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Who are you/he/she in your/his/her highness or in your/his/her excellency?

Who are these people? I mean "her majesty" is the queen. But who is her?

One more example is "his holiness". "His holiness" is Dalai Lama. But who is his?

Gary 2
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    One addresses the queen as “your majesty,” but speaks about her as “her majesty.” – Xanne Nov 13 '21 at 07:21
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    Her is the possessive, not another person. – Kate Bunting Nov 13 '21 at 08:44
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    I [would ask your good self*](https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=%22would+ask+your+good+self%22) to consider these examples from Google Books (which typically don't* involve a particularly exalted royal or ecclesiastical addressee). – FumbleFingers Nov 13 '21 at 13:47
  • The full (subscription-only) OED includes this observation regarding the use of the possessive in such contexts: Honorific forms of address such as Your Majesty* (cf. also excellency n., grace n., highness n., lordship n.) generally agree grammatically with 3rd-person verbs but 2nd-person pronouns: see quots. 1761, c1777. This is not the case in French, German, etc.* – FumbleFingers Nov 13 '21 at 13:52
  • It's merely a title. Or, if you prefer, merely an idiom. Don't think too much into it. Now it is sunny in my area. What is *it*? The answer, nobody knows and nobody will ever know. Most words lack any real referent in the world. – Pound Hash Nov 19 '21 at 20:59

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The addition of a pronoun is to make this term a title. "Her" highness, Queen Anne, could not be shortened to, "Highness, Queen Anne." Highness, by itself simply means elevated or revered. It does not refer to a specific person, and does not operate as a title.

Patrick
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  • Your answer could be improved with additional supporting information. Please [edit] to add further details, such as citations or documentation, so that others can confirm that your answer is correct. You can find more information on how to write good answers in the help center. – Community Nov 13 '21 at 07:53
  • Sorry, I though this was a forum where non-native speakers asked native English speakers for help with grammar, syntax, and the like. I did not know the answers needed to be 'documented,' as if they were then going to be used in a term paper. There seem to be too many rules, so I will just pass on through. Thank you. – Patrick Nov 13 '21 at 08:55
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    @Patrick But notice that the comment is from a bot, probably programmed to add this comment to all answers lacking a link. I dislike this bot and ignore it. You should too. – Xanne Nov 14 '21 at 02:04