here Emma introduces herself and a new adult classmate, Yamada:
エマです。こちらは山田さんです。
えまです。こちらは やまださんです。
I'm Emma. This is Yamada-san.
Emma's own name has no suffix. Yamada has さん, and both sentences finish with です.
Introduction 1: a new classmate
You're Emma (エマ), and your new adult classmate is Suzuki (鈴木). Write two sentences: give your name, then introduce Suzuki.
Copy your Japanese text, then paste it into the checker. This writing space does not assess or save your text.
Now reread your introduction and revise anything that needs changing:
- Leave your own name without a suffix.
- Use さん for this new classmate.
- Finish both sentences with です.
For the second introduction, return to Yuu and the gathering where he wants to be called ゆうちゃん. The same pattern works:
こちらはゆうちゃんです。
This is Yuu-chan.
ちゃん makes Yuu's name affectionate; です keeps the sentence polite. A familiar name can sit inside a polite introduction.
Introduction 2: a close friend
You're Aki (あき), introducing Yuu at that gathering. Write two sentences: give your own name, then introduce him as ゆうちゃん.
Copy your Japanese text, then paste it into the checker. This writing space does not assess or save your text.
Reread both names: did you leave あき without a suffix and use Yuu's requested ちゃん?
Now Yuu asks for ゆうさん at this gathering instead. Revise his name ending in your introduction. The rest can stay the same.
Bunpo Check’s checker can suggest grammar and spelling corrections for your complete introduction. The person’s preference and the setting still guide your choice of name ending.
Use a known name or title for “you”
English uses ‘you’ constantly. In Japanese, a known name or relevant title is often the more natural choice. あなた means ‘you’ and isn't automatically rude; you simply don't need to insert it wherever English has ‘you.’
Suppose you're asking Yamada directly whether they're a teacher. 先生 means ‘teacher,’ and ですか makes this a polite question. The は after the name is pronounced wa and marks the person you're asking about.
山田さんは先生ですか。
やまださんは せんせいですか。
Are you a teacher, Yamada-san?
To ask Aki, replace 山田さん with あきさん. If you asked somebody else about Yamada, the same question would mean ‘Is Yamada a teacher?’ The listener and conversation make the difference.
For your own teacher, 先生 can also be an address title: 鈴木先生 is Suzuki-sensei. You can say 先生 on its own too. The title supplies the ending, so don't add さん after it. ありがとうございます means ‘thank you.’
鈴木先生、ありがとうございます。
すずきせんせい、ありがとうございます。
Thank you, Suzuki-sensei.
If your workplace calls its department head 部長, you can say 田中部長 for Department Head Tanaka. Listen for the title people actually use in your workplace.
田中部長、おはようございます。
たなかぶちょう、おはようございます。
Good morning, Department Head Tanaka.
Name endings are one part of respectful language. Broader keigo also changes verbs and sentence forms; adding さん alone cannot do all that work. You can explore those verb changes in the guide to keigo, using a teacher’s actions and an offer to help a visitor.
For the next adult you meet, start with surname + さん, or use the name or title they've asked for. If you'd like to use a nickname and aren't sure it's welcome, ask. That's the habit I'd take into a new conversation.
About the author
B. Rungswell
B. Rungswell is the editor of the Bunpo Check blog and a native English speaker who has passed JLPT N1. Drawing on many years of life in Japan and experience working at Japanese companies, Rungswell writes practical guides to Japanese grammar for English-speaking learners.