Ms.

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For alternative uses, see MS (disambiguation).

Ms., or Ms (UK usage), (pronounced /miz/ or /məz/) is a title used with the last name or full name of a woman (in the UK, one who is below the rank of "Lady" or "Dame"). Unlike the more traditional titles Miss and Mrs., it does not bear any reference to the woman's marital status, as Mr. does not for a man. Ms. was originally promoted in — and is now widely used in — the United States, for this precise reason and usage.

Although it is usually believed to be a creation of modern feminism, Ms. was sporadically used as an abbreviation for the title "Mistress" (just like Mrs.) as early as the 1700s, and the pronunciation mizz for Mrs. was colloquial in the American South and other areas. Indeed "Mistress" originally did not bear reference to marital status either, until the title separated into the diminutive "Miss" and abbreviation "Mrs." in the 17th Century.

The use of Ms. as a title was conceived by Sheila Michaels in 1961, upon seeing what might be a typographical error on a copy of News & Letters.^[1] Address-o-graph plates were difficult to repair and small, poor groups would not waste resources to correct minor mistakes. Michaels' roommate, Mary Hamilton (Congress of Racial Equality's first female Field Secretary in the South) had spoken to the Marxist-Humanist group in Detroit and taken their newspaper. Michaels, who was illegitimate, and not adopted by her stepfather, had long grappled with finding a title which reflected her situation: not being owned by a father and not wishing to be owned by a husband. She knew the separation of Miss and Mrs. had been recent, but one could not suggest that women call themselves Mistress with its louche connotations. Her efforts to promote use of a new honorific were ignored in the Civil Rights era, and seven years later in the nascent Women's Movement. Around 1971, in a lull during a WBAI-radio interview with The Feminists group, Michaels suggested the use of the title Ms. (having chosen a pronunciation current for both in Missouri, her home). A friend of Gloria Steinem's heard the interview and suggested it as a title for her new magazine.

The usage of Ms. was championed as non-sexist language beginning in the 1970s, especially in business usage, by those who argue that a woman's marital status is of no relevance in such a context. Starting in the 1970s, many women chose to be called Ms. for political reasons, and a major feminist magazine is named Ms.

1 American usage
2 British usage
3 Further information
4 See also
5 Notes
6 External links

[edit] American usage

Ms. is widely used in the U.S., much moreso than currently in the UK. In business correspondence, it is standard. The default use of Ms. is also championed by a number of etiquette writers, including Judith Martin (who ironically writes under the pen name Miss Manners).

Several public opponents of "non-sexist language," such as William Safire, were finally convinced that Ms. had earned a place in English by the case of Geraldine A. Ferraro. Ms. Ferraro, a United States vice presidential candidate in 1984, was a married woman who went by her birth surname rather than her husband's surname(Zaccaro). Safire pointed out that it would be equally incorrect to call her "Miss Ferraro" or "Mrs. Ferraro" — or to confuse the reader by calling her "Mrs. Zaccaro."

[edit] British usage

The Times (UK) states in its style guide that "Ms is nowadays fully acceptable when a woman wants to be called thus, or when it is not known for certain if she is Mrs or Miss."

The Guardian (UK) states in its style guide that: "We use whichever the woman in question prefers: with most women in public life (Ms Booth, Mrs May, Miss Widdecombe) that preference is well known; if you don't know, try to find out; if that proves impossible, use Ms."

Most women in the UK appear to still style themselves either "Miss" or "Mrs." However, in some circles the title is now standard, for instance in business — and where one may not know or find relevant the marital status of the woman so addressed.

The title Mrs is still in common use, often especially by women who have taken their husband's family name — which is still the vast majority. English school children may also address female teachers as Miss regardless of marital status.

[edit] Further information

The rare plural of Ms. is Mses. However, Judith Martin advocates the use of the French "Mesdames" for addressing multiple women (such as a married lesbian couple). It is not standard to use Ms. as a term of direct address; usually Ma'am will be used.

In other European languages, non-sexist usage in this regard usually amounts to using words more or less equivalent to Mrs. (madame, Fr.; señora, Es.; senhora, Pt.; signora, It.; Frau, De.; bean-uasal, Ga. and Gd.) for both married and unmarried women, and whether they take their husband's name or not. This makes sense as these titles are usually the direct feminine equivalents of the male titles (monsieur, Fr.; señor, Es.; senhor, Pt.; signore, It.; Herr, De.; máistir/tiarna, Ga.; maighstir/tighearna, Gd.), whereas the equivalent of Miss is a diminutive of the female equivalent (mademoiselle, Fr.; señorita, Es.; senhorita, Pt.; signorina, It.; Fräulein, De.; ógbhean-uasal, Ga.; maighdeann-uasal, Gd.).