# Is the inability to handle with apostrophes spreading to other languages? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 21, 2005, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493 "2005-04-21T22:43:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/1 "2005-04-21T22:43:34Z")
As startled as I was to learn that, a few years ago, a new species of supersized chimpanzees may have been found in Congo, I was even more startled to find what appears to be an example of apostrophe abuse in Dutch: [Link](http://www.nciucn.nl/nederlands/actueel/nieuws/archief/2004/oktober/11.htm). > [@link](#): > > De apen leven op de grond als gorilla’s maar hebben het uiterlijk en dieet van een chimpansee. > > (The apes live on the ground, like gorillas, but have the appearance(?) and diet of a chimpanzee.) I’m surprised by this not least because I didn’t think that apostrophes were used to imply possession in Dutch. Are they? Should we rejoice that orthographical clumsiness seems not to be limited to Americans only, but makes us all brothers? ---
**Author:** ![Josh\_dePlume](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Josh\_dePlume](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Josh_dePlume)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2005, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/2 "2005-04-22T04:22:35Z")
How about the tendency to insert prepositions where they don’t belong? ---
**Author:** ![Gest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9d8465/32.png) [@Gest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gest)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2005, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/3 "2005-04-22T05:35:36Z")
In this case, it is a plural apostrophe and not a possessive apostrophe. What is it that’s possessed by the gorillas that makes you believe it’s used in that sense? ---
**Author:** ![AwSnappity](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a3d4f5/32.png) [@AwSnappity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AwSnappity)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2005, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/4 "2005-04-22T06:23:24Z")
So Dutch uses apostrophes to indicate possessive case then, **Gest**? ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2005, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/5 "2005-04-22T06:39:02Z")
Oh yes… You can see that in German very frequently. In the beginning, the apostrophe preceding a genitive s (my friend’s house) started spreading among German shopkeepers, naming their businesses _Peter’s Bar_ or whatever - an apostrophe seems to have been common in German in these cases some time ago, as I encountered it in 18th and 19th century texts, but nowadays it’s considered incorrect, _Peters Bar_ being the only correct manner. Then came the apostrophe preceding plural s. This is just as wrong in German as it’s in English, but it happens. The last few years have been featured an inflation of incorrect apostrophe usage. ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2005, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/6 "2005-04-22T06:42:37Z")
There a few things as embarassing as making mistakes in a post complaining about other people’s mistakes, as I just did. “Feauring,” that is. ---
**Author:** ![zagloba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/977dab/32.png) [@zagloba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zagloba)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2005, 7:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/7 "2005-04-22T07:56:19Z")
Or “Featuring,” even. ---
**Author:** ![Mops](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mops/32/16494_2.png) [@Mops](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mops)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2005, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/8 "2005-04-22T08:11:44Z")
[Wikipedia article](http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apostrophitis) (German language) on the use of superfluous apostrophes in German, the so-called _Deppenapostroph_ (_Depp_ = idiot). (re the OP: From what very little I know of Dutch the plural of _gorilla_ is in fact _gorilla’s_.) ---
**Author:** ![gum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bbe5ce/32.png) [@gum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gum)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2005, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/9 "2005-04-22T10:13:40Z")
> [@tschild](#): > > (re the OP: From what very little I know of Dutch the plural of _gorilla_ is in fact _gorilla’s_.) As are all words ending with a vowel. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2005, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/10 "2005-04-22T16:28:28Z")
> [@Josh\_dePlume](#): > > How about the tendency to insert prepositions where they don’t belong? Oh, go away. I was editing the title to make it fit, and I forgot it was there. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2005, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/11 "2005-04-22T17:06:56Z")
> [@Gest](#): > > In this case, it is a plural apostrophe and not a possessive apostrophe. What is it that’s possessed by the gorillas that makes you believe it’s used in that sense? No, no, nothing makes me think the gorillas are possessing anything. I can read Dutch well enough to see that, at least. The question is, is it correct to use a ‘plural apostrophe’, as you put it, in Dutch? Or is this an example of the same kind of carelessness which is so widespread in English? ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2005, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/12 "2005-04-22T17:11:04Z")
> [@tschild](#): > > [Wikipedia article](http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apostrophitis) (German language) on the use of superfluous apostrophes in German, the so-called _Deppenapostroph_ (_Depp_ = idiot) See, this is why I love the German language, with its wonderful ability to form compounds. English actually does form similar compounds, but they are not recognized as such because they are still written as separate words. Moreover, it’s not done to the same extent as it is in German. I can’t think of any exact English equivalent to _Deppenapostroph_. ---
**Author:** ![twelvericepaddies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@twelvericepaddies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twelvericepaddies)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2005, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/13 "2005-04-22T17:15:50Z")
I had no idea!!! This IS an urgent crisis probably equivalent to what colour socks to wear while curling, at what speed knitting ought be attempted, or Just how many ants and other bugs smaller than 2 cm die on Canadian highways annually. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2005, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/14 "2005-04-22T17:16:19Z")
Can someone tell me if I translated the word _uiterlijk_ correctly? ---
**Author:** ![TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tellmei_mnotcrazy/32/3419_2.png) [@TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TellMeI_mNotCrazy)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2005, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/15 "2005-04-22T21:11:34Z")
I’m pretty sure you’re correct, at that uiterlijk (“Outer look”) would be appearance. ---
**Author:** ![gum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bbe5ce/32.png) [@gum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gum)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2005, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-inability-to-handle-with-apostrophes-spreading-to-other-languages/300493/16 "2005-04-22T21:21:08Z")
> [@Spectre of Pithecanthropus](#): > > Can someone tell me if I translated the word _uiterlijk_ correctly? You translated the whole thing perfectly. 🙂