We have performed a contrastive study of the uchi-soto relationship in Japanese and Turkish, and we have found the similarities and dissimilarities between the two languages. Thus, both in Japanese and in Turkish, when speaking about an ‘in-group' (uchi) person to an ‘out-group' (soto) person,the exalting honourific speech (sonkeigo) cannot be used. The two languages are similar in this respect, but the extent of the ingroup, which conditions the usage of polite speech, is different. In Japanese, the in-group includes not only the family of the speaker and his/her intimates, but also the members of the same company. Even if the member of the same company is a superior, the exalting honourific speech cannot be used. In contrast, in Turkish the in-group is limited to family and intimates of the speaker. When speaking to outsiders about one's superiors of the same company, the exalting honourific speech is used.