Guide to Japanese Name-Enders: How to Use San, Senpai, Kouhai, Chan, & Kun

If you have ever watched Anime or Japanese Dramas you may have noticed that everyone is always saying these strange words after a name. Maybe you were thinking that tons of people have the name “Senpai?” Nope. Actually, in Japanese culture there is a high importance set on hierarchically placement and respect. These ‘name-enders,’ as I will be referring to them as, are indications of a person’s age and skill level, and they also are used out of respect. To just say someone’s name plain without anything on the end is actually rude, and would be considered lowering that person (exception: extremely close friends will sometimes not add anything, but most of the time still will); adding an appropriate ending is respectful. In fact, the only time not adding one is necessary is when you are introducing yourself.   “わたし は カエラ です” (Watashi wa Kayla des). In the Japanese culture the focus is always on humbling yourself and raising up others. That aside let’s jump into the name-enders! I will be going over six, which are the most common: San, Senpai, Kouhai, Chan, and Kun.

San (さん):

San is a staple; if you can only remember one – remember San! San is neutral and polite, if you aren’t sure of their age, you have just met, can’t tell their gender, don’t think any other addition fits, or all of the above, address them as “____-San.” To make this more formal for a boss, boy/girlfriend’s parents, etc., you would say “____-Sama.” If you are addressing boy or girl teacher/doctor it would be “____-Sensei.”

Senpai (せんぱい):

Senpai is a gender-neutral term attached to a person who is either above your grade in school, or a workmate who will be working above you/ been at the company longer than you. We will use the name John for an example. John is a 3rd year college student and you are a 2nd year college student. How would you address him? John-Senpai. Now, let’s say you have been working part time at your job for the past 2 years. John gets hired at your workplace, and today is his first day. As you are training him, he will then actually address you as Senpai, and he will become Kouhai (explained next section). So as you can see, work experience and position comes before actual age. Senpai may also be used towards someone with a greater skill level than you in a particular field. For example, if your friend is an architect major and you recently switched to it, even if you are the same age/grade, you would call her/him Senpai.

Note: As you get to know your Senpai it can also be used on its own, and can be considered a term of endearment. “Senpai - will you help me with my project!?" Also, if you become close with your Senpai they may allow you to use different terms that show more of a closeness. However, even after graduation, some people will still address their older peers as Senpai even as time goes on.

Kouhai (こうはい):

Kouhai is basically just the opposite of Senpai. It’s a gender-neutral term for someone that’s lower in grade level, skill level, or career experience than you. Kouhai isn’t as commonly used as Senpai because it is more formal, while Senpai can be both formal and casual; often you will notice the Senpai calling the Kouhai by their name with San or Chan after it. This may also be that the new generation in Japan is more lax on the particulars of traditional social rules (as is the case with most cultures). Senpai and Kouhai kind of reminds me of “Biggs” and “Littles” in American Sorority Life, so you can think of it like that if you’re familiar with Sorority terminology!

Chan (ちゃん):

Chan is commonly used amongst friends, peers of the same age, Senpai to Kouhai, and towards little kids. It is most of the time gender-specific, referring to mostly females, but with younger teens and adults, when you are close to each other, males can be called chan. There’s really not a particular reason for this. It could be considered more endearing, fit someone’s personality better, or just sound cuter/better with certain names. If you’re just learning this, you can keep it to chan for girls and kun for boys, for simplicities sake; just keep in mind that it isn’t the end-all be-all and it will be used in reverse at times for whatever reason.

Kun (くん):

Kun is used for boys mostly either among peers, from senior to junior, or for male children. Teachers will call their students –kun, an older sibling would call their younger brother –kun, and male friends would do the same. Another little exception for this is that a girlfriend who is younger than her boyfriend, could still call him –kun out of affection. In very rare cases, girls who are tom-boyish or “gangsta” might call other female friends by Kun. Just in case you hear it and wonder, that’s what’s going on.

Well there you have it! I hope this little guide was useful. If you enjoyed this post, you can subscribe at the top right corner by typing in your email. Feel free to comment any other less common name-enders and their meanings below!