Mademoiselle
Mademoiselle ( mad.mwa.zɛl ; to dt. " Mein Fräulein ") is a French form of address for women, outdated short forms and alternative forms of address are Demoiselle and Mamselle . In general literature, Mademoiselle is abbreviated with M lle or Mlle (always without a point). The plural is Mesdemoiselles , or M lles for short .
The corresponding form of address for women in general and married women in particular is Madame , M me or Mme for short , and in the plural Mesdames ( M mes ).
The forms of address Mademoiselle and Demoiselle originate from the Latin dominicella , a belittling form of domina (to English "mistress"). In the past it stood for the young girl from the upper middle class , today it applies to every unmarried woman of any age. Originally it meant the wife of a medieval squire . As a diminutive of Madame, it should simultaneously express the lower social status compared to the lady, or the lower court class. From the early 18th century onwards, the address Mamselle was only used for the socially "lowest ranking" women, for example prostitutes and maids, and was primarily intended to devalue them.
Today the salutation Mademoiselle is often used as a compliment by men and women and is accepted by the addressed woman - whether married or not - because the salutation implies a youthful appearance. In Francophone society, you stay young as long as possible - and thus mademoiselle. An outlawing of the salutation as with Fräulein in the German-speaking area can hardly be observed. In German-speaking countries, girls are addressed as women as early as possible, regularly from the age of 16. However, in 2011 French feminists initiated a campaign against the obligation to provide information in forms by authorities and companies, which is perceived as sexist and discriminatory. In February 2012, the word Mademoiselle was generally replaced by Madame in official French usage . In March 2012, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg also followed this rule.
A man is addressed in French as monsieur .
literature
- Stephan Elspaß: History of language from below: Investigations into written everyday German in the 19th century (= Series German Linguistics, Volume 263 ). Max Niemeyer Verlag, Tübingen 2011 (new edition), ISBN 9783110910568 , pp. 404-406.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Adieu, Miss! In: Süddeutsche Zeitung . September 28, 2011.
- ↑ "Mademoiselle" is boycotted. Women's rights activists against salutation. In: the daily newspaper . September 28, 2011, accessed October 6, 2011 .