ESQ Definition

Have you ever heard of the letter combination Esq. stumbled and couldn’t explain the meaning right away?

According to abbreviationfinder, ESQ is an abbreviation for the term “Esquire”. If you are no smarter than before, console yourself, then you are like many people. The word comes from English and means something like “nobleman”. In Old French (escuier) and Late Latin (scutarius) it means “shield bearer”.

What does Esq mean? today?

  • In Germany it equates with an aristocratic title. With “highly born” it can be translated comparably.
  • In English-language correspondence, the abbreviation is often found on formal letters, where Mister X is not addressed with the title Mr., but with his name and the Esq behind it. So if you ever receive a letter from a US attorney, you will likely find the abbreviation after the attorney’s name. So it doesn’t say Mr. Peter Smith, it says Peter Smith, Esq.
  • The time when the abbreviation was used seems to be over in Europe, the boom took place after the end of the Second World War. However, the naming was never a formal rule, it was just used in elite circles for reasons of propriety. Today the abbreviation is actually only used in Great Britain.

Dealing with the abbreviation in other countries

  • Lawyers in the USA usually have the abbreviation after their name. Professional judges in the United States also carry the title “Honorable” before their names.
  • In England, the knightly orders still award the title to this day – such as the Order of Saint John or the Imperial Society.
  • If a member of the knighthood receives the title, it means for him that he has climbed the career ladder and probably further in the hierarchy.

ESQ Definition