Polite, honorific way to ask 'who' or to refer to someone whose name you do not know. Used in formal settings, customer service, or when showing respect.
Excuse me, but who might you be?
Thank you for calling. May I ask who's speaking?
Standard polite form; the kanji 様 is commonly used in this expression.
Rarely used kanji form; the reading どちらさま is normally written as どちら様.
Compound of どちら (which direction/person, polite) + 様 (honorific suffix). The combination creates a very polite way to ask or refer to a person.