status, or the same "rank" in some hierarchy) often use tu more or less immediately. In some cases, there may be an explicitly defined practice in a particular company, political party, as to the use of and . Also, using the in conjunction with someone's given name is rather current in France as a less formal way of addressing someone, e.g. at work, among members of an association etc. Children and adolescents generally use to speak with someone of their own age, whether known or not. can also be used to show disrespect to a stranger, such as when surprising a thief or cursing other drivers on the road. may be used to distance oneself from a person with whom one does not want to interact. Additionally, two people who use in their private interactions may consciously switch back to in public in order to act appropriately in a formal or professional environment, to play the part in an artificially constructed situation (such as between co-hosts of a television show), or simply to conceal the nature of their relationship from others. In families, was traditionally used to address older family members. Children were taught to use to address their parents, and was used until about 1950 between spouses of the higher classes. Former president Jacques Chirac and his wife Bernadette are a prominent example of the continuation of this usage. When praying, is nowadays often used in addressing the deity, though was used in Catholic prayers until the Second Vatican Council, and is still used to address the Blessed Virgin Mary. In Louisiana, however, is always used to convey a sense of respect and reverence when praying. In Walloon, the use of which tends, in any case, to be restricted mostly to "familiar" contexts, (equivalent to ) is the general usage and is considered informal and friendly. (equivalent to ), on the other hand, is considered vulgar, and its use can be taken as an expression of an aggressive attitude towards the person addressed. This influence from Walloon affects the usage of and in the French spoken in Belgium, though more so among people accustomed to using Walloon as their everyday language (a tiny minority, mostly in the countryside). The influence of Standard French, particularly as exercised through the mass media, is eroding this particularity among younger French-speakers. In the , the use of honorific styles or their abbreviation (literally