Name Suffixes

Throughout the Uglies series, suffixes are used to show familiarity or respect between people.

Tally's City Nicknames

New Pretties in Tally's city use these suffixes only to address someone they are very familiar with. They are almost never used by middle or late Pretties, although Dr. Cable sarcastically adds the -wa suffix to Tally's name to make her feel like a bubblehead.

• -la: Used when people don't have any l's in their names.
  • Examples: Shay-la, Zane-la, Aya-la
• -wa: Used when people do have l's in their names.
  • Examples: Tally-wa, Billy-wa, Lily-wa

Note: New Pretties don't address Uglies this way, but uglies might address each other this way.

Yokohama Nicknames

• -chan: Used for close friends and siblings, especially if they're younger. Also used for beloved celebrities to create the illusion of intimacy.
  • Examples: Moggle-chan, Nana-chan, Ren-chan
• -sensei: Used for anyone among the top one thousand most famous citizens, as a form of high respect.
  • Examples: Hiro-sensei, Yoshio-sensei, Frizz-sensei
• -sama: Used for the most highly respected, meaning anyone world-famous.
  • Examples: Tally-sama, Shay-sama

Note: Adding -chan, -sensei, and -sama do not create nicknames, like in Tally's city. Such suffixes are popular in Japanese culture and are called honorifics.