Post-nominal letters, also called post-nominal initials, post-nominal titles, designatory letters or simply post-nominals, are letters placed after a person's name to indicate that the individual holds a position, an academic degree, accreditation, an office, a military decoration, or honour, or is a member of a religious institute or fraternity. An individual may use several different sets of post-nominal letters, but in some contexts it may be customary to limit the number of sets to one or just a few. The order in which post-nominals are listed after a name is based on rules of precedence and what is appropriate for a given situation. Post-nominal letters are one of the main types of name suffix. In contrast, pre-nominal letters precede the name rather than following it, such as addressing a physician or professor as "Dr. Smith".
List
Different awards and post-nominal letters are in use in the English-speaking countries.
Usage
Listing order
The order in which post-nominal letters are listed after a person's name is dictated by standard practice, which may vary by region and context.
In Australia
Various University Style Guides, such as: the University of Sydney Style Guide and the Australian Government Style Manual and that of the various State Governments.
Outside of any specific academic or State or Federal Government requirement, then in the following order:
Those Honours promulgated by the Governor-General in the Commonwealth Government Gazette, e.g. Current National and former Imperial honours Those Honours and Appointments promulgated by a State Governor or Territory Administrator in the relevant State Government Gazette, e.g. Fellows of the Royal Society of NSW (FRSN), King's Counsels (KC). All honorary degrees included in an Australian university's Annual Report to an Australian Parliament. Fellowships and memberships of professional bodies and learned societies incorporated by a statutory instrument i.e a Royal Charter under the Australian (not a foreign) Crown (e.g. the Australian Academy of Science, the Australian Academy of the Humanities, the Institution of Engineers Australia, the Australian Institute of Building, and the Australian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy) or an Act of Parliament (such as the Bar Associations of some States) Parliamentary designations Foreign Honours where permitted by Australian Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs. Fellowships and memberships of other Australian Professional Institutions. Australian Qualifications, ideally with date and institution, in descending order (with the highest closest after the name). Foreign Professional Memberships. Foreign Qualifications.
In Canada
The Canadian government's The Canadian Style specifies that no more than two sets of post-nominal letters should normally be given, unless all are to be given either for information or for reasons of protocol, and that these should be the two highest of different types. The types and the order in which they are given are:
Distinctions conferred directly by the Crown
University degrees
Memberships of societies and other distinctions
In European fraternities
Going back to the mid 17th century, today's classical European fraternities such as the German Student Corps have used post-nominal symbols and letters to allow their members to indicate their fraternity membership and honorary positions held in their signature.
Order of post-nominals in the UK
Civil usage in the UK
In the United Kingdom various sources have issued guidance on the ordering of styles and titles for British citizens, including the Ministry of Justice, Debrett's and A & C Black's Titles and Forms of Address; these are generally in close agreement, with the exception of the position of MP, etc., in the listing: Bt/Bart or Esq; In the UK, "Esq." may refer to any gentleman in place of the pre-nominal Mr or Dr; British Orders and decorations (e.g. OBE; in descending order of precedence); Crown Appointments, i.e.: University degrees: According to Debrett's, DD, MD and MS degrees are always given; other doctorates, other medical degrees, and other divinity degrees are sometimes given; and other degrees are seldom shown, with BA and MA never used socially (although formal lists may include them);
According to Debrett's and Black's: Member of Parliament (MP), etc. (Black's also includes Writers to the Signet here); Membership of the Armed Forces (e.g. RAF, RN, VR, RM, RMP) (not included by Black's).
In addition, British citizens who have received honours from Commonwealth countries are usually given permission from the King to use the postnominals for that honour.