http://www.englishforums.com/English/EslGeneralEnglishGrammar-Questions/Forum12.htmAsk your questions on grammar and get your sentence checked. We answer lots of different types of general English grammar questions here.enXMOD (Build: 3598.39794)http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/2/wxmq/Post.htm#43686Wed, 08 Apr 2009 19:31:36 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:43686Mister Micawber0http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/2/wxmq/Post.htm#43686http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-43686.xmlPerhaps one of you sent me this, or perhaps I have subscribed to this service and forgotten the fact, but at any rate the following serendipitiously arrived in my mailbox this morning: Possessive vs. Attributive Nouns *** If you enjoy this writing tip and find it helpful, please pass it along to others and encourage them to subscribe to this FREE service by sending an e-mail to ntuten@getitwriteonline.com and writing "subscription request" in the subject line. *** Which construction is correct in each of the following groups? 1. Fathers’ Day, Father’s Day, Fathers Day 2. Veterans’ Day, Veteran’s Day, Veterans Day 3. English Majors’ Society, English Major’s Society, English Majors Society 4. Bankers’...http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43588Fri, 08 May 2009 19:31:36 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:43588anon11http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43588http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-43588.xmlMister Macawber and CalifJim, With regard to the google search, I just picked states and/or cities and association. Then I just looked at the first page or two of each search. I then moved on to the next state/city and assocation. Nothing too fancy. CalifJim, I had seen a question similar to this before. It concerned The Actors Studio. Someone wanted to know the correct form of The Actors Studio in New York. Most everyone answered wrong. I like watching the inteviews on Bravo from The Actors Studio and had noticed that its name "missed" an apostrophe. So I simply provided that person with the URL. Also, I sometimes watch Lou Dobbs MoneyLine on CNN. Again, no apostrophe. In his case, there was a bit of a tussle. CNN's position...http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43582Sun, 08 Mar 2009 20:31:36 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:43582CalifJim2http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43582http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-43582.xmlHi, MountainHiker, I was actually considering an appeal to the Germanic noun-compounding nature of English to argue for leaving off the apostrophe. But there are sometimes PG's (prescriptive grammarians) lurking about. One needs to be careful. Jimhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43581Sun, 08 Feb 2009 20:31:36 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:43581CalifJim3http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43581http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-43581.xmlMr. Micawber, Good. Let them talk. It will keep them out of our hair! It's got to be morning for you, right? It's about 10:30 pm here. I never did look up the time difference. Take care! California Jimhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43580Thu, 08 Jan 2009 20:31:36 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:43580Mister Micawber4http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43580http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-43580.xmlI am curious, MountainHiker, about how you found those. I considered a google search for some authentic examples, but couldn't decide on a search phrase, so gave up without trying. Did you just use 'association'?http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43576Sun, 08 Mar 2009 20:31:36 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:43576anon15http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43576http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-43576.xmlHi, I suspect most will say that "STAINLESS STEEL MERCHANTS' ASSOCIATION" is correct because it is the merchants' association. That is, they own it, so it ought to be possessive. There is nothing wrong with that logic. However, you could also use "STAINLESS STEEL MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION". It is merely a title. The Actors Studio in New York, where many famous actors learned their craft. You can see their title on their web page here . Let's look at how some others do it: Uniformed Fire Officers Assocation Asian American Journalists Association New York Woman's Bowling Assocation (interesting it is not Womens') California Narcotic Officers' Association California State Juvenile Officers Assocation Los...http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43575Wed, 08 Apr 2009 19:31:36 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:43575Mister Micawber6http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43575http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-43575.xmlWe've got to stop meeting like this, Jim-- people will start to talk.http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43574Sun, 08 Mar 2009 20:31:36 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:43574CalifJim7http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43574http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-43574.xmlTo be completely correct, it would be "merchants' ", i.e., with the apostrophe. Grammar is not the only consideration in your case, however. If it will be very costly to change the name, you may decide not to change it after all. I am referring to changing signs, advertisements, letter heads, and so on. Not knowing the laws in India, I don't know whether this is a name change that would have to be registered with a govermental agency, relicensed, or what not. Depending how large a task it is to make the change and how large a budget you have, it may be more cost efficient to forego absolutely complete correctness!http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43573Sun, 08 Feb 2009 20:31:36 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:43573Mister Micawber8http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htm#43573http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-43573.xmlIt is difficult to believe that this is your first post, Anandjidedhia, because I have already responded to this question once, several days ago. If you find yourself unsatisfied with the responses, it would be better to express your reservations there or bump your original thread forward so that previous remarks can be reviewed and not re-written. As I said then, while the apostrophe may be a requirement of strict grammar-- and I am not sure that is the case-- you should consider that this name must be reproduced multitudes of times on letterhead, in advertisements, and by the membership at large. The addition of the apostrophe only opens you up to increased misspellings, arguments with printers, etc., and is hardly worth the effort...http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htmFri, 08 May 2009 19:31:36 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:43570anandjidedhia9http://www.englishforums.com/English/NameOfTheAssociation/wxmq/post.htmhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-43570.xmlWe r in a unique kind of grammatical confusion! Thought it would be apt to share it with you all and get your opinion over the same. We have an association of our business Community in Mumbai(Bombay), India. And all these years the Association's name was printed as STAINLESS STEEL MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION. Just recently in one of the meetings it was thought that the name is not really correct in entirety. Some proposed that the name should have been STAINLESS STEEL MERCHANTS' ASSOCIATION while some thought that the earlier one is itself correct. (If you notice the emphasis is on the "apostophe"(') after the word "MERCHANTS". It would be really kind of you'll to pour in your thoughts and comments and suggest which of the two is...