A marquess (British English spelling) or marquis (North American English and the original French spelling) is a nobleman of hereditary rank in various European monarchies and some of their colonies. The term is also used to render equivalent oriental styles as in imperial China and Japan. In the British peerage it ranks below a duke and above an earl, on the continent usually equivalent where a cognate title exists. A woman with the rank of marquess, or the wife of a marquess, is a marchioness, (IPA pronunciation: ) or marquise (North American English and the original French spelling).