Illustrated Japanese culture
Keigo: respect, formality and relationships in Japanese
敬語
Keigo is the set of Japanese language forms used to express respect or formality in relation to people and situations. A choice can depend both on who is listening and on whose action is being described.
01
Two relationships in one sentence
Listener and person discussed
In these teaching examples, a student tells a listener that the teacher is coming: 先生が来ます。 / 先生がいらっしゃいます。 Both use the polite ending -masu. The second also uses irassharu to express respect toward the teacher. The listener and teacher may be different people.
02
Respectful and humble forms
Whose action is it?
Sonkeigo, or respectful language, elevates the person doing an action or having a state. Irassharu can replace ordinary verbs for going, coming or being somewhere. Kenjōgo I directs respect toward the person whom an action concerns. A student telling a teacher about a visit might say: 明日、先生の研究室に伺います。 “I will visit your study tomorrow.” Ukagau describes the student’s visit respectfully toward the teacher.
Presenting one’s side formally
Kenjōgo II, also called teichōgo, formally presents the speaker’s side to the listener; mairu is a formal verb for going or coming. Teineigo, such as desu and -masu, makes the address polite. Bikago gives wording a refined form, as in o-sake, “sake,” or o-ryōri, “cooking” or “food.” Other uses of o- express respect toward a person.
03
A relationship can change with the situation
Speaking to a customer
When speaking to a customer, an employee can treat a manager as part of the speaker’s own side. In this company telephone example, 佐藤はただいま席を外しております。 means “Sato is away from the desk at the moment.” The form orimasu presents the company’s side courteously to the customer.
Polite requests in familiar English
English requests such as “Could you ...?” or “Would you ...?” also adjust wording to a social situation. This provides a useful point of comparison. Japanese keigo additionally changes verbs according to the person whose action is described or the listener being addressed; the examples above show these choices separately.
04
Recognize forms without treating them as substitutions
Patterns and special verbs
Some respectful forms use o–verb stem–ni naru, as in o-yomi ni naru, “read,” or a respectful -reru/-rareru form. Others use a different verb: iu becomes ossharu, suru becomes nasaru, and miru becomes goran ni naru. Humble forms include o–stem–suru and such verbs as haiken suru, “look at.” Which pattern fits depends on the word and whose action is described.
One prefix, several jobs
O- commonly precedes native Japanese words and go- Sino-Japanese words, with conventional exceptions such as o-ryōri and o-genki. The prefix may honor a person, mark a humble action toward someone, or refine wording. Written forms such as shōsha, “our company,” and setcho, “my book,” also present the speaker’s side modestly.
Keep the giver and receiver straight
Sensei ga shidō shite kudasatta describes the teacher giving guidance; sensei ni shidō shite itadaita presents the speaker as receiving it. Both are respectful, but ga marks the teacher as the subject in the first, while ni marks the source of guidance in the second. The auxiliary changes the viewpoint as well as the wording.
Make a request appropriate to the situation
A request can use a considerate introduction and a form such as onegai dekimasu ka, “Could I ask you to…?” It matters what is being asked and how much it imposes. Fixed service scripts and the length of an expression alone cannot determine whether the speaker has chosen the right respectful relationship.
Stacking forms does not always add respect
The official guide generally discourages duplicating the same honorific type on one word, as in o-yomi ni narareru. It recognizes established expressions such as o-ukagai suru. O-yomi ni natte irassharu is different: “read” and “be doing” are separately made respectful and then connected. Conventional acceptance and grammatical analysis both matter.
Titles and written addresses
Names may take -san in conversation and -sama in formal correspondence. Sensei is itself a title, so sensei-sama duplicates it. Onchū addresses a company or department without naming an individual; kakui addresses the members collectively. These choices belong to address conventions as well as verb grammar.
05
Respectful forms in early written records
- Eighth-century recordsRespectful and humble forms already in use
- Around the tenth centuryListener-oriented polite forms develop
Evidence from the eighth century
In a 2015 historical overview, linguist Yoshida Nagahiro (吉田永弘) notes that respectful and humble forms already occur in substantial eighth-century written records. These texts show that the forms were in use by then.
More attention to the listener
Yoshida describes listener-oriented polite forms developing from humble forms around the tenth century, with attention to the hearer growing over time. His overview traces an increasing role for the relationship between speaker and listener alongside respect toward a person mentioned.
06
Medieval forms of polite address
- HeianHaberi; sōrō
- KamakuraSōrō strengthens its polite function
- MuromachiGozaaru; ojaru; marasu
From Heian to Muromachi Japanese
Historical accounts trace polite expressions such as haberi (侍り) and sōrō (候ふ) in Heian Japanese. 候ふ gained a stronger polite function during the Kamakura period. Muromachi records include forms such as gozaaru (ござある), ojaru (おぢゃる) and marasu (まらす).
07
Edo and Meiji changes
- Polite endingsEdo: -masu and desu develop
- Humble patternsEdo–Meiji: o–mōsu / o–itasu / o–suru
- Acting for someoneEarly Taishō–early Shōwa: making or carrying
Familiar polite endings take shape
Early Edo polite speech included gozaru (ござる), gozarimasu (ござります) and -masu (ます). By late Edo, desu (です) appeared in uses approaching its modern polite function.
Changing ways to describe one’s own actions
Research on humble expressions traces o–mōsu to early Edo and o–itasu to late Edo. The o–suru pattern developed around 1897 and became established by the end of Meiji in 1912, as use of o–mōsu declined.
Making or carrying something for someone
From early Taishō into early Shōwa, o–suru spread to indirect actions, including o-tsukuri-suru and o-mochi-suru: making or carrying something for another person. Respect could be directed toward that person through the action done on their behalf.
08
Postwar recommendations: 1952
- 1952Simpler usage and mutual respect
- 2000A broader view of respectful expression
- 2007Five categories explain existing usage
Mutual respect and simpler usage
The National Language Council’s 1952 recommendation advocated simpler honorific usage grounded in mutual respect for individuals. Against the background of inherited status hierarchies, it proposed a direction for language practice in postwar society.
09
A broader account of regard: 2000
Beyond grammatical categories
A 2000 report discussed keii-hyōgen, expressions of regard for a person and situation. This included ways of communicating consideration beyond the grammatical forms classed as keigo. The distinction allowed respectful communication to be considered more broadly than a choice of honorific verb.
10
The five-category guide: 2007
Explaining existing forms
The 2007 official guide developed principles of mutual respect and self-expression and explained the five categories used above. Its framework offered a more detailed analysis of forms already in use.
Use forms for a reason
The guide explains sasete-itadaku in relation to receiving permission and a perceived benefit. A person asking a book’s owner for permission to photocopy it for their own use might say: この本をコピーさせていただけますか。 “May I photocopy this book?” The request makes both the permission and the benefit explicit.
11
Changing expectations in everyday relationships
- 1953Okazaki survey
- 1972Repeat survey
- 2008Later attitudes toward family honorifics
A local survey across three generations
National Institute for Japanese Language and Linguistics surveys in Okazaki in 1953, 1972 and 2008 found declining support for using honorifics toward older family members. This finding concerns local attitudes about appropriate speech.
12
How usage varies and how to learn it
Standard Japanese is one system
Some regional varieties express politeness through sentence-final particles rather than a direct counterpart of -masu. A speaker using local grammar should therefore not be judged only by standard-language verb endings.
A familiar kind of politeness
Linguist Momoko Nakamura describes sō-ssu as “familiar politeness”: -ssu keeps an element of polite desu while reducing distance. Her 2024 explanation discusses its movement from young men’s speech to wider gender and media uses. This is a contextual style, rather than a substitute for formal language in every setting.
Why one rule cannot explain every situation
Politeness research offers different explanatory angles. One concerns protecting a person’s public image and freedom from imposition; another concerns building solidarity. Sachiko Ide’s “discernment” emphasizes recognizing the forms expected in a relationship and situation, alongside choices intended to influence it. These ideas explain why a familiar plain form, a respectful verb and a considerate request do different jobs.
Rules, attitudes and actual speech
Keigo can signal respect, formality or distance. Researchers therefore examine who is speaking to whom, what they are doing and how listeners receive it, alongside grammatical categories. The Okazaki surveys and studies of double honorifics distinguish reported attitudes from actual frequency; neither a guide nor one local survey describes every speaker.
Start with people, then choose the form
For a learning example, identify the speaker, listener, person acting and person receiving the action. Then choose the expression and check a complete sentence in its situation. The Agency for Cultural Affairs teaches through this sort of contrasting example. Digital dictionaries and writing aids can suggest forms; the surrounding relationship still needs to be checked.
The study of keigo has a history too
João Rodrigues, a Jesuit missionary and writer of Japanese grammars, discussed honorific usage in his 1604–1608 grammar. Japanese linguist Yoshio Yamada (山田孝雄) published Keigohō no kenkyū, a study of honorific usage, in 1924. Later policy guides, repeated surveys and studies of conversation examine different aspects of the system: prescribed forms, changing habits and the relationships created in interaction.
A recent writing aid
In its 2025 account, LINE Yahoo describes AI Talk Suggest converting draft messages into keigo and other styles. This is one company’s response to the difficulty of choosing wording in messages. Its suggested sentence still needs to fit the speaker, recipient and purpose; the product report does not establish that every output is appropriate.
Check your understanding
How can a sentence be polite to its listener and respectful toward someone else?
A sentence can use -masu for politeness toward its listener and a respectful verb such as irassharu for the teacher whose action it describes. The two people need not be the same.
What is the difference between sonkeigo and kenjōgo I?
Sonkeigo respects the person acting or having a state. Kenjōgo I respectfully describes the speaker’s side in relation to the person toward whom the action is directed, as with a visit expressed by ukagau.
Why can the same colleague be referred to differently when speaking to a customer?
The colleague belongs to the speaker’s company side when addressing a customer. The relationship between speaker, colleague and listener differs from an internal company conversation.
What do the eighth-century records establish, and what do the 1952 and 2007 documents establish?
The early records establish that respectful and humble forms were already in use. The 1952 document recommends mutual respect and simpler usage; the 2007 guide explains a five-category framework for existing forms.
Which polite and humble forms developed between the medieval and Meiji periods?
Medieval polite forms included haberi, sōrō, gozaaru, ojaru and marasu. Edo usage included -masu and later desu, while humble patterns developed through o–mōsu and o–itasu to o–suru, established by the end of Meiji.
How does the Okazaki survey differ from an official recommendation on usage?
The survey records local attitudes over time; an official recommendation proposes how people should speak. Neither is a direct measure of every speaker’s actual usage.
How does a connected honorific construction differ from duplication on one word?
A connected construction separately makes different parts respectful, as in o-yomi ni natte irassharu. Duplication repeats the same type on one word, as in o-yomi ni narareru, though some doubled expressions are established.
What changes between kudasaru and itadaku viewpoints?
Kudasaru presents the teacher as giving guidance, with ga marking the teacher as subject. Itadaku presents the speaker as receiving guidance, with ni identifying the teacher as its source. The event is the same; the viewpoint changes.
Why should dialect forms and -ssu be interpreted in their relationships?
Dialects may use other grammatical resources for politeness, while -ssu can combine regard with familiarity in particular relationships. Standard -masu alone cannot determine whether either is appropriate.
Sources and images
Object photographs and sources on techniques and language use are listed below.
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