Period in Ms

No period. As you note, it is not an abbreviation.

Right, so why do we put a period in Ms (notice lack of period)?

I would suggest that the period appears in common usage, because of habit, and not for a reason.

Mr. abbreviates mister, and Mrs. abbreviates mistress. I'd say, just habit.

Isn't Ms short for Miss, as in unmarried?

Say, just what kind of feminist you supposed to be? Ms was designed to produce the same ambiguity as Mr. Marital status undetermined.

Ahhh, that makes sense. So it means....whatever? It's not short for anything, huh? Hm...learn something new every day.

Miss is a verbal abbreviation of mistress. As such, until quite recently in the English language, the abbreviation Mrs. did not have any reference to marital status. The use of Miss as a separate title of respect for unmarried women, and the restriction of Mistress, now used only in the abbreviated form, and now pronounced "Missus," arose in the mid-18th century. It was a time when the increasing wealth in England, accompanied by a new mobility up the social ladder by successful businessmen, made the market of marriagable young women suddenly very important. Families of the peerage, down on their luck, sought alliances with wealthy families, which in turn sought to increase their social standing through such marriages. The books of Jane Austen display this as no others do. The correct formula for a titled family became Lord Thuddbottom, Lady Thuddbottom, Mr. Frogwort (the family name of the Earls of Thuddbottom in this mythical construction) indicating the eldest son. Younger sons would be addressed as though still children--Mr. Thomas, Mr. James, etc. A similar structure was erected for the young women of the family, and Miss used to indicate their marriagability: Miss Frogwort, meaning the eldest daughter, and then Miss Sophonsiba, Miss Miranda, etc., for her younger sisters.

In the late 1960's, militant feminists insisted upon a "marriage-neutral" form of a title of respect, and concocted Ms. Their insistence was that it be pronounced "Mizz" and they would correct you if they didn't care for your pronunciation. I'm as stubborn, if not more so, than any dozen feminists you can dredge up, and i have resolutely refused to use that title, unless required to do so by my employment. I was raised in the south, in a more formal time. Ignorant men and women, uncertain how to address a woman said "Mizz" and i have an abhorence of using that pronununciation. However, i was always taught that the proper title of respect for any woman was "Miss," unless and until said woman expressed a preference for the use of "Missus," i.e., Mrs. I have held to that rule for my own usage ever since, and the feminists be danmed.

I am Ms ehBeth


<proud subscriber to Ms magazine back in the 1970's>

Bella Dea- Here is a little bit of history. During the 1960's when women were beginning to compete in the workplace, and to perceive themselves as an individual, as opposed to an adjunct to a man, The term Ms was coined.

In the past Miss meant an unmarried woman. A man was a Mr. whether he was married or not. The term "Ms" was coined so as to create some equality.

A magazine called Ms. (notice the period) was created to reflect the feminist point of view

http://www.msmagazine.com/about.asp

I learned not to use a "." when addressing someone as Ms. (Damn, that period ended the sentence.)

I use it when I don't know if the woman is married or not. Sadly, many people are offended by this, as if using Ms denotes feminism (mine or theirs...?). (!) I had a professor recently "correct" my use of it on a paper!!!

I think it can denote someone not wanting to be labelled (the feminist thing), or addressing a woman, who's marital status you don't know.

I use it a lot when talking about or addressing other people--but not for myself. I thought it was sort of mainstream and benign.

Many years ago, during an…interview…of sorts, I was asked my marital status. The question irritated, as it was irrelevant to the discussion. When I enquired why it was necessary for me to reveal that information, he (the interviewer) replied, after some time, that he wished to know how to address me in his future correspondence.

I suggested he address his correspondence in my name.

Dear Joe Blow,

I don't consider "Mrs." an honorific, though I concede that some do. I attempt to be respectful of those that choose the distinction, but frankly I think it's a dog whose day is done.

Nothing here to enlighten the period question, sorry.

Sincerely,

Joeblow

(Or if it's absolutely necessary (?) to convey gender, or to bestow respect, Ms. Joeblow)

When I was young, the correct way for a married woman to end a formal letter was to sign her own name, "Jane Jones". Underneath, she would type, Mrs. John Jones. My first formal stationery said, "Mrs. John Jones"
The next time that I bought stationery, it was printed, Jane Jones. Imagine, if you will, a married man having stationery printed, Mr. Jane Jones. Sounds absurd, doesn't it????

At this point in time, the entire idea, to me, being a appendage to a man, if only on paper, seems a bit quaint at the least. Actually, I find it rather repulsive.

I remember being around when Ms was coined, and yes, it is a cut-down version of "Mistress", just as much as Miss or Mrs. The real anomaly in the Ms/Miss/Mrs/Mr set is Miss, which logically ought to require a period like all the others but never seems to have had one.

Possibly this is because, unlike the others, it was also used as a common noun (as in "young miss", "Bath miss" and so on - see the novels of Jane Austen passim)?

In any case, I find that the period after all of these titles is increasingly being dropped (just like the period after St), so the question may cease to matter at all in very few years.

...& I am msolga. To make it clearer, I would be called Ms Olga if I wasn't into lower case lettering here at A2K.

Hmm-- no answer yet
Noted magazine will not respond as to why there is a period. It was started by the 1960's feminist creator of Ms. I can't think her goal was to "adhere to modern convention".

Grammar has rules. Abreviations get periods, not social movements.

Setanta makes some good points, though saying "miss" Smith, for Mrs. Smith does not show respect, just mispronunciation.

In any case, grammar texts teach the period.

Starstuck maybe, read this!
Drummer 411...

I just got this email... totally true, I promise. This time Ms. (note the period) Magazine did respond " Ms. has a period because it is an abbreviation for Mistress. Like Master, it indicated sex without regard to marital status, and was often used for any respected person, including for very young children of a respected family.
Ms. wasn't invented by the modern women's movement, only re-popularized. For example, the use above was common in the 14th Century forward. Its first known use in the U.S. was on a 1767 tombstone in Massachusets. Ms. re-appeared in a limited way in the 1930s as a suggestion in secretarial handbooks for dealing with awkward situations in which a woman's marital status was unknown.
I did an essay on all this in The Reader's Companion to U.S. Women's History, published by Houghton Miflin.
Hope this helps!

Gloria Steinem "

Interesting, though I find it a bit conveniant to say "Ms. was first used in Dorothy Smith's tombstone in 14th century Britain". As if anyone would be willing to refute that......

I would use Ms in most instances where I do not know the preference of the recipient.

It is interesting to note that different languages deal with the issue in different ways - in German, any adult woman is known as "Frau", whether married or not, in the same way that "Mr" is used in English for men.

I don't see why Ms hasn't been adopted in the same way - are we (English speaking society around the world) still so hung up on marriage?

"Fraulein" is not used for the (say) over 20s, unless specifically indicating youth (think of "young lady" as an equivalent).

KP