Honorific prefix
The term
Don
(
Spanish:
[don]
, roughly '
Lord
')
[a]
abbreviated as
D.
, is an
honorific
prefix
primarily used in
Spain
and
Hispanic America
, and with different connotations also in
Italy
,
Portugal
and its former colonies, and formerly in
the Philippines
.
Don
is derived from the Latin
dominus
: a master of a household, a title with background from the
Roman Republic
in
classical antiquity
. With the abbreviated form having emerged as such in the
Middle Ages
, traditionally it is reserved for
Catholic clergy
and
nobles
, in addition to certain educational authorities and persons of distinction.
Dom
is the variant used in Portuguese.
In Spanish, although originally a title reserved for royalty, select nobles, and church hierarchs, it is now often used as a mark of esteem for a person of personal, social or official distinction, such as a community leader of long-standing, a person of significant wealth, or a
noble
, but may also be used
ironically
. As a
style
, rather than a
title
or
rank
, it is used with, rather than in place of, a person's name.
The feminine equivalents are
Dona
(
Spanish:
[?do?a]
),
Donna
(
Italian:
[?d?nna]
),
Doamn?
(Romanian) and
Dona
(
Portuguese:
[?don?]
) abbreviated 'D.ª', 'Da.', or simply 'D.' It is a common honorific reserved for women, especially mature women. In Portuguese
Dona
tends to be less restricted in use to women than
Dom
is to men.
[1]
Today in the Spanish language,
Dona
is used to respectfully refer to a mature woman. In present-day Hispanic America, the title
Don
or
Dona
is sometimes used in honorific form when addressing a senior citizen. In some countries, Don or Dona may be used as a generic honorific, similar to Sir and Madam in the United States.
Syntactically
, in Spanish,
don
and
dona
are used in a way similar to "mister" (
senor
) and "missus" (
senora
), but convey a higher degree of reverence, although not necessarily as high as knightly or noble titles such as
lord
and
dame
. Unlike
The Honourable
in English (but like the English
Sir
for a
knight
or
baronet
),
Don
may be used when speaking directly to a person, and unlike
mister
it must be used with a given name. For example, "Don Diego de la Vega" or simply "Don Diego" (the secret identity of
Zorro
) are typical forms. But a form using the last name (e.g. "Don de la Vega") is not considered correct and rarely would be used by
Spanish
speakers ("senor de la Vega" would be used instead).
Spanish-speaking countries and territories
[
edit
]
Historically,
don
was used to address members of the nobility, e.g.
hidalgos
, as well as members of the
secular clergy
. The treatment gradually came to be reserved for persons of the
blood royal
, and those of such acknowledged high or ancient aristocratic birth as to be noble
de Juro e Herdade
, that is, "by right and heredity" rather than by the king's grace. However, there were rare exemptions to the rule, such as the
mulatto
Miguel Enriquez
who received the distinction from
Philip V
due to his
privateering
work in the
Caribbean
. By the twentieth century it was no longer restricted in use to even the upper classes, since persons of means or education (at least of a "bachiller" level), came to be so addressed as regardless of background. It is now often used as a more formal version of
Senor
, a term which itself was also once used to address someone with the quality of nobility (not necessarily holding a nobiliary title). This was, for example, the case of military leaders addressing Spanish troops as "senores soldados" (gentlemen-soldiers).
Don would roughly translate to "mister" or "esquire".
[2]
[3]
Spain
[
edit
]
During the reign of King
Juan Carlos of Spain
from 1975 until his abdication as monarch on 19 June 2014, he was titled
Su Majestad [S. M.] el Rey Juan Carlos
(His Majesty King Juan Carlos). Following the abdication, Juan Carlos and his wife are titled, according to the Royal Household website,
S. M. el Rey Don Juan Carlos
(H.M. King Juan Carlos) and
S. M. la Reina Dona Sofia
(H.M. Queen Sofia)?the same as during his reign, with the honorific
Don
/
Dona
prefixed to the names. Juan Carlos' successor is
S. M. el Rey Felipe VI
.
[4]
Basque
[
edit
]
The Spanish usage is similar among Basque speakers in Spain using
don
[5]
and
dona
.
[6]
The honorific is sometimes adapted as
on
as in the priest and scholar
on
Joxemiel Barandiaran
(
Spanish
:
Don Jose Miguel Barandiaran
) or fictional knight
On Kixote
(
Don Quixote
).
[7]
[8]
Sephardi Jews
[
edit
]
The honorific was also used among
Ladino
-speaking
Sephardi Jews
, as part of the Spanish culture which they took with them after the
expulsion of the Jews from Spain
in 1492.
Hispanic America
[
edit
]
The honorific title
Don
was widely used in Crown documents throughout Hispanic America by those in
nobility
or landed gentry. It can be found in the many 'Padrones' and "Aguas y Tierras" records in Mexican archives. The honorific in modern times is also widely used throughout the Americas. This is the case of the Mexican New Age author
Don Miguel Angel Ruiz
,
[9]
the
Chilean
television personality
Don Francisco
,
[10]
and the
Puerto Rican
industrialist and politician
Don Luis Ferre
,
[11]
among many other figures. Although Puerto Rican politician
Pedro Albizu Campos
had a doctoral degree, he has been titled
Don
.
[12]
Likewise, Puerto Rican Governor
Luis Munoz Marin
has often been called Don Luis Munoz Marin instead of
Governor
Munoz Marin.
[13]
In the same manner,
Don
Miguel Angel Ruiz
is an
M.D.
[14]
Additionally the honorific is usually used with people of older age.
The same happens in other Hispanic American countries. For example, despite having a doctoral degree in
theology
, the
Paraguayan
dictator
Jose Gaspar Rodriguez de Francia
was usually styled as "Don". Likewise, despite being a respected military commander with the rank of
Brigade General
,
Argentine
Ruler
Juan Manuel de Rosas
was formally and informally styled "Don" as a more important title.
Prior to the American ownership of the Southwest, a number of Americans immigrated to
California
, where they often became Mexican citizens and changed their given names to Spanish equivalents, for example "
Juan Temple
" for Jonathan Temple.
[15]
It was common for them to assume the honorific "don" once they had attained a significant degree of distinction in the community.
Philippines
[
edit
]
In
Spanish colonial Philippines
, this honorific was reserved to the
nobility
, the prehispanic
datu
[16]
that became the
principalia
,
[17]
: 218
whose right to rule was recognised by
Philip II
on 11 June 1594.
[18]
: tit. VII, ley xvi
Similar to Latin America, the title
Don
is considered highly honoured,
[19]
more so than academic titles such as "Doctor", political titles such as "Governor", and even knights titled
"
Sir
".
Usage was retained during the
American period
, although traditional official positions of the
principalia
(e.g.,
gobernadorcillo
and
cabeza de barangay
) were replaced by American political positions such as the municipal president.
[20]
The practise slowly faded after
World War II
, as heirs of the
principalia
often did not inherit the title, and as civic leaders were chosen by popular election. Prior to 1954,
[21]
the appointment and tenure of mayors was at the pleasure of the
president of the Philippines
, pursuant to
Commonwealth Act
No. 158 amending Commonwealth Act No. 57., Section 8 of Commonwealth Act No. 158, as amended by Republic Act No. 276.
[22]
The
1987 Constitution
, meanwhile, explicitly prohibits recognition of titles of nobility, thus the terms
Don
and
Dona
are now
courtesy titles
with no requirements for their attainment other than common usage for socially prominent and rich persons.
Italy
[
edit
]
Officially,
Don
was the
honorific
title exclusively reserved for a member of a noble family such a
principe
, a
duca
, a
marchese
or a
conte
(and any legitimate, male-line descendant thereof). A
reigning
prince or duke would also be entitled to some form of the higher style of
Altezza
(eg
Sua Altezza Serenissima
,
Sua Altezza Reale
) in addition to the
Don.
This was how the style was used in the
Almanach de Gotha
for extant families in its third section focused on the 200 non sovereign princely and ducal families of Europe.
[
citation needed
]
The last official Italian nobility law (abrogated 1948) stated that the style belonged to members of the following groups:
Genealogical
databases and
dynastic
works still reserve the title for this class of noble by tradition, although it is no longer a right under Italian law.
In practice, however, the style Don/Donna (or Latin Dominus/Domina) was used more loosely in church, civil and notarial records. The honorific was often accorded to the untitled gentry (e.g., knights or younger sons of noblemen), priests, or other people of distinction. It was, over time, adopted by organized criminal societies in
Southern Italy
(including Naples, Sicily, and Calabria) to refer to members who held considerable sway within their hierarchies.
In modern Italy, the title is usually only given to
Roman Catholic
diocesan priests
(never to prelates, who bear higher honorifics such as
monsignore
,
eminenza
, and so on). In
Sardinia
, until recently it was commonly used for nobility (whether titled or not), but it is being presently used mainly when the speaker wants to show that he knows the
don
's condition of nobility.
Outside of the priesthood or old nobility, usage is still common in Southern Italy, mostly as an honorific form to address the elderly, but it is rarely, if ever, used in
Central Italy
or
Northern Italy
. It can be used satirically or ironically to lampoon a person's sense of self-importance.
[
citation needed
]
Don
is
prefixed
either to the full name or to the person's
given name
. The form "Don Lastname" for
crime bosses
(as in
Don Corleone
) is an American custom. In Southern Italy, mafia bosses are addressed as "Don Firstname" by other
mafiosi
and sometimes their victims as well, while the press usually refers to them as "Firstname Lastname", without the honorific.
Priests are the only ones to be referred as "Don" plus the last name (e.g. Don Marioni), although when talking directly to them they are usually addressed as "Don" plus the first name (e.g. Don Francesco), which is also the most common form used by parishioners when referring to their priest.
Portuguese-speaking countries and territories
[
edit
]
The usage of
Dom
was a prerogative of princes of royal blood and also of other individuals to whom it had been granted by the sovereign.
[24]
In most cases, the title was passed on through the male line. Strictly speaking, only females born of a nobleman bearing the title
Dom
would be addressed as
Dona
('D.ª'), but the style was not heritable through daughters. The few exceptions depended solely on the conditions upon which the title itself had been granted. A well-known exception is the descent of Dom
Vasco da Gama
.
There were many cases, both in Portugal and Brazil, in which the title of
Dom
(or
Dona
) was conceded to, and even bought by, people who were not from royalty. In any case, when the title was officially recognized by the proper authority, it became part of the name.
In Portugal and Brazil,
Dom
(
pronounced
[?do]
) is used for certain higher members
hierarchs
, such as
superiors
, of the
Roman Catholic
and
Eastern Orthodox
churches. In
Catholic religious orders
, such as the
Order of Saint Benedict
, it is also associated with the status of
Dom Frater
.
Dom
is similarly used as an honorific for Benedictine monks within the Benedictine Order throughout France and the English speaking world, such as the famous
Dom Perignon
. In France, it is also used within the male branch of the
Carthusian
Order.
It is also employed for
laymen
who belong to the royal and imperial families (for example the
House of Aviz
in Portugal and the
House of Braganza
in Portugal and Brazil).
[25]
It was also accorded to members of families of the titled
Portuguese nobility
.
[1]
Unless ennobling
letters patent
specifically authorised its use,
Dom
was not attributed to members of Portugal's untitled nobility: Since hereditary titles in Portugal descended according to
primogeniture
, the right to the
style
of
Dom
was the only apparent distinction between
cadets
of titled families and members of untitled noble families.
[1]
In the Portuguese language, the feminine form,
Dona
(or, more politely,
Senhora Dona
), has become common when referring to a woman who does not hold an academic title. It is commonly used to refer to
First Ladies
, although it is less common for female politicians.
Croatia
[
edit
]
Within the Catholic Church, the prefix
Don
is usually used for the
diocesan priests
with their first name, as well as
vele?asni
(
The Reverend
).
Religion
[
edit
]
Dom
is used as a title in English for certain
Benedictine
(including some communities which follow the
Rule of St. Benedict
) and
Carthusian
monks
, and for members of certain communities of
canons regular
. Examples include Benedictine monks of the
English Benedictine Congregation
(e.g.
Dom John Chapman
, late
Abbot of Downside
). Since the
Second Vatican Council
, the title can be given to any monk (
lay
or
ordained
) who has made a solemn
profession
. The equivalent title for a
nun
is "
Dame
" (e.g. Dame
Laurentia McLachlan
, late
Abbess of Stanbrook
, or Dame
Felicitas Corrigan
, author).
In popular culture
[
edit
]
In the
United States
,
Don
has also been made popular by films depicting the Italian
mafia
, such as
The Godfather
trilogy, where the
crime boss
is given by his associates the same signs of respect that were traditionally granted in Italy to nobility. However, the honorific followed by the last name (e.g. Don Corleone) would be used in Italy for priests only: the proper Italian respectful form is similar to the Spanish-language form in that it is applied only to the first name (e.g. "Don
Vito
"). This title has in turn been applied by the media to real-world mafia figures, such as the nickname "Teflon Don" for
John Gotti
.
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- Notes
- ^
Besides
Spanish:
[don]
, there is also:
Italian:
[d?n]
; Portuguese:
Dom
[do]
; Romanian:
Domn
[domn]; all from Latin
dominus
).
- Citations
- ^
a
b
c
Tourtchine, Jean-Fred (September 1987). "Le Royaume de Portugal ? Empire du Bresil".
Cercle d'Etudes des Dynasties Royales Europeennes (CEDRE)
.
III
: 103.
ISSN
0764-4426
.
- ^
"don ? Diccionario Ingles-Espanol WordReference.com"
.
www.wordreference.com
. Retrieved
10 December
2020
.
- ^
"Check out the translation for "don" on SpanishDict!"
.
SpanishDict
. Retrieved
10 December
2020
.
- ^
Website of Royal Household of Spain, La Familia Real, post-abdication
- ^
"don".
OEH - Bilaketa - OEH
(in Spanish)
. Retrieved
3 May
2023
.
- ^
"dona".
OEH - Bilaketa - OEH
(in Spanish)
. Retrieved
3 May
2023
.
- ^
Morris, Mikel (4 November 2003). "on".
Morris Student Plus
(in Basque). Kultura Saila - Hizkuntza Politikarako Sailburuordetza
. Retrieved
3 May
2023
.
On iz. (G) [ izenen aurrean ] Sir, Don; O~ Mikel Sir Michael
- ^
"don".
Diccionario Elhuyar
(in Basque). Elhuyar Fundazioa
. Retrieved
3 May
2023
.
jaun, On, don
- ^
"BookFinder.com"
. BookFinder.com
. Retrieved
23 May
2012
.
- ^
"Pan American Health Organization. Perspectives in Health Magazine: The Magazine of the Pan American Health Organization"
. Paho.org. 11 September 2001
. Retrieved
23 May
2012
.
- ^
"Statement by President George W. Bush on Don Luis Ferre. October 22, 2003. The White House. Washington, D.C"
. Georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov. 22 October 2003
. Retrieved
23 May
2012
.
- ^
"Columbia Center for New Media Teaching and Learning. Columbia University"
. Socialjustice.ccnmtl.columbia.edu. Archived from
the original
on 26 February 2012
. Retrieved
23 May
2012
.
- ^
Primera Hora (Electronic Edition of the El Nuevo Dia newspaper). Senate of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Senate Resolution 937. February 11, 2010.
Archived
11 June 2011 at the
Wayback Machine
- ^
"Vitality: Toronto's Monthly Wellness Journal"
. Vitalitymagazine.com. Archived from
the original
on 24 July 2010
. Retrieved
23 May
2012
.
- ^
"Rancho los Cerritos"
. Archived from
the original
on 18 September 2010
. Retrieved
6 September
2010
.
- ^
For more information about the social system of the Indigenous Philippine society before the Spanish colonization confer
Barangay
in
Enciclopedia Universal Ilustrada Europea-Americana
, Madrid: Espasa-Calpe, S. A., 1991, Vol. VII, p.624.
- ^
BLAIR, Emma Helen
&
ROBERTSON, James Alexander
, eds. (1906).
The Philippine Islands, 1493?1898
. Vol. 40 of 55 (1690?1691). Historical introduction and additional notes by
Edward Gaylord BOURNE
. Cleveland, Ohio:
Arthur H. Clark Company
.
ISBN
978-0559361821
.
OCLC
769945730
.
Explorations by early navigators, descriptions of the islands and their peoples, their history and records of the catholic missions, as related in contemporaneous books and manuscripts, showing the political, economic, commercial and religious conditions of those islands from their earliest relations with European nations to the close of the nineteenth century.
- ^
de Leon Pinelo, Antonio Rodriguez
&
de Solorzano Pereira, Juan
[in Spanish]
, eds. (1680).
Recopilacion de Leyes de los Reynos de las Indias
(in Spanish). Vol. Libro Sexto. Archived from
the original
(pdf)
on 27 May 2011
. Retrieved
8 November
2014
.
Titulos
:
i
De los Indios.
ii
De la libertad de los Indios.
iii
De las Reducciones, y Pueblos de Indios.
iv
De las caxas de censos, y bienes de Comunidad, y su administracion.
v
De los tributos, y tassas de los Indios.
vi
De los Protectores de Indios.
vii
De los Caciques.
viii
De los repastimientos, encomiendas, y pensiones de Indios, y calidades de los titulos.
ix
De los Encomenderos de Indios.
x
De el buen tratamiento de los Indios.
xi
De la sucession de encomiendas, entretenimientos, y ayudas de costa.
xii
Del servicio personal.
xiii
Del servicio en chacras, vinas, olivares, obrajes, ingenios, perlas, tambos, requas, carreterias, casas, ganados, y bogas.
xiv
Del servicio en coca, y anir.
xv
Del servicio en minas.
xvi
De los Indios de Chile.
xvii
De los Indios de Tucuman, Paraguay, y Rio de la Plata.
xviii
De los Sangleyes.
xix
De las confirmaciones de encomiendas, pensiones, rentas, y situaciones.
- ^
The use of the honorific addresses
"Don"
and
"Dona"
was strictly limited to what many documents during the colonial period would refer to as
"vecinas y vecinos distinguidos"
. An example of a document of the Spanish colonial government mentioning the
"vecinos distinguidos"
is the 1911 Report written by R. P. Fray Agapito Lope, O.S.A. (parish priest of Banate, Iloilo in 1893) on the state of the Parish of St. John the Baptist in this town in the Philippines. The second page identifies the "vecinos distinguidos" of the Banate during the last years of the Spanish rule. The original document is in the custody of the Monastery of the
Augustinian Province of the Most Holy Name of Jesus of the Philippines
in
Valladolid
,
Spain
.
Cf. Fray Agapito Lope 1911 Manuscript, p. 1.
Also cf. Fray Agapito Lope 1911 Manuscript, p. 2.
In these documents, Spanish Friars would place "D" (Don) before the name of a Filipino notable, and "Da" (Dona) before the name of a filipina notable.
- ^
When the Americans appointed local officials at the onset of their rule, like the Spaniards they also acknowledged the ruling class. In the list of the municipal leaders, American documents placed the traditional Spanish title of these local notables ? the title of "Don". Cf.
Annual report of the Philippine Commission / Bureau of Insular Affairs, War Department to the President of the United States
, Washington D.C.: 1901, Vol. I, p. 130.
[1]
- ^
Cf. Jennifer Franco,
Heyday of Casique Democracy (1954?1972)
in
Elections and Democratization in the Philippines
, 2001: New York,
Routledge
, Chapter 3.
- ^
Sample of an actual document, dated 25 July 1953, attesting that Mayors used to be appointed.
- ^
(in Italian)
Ordinamento dello stato nobiliare italiano
("Statute of Italian nobility condition")
approved by Royal Decree 651 dated 7 June 1943: art. 39. When opening the link, click on
Statuto e Elenco Nobiliare Sardo
on the left and then on the
Ordinamento
itself (second link).
- ^
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the
public domain
:
Chisholm, Hugh
, ed. (1911). "
Dominus
".
Encyclopædia Britannica
. Vol. 8 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 405.
- ^
Angus Stevenson, ed. (2007).
Shorter Oxford English Dictionary
. Vol. 1, A?M (Sixth ed.). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. p. 737.
ISBN
978-0-19-920687-2
.