Addressing others with respect

Despite their reputation for stiff formality, the British are in fact quite informal and the immediate use of first names is increasingly prevalent in all walks of British life, especially amongst the young (under 40-45 years of age) and in the newer industries.

Nevertheless, you should always wait to be invited to use first names before doing so yourself. Quite often the invitation will be spontaneous but it may never happen at all. Until then - and not all Britons like the up-front (открытый) American approach – you should be careful to follow strict protocol, especially when dealing with older members of the 'Establishment.' It is best to avoid the American habit of constantly repeating someone’s name in the course of a conversation once on first-name terms.

The same principles apply to writing letters. You should start off formally and continue until your correspondent hints (e.g. by signing off with just his or her first name) that it is appropriate to switch. Some correspondences, however, may continue formally until the writers actually meet. Subordinates may never feel comfortable addressing their superiors by their first name either in writing or orally.

Different conventions apply when it comes to official documents, meetings, conferences etc. where it is common practice to use full titles even if all the participants would ordinarily be on first-name terms. Thus: ‘Mr. Chairman’, ‘the Commander-in-Chief thinks’, ‘the Prime Minister is mistaken’, and so on.

It is usually best to address a woman whose marital status is uncertain as ‘Ms’. By extension, you should also perhaps avoid the suffix ‘-man’, which logically should result in such ugly expressions as ‘Ms Chair’ (in practice, though, this usually translates as ‘Madam Chair’). In general, the older generation remain happy, and may even prefer, to use ‘Mrs’ or ‘Miss’ whereas ‘Ms’ is current amongst those born post-1960.

There is a persistent tradition amongst very close (male) friends, who have usually attended the same (public, i.e. private) school or (ancient) university, of using only their surnames. This practice is not to be emulated. In the absence of any professional title you should always use at least the courtesy titles ‘Mr’, ‘Mrs’, etc. when using someone's surname.

‘Sir’ and ‘Madam’ are used by shop assistants, waiters, receptionists, etc. to address customers.

Knights, however, tend to like being called ‘Sir’ largely because a knighthood usually recognizes real achievement rather than political patronage. When John Smith is knighted, he is known as 'Sir John' but his wife is 'Lady Smith.' The female equivalent of a knight is a ‘dame’ (дама) and the correct mode of address in this instance is ‘Dame’, followed by her first name only. To add to the confusion, the daughter of a duke (герцог), marquess (маркиз) or earl (граф) is a 'Lady' and also addressed by her first name only.

The United States of America

Поиск по сайту: