[NatureNS] on apostrophes in geographical names

Date: Thu, 19 Oct 2006 23:12:10 -0300
From: Doug Linzey <doug@fundymud.com>
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Now that George has opened up this interesting thread again, I have a 
comment or two. First let me respond, with my editor's hat on, to Jim's 
original plea for more apostrophes. Yes, undoubtedly many of our 
two-barrelled geographical names had apostrophes, especially those 
places that were actually possessed by the named person. Then, as John 
explained, the mapmakers had their way with the apostrophes, and it's 
the official gazetteer (in our case the _Nova Scotia Atlas_) that we 
editors consult for "proper" spelling and that most publishers will 
insist on, for the sake of consistency.

As for Jim's two examples, I doubt that Kings County ever had an 
apostrophe. I don't know for a fact, but it seems unlikely that the 
county was named after someone named King, or for a royal; rather, as 
suggested by Pat, Kings and Queens Counties in all three Maritime 
provinces most likely arrived on this side of the Atlantic borrowed and 
unadorned. Starrs Point, though, was settled and owned by the Starr 
family, so it probably did have an apostrophe at one time. Now, however, 
since the Starrs no longer own the place, use of the possessive 
"Starr's" would not be as accurate as the adjective form, "Starrs" 
(indicating a place where the Starrs live or lived). Apostrophe or not, 
the origin is easy to surmise.

As a matter of interest, the Nova Scotia gazette includes only three 
place names with apostrophes: Clark's Harbour (Shelburne County), St. 
Peter's (Richmond County. Note that only the village has an apostrophe 
-- not the bay, canal, inlet, island, or junction), and Fisher's Grant 
(a two-part Indian reserve in Pictou County) .For the truly punctilious, 
you should know that one ungazetted name is officially apostrophized: 
the Municipal District of St. Mary's (Guysborough County).

Chris mentioned his frustration with the Herald for removing the italics 
from the Latin names in his letter re the Brown Spruce Longhorn Beetle. 
This is a pretty standard style convention of newspapers (the Globe is 
an exception) -- not to use italics. It's a tradition predating 
computerized typesetting, and like it or not it's just a fact of life.

And finally, I share Ian's enthusiasm for the Elizabeth Bishop poem, The 
Map, and I thank Brian for making me aware of this poet.

Doug Linzey

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