くん Kun in Japanese means Mr., sort of
INDEX
How くん is used
Like other honorific words in Japanese such as さん, 君 can come after someone’s first or last name. In comparison to さん() though 君 has more restrictions on how and when to use it.
くん is used by people that know each other
君 is used only among people that know each other or are members of the same group. This would be people in the same organization, school, workplace, and so on.
https://japaneseuniverse.com/2024/02/18/pac-man-in-japaneseconcepts-behind-development-to-global-icon/くん is used for People with Junior Status
People with senior status in schools or at work will add くん to the name of people of junior status. So for example, teachers in a school would call the male students by their last-name and add 君 to it.
君 with Children and in School
For school aged youth, teachers call female students さん and male students くん. Male and female students also use these titles for each other.
If they are friends or want to be less formal they may not use any title. This is not 100% though. Some people even if they are really good friends may still say くん. That depends on the person and if the name sounds better with くん or not. くん may also be used as part of a nickname. So if a boy’s name was たける they may call him たっくん.
君 for Adults and at Work
Senior-level staff in companies may refer to junior level men or even women as くん. It is still more common though to use it for males.
Actually, though it is more common these days to call everyone さん. Since さん is the general and more common title to refer to people politely. It can in some situations be taken as an offense to be referred to as くん. So, there is a push to move to call everyone さん.
君 is still used though in schools and other circumstances so it won’t disappear completely.
