personally, i like when people call me by my first name -- merely because of the fact that they don't know how to say my last name, and basically butcher the hell out of it.

:X

OT as to travel, but ... I appreciate this in a doctor. When a doctor addresses me by my first name (I'm 54), I address the doctor by first name in reply. This almost always gets the doctor to switch to honorifics. When it doesn't, I'm stuck with a practice I don't like, but at least it's symmetrical.

^ I don't mind at people calling me Mr. Key

I like it
 

I work for a huge corportation and the CEO and majority shareholder is a great guy and everyone calls him by his first name. If its good enough for him its good enough for me.

Cheers

That's lovely. But you have a RELATIONSHIP with this man. You are his employee. This is not (presumably) a one-off, which is what I believe most people are discussing here.

And that's particularly irritating if, for example, they call you Bob and you prefer Rob

Calling someone you've just met by their first name reminds me of the faux pas that can be made by referring to a French person you've just met "Tu" rather than "Vous" (or auf Deutsch, "Du" rather than "Sie").


It is considered impolite in those countries, and in French there actually is a term for this action: to "Tutoyer" someone (not sure if there's a similar term in German).

I moved from Maryland to northern Florida about 8 years ago and found that most kids would call my husband "Mr. Lance" and me "Miss Christine." I find this really rude and annoying. I grew up in Michigan and was always taught that adults were "Mr/Mrs/Ms <lastname>." I would never have dreamed of calling an adult by his/her first name unless they specifically instructed me to do so (my mom had one friend that insisted we call her by her first name).

As an adjunct college instructor, my students call me "professor" quite often, which I don't feel like I'm entitled to, since I'm not an asst. or assoc. professor (which is usually reserved for full-time faculty). I was hired as an instructor, and usually hold some sort of "rank" of "master adjunct" at the schools where I teach, since I've completed additional training and/or have been there a long time (they pay me more because of this). I usually tell my students to call me by my first name, and I call them by their's. Most of my students are older than me, since I mostly teach at community colleges and online schools where there are many working adults going back to school. (I'm 35).

The random phone calls can easily be stopped by signing up for the Do Not Call Registry -- that would seem to take care of most of the problems people around here have with people calling them by their first name. ;)

If I feel confident in pronouncing the last name correctly, I will use the last name. I never addressed someone by their first name.

When I check in children, I always refer to them as Miss or Mr with their last name. It is always a positive reaction by both the child and the parent/guardian :)

There is -- it's called "Duzen" -- although it's becoming more and more common there for people up to, say, their 30s to "Duz" each other even if they don't know each other, hence becoming more accepted and seen less as impolite. (Although if you "Duz"ed a stereotypical little old lady, she'd probably hit you over the head with her stereotypical umbrella!)

I find that dreadfully impolite but that's a whole different subject -- plus I haven't lived there for 20 years so my German is a bit antiquated anyway.

Danke Schon, Herr pedroQ. Sehr interessant.

PS - I just learned that there is a German version of Wikipedia!

My name is a little different and difficult to pronounce. From my point of view, if you don't know how to pronounce my first name, I would rather have you mangle my last name. Especially in business and service industries. I don't like the lack of formailty it implies when someone uses my first name.

Before I flames for being rude, uptight or thinking too much of myself, I am equally unconfortable using the other person's first name. I don't know them; I don't have the priveledge of adressing by first name.

Related to that, anyone who works in a service industry want to speak up... If you have a name badge, do you feel that implies consent for a customer use that name?

Lastly, cause my wife and I are arguing about this one...I grew up in a fairly strict house, and I had to call adults Mr/Mrs/Ms/Miss lastname or friends of my parents Aunt/Uncle Lastname. I didn't mind the M(s), I hated the aunt/uncle. Those people weren't related to me, and if I didn't want to call them that and give them that famaliarity, why did I have to? I want to give my son the choice between Mr lastname, and Uncle firstname (I gave up on the uncle lastname, you have to pick your battles). My wife wants our friends to be Aunt/Uncle. Am I off base?

Sorry for the long post with lots of questions :)

AJ

I first noticed what may have been "the very start" of this trend back in the late 1950's when my mother's friend's 8 year old son started calling my mother by her first name. This was the first time I had ever encountered that behavior. Everyone in my family and all my friends) who were not adults addressed all adults by Mr or Mrs Last Name unless they were related and then they were Aunt or Uncle First Name or Grandmother, Grandfather or Cousin First Name (and Last Name if the first name was shared by a number of cousins). We did not address people who were not our relatives by aunt or uncle or cousin.
I have however been in cultures where younger people address older people as "auntie" or "uncle" as a sign of respect. And "younger people here can mean any age- it is the differences in ages that is important.
I know that it really bothered my mum when she was addressed by her first name by this young child but she would not say anything to him for as she said "it is up to his mother, not me to correct him". So while we called the 8 year old's mother Mrs Lastname he continued calling my mum by her first name.
I am not pleased when strangers or young people I barely know address me by my first name. I find it rude. I do not correct them though as I do not want to make them feel uncomfortable. I assume that they intended to be "friendly" and "casual". However if I am given an opportunity to "set the tone" first then I will address them in the way I wish to be addressed.
If one cannot pronounce a surname then surely one can say simply "Sir" or Maam". Not being able to pronounce a surname is not an excuse for using a first name.
I think that it is unfortunate that in america we have become "so casual" that we forget that formality usually makes people more rather than less comfortable. One can always move easily and quickly from formal/proper to informal/casual/more intimate and when one is invited to be on a closer relational basis by being invited to use a person's first name ( and thus being "given the tu") then the invitation itself brings pleasure and closeness to the relationship. But to be asked to go from a first name basis to a last name (that is to "take away the tu") is in my estimation an unpleasant experience.