Abbess,
    Christian Orthodox       
Abbot,
    Christian Orthodox        
Accountant        
Acting Official       
Adjutant General     
Admiral         
Admiral, Texas Navy   
Adventist Minister       
Alderman         
Archbishop, Catholic        
Archbishop,
   Christian Orthodox        
Archdeacon, Episcopal        
Archimandrite        
Architect
Archpriest        
Ambassador to the U.S.
   from a foreign country      
Ambassador of the U.S.        
American Indian Chief        
Assemblyman
   U.S., State / or           
   Assemblywoman            
Associate Justice,
   U.S. Supreme Court          
Associate Justice of a
   State Supreme Court
Astronaut      
Attorney         
Attorney General           
Attorney General,
       Assistant   
Attorney, U.S.         
Australian Officials    

Baron, Baroness           
British Officials,
   Royalty, Nobility     
Brother, Catholic         
Brother,
   Christian Orthodox          
Bishop, Catholic            
Bishop,
   Christian Orthodox         
Bishop, Episcopal        
Board Member     
Boy        
Brigadier General       
Business Cards      

Canadian Officials    
Candidate    
Captain,
   USA, USAF, USMC     
Cardinal             
Chairman
    Federal Reserve      
Chairwoman      
Chancellor      
Chaplain in the
    Armed Services        
Chaplain of Congress          
Chargé d’Affaires         
Chief Executive Officer 
Chief Judge          
Chief Justice,
      U.S. Supreme Court 
Chief Justice, of a State
      Supreme Court             
Chief of Police          
Chief of Staff     
Chief Operating
   Officer          
Child            
Chiropractor     
City Manager    
Clergy & Religious
    Officials     
Club Official          
Colonel, Kentucky      
Colonel, USA, USAF,
    or USMC     
Commandant       
Commissioner, Court     
Commissioner         
Commodore of a         
      Yacht Club         
Congressman, U.S.               
Congresswoman, U.S.   
Consul and or
   Consul General    
Consultant      
Corporate Executive         
Councilman
    Councilwoman      
Counselor (Diplomat)      
Countess     
County Officials       
Couples     
Curator        

Dalai Lama          
Deacon         
Dean, academic            
Dean, clergy            
Deceased Persons        
Delegate, U.S., State            
Dentist             
Deputy Chief of Mission      
Deputy Marshal          
Designate, Elect,
    Pro Tempore      
Diplomats      
District Attorney           
Doctor, Chiropractor     
Doctor of Dentistry           
Doctor of Medicine              
Doctor, Military           
Doctor of
   Veterinary Medicine          
Doctor of Osteopathy            
Doctor, Other Disciplines     
Doctorate        
Doctorate, honorary      

Earl            
Elect, Designate
   Pro Tempore      
Emeritus/emerita      
Eminence     
Emperor    
Engineer    
Etiquette    
Excellency           

Family     
Fiancee      
Firefighter    
First, Second,
   Third, etc.        
First Lady, Spouse
   of the President of
   the United States 
First Lady, Member
    of Her   
    White House Staff      
First Lady, Spouse
   of a Governor
   or Lt. Gov.    
First Lieutenant   
Flag Protocol     
Former Officials    
Freeholder       

Gay Couple      
Geshe
General
    USA, USAF, USMC
Girl
Governor General         
Governor, Lieutenant 
Governor, Lt., Spouse   
Governor, Tribal Council          
Governor, U.S. State       
Governor, Former    
Governor
    Spouse of     
Governor's Staff,
    Member of      
Governors, Board of 

High Commissioner    
Honorable, The          
Honorary degrees    
Honourable, The       

Indian Chief         
Inspector General    
Interim Official   
Introductions       
Invitations  
   Writing &  
   Addressing  
Invitations
    Military:
    Writing &
    Addressing

Judge, former     
Judge of US City or
        US Count     
Judge, US Federal            
Junior, Senior,
    I, II, III, etc.       
Justice, Associate
     Federal
     Supreme Court
Justice, Associate
     State
     Supreme Court

King     
Knight      

Late, The
   (deceased persons)        
Lawyer      
Lesbian Couple    
Lieutenant      
Lieutenant Colonel,     
   USA, USAF, USMC          
Lieutenant General,
   USA, USAF, USMC      
Lieutenant Governor         

How to Write Name Badges
Questions & Answers, Frequently Asked Questions, and Blog

How To Write a Name Badge for an Academic?
        I'm working on name badges for speakers at our college's conference and I've never been sure how to include degrees on name badges. What is the correct order?
                Mark Johnson, BS, MA, PhD ?
                        or 
                Mark Johnson PhD, MA, BS?
        Do you list them all or just the highest?
                Heidi Miller PhD, MA, BA
                        or
                Heidi Miller, PhD
        -- LR

Dear LR:
        Degrees are listed highest to lowest when more than one is included.
       Regarding the decision to include degrees on name badges, I have a chapter in my book on names on name badges and place cards. Most often name badges are written to provide information to facilitate networking and conversation. They aren't biographies. Usually name badges provide the person's call-by name.
       In an academic environment where you might decide it's necessary to use "Dr." ... so you might also give everyone honorifics .. Mr./Ms./etc. ... to keep them consistent.:
                Mr. Robert Hickey
                Dr. Heidi Miller
        or provide some extra information:
                Mr. Robert Hickey
                The Protocol School of Washington
                Dr. Heidi Miller
                Department of Biology
        or even more:
                Mr. Robert Hickey
                Deputy Director
                The Protocol School of Washington
                Dr. Heidi Miller
                Professor
                Department of Biology
      -- Robert Hickey

How to Write Name Badge for an Official?
       Wondering what to put on a name badge for the Attorney General and a former attorney general. We usually do first name large, then first last underneath. Not sure what to do with these officials. Any help appreciated.
            -- Jenny

Dear Jenny:
    In my experience, it's rare that you can get high officials to even wear a name badge, so if you can do that ... congratulations.
    Usually protocol professional go for consistency, so if you are including jobs/affiliations ... then everyone should have their title or organization..
    If you decide to accept inconsistency -- because functionally you want first-name last-name ... and think the Attorney General needs to be identified -- you might write a non-official's name badge as:
                   Mary
                  Jones
    And a current official ... in this case the current attorney generals badge as:
            Attorney General    
                  Henry
                  Smith
    Former attorney generals continue to be in writing as The Honorable ... (see my page on attorney generals) but other than that .... they don't get any special form of address
    They go back to whatever they were before they were attorney general, but are of course identified as a former attorney general when appropriate.
              -- Robert Hickey

How To Write a Name Tag for an "Honorable"?
      I see in your book that in writing I should use use“The Honorable” but how do you the name of someone with that designation on a name tag for an event?
          -- LMP, Jacksonville, Florida

Dear LMP:
     There are many ways to do name tags for officials ... and the style that is best depends on the circumstances the name tag will be used and the preference of the host/principal of the event. The name tag is not a form of address: it is a functional item to encourage interaction.
    Here is some of what I wrote in my chapter on Name Badges & Place Cards:
    1) Write what the person reading the name tag should call the official wearing the tag:
        Senator James Wilson
        Mayor Alice Smith
    2) Provide some additional information to what the person reading the name tag should call the official wearing the tag. This is useful if there are many holders of the same office in the room:
        Senator James Wilson
              (D) Kansas
        Mayor Alice Smith
              Frostburg, PA
    3) Or provide more information -- and use The Honorable on the tag. This is useful when there is a mix of elected, appointed, and military in the room. Of course this requires those reading the tag to understand what to call the person in conversation:
        The Honorable James Wilson
              Senator of Kansas
        The Honorable Alice Smith
              Mayor, Frostburg, PA
   That said, even if you make the name tags, often very high officials won't wear them!
          -- Robert Hickey 

How to Write a Name Badge for a Justice and a Judge?
Mr. Hickey,
       When preparing name badges how do you distinguish between Supreme Court Justices and County Judges; is using Honorable for both correct?  Should I use the conversation forms you list in your book?
     -- Marianne Wood

Dear Ms. Wood,
    On a name badge, one way to do it is write what one should call the person wearing the badge.
         A name badge for a justice of a Supreme Court of a state would be Justice (name).
         A county judge would be Judge (name).
    For where I’ve note (name) above, use either (full name) or (surname) to match the style of all the other name badges you are writing.
     -- Robert Hickey

How to Address Someone In Writing When They Only Have Their First Name on Their Name Badge?
      How should one address a note of thanks for services rendered by a medical professional, such as a person ranked MD, RN, or CNA, whose name badge gives only the person's first name and surname initial? I ask because my mother, who is elderly and as of today is receiving hospice care, recently spent several grueling weeks in a local hospital, and has asked that I express her gratitude to the medical personnel who attended her with outstanding kindness and compassion.
     I know her main physicians' surnames, but most of the medical team revealed only their first names and last name initials, such as Beth M., RN or Bob M., CNA on their name badges. This reminds me of elementary school, when we children were required to head our papers with only our given names and surname initials. That was appropriate for young children with emerging manual dexterity in a small classroom, but I do not understand how it makes sense in a professional setting, unless the personnel involved fear legal retribution, such as malpractice suits, and thus wish to hide their true identities.
     Please advise me on how to address these semi-anonymous professionals, who hold their patients' lives in their hands but will not reveal their full identifies.
     -- Taylor Stuart

Dear Taylor Stuart:
     All you can do is to follow the lead of the individual ... and address it to the name you have:
        Beth M., RN
        Surgical Recovery Unit
        Wilson County Hospital
        4455 Smith Road
        City, State, ZIP

        Dear Beth,

     But to get a more thoughtful answer, I asked an expert on etiquette and professional polish in the medical arena -- Karen Hickman of Professional Courtesy, LLC -- (Karen is a graduate of The Protocol School of Washington®) for her take on it:
    I agree with your response, but would like to add a couple more points. The primary reasons medical personnel list first names only is for security reasons, but also because nurses are authorized to phone in prescriptions for physicians and there is less chance for a clever patient to call in medications using the nurses full name.
    Also, if the patient has an established relationship with the facility there is a chance that a manager or supervisor would share last names.
    Speaking from personal experience, from my nursing days, cards and notes of gratitude are always so appreciated from care givers. Any gifts, like candy or other food items should be sent to the team since ethically, nurses and physicians are discouraged from accepting personal gifts.
    Karen: I learned something from you today (no surprise!). Thank you!
                 -- Robert Hickey