Inspired by a map I just saw in /r/europe, I’m curious to find out which other languages except for Greek allow the use of titles like Mr and Ms with a first name only (e.g. Mr John, Ms Jane — which in the English I was taught is absolutely forbidden) as a way to address someone.
If you have it, is it only allowed in some contexts (e.g. only in primary school) or is it allowed in most or all contexts?
In Cypriot Greek, you can go pretty far with it. Using the surname with Mr/Ms becomes only stylistically necessary in ceremonial uses, e.g. giving a public speech. I know that to a large extend that’s also done in Greece Greek, but I can’t tell if it goes as far.
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It’s not forbidden in English, but it would sound like you were working as a butler in the 1820s addressing the lady of the manor. It’s just an extremely archaic mode of address and carries heavily servile connotations for the person saying it.
Allowed in Polish – this is in the middle between being formal and informal.
Not used at all for all (neither first name or last name) practical pueposes today.
It’s not common but it’s not completely unheard of. It seems quite childish because sometimes children know their older neighbours or parents’ and grandparents’ friends this way – I knew some of our neighbours as Miss Alice and Miss June when I was little. Teachers of very young children, or staff in nurseries are sometimes called things like this. Adults would only use this form of address if they’d known an older person by a name like this since childhood.
No problem using herr/fru with first names, but we don’t really use titles that much since the “you reform” in the 1960s.
In Swedish wikipedia there seems to be about an even split of pages with title + first and title + last name.
* https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:PrefixIndex?prefix=Herr&namespace=0
* https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:PrefixIndex?prefix=Fru&namespace=0
You would use Mr / ms only with a title or rank. Like president or colonel. Not with surname and absolutely not with first name. That would sound condescending af.
I’ve only ever heard it as a joke, like from an elderly relative to me when I was little. 100-150 years ago it was somewhat commonplace, when the language was not yet standardized.
In Portuguese it’s very common. There isn’t that much difference in formality between using the first name or the last name, and it’s usually down to personal preference or just whichever name a specific social circle ends up using for a specific person. And for women, it usually even sounds odd to use just the last name, even with a title.
Edit: First name and no title but formal pronouns is also quite common. It’s sort of halfway between formal and informal.
We have two ways to say Mr/Mrs.
Senyor/senyora only works with the last name.
*Senyor Biden, senyora Harris*
En/na/n’ needs the first name, but you can follow with the last.
*En Joe, na Kamala, n’Emmanuel*
*En Joe Biden, na Kamala Harris, n’Emmanuel Macron*
We use Zoti/Zonja + last name for formal occasions and teta/xhaxhi + first name for informal ones, though it gets a bit more complicated that that: it’s frowned upon to use teta/xhaxhi as an adult, as it makes you sound immature, so Zoti/Zonja + first name makes up for this as a third status between formal and informal*. Otherwise it’s first name basis in general with people you know/work/etc.
*That said, there are some cases where teta/xhaxhi used by adults is seen as an endearing nickname, not unlike calling someone not related to you uncle/auntie in English.