Hokkien honorifics

The Hokkien language uses a broad array of honorific suffixes or prefixes for addressing or referring to people. Most are suffixes. Honorifics are often non-gender-neutral; some imply a feminine context (such as sió-chiá) while others imply a masculine one (such as sian-siⁿ), and still others imply both.

Hokkien grammar

Common honorifics

Sian-siⁿ

Sian-siⁿ (先生), also pronounced sian-seⁿ in some Hokkien dialects, is the most commonplace male honorific and is a title of respect typically used between equals of any age. Sian-siⁿ is also used to refer to or address authority figures, especially teachers and doctors. The usage is also seen in other East Asian languages (see sensei).

Sió-chiá

Sió-chiá (小姐) is a term for an unmarried woman.

Familial honorifics

Honorifics for family members have two different forms in Hokkien.

For a younger family member to call an elder one, the prefixes a- (阿) or chó͘- (祖) is used as the honorific. The usage may also be used to mention one's own family members. For examples:

Base noun Honorific English translation
Pe̍h-ōe-jī Hàn-jī Pe̍h-ōe-jī Hàn-jī
kong公chó͘-kong祖公great grandfather
má媽chó͘-má祖媽great grandmother
kong公a-kong阿公grandfather
má媽a-má阿媽grandmother
pah爸a-pah阿爸father
bú / bó母a-bú / a-bó阿母mother
hiaⁿ兄a-hiaⁿ阿兄elder brother
ché / chí姊a-ché / a-chí阿姊elder sister

Note that it is very impolite to say lín chó͘-má (your great grandma) in some situations; it may be regarded as a rude singular first personal pronoun for the female speakers. (See Hokkien pronouns)

For someone to mention his or her own parents to a non-family-member, the prefix lāu- (老) is sometimes used to replace the prefix a- as the honorific.

Base noun Honorific English translation
Pe̍h-ōe-jī Hàn-jī Pe̍h-ōe-jī Hàn-jī
pē父lāu-pē老父father
bú / bó母lāu-bú / lāu-bó老母mother

For someone to mention his or her own elder family members to a non-family-member, the prefix án- (俺), which literally means my, is also used in some areas. For examples:

Base noun Honorific English translation
Pe̍h-ōe-jī Hàn-jī Pe̍h-ōe-jī Hàn-jī
má媽án-má俺媽grandmother
niâ娘án-niâ俺娘mother
ko͘姑án-ko͘俺姑aunt

Sai

Similar to suffix -su and -sū mentioned later, the suffix -sai (師) is used for some people with skillful techniques; for example, kûn-thâu-sai (拳頭師) for martial artists, phah-thih-á-sai (拍鐵仔師) for blacksmiths, phah-chio̍h-sai (拍石師) for masons, thô͘-chúi-sai (塗水師) for plasterers, and chóng-phò͘-sai (總舖師) for chefs.

Su

Many people with different occupations get their own honorifics with a suffix -su (師) in Hokkien. For example, i-su (醫師) for doctors, io̍h-chè-su (藥劑師) for pharmacists, kang-têng-su (工程師) for engineers, lāu-su (老師) for teachers, and lu̍t-su (律師) for lawyers.

Sū

For academic degrees, the titles are suffixed with -sū (士); for examples, phok-sū (博士) for doctorate degree, se̍k-sū (碩士) for master's degree, and ha̍k-sū (學士) for bachelor's degree. In addition, some occupations have their honorifics with a suffix -sū; for example, hō͘-sū (護士) for nurses, piān-sū (辯士) for voice-overs, and chō͘-sán-sū (助產士) for midwives.

Royal and official honorifics
  • Pē-hā (陛下) is used for sovereign royalty, similar to "Majesty" in English.
  • Tiān-hā (殿下) is used for non-sovereign royalty, similar to "Highness" in English.
  • Chóng-thóng (總統) means president.
  • Chóng-lí (總理) means prime minister.
  • Koh-hā (閣下) means "Your Excellency", and is used for heads of state (except for those addressed by Pē-hā or Tiān-hā), heads of government, ministers.

Other honorifics
Pe̍h-ōe-jī Hàn-jī Literal meaning Gender Usage Examples Notes
chí / ché 姊 elder sister female suffix Mary-chí The honorific chí or ché is usually added right after one's name, and it shows a "sister-like" respect.
hiaⁿ 兄 elder brother male suffix John-hiaⁿ The honorific hiaⁿ is usually added right after one's name, and it shows a "brother-like" respect.
iâ 爺 father, master male suffix Sêng-hông-iâ (城隍爺), lāu-iâ (老爺), siàu-iâ (少爺) The honorific iâ is usually used for gods, deities, or honorable people.
koaⁿ 倌 neutral suffix sin-lông-koaⁿ (新郎倌) means bridegroom
kùi 貴 noble neutral prefix
  • kùi-keⁿ (貴庚) for asking for someone's age
  • kùi-sèⁿ (貴姓) for asking for someone's surname
lán 咱 you neutral pronoun Lán tó-ūi beh chhōe? (Who is this on the phone?) The Hokkien pronoun lán usually means "we" (inclusive), but it is often used to ask for one's information on telephone conversation politely.
lāu 老 old, experienced male, sometimes female prefix
  • lāu-su (老師) means teacher.
  • lāu-sai-hū (老師傅) means experienced technician.
  • lāu-seng (老生) means experienced elders.
 The prefix lāu may sometimes be impolite or even rude to call someone because the word lāu means "old"; for example, lāu-hòe-á (老歲仔) for old person or lāu-kâu (老猴), which literally means "old monkey", for old man or husband. Therefore, one should note that the prefix lāu doesn't always imply respect.
sòe 歲 year neutral
  • bān-sòe (萬歲) for addressing emperor
  • chhian-sòe (千歲) for addressing empress
thâu 頭 the head neutral prefix or suffix
  • thâu-lâng (頭儂) means master
  • thâu-ke (頭家) means employer or husband
  • kang-thâu (工頭) means foreman
 In Hokkien-language, the noun thâu originally means "head", and is later extended to the "leader" or the "master".

See also
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