NASA Procedures and Guidelines

This Document is Obsolete and Is No Longer Used.
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NPR 1450.10C

Eff. Date: March 06, 2000

Cancellation Date: March 24, 2006

NASA Correspondence Management and Communications Standards and Style

APPENDIX E: Forms of Addresses

1. General.

The forms of address in this appendix are the conventional forms of address as determined by social and official custom. Since address forms may vary in certain instances, it is important to consult the rules as they appear in the list that follows on page E-2.

2. Titles of Addressees.

a. "The Honorable" is a title used to address current and former officials, e.g., Presidential appointees, Federal and State elected officials, and mayors. "Honorable" is not used by itself. "The Honorable" is not used before a last name alone. When appearing within the text of a letter or other communication, "the" is not capitalized.

b. "The Honorable" may be replaced by a title such as "Dr." or "General," but it is not used in combination with another title.

c. After leaving a titled position, an individual may opt to retain that distinctive title ("Judge," "General," or "The Honorable") throughout his or her lifetime.

3. Abbreviation of Titles and Degrees.

a. With the exceptions of "Mr./Ms./Dr.," do not abbreviate titles preceding full names in an address. Long titles such as "Lieutenant Colonel" and "Brigadier General" may be abbreviated for the sake of balance and appearance in the address when necessary, e.g., Lt. Colonel John L. Smith. Note that the basic rank is not abbreviated. The salutation should read, "Dear Colonel Smith."

b. Abbreviate designations of degrees, religious and fraternal orders, and military service branch titles after a name. Type the initials of a degree or order with periods but no spaces between them. Type military service designations in capital letters without periods.

c. Do not use scholastic degrees in combination with complimentary titles of address or with military service ranks, except in the case of "The Reverend." When a name is followed by abbreviations, their sequence is as follows: religious orders first, theological degrees, academic degrees earned in course, and honorary degrees in order of the bestowal. Using more than two degrees is unnecessary.

John Doe, D.D., D.Lit.
Patricia Smith, M.D.
Henry Brown, LL.D., Ph.D.
Lt. Colonel Mary Hill, USAF
The Reverend George Green, D.D.

4. Spouse of Distinguished Individual.

va. An individual does not share a spouse's official title and, therefore, should be addressed individually by his or her own appropriate title and last name.

The American Ambassador and Mrs. Doe

b. In cases of the titled spouse being a female, the following rule applies:

Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and Mr. O'Connor

c. Not all married women use their husband's name, especially if they use another name professionally.

Senator Dianne Feinstein and Mr. Richard Blum

The Honorable Strobe Talbott and Ms. Brooke Shearer

The forms of address listed in this appendix are the conventional forms of address as determined by social and official custom. The style of salutation and complimentary close is informal.