Mrs.

some women prefer this title; respect their wishes. When their wishes or marital status are unknown, use "Ms." Dale Spender (Man Made Language) says, "Contrary to the belief of many people, the current usage of Miss and Mrs. is relatively recent, for until the beginning of the 19th century the title Miss was usually reserved for young females while Mrs. designated mature women. Marital status played no role in the use of these terms." (In French and German, mademoiselle and madame, frau and fräulein are still understood this way.) "Mrs." and "Miss" reflect a tradition of labeling women in relation to men although the converse has never been true. About 10% of married women use their birth names rather than their husbands' names. African American woman generally prefer taking their husbands' names because their "history denied them the legal right to that designation. What signifies bondage to one woman may mark freedom to another" (Francine Wattman Frank and Paula A. Treichler, Language, Gender, and Professional Writing). In the workplace, this social title gives way to the more common "Ms." See also frau, mademoiselle, Miss, Ms.