| Kommentar | It's both style and logic, because as papousek says, the 's is (or should be) pronounced even if it's not written, so after names ending in a sibilant, the rule is to write it. (Unlike in German.) I think most style guides for writers still maintain a strong consensus on that point. And there are plenty of threads in the archive where we've collected citations from them -- look for James's and Charles's, IIRC. They also make the point that the traditional exception has been classical and biblical names -- Socrates', Moses', etc.
The one style guide that doesn't keep the 's, however, if I recall correctly, is AP (Associated Press) style, which is really unfortunate because virtually all US newspapers follow it. You can understand why they were tempted, because leaving that 's out saves a space, and in newspapers shorter is always better. But it has set a really bad example for the average person on the street, who has probably never heard of a style guide and assumes that whatever is in print must be correct. Or, like dude and the descriptivists, they just say 'I've seen both.' (Yep, I've seen both Voraus and Vorraus. True as far as it goes.)
Also unfortunately, proper names that end in an S sound aren't at all uncommon -- so even Texas newspapers, for instance, incorrectly write Texas', which annoys me every time I see it.
I don't know why copy editors never fought back, but apparently if they ever did, they lost that battle. |
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