Should we abolish the apostrophe?
April 19th 2009 18:17
Have you noticed that Starbucks doesn't have an apostrophe in its name? (Did it ever?) It's odd, and technically wrong; Starbuck is a person, hence, it should be Starbuck's. Similarly, Tim Hortons is a well-known coffee chain here in Canada, and only recently I noticed that they'd quietly dropped the apostrophe from their name. (Tim Horton was an NHL hockey player.)
So what does this mean? If companies and retailers are dropping the apostrophes from their names, and there's no real outcry, will the apostrophe go the way of the dodo? Should it?
No matter which side of the apostrophe battle you're on--abolitionist or preserver--you probably have some strong feelings on the matter. The misuse--intentional or not--of the apostrophe in English is one of the most common and disputed grammar 'errors' today. It's markedly prevalent on the internet (as if you didn't know that!).
For writers who find it hard to use the apostrophe correctly--I don't, but I fully sympathise with those who do--the confusion is usually shown in its/it's errors:
1. Omitting the apostrophe in a contraction
It's such a fine day!
NOT
Its such a fine day!
2. Omitting the apostrophe for a possessive noun
This is my sister's house.
NOT
This is my sisters house.
3. Adding (hypercorrecting, possibly) the apostrophe for a possessive pronoun
My favourite cat has a spot on its chin.
NOT
My favourite cat has a spot on it's chin.
4. Adding the apostrophe for plurals
I had scrambled eggs for breakfast.
NOT
I had scrambled egg's for breakfast.
I am all for preserving the apostrophe simply because it's useful. At the same time, I'll admit that an omitted apostrophe does not, 99% of the time, render one's writing incomprehensible. Besides, when Im chatting on MSN and Im being lazy or rushed, theres the probabillity that Ill write like this. Even though I'm a grammar geek, I think that the role of the apostrophe is not as assured as the strictest grammarians might wish. Whoknow's knows? Maybe one day sooner than we think, apostrophes will be considered archaic.
For more on apostrophe abolition, see Kill the Apostrophe.
It used to be called "Tim Horton's."
So what does this mean? If companies and retailers are dropping the apostrophes from their names, and there's no real outcry, will the apostrophe go the way of the dodo? Should it?
No matter which side of the apostrophe battle you're on--abolitionist or preserver--you probably have some strong feelings on the matter. The misuse--intentional or not--of the apostrophe in English is one of the most common and disputed grammar 'errors' today. It's markedly prevalent on the internet (as if you didn't know that!).
For writers who find it hard to use the apostrophe correctly--I don't, but I fully sympathise with those who do--the confusion is usually shown in its/it's errors:
1. Omitting the apostrophe in a contraction
It's such a fine day!
NOT
2. Omitting the apostrophe for a possessive noun
This is my sister's house.
NOT
This is my sisters house.
3. Adding (hypercorrecting, possibly) the apostrophe for a possessive pronoun
My favourite cat has a spot on its chin.
NOT
My favourite cat has a spot on it's chin.
4. Adding the apostrophe for plurals
I had scrambled eggs for breakfast.
NOT
I had scrambled egg's for breakfast.
I am all for preserving the apostrophe simply because it's useful. At the same time, I'll admit that an omitted apostrophe does not, 99% of the time, render one's writing incomprehensible. Besides, when Im chatting on MSN and Im being lazy or rushed, theres the probabillity that Ill write like this. Even though I'm a grammar geek, I think that the role of the apostrophe is not as assured as the strictest grammarians might wish. Who
For more on apostrophe abolition, see Kill the Apostrophe.
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Comment by Jeff Culver
Guitar Pickin's
Comment by Lady Henrietta Muddling
Potter in a Harry
I find if I'm not concentrating. And that happens a lot on an Orble post or comment. I'll make typos and not realise it until I read the actual post or comment. The most common one is it's/its. It's not like I don't know the difference. Thankfully Damo leaves whole words out on a regular basis. I often wonder if he does it to make me feel better.
I do like these grammar posts. I struggle mostly with :, ;, -, - etc. I'm not sure I'll ever get to the stage where I master any of them. I guess I'll leave it up to an editor.
Comment by Lilla
From The Home Front
Enviro Warrior
Dream Herald
Esoteric Bookshop
I love the little suckers, but I cannot use them on orble because of the firewall I have to stop orble from interrogating my machine. So I am forced to use one of these *instead*
I find it infuriating, frustrating and annoying in the extreme. I cannot use the dash key either or quotation marks and it has been an education in adapting.
Problem is now when I go onto normal emails I forget to put the apostrophes in altogether!
But I am also a bit of a traditionalist and will say that I think we should keep them.
How else will we be able to tell a brand name from real Engwish?
Lilla . .
Comment by Cheryl J
Rhythmatism
Zentertainment
Budget Centsability
I must admit that I have never given the name Starbucks a second thought. I have never heard of Tim Hortons as we don't have them here in Australia but I would have just assumed that the name was one that ended in an S. Like the names Jenkins, Jones, Harris etc.
Hi Lilla, what problems do you have using apostrophes on Orble? I've never had an issue. How very strange!
Comment by Lilla
From The Home Front
Enviro Warrior
Dream Herald
Esoteric Bookshop
It is odd, but then if you have lived my life, you would have come to accept odd too.
The thing is this; my husband is a computer techo and he has all these super premo firewalls and decoys running (don*t ask me, *shrug* I am almost totally illiterate when it comes to IT). So, if I access orble through the blue e (explorer) no problems, but some doughnuts or cookies or something are downloaded into my machine by orble.
My husabnd doesn*t like that.
So I access the internet through some other portal but cannot use certain keys when i do.
An apostrophe translates as this: …
Three dots as this; ...
Inverted commas as this: "
and a dash as this -
Go figure?
Lilla ..
Comment by Lilla
From The Home Front
Enviro Warrior
Dream Herald
Esoteric Bookshop
This is unreal - like when the TV repairman comes around and suddenly the TV starts to work!
So here goes let's see how it all comes out now ... ?
Comment by Lilla
From The Home Front
Enviro Warrior
Dream Herald
Esoteric Bookshop
*scratching my head*
I don't believe it, it must only be when I am posting a post then because I get a code like *o27 or something like that each time i try one of these keys?
That is so wierd! I will go and check it out.
Gosh I feel like someone is messing with my head right now. . .
Comment by Cheryl J
Rhythmatism
Zentertainment
Budget Centsability
Comment by Morgan Bell
Science News
Deep Pencil
Business News
Movie Train
Artist Quirk
Comment by Irene
Grammar Matters
Cooking Monkey
Lady Henrietta, that's the thing--even if you make typos and forget an apostrophe here and there, no one's going to be confused by what you write. That's why I, logically, think they're not THAT important...aside from the fact that I'm somewhat traditional in terms of English grammar.
Lilla and Cheryl, I see we more or less agree in that while we go along with tradition, we're not ultra-strict about it either.
Also, Lilla...could it be that I had put the HTML tag in my post? I don't know if that could have made a difference. Actually...probably not.
Morgan, I bet there'd be few chances of ambiguity.
Comment by Mau-Medellin
Mau-Medellin
Comment by Irene
Grammar Matters
Cooking Monkey
Comment by Mountain Fog
Infognito
Screen Trek
QUOTE ME NO QUOTES!
If one bans the apostrophe, the English language will forever more descend into an unintelligible mess, and make it much harder for people learning it as a second language.
For example, I see a common mistake being made that requires an apostrophe to delineate two words and their meanings;
to wit;
the contraction of you are into you're and the word, your.
Many people mistakenly believe your is the contraction of you are.
Even some newspaper editors have missed that one!
I shall report this appalling, treasonous conspiracy against punctuation to Lynne Truss, whose book,
"Eats, Shoots & Leaves. The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation" is the bible of all whom regard punctuation as the very mortar that keeps our language together.
Any attempt to remove, dilute, or subjugate the hard won punctuation, that assists everyone to properly construct and understand the meaning of our sentences, is an anathema to communication and a grammatical terrorist!
In closing, without the apostrophe, how would Australia write that oft used and quoted phrase of welcome, "G'Day"? Without the humble, yet noble, apostrophe, G'Day would become mistaken as G Day, (Gee Day).
I rest my case.
fog
Comment by Mau-Medellin
Mau-Medellin
I think youRE wrong! Bugger the apostrophe!! WhatS it done for us lately? Nothing!!!
Comment by Mountain Fog
Infognito
Screen Trek
QUOTE ME NO QUOTES!
I can see you live by your convictions, which is more than can be said of a lot of others!
However, we shall have to agree to disagree, for as English now stands, even with punctuation, in particular the apostrophe, it is hard enough to glean its meaning.
However, there is one other element that is far more vexing and dangerous, and that is, that subversive form of communication, texting!
No greater evil, no greater threat, has assaulted the sovereignty of our fair language, than that of mobile phone texting. It even surpasses emoticon chat sites in repugnance! (I accept the use of a single emoticon at the end of a sentence, as you have done, for it can illuminate the attitude and mood of the writer.)
cheers
fog
Comment by Mau-Medellin
Mau-Medellin
On the apostrophe front, agreed! to disagreeing
L8rs
Mau-Medellin
Comment by Irene
Grammar Matters
Cooking Monkey