What does the Japanese diminutive suffix "chan" indicate?


Is _chan_ a feminine or masculine suffix?




The suffix _-chan_ is not inherently gendered (Japanese has no grammatical
gender), but by the quality of the diminutive, it is primarily used by and for
females.

For example, _-chan_ is often used as a suffix for girls' names, where for
boys' names the corresponding suffix would be _-kun_.

The suffix is used, much like the diminutive, to "cutify" people (e.g. for
children, 涼ちゃん Ryō-chan [girl's name]), animals (e.g. わんちゃん "doggy"), and
sometimes even objects (e.g. あめちゃん "little" candy).

