Should titles of people be translated?

Question

Should titles of persons like (Mr., Herr, Sr...) be translated into English?

For example: Herr Albert or Mr. Albert ?

Barrie England · Accepted Answer · 2012-11-21 08:33:01Z

up vote 5 down vote accepted

There's really no should about it. This is entirely a matter of personal (or corporate) style, and context.

answered Nov 21 '12 at 8:33

Barrie England
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	"Context" - you took the word right out of my mouth! – J.R. Nov 21 '12 at 9:05
	@J.R. It is always relevant. – Barrie England Nov 21 '12 at 9:11
	I'm not so sure. There are legalities attached to some apparently innocuous issues when it comes to modes of address and labelling in general, and courts would argue that one should follow the legal guidelines rather than any in-house or personal policy. For instance, legal action was taken against a person writing Biro without the capital. There are possibly titles the dropping or substituting of which would be considered unlawful in certain countries, and international law sometimes overrules national law. – Edwin Ashworth Nov 21 '12 at 9:46
	@Edwin Ashworth: That's why I was careful to mention context. – Barrie England Nov 21 '12 at 9:49
	The demands of context may negate your opening statement. – Edwin Ashworth Nov 21 '12 at 10:01

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