In alphabetical languages, diminutives are easily made by adding a suffix (e.g. -ito, -ino, -ine, which belong to some Romance languages) and sometimes contemporaneously changing the ending of the original name.
Japanese uses a sort of appending naming, such as "-chan", "-kun", etc.
But what about Chinese? Are there rules when forming diminutives, or what's the usual way?
I'm interested in:
- what characters for diminutives exist;
- who can they be used with
- when not to use them.
As you might have noticed, I am not talking about nicknames, but rather about diminutives.
EDIT: Like Szabolcs said, I'm not asking for honorifics but rather about those changes in names that show affection, intimacy or close relation. Please, read this page on Wikipedia in your language so you understand what is meant by Diminutive.