Sir

Sir is an honorific address used as a courtesy title to address a man without using his given name or family name in many English speaking cultures. It is often used in formal correspondence (Dear Sir, Right Reverend Sir).

The term is often reserved for use only towards one of superior rank or status, such as an educator, or as a form of address from a merchant to a customer.

Equivalent terms of address are "ma'am" or "madam" in most cases, or in the case of a very young woman, girl, or unmarried woman who prefers to be addressed as such, "miss". Also, in Australia and Britain, female high school teachers are often addressed as "miss" even if they are married. The equivalent term for a knighted woman is Dame, or "Lady" for the wife of a knight.



Contents
[hide]  *1 Origin  ==Origin[ edit] == Sir derives from the Middle French honorific title sire (messire gave rise to mylord), from the Old French sieur[contradictory]  (itself a contraction of Seigneur meaning 'lord'), from the Latin adjectivesenior (elder), which yielded titles of respect in many European languages. The form sir is first documented in English in 1297, as title of honor of a knight or baronet, being a variant of sire, which was already used in English since at least c.1205 as a title placed before a name and denoting knighthood, and to address the (male) Sovereign since c.1225, with additional general senses of "father, male parent" is from c.1250 and "important elderly man" from 1362. ==Formal styling[ edit] ==
 * 2 Formal styling
 * 2.1 Current honours
 * 2.1.1 United Kingdom and Commonwealth
 * 2.1.2 Antigua and Barbuda
 * 2.1.3 Australia
 * 2.1.4 Barbados
 * 2.1.5 New Zealand
 * 2.2 Dormant honours
 * 2.2.1 Kingdom of Ireland
 * 2.2.2 British Raj
 * 2.3 Combinations with other titles and styles
 * 3 Use in disciplined services
 * 4 See also
 * 5 References
 * 6 External links

In formal protocol Sir is the correct styling for a knight or a baronet (the United Kingdom nobiliary rank just below all peers of the realm), used with (one of) the knight's given name(s) or full name, but not with the surname alone ("Sir James Paul McCartney", "Sir Paul McCartney", or "Sir Paul", but never "Sir McCartney"). The equivalent for a woman is Dame, that is, for one who holds the title in her own right; for such women, the title "Dame" is used as "Sir" for a man, that is, never before the surname on its own. This usage was devised in 1917, derived from the practice, up to the 17th century (and still also in legal proceedings), for the wife of a knight. The wife of a knight or baronet, however, is currently styled "Lady [Surname]" (e.g. "Lady McCartney", but never "Lady Linda McCartney," which is reserved for the daughter of a duke, marquess or earl, or now more recently, for a female member of the Order of the Garter and the Order of the Thistle who possesses no higher title).

In the UK and in certain Commonwealth realms (i.e., independent nations that share the British sovereign as their respective heads of state), the following honours (including the three dormant ones) permit male subjects of those realms to use the prefix Sir: ===Current honours<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === ====United Kingdom and Commonwealth<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] ==== ====Antigua and Barbuda<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] ==== ====Australia<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] ==== ====Barbados<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] ==== ====New Zealand<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] ==== ===Dormant honours<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">The following currently dormant honours once permitted male subjects of the UK and Commonwealth realms to use the prefix Sir: ====Kingdom of Ireland<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] ==== <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">Established in 1783 and primarily awarded to men associated with the Kingdom of Ireland. Regular creation of new knights of the order ended in 1921 upon the formation of the Irish Free State. With the death of the last knight in 1974, the Order became dormant. ====British Raj<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] ==== <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">As part of the consolidation of the British Raj, the Order of the Star of India was established in 1861 to reward prominent British and Indian civil servants, military officers and prominent Indians associated with the Empire. The Order of the Indian Empire was established in 1878 as a junior-level order to accompany the Order of the Star of India. The last creations of knights of either order were made on 15 August 1947 upon Indian independence.
 * Baronet (Bt.; not conferred since 1990)
 * Knight of the Order of the Garter (KG)
 * Knight of the Order of the Thistle (KT)
 * Knight Commander or Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (KCB/GCB)
 * Knight Commander or Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG/GCMG)
 * Knight Commander or Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (KCVO/GCVO)
 * Knight Commander or Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (KBE/GBE)
 * Knight Bachelor (Kt.)
 * Knight of the Order of the National Hero (KNH)
 * Knight Commander, Knight Grand Cross, or Knight Grand Collar of the Order of the Nation (KCN/KGCN/KGN)
 * Knight of the Order of Australia (AK; for male Australian subjects only; discontinued 1986-2014, reintroduced in 2014)
 * Knight of St. Andrew of the Order of Barbados (KA)
 * Knight Companion or Knight Grand Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (KNZM/GNZM)
 * Knight of the Order of St. Patrick (KP)
 * Knight Commander or Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India (KCSI/GCSI)
 * Knight Commander or Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire (KCIE/GCIE)

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">All British honours and their accompanying styles were officially made obsolete in India when the Dominion of India became a modern Commonwealth republic in 1950, followed by Pakistan in 1956. The Order of the Star of India became dormant in the Commonwealth realms from February 2009, and the Order of the Indian Empire after August 2010, when the last knights of the orders died. ===Combinations with other titles and styles<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">In the case of a military officer who is also a knight, the appropriate form of address puts the professional military rank first, then the correct manner of address for the individual, then his name. Examples include:

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">This is also the case with academic titles such as professor:
 * Admiral of the Fleet Sir Bruce Fraser, GCB, KBE (after 1941)<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-size:10.9090909957886px;">[1]
 * Field Marshal Sir Thomas Blamey, GBE, KCB, CMG, DSO, ED (after 1941)<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-2" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-size:10.9090909957886px;">[2]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">However, the title Doctor is not used in combination with Sir: the knighthood takes precedence, and knighted doctors are addressed as knights, though they may still use any postnominal letters associated with their degrees.
 * Professor Sir Patrick Bateson, FRS

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">With regard to British knighthood, a person who is not a citizen of a Commonwealth realm who receives an honorary knighthood is entitled to use any postnominal letters associated with the knighthood, but not the title "Sir". A similar convention applies to Church of England clergy who receive knighthoods, for example:

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">Clergy of other denominations may use different conventions.
 * The Reverend Dr John Polkinghorne, KBE, FRS

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">Dual nationals holding a Commonwealth citizenship that recognise the British monarch as head of state are entitled to use the styling. Common usage varies from country to country: for instance, dual Bahamian-American citizen Sidney Poitier, knighted in 1974, is often styled "Sir Sidney Poitier", particularly in connection with his official ambassadorial duties, although he himself rarely employs the title.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">Especially in North America, the style "Sir" is frequently employed by Knights of the Order of Malta - from which the Venerable Order of Saint John emerged<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-3" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-size:10.9090909957886px;">[3]  - and also the Knights of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre (female members of these orders are styled as Dame or Lady). ==Use in disciplined services<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">The common use of Sir instead of the rank specific address for a senior officer in a military, police or other hierarchical organisation is rather specific to English and, in some instances, French (Canada).

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">In most languages, no such general address is considered respectful,<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="line-height:1;font-size:10.9090909957886px;white-space:nowrap;">[citation needed]  or the two are combined, as in German Herr followed by the rank.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">It is common in British tabloid newspaper slang as a shorthand for 'schoolteacher': Sir's sex shame.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="line-height:1;font-size:10.9090909957886px;white-space:nowrap;">[citation needed]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">When addressing a male superior (e.g. Officer or Warrant Officer, but not usually a non-commissioned officer, in the military), "sir" is used as a short form of address.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">Despite its use in many fictional works, this is not a term used for female superiors, who are addressed as "ma'am". However, recruits of the United States Marine Corps and United States Coast Guard address both male commissioned and non-commissioned officers as "sir" in basic training, especially drill instructors (USMC) and company commanders (USCG). Enlisted members of the United States Military always address Commissioned Officers as "sir". During training "sir" is implied and will be replaced by the rank and grade of those addressed after initial indoctrination.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="line-height:1;font-size:10.9090909957886px;white-space:nowrap;">[citation needed]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">In the United States Air Force, "sir" is appropriate only for addressing commissioned officers. Use of "sir" with enlisted is inappropriate, all individuals may be addressed as "airman" regardless of rank, although referring to enlisted by their rank or general "tier" terms(airman, sergeant or chief) are also accepted per Air Force Instruction 36-2618, chapter 3.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="line-height:1;font-size:10.9090909957886px;white-space:nowrap;">[citation needed]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">In both the United States Army and British Armed Forces, addressing an NCO as "Sir" is incorrect. In the British Army, however, an NCO is referred to as "sir" when he is on parade if an officer is present, as the NCO is deemed to be acting under the officer's authority.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="line-height:1;font-size:10.9090909957886px;white-space:nowrap;">[citation needed]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">In the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, only commissioned officers are addressed as "sir"; NCOs and constables are addressed by their rank.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="line-height:1;font-size:10.9090909957886px;white-space:nowrap;">[citation needed]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:20.3636360168457px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13.63636302948px;">Male British police officers of the rank of Inspector or above are addressed as "Sir" (women of inspecting rank are called Ma'am).<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="line-height:1;font-size:10.9090909957886px;white-space:nowrap;">[citation nee