Mrs.

Mrs (UK) or Mrs. (USA) is an English honorific used for women, usually just for those who are married and who do not have a title that would take precedence over it, such as "Dr.", "Lady", or "Dame". The pronunciation varies regionally but is usually (IPA: /ˈmɪsɨz/ or /ˈmɪsɨs/). In the United Kingdom, most Commonwealth countries, and Ireland, a full stop (period) does not usually follow the abbreviated form: "Mrs Price". In the U.S. a period is almost always used: This divergence in custom is discussed in the history section of the article on Abbreviation.

"Mrs" originated as a contraction of the honorific "Mistress", the feminine of "Mister" or "Master", which was originally applied to both married and unmarried women. The split into "Mrs" for married women and "Miss" for unmarried women began during the 17th Century and was well-established by the time it further split to include Ms. In the time since the origination of Mrs, is has become rare for it to be written out and it lacks a standard phonetic spelling. In literature, it usually appears as "missus" or "missis" in dialogue, though one variant, in the works of Thomas Hardy and others, is "Mis'ess", reflecting its etymology.

Usage

"Mrs" may be used with the husband's last name, e.g. "Mrs. Butler", or with his full name: e.g. "Mrs Rhett Butler". A widow retains the right to be addressed as Mrs, followed by her late husband's full name. Mrs is not properly used before a woman's birth name nor before a last name that differs from her husband's, such as if she has hyphenated her surname and he has not. For example, "Mrs Scarlett O'Hara" or "Mrs Scarlett O'Hara-Butler" would be incorrect (please see the exceptions below for never-married mothers and high-ranking servants).

In the United Kingdom, the traditional form for a divorcée is "Mrs Scarlett Butler". In the U.S., the form "Mrs. O'Hara Butler" was traditionally used, with the birth surname in place of the first name. However, the form "Mrs. Scarlett O'Hara" has since become widely used for divorcées, even in formal correspondence.

The plural of "Mrs", rarely used, is the French "Mesdames", pronounced in the same manner and usually written in its abbreviated form, "Mmes". In direct address, a woman with the title "Mrs" will usually be addressed as "Madam", or in the United States as "Ma'am."

Marital status

The separation of "Miss" and "Mrs" became problematic as women entered the white-collar workforce. Women who became famous or well known in their professional circles before marriage often kept their birth names, stage names, or noms de plume. 'Miss' became the appellation for celebrities (Miss Helen Hayes, Miss Amelia Earhart) but this also proved problematic, as when a married woman did use her husband’s name but was still referred to as ‘Miss’. See more at Ms. and Miss.

"Mrs" is only used with a woman's birth surname in limited circumstances. Before social mores relaxed to the point where single women with children were socially acceptable, the "unwed mother" was often advised by etiquette mavens like Elizabeth Post to use "Mrs" with her birth surname to avoid scruitiny. The use of "Mrs" as a default for all women is occasionally employed following the custom of European countries (see below).

Since the term 'Mr.' does not indicate whether a man is married or not, many feminists believe that the way a woman is addressed should not indicate marital status either. For this reason, 'Ms.' is advocated as an equivalent to 'Mr.', particularly in professional situations. Few married women choose to use "Mrs" in professional life, even those who take their husband's name. Instead, these women use 'Ms.'. However, "Mrs" had remained in popular use for social situations until the end of the 20th century.

In several other European languages, the title used for married women, such as Madame, Señora, Bean(-uasal), Signora, or Frau, is the direct feminine equivalent of the title used for men; the title for unmarried women is a diminutive: Mademoiselle, Señorita, Maighdeann(-uasal), Signorina or Fräulein. For this reason, usage has shifted towards using the married title as the default for all women in professional usage. This has long been followed in England for some high-ranking household staff, such as housekeepers, cooks, and nannies, who have been called "Mrs" as a mark of respect.

Modern social use

It is now uncommon for women to use their husband's first name, except in compounds such as "Mr. and Mrs. Rhett Butler". The form is used only now in archaic formal invitations, or when the husband is famous or well-known in business or professional circles (Mrs Avery Fisher) or when a woman is making a particular point ("I am Mrs Norman Maine.").

One example of a successful married woman using her husband's name is that of Mary Augusta Ward who wrote several novels under the name Mrs Humphrey Ward. She was however a noted anti-suffragist and therefore it may be considered that she was simply reinforcing her view of womens' role in society at a time when many other women wished to change that role.

A current discussion in etiquette is the question of how to address married couples with the same last name or in which the wife uses her own last name, or uses a title other such as "Dr". The woman's name first should come first.

Dr. Jane Jones

Mr. John Smith

Etiquette writer Judith Martin(b. 1938) ("Miss Manners") has also offered advice for referring to a lesbian couple who have adopted one surname, in the following form, in order by first name:

Mmes Alice and Carol Roe

Should they retain individual surnames, the separate-lines advice applies as above, except that the names should be in order by surname:

Mmes Jane Davies and Alice Roe

In Australia, New Zealand and the UK, the word "missus" is slang for girlfriend or partner.

The term "M.R.S. degree" has been used derogatorily to denote women whose reasons for attending college appear to be to find a husband rather than to study.^[1]

Equivalents in other languages

Equivalents of "Mrs" are:

• Afrikaans Mevrou (Me.)
• Arabic سيدة
• Armenian Տիկին
• Azeri Xanım
• Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian Gospođa, (Serbian Cyrillic Госпођа) (G-đa or Gđa., Г-ђа or Гђа.)
• Breton Itron
• Bulgarian Госпожа
• Catalan Senyora (Sra.)
• Chinese 夫人
• Czech Paní
• Danish Fru (Fr.)
• Dutch Mevrouw (Mevr. or Mw.)
• Esperanto Sinjorino (S-ino)
• Estonian Proua (Pr.)
• Finnish Rouva (Rva)
• Filipino Ginang (Gng.)
• French Madame (Mme)
• Galician Dona (Dna.)
• German Frau (Fr.)
• Greek Κυρία (literally: Lady, abbreviation: Κα, plural: Κυρίες, abbreviation: Κες)
• Hebrew גברת, pronounced Gveret
• Hindi (Indian) Shrimati
• Hungarian -né suffix (eg. Kovácsné for Mrs Kovács), Asszony (eg. Kovács asszony, limited use; more or less direct address only)
• Indonesian Nyonya (Ny.)
• Irish Bean
• Italian Signora (Sig.ra)
• Japanese 夫人, pronounced Fujin
• Latvian Kundze
• Maltese Sinjura
• Norwegian Fru (Fr.)
• Persian بانو pronounced Baanoo
• Polish Pani (P.)
• Portuguese Senhora (Sra.)
• Romanian Doamna (D-na or Dna.)
• Punjabi Sardarni (Sdn.)
• Russian Госпожа (Г-жа)
• Sanskrit (and all Indian languages) Śrīmati
• Scots Gaelic Bean(-uasal) (A' Bh(uas).)
• Slovenian Gospa (Ga.)
• Spanish Señora (Sra.), Doña (Dña., Dª)
• Swedish Fru (Fr.)
• Turkish Hanım (Hn.)
• Ukrainian Панi (Панi)
• Welsh Bonesig

See also

• Madam
• Ms.
• Miss
• Mr.
• Doctor

References

1. ^ PBS American Experience. "People & Events: Mrs. America: Women's Roles in the 1950s", accessed July 16, 2006.

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