Japanese Business Honorifics Chart ("Kisha" / 貴社) by Organization Type
A reference table of Japanese honorific terms for addressing a company or organization in business emails — how to choose between 御社/貴社 and the correct term for hospitals, schools, government offices, and more.
| Organization type | Spoken form | Written form | Usage notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| General company (kaisha) | 御社（おんしゃ） | 貴社（きしゃ） | Use 御社 (onsha) when speaking (phone calls, meetings) and 貴社 (kisha) in writing (email, letters). This is by far the most common pair — default to it when unsure. |
| Corporation / organization in general (unclear type, NPOs, etc.) | 貴法人（きほうじん） | 貴法人（きほうじん） | Useful when you're unsure whether the recipient is a stock company, or when addressing a general incorporated association or NPO that doesn't fit "company." |
| Bank / credit union | 貴行（きこう） | 貴行（きこう） | Intended for organizations named "XX Bank" (ginkō). Traditionally not used for credit unions or cooperatives in the strictest sense. |
| Hospital / clinic | 貴院（きいん） | 貴院（きいん） | Applies broadly to any medical institution. |
| University / graduate school / vocational college | 貴学（きがく） | 貴学（きがく） | 貴校 (kikō) is not rude either, but 貴学 (kigaku) is considered more formal for higher-education institutions. |
| Elementary, junior high, or high school | 貴校（きこう） | 貴校（きこう） | For primary and secondary schools. Universities are better addressed with 貴学. |
| Government ministry ("XX-shō") | 貴省（きしょう） | 貴省（きしょう） | For national ministries whose name ends in "-shō" (省). |
| Government agency ("XX-chō") | 貴庁（きちょう） | 貴庁（きちょう） | For government agencies whose name ends in "-chō" (庁). |
| Prefecture / municipality (local government) | 貴自治体（きじちたい） | 貴自治体（きじちたい） | A generic term usable for any local government body — cities, towns, villages, or prefectures. |
| Shop / store | 貴店（きてん） | 貴店（きてん） | For retailers and restaurants whose name ends in "-ten" (店). |
| Law firm / accounting firm / tax office | 貴事務所（きじむしょ） | 貴事務所（きじむしょ） | For professional practices calling themselves a "jimusho" (事務所, office/firm). |
| Cooperative union | 貴組合（きくみあい） | 貴組合（きくみあい） | For agricultural or consumer cooperatives that identify as a "kumiai" (組合). |
| Association / academic society | 貴会（きかい） | 貴会（きかい） | For bodies named "XX Association" or "XX Society" that identify as a "kai" (会). |
| Broadcasting station (TV / radio) | 貴局（ききょく） | 貴局（ききょく） | For broadcasters identifying as a "kyoku" (局, station). |
| Library | 貴館（きかん） | 貴館（きかん） | For libraries. Sometimes extended informally to museums and galleries too. |
| Shinto shrine / Buddhist temple | 貴社／貴寺（きしゃ／きじ） | 貴社／貴寺（きしゃ／きじ） | Use 貴社 for shrines and 貴寺 for temples. Since 貴社 is identical to the term for a company, make sure the context is unambiguous. |
Usage tips
- The basic rule is 御社 when speaking (phone calls, video meetings) and 貴社 in writing (email, formal letters). Choosing the wrong register is a common mistake for learners of business Japanese.
- When you can't tell what kind of organization you're addressing, or aren't sure if it's a stock company, the generic 貴法人 or 貴団体 is a safe, polite fallback.
- 貴社 literally presumes a stock company (kabushiki-gaisha), so avoid it for government offices, schools, and hospitals — use the dedicated terms (貴省, 貴学, 貴院) instead.
- Using 貴社 for a Shinto shrine can be mistaken for addressing a company, since the term is identical — use 貴寺 for temples and keep shrine correspondence context clear.
- For mass emails sent to mixed recipients, decide in advance whether to use a generic term (貴社 / 御中) for everyone or customize the honorific per recipient.
Frequently asked questions
Side Note — Why 貴社 Sounds Awkward When Spoken Aloud
Honorific substitutes like 貴社 and 御社 belong to a category of respectful (sonkeigo) Japanese speech. The character 貴 itself carries the meaning "your, esteemed," and prefixing it to an organization name — 貴社, 貴校, 貴院 — lends a more formal tone than simply saying "your company." These forms show up constantly in business email and formal correspondence such as ceremonial greeting letters.
Why split 御社 and 貴社 between speech and writing at all? The commonly cited reason is that 貴社, when spoken aloud as "kisha," sounds identical to several unrelated homophones such as 汽車 (steam train) or 記者 (journalist). 御社, pronounced "onsha," is phonetically more distinctive and far less likely to be misheard over the phone or in an interview, which is why it became the go-to spoken form.
This practice of using a dedicated honorific word per organization type is a distinctly Japanese feature of business etiquette with little direct equivalent in English or most other languages, which simply combine a possessive with a generic noun ("your company"). The pattern reflects a broader characteristic of Japanese: hierarchy and the boundary between "inside" and "outside" (uchi/soto) are woven directly into word choice itself, not just tone.