I’ve seen some people considering sincerely/faithfully as old-fashion closings. Would like to hear from a native about it.
Is ‘Yours faithfully’ old-fashioned?
This will probably remain a question of some debate for many years to come!
Some would argue that this has become outdated and isn’t necessary, but in my opinion (and I’m sure the majority of the English population would agree with me), the complimentary close ‘Yours faithfully’ is not old-fashioned. It should always be used in a formal letter when the recipient’s name is not known. ‘Yours sincerely’ should generally be used in a formal letter when the recipient’s name is known, but not on a personal basis.
In the USA, it is commonplace to close a formal letter with ‘Yours truly’ or ‘Truly yours’, but this would be seen as unusual in the UK.
Also in American English, ‘Sincerely yours’ or ‘Sincerely’ are commonly used in formal correspondence. ‘Faithfully yours’ is rarely used in the USA.
If you want to know which ones ARE old-fashioned closing phrases, here is your answer:
– I remain yours faithfully
– I am, Sir, yours faithfully
– Yours respectfully
– Believe me to be, yours sincerely
– I beg to remain, Sir, sincerely yours
– Respectfully yours
– I remain yours obediently
‘I remain’, ‘I beg to remain’, ‘Believe me to be’ and ‘I am, Sir,’ used to precede most of the closing phrases that we use today, but they are now usually omitted, because they were seen as ‘old-fashioned!’
