Women gobsmacked after learning what Miss and Mrs actually stand for
They have been in use since the 16th century - but people are only just learning what Miss and Mrs actually stand for. When addressing someone in person or in a letter, it is common practice to put a title before their name as a sign of respect.
While adult men are addressed as Mr whether they're married or not, women can use either Miss, Mrs or Ms, depending on their marital status or personal preference. Boys under the age of 18 can be referred to as either Master or Mr. However, the titles have come under debate on social media, after one Reddit user asked: "Where did the titles Mr, Mrs and Ms come from? Are they bastardisations of Master? Is Ms for divorced women only?"
According to Dictionary.com, the titles Mrs and Miss dates back to the 1500s and is a shortening of mistress. However, the word mistress has two meanings today - one being a woman in position of authority, and the other being a woman who is in a sexual relationship with a married man.
A statement reads: "Traditionally, Mr is used before the names of men and boys. The contraction Mr has been used since the 1500s. Mr was used as a shortening of master, a title used for men of high authority. By the mid-18th century, both Mr and its longer form Mister had become distinct words from master and became common English honorifics to generally address men of higher social rank.
"The contraction Mrs has a very similar history as it too dates back to the 1500s. It was used as a shortening of mistress, a title used for women of high rank or a woman who was the female head of a household. Eventually, Mrs, and its longer form Missus became distinct words from mistress and were used as general honorifics to refer to married women of higher social rank."
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Commenting on this revelation, one user said: "At first I thought Mrs was short for Mister’s like the woman belonged to the man or something." Another user added: "I call all women Ms. I regret changing my name when I married. We go from belonging to our father to belonging to our husband. It's pretty messed up." A third user said: "Women’s titles denotes whether they’re single or married. The only one that is really a title of respect is Lady, Lady Smith, for example."
However, women always have the option to opt for Ms, a title referring to any woman, regardless of marital status. The Dictionary.com statement adds: "Generally speaking, it is considered proper etiquette to use Mrs to refer to married women, Miss to refer to unmarried women and young girls, and Ms to refer to a woman of unknown marital status or when marital status is irrelevant.
"In everyday usage, though, it typically comes down to personal preference. A person may prefer any or none of these titles, and it is always best to ask a person how they want to be addressed before using a particular title or honorific. Gendered honorifics may not be appropriate in all contexts, however. Often, people may want to avoid using Mr or Mrs because they are gendered and exclude nonbinary people, who may, for instance, identify as gender-fluid or agender."
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