Honorific

Polite form, also Honorificum (Latin honorificus " honoring " ) or Honorativ (um) (Latin Honoratus ' honored ' ), referred to in sociolinguistics a grammatical category that the social relationship between the speaker, the person addressed and possibly a third person, talk about the expresses. It expresses itself in the use of different forms of address like you and you in German, but also, for example in the choice of first name, last name or title of a person. Other languages ​​, particularly some Asian languages ​​, know far more complex politeness systems.

The polite form of the German language

Pronoun

In the standard German is the polite form today. Salutation by using the plural form of "you" and made with the derived forms Also the corresponding verb is plural.

• Example: " Where are you going? "

In the written language, the pronoun "you" and its derived forms are capitalized. Until the spelling reform of 1996 was also a polite form of "you" in all correspondence in which this word was capitalized. From 1996 to 2006, "you" in a new spelling solely lowercase. Since the latest, now the fourth revision of the spelling reform can "you" are important to personal address in writing traffic again.

The address "you" is also called Siezen, the salutation with "You " Duzen. The obsolete polite form of address with "your", for example, the is used in French to this day, is sometimes referred to in analogy, as Ihrzen. The Siezen (use of large ligands ascribe third person plural for one or more people instead of the second person singular or plural) is the only remaining of a graduated series of forms of politeness.

Salutation in the 2nd person plural

• " Have Your Grace slept well? " (2 P. plural, outdated, continued in the 3rd person plural)
• "Did you get the change, sir? "

The "your" courtly feudal society was in the course of social change from bourgeois "you" displaced during the 19th and 20th centuries. The address in the second person plural has been preserved in some dialects, such as the Upper German until today ("[ d ] e ", " üüch " or " Aus ", " enk ").

Salutation in the 3rd person singular The uppercase form of address in the 3rd P. sg was once also a polite form. So the noble squires talked in 1810 at the Bavarian royal court ( sons of noble houses who were trained there) with He to:

• "We are on first name terms to each other, was forbidden; we are accustomed, therefore, to say to each other He. "

In Lessing's Minna von Barn-helm the servant of Major speaks the host with He to:

• " Behold, sir host; if I could feign, I would be a hypocrite for something; but I can not; it must get out: He's a boor, landlord! "

Has survived the he he as so-called Berlin:

• " Hatter because ooch'n jült'jen Faahohsweis? " ( " Did he also have a valid ticket ?")

Name

A more polite form of the German language is the salutation with " Mr. " or " Mrs. " plus surname. The previously common title " Miss " for unmarried women is now rarely used or even rejected as inadequate salutation.

Further forms of address that form a hierarchy of styling, apply today in Germany in most cases obsolete. However, they are often still used in international diplomacy. The shapes correspond to the rank of the person addressed. Such styling are: Magnificence ( for high school principals ), excellence (eg for ambassador ), your " eminence" (Informal a Cardinal ), your Reverence and the like.

Forms such as: " My Lord " or " Mademoiselle ", which were still used at the beginning of the twentieth century, are today in Germany, apart from jocular use, disuse, but are used in Austria in certain situations.

The title " Doctor " is not a polite form, but indicates the degree.

Use of the subjunctive

For requests, wishes, requests and questions the subjunctive is used as a polite form often.

• Could you please tell me what time it is? ( Polite form for: " Please tell me what time it is. " )
• Would you please close the window? ( Polite form for: " Please close the window !")

Past tense of courtesy

For questions, the Präteritumsform is sometimes, especially in restaurants or on the phone, used as a polite form.

• "What was your name again? " ( Can you please give your name? )
• "Who got the coffee? " ( Who made the coffee? Whom shall I give him? )

It should not be confused with the literal meaning of these forms.

Correspondence

Special honorifics are used in all correspondence.

This includes a special form of address - Examples are:

• Dear Mrs. Lehmann ( The form " Dear Mrs. Lehmann " is deprecated. )
• Dear Mr. Delete

Title in speeches

In speeches without specific contacts, such as television, the politeness " Dear Sir or Madam " is being used.

Reciprocity

Traditionally, the polite form is used during meetings between mutually unknown and unrelated individuals. Among adults, the polite form is used against each other - the one-sided use of the Duzens is often seen as rude and as a denial of respect, or she is ( demonstrative ) expression of a difference of social backgrounds of the participants.

When dealing with older people ( much ) younger one -sidedness is sometimes given, for example, students siezen their teachers, but geduzt would normally (usually until the beginning of secondary school).

Generally children are encouraged to siezen all adults, except for your own family members and adults from the narrow circle of acquaintances - in contrast, children are usually gesiezt by anyone. The use of the polite form in children is an evolving process: An elementary schools, it is sometimes common for the children who need to learn only times that you talk to strange adults differently, their teachers while styling with " Mr. " or " Mrs. " plus surname, but the "you" use ( " Mrs. Muller, can even tell how I can solve this task you give me ?"). Until the late 20th century it was common, especially in the upper classes of Europe, that children had to speak to their parents as "you" or "your " (some still in some traditional families worldwide). Quite the contrary, it was called as part of the anti-authoritarian education and the 1968 movement to talk to your parents directly by their first names, as well as foreign adults dozen with quick response, as an expression of equality.

Confidential Expressions

Furthermore, there is the ironic use of the polite form: In non-written communication situations in which normally name terms ( for example, friends or family members ), a " You" or " Your Honor " also irony in the sense of " you do not have so important" spontaneously without that which is hostile meant.

The polite form in other languages

In other languages ​​the Höflichkeitspronomen have arisen partly from very different forms:

• Many European languages ​​use the second person plural as a polite form (eg French vous, te Finnish, Serbo-Croatian Vi, Russian Bы ).
• In Italian, was under the influence of the other Romance languages ​​the second person plural ( voi ) gradually from the feminine third person singular ( Lei) displaced, but is still rather archaic language forms and in some dialects.
• The English you, also originally a second person plural as a polite form, has the original singular thou completely replaced (on dialectal level, however, has survived this in northern and western England and the Scottish Orkneys and Shetlands partly to the present day ) and now serves as the only form of address.
• In the Netherlands there are also the two forms jij / each ( 'you ', historically, however, ' you ') and U ( ' you ', historically in Uwer, ' Your [ Grace, etc.] ', developed ), but is the using the polite form somewhat different than in German: work colleagues, older relatives, the frequently accessed faster with jij, with u.
• The Hungarian language distinguishes three forms of address: te ( near and confidentiality), maga (distance) and Ön ( formality and respect ).
• In the Polish language, however, there is no separate word for salutation in the polite form. Instead, people always addressed with a replaced or preceded by pan or pani (Eng. ' Mr. ' or ' Mrs. '). Also in Swedish lasted until well into the 20th century, the indirect offer as polite form (? Går direktören about? ' Is the director ' within the meaning of German ' are you going? '; Cf. Du- reform).

In the languages ​​of South Asia, there are a large number of Honorifica, especially forms of address and pronouns (for example, pluralism Majestatis ):

• Thus, three levels of politeness are in Hindi in the second person distinguished: तू Tu ( intimate to rude ), तुम date ( familiar ) and आप AP ( politely). Also in the third person distinction is made between different forms of politeness, the Malayalam knows, for example, three words for ' he ' ( അവന് avan, അയാള് Ayal and അദ്ദേഹം addēhaṃ ), their use depends on what relationship the speaker to the person above spoken, is. In Sinhala There is a special vocabulary for verbs and nouns that are used inter alia in relation to members of the Buddhist clergy.
• In Arabic sayyid ' Mr. ' or سيدة Sayyida ' woman ' and the name becomes the expression of politeness, a person usually addressed with سيد. Will a spokesman also emphasize the rank of his opponent, he can him, inter alia, with أستاذ Ustad ( ' Professor ', title for educated people) or حاج ḥaǧǧ ( ' pilgrim ', for those who made ​​the pilgrimage to Mecca ) appeal. Seen Grammatically there are no differences between the Duz and Siezform: Here is the second person singular أنت is predominantly anta ( masculine ) or anti- ( feminine ) is used, which is similar to the English you. However, there is also the possibility of this form of address in order to increase one or two levels: This is done by the words حضارة Hadara or سيادة siyāda (see sayyid or Sayyida ) and appending the Personalsuffixe ك ( -ka and -ki ) so that, for example, in reports of high-ranking politicians, the form of address سيادتك ( siyādatuka or siyādtak ) will be used.
• The politeness of the high Chinese consist of a differentiated system of pronouns and affixes for the name of the talking and the person addressed. In modern Chinese, however, are only a few of them in use. It is customary to use the polite form nor to persons who are older or more important than the speaker. This takes the place of the personal pronoun你(ni 'you ') the more respectful您( nín ). Polite also the replacement of the personal pronoun by name and title of the person addressed (eg李先生 应该 打 的 去, Mr. Li should take a taxi you =, Mr. Li, you should take a taxi ).
• The Japanese polite language has not only various formal idioms, Honorativpräfixe, Anredesuffixe and pronouns, but also different verb forms for different levels of deference. The Korean Honorativsystem is similarly complex.

In some languages ​​of Australia and Africa, there are so-called avoidance languages ​​and are designed solely for communication with certain relatives with whom to deal else is taboo.