Facts about the Apostrophe

1. 07

   Newspapers in 19th century America frequently omitted apostrophes from possessives due to typesetting costs, leading many publications to print 'the governments decision' instead of 'the government's decision'.

   the ApostropheMay 14sharehistorytypographyeconomics
2. 06

   Modern texting abbreviations like 'u' and 'ur' represent a reversal of the apostrophe's original 1500s function, as digital communication now omits punctuation entirely rather than using it to mark missing letters.

   the ApostropheMay 14sharelinguisticstechnologyevolution
3. 05

   Scottish writer Robert Burns used apostrophes inconsistently in his 1786 poems, sometimes writing 'o'er' and sometimes 'oer', reflecting the lack of standardized punctuation rules before the 19th century.

   the ApostropheMay 14shareliteraturehistorystandardization
4. 04

   George Bernard Shaw famously campaigned in the 1940s to abolish the apostrophe entirely, calling it unnecessary and a waste of printing space in modern English.

   the ApostropheMay 14sharehistorylanguagetwentieth-century
5. 03

   Possessive apostrophes marking ownership in English emerged during the 1600s-1700s when printers began distinguishing 'the king's crown' from 'kings' as separate grammatical constructs.

   the ApostropheMay 14sharegrammarhistorylinguistics
6. 02

   English speakers omitted the apostrophe entirely from contractions until the 17th century, when grammarians like John Wallis formally codified its use in printed texts.

   the ApostropheMay 14sharelanguagehistorygrammar
7. 01

   Printers in the 1500s used the apostrophe to mark omitted letters in contractions, establishing a convention that remained standard through the modern era.

   the ApostropheMay 14sharetypographyhistorylanguage