What is the difference between -さん and -さま?


Recently I watched the film "The Wind Rises" by Studio Ghibli in Japanese with
English subtitles. I heard one of the children referring to an elder as
[name]-さま. I was wondering, what is the difference between -さん and -さま?

Any answer would be appreciated.




Sama (様【さま】) is a markedly more respectful version of san. It is used mainly
to refer to people much higher in rank than oneself, toward one's guests or
customers (such as a sports venue announcer addressing members of the
audience), and sometimes toward people one greatly admires and can be used for
either gender.

See the Wikipedia article [Japanese
honorifics](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_honorifics)




Sama (様【さま】) is a markedly more respectful version of san. It is used mainly
to refer to people much higher in rank than oneself, toward one's guests or
customers (such as a sports venue announcer addressing members of the
audience), and sometimes toward people one greatly admires and can be used for
either gender.

See the Wikipedia article [Japanese
honorifics](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_honorifics)

