Excellency: Encyclopedia II - Excellency - American usage

Excellency - American usage

In the United States, the form "Excellency" was specifically denied to the President, with "Mr./Madam President" or "The Honorable ..." being the only legally accepted forms. However, in many foreign countries and in UN protocol the President of the United States is usually referred to as "His Excellency."

In New England, governors have retained the honorific "Excellency," following traditional British colonial practice, though it is rarely used. The six New England states are:

• Massachusetts
• Rhode Island
• Connecticut
• New Hampshire
• Vermont
• Maine

All of these states were among the original Thirteen Colonies, either as colonies in their own right, or (in the case of Vermont and Maine) as parts of other colonies. Two of the other original colonies, Virginia and South Carolina, also use the form "Excellency" in referring to their governors. Although South Carolina legally provides for the Governor to be referred to as "Excellency", the Commonwealth of Virginia does not. Nevertheless, "Excellency" is used frequently when introducing the Governor of Virginia at formal events, most notably the annual State of the Commonwealth address, when the Speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates introduces the Governor as "His Excellency the Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia."

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "American usage", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki