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and was originally a title given primarily to children rather than adults. During the 1700s, its usage broadened to encompass adult women. The title emerged as a polite way to address women, reflecting changing societal norms and class distinctions. Prior to this, referring to an adult woman as a
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case in which the court held that Mary
Hamilton was entitled to the same courteous forms of address customarily reserved solely for whites in the southern United States and that calling a Black person by her or his first name in a formal context was "a form of racial discrimination."
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underwent transformations over time. Historically, these titles did not solely indicate marital status. Even after the adoption of
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continued to signify social or business standing, rather than merely marital status, until at least the mid-19th century.
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This article is about the honorific for unmarried women. For the honorific for women regardless of marital status, see
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Being addressed with "Miss" or "Mrs." was frequently denied to Black women in the
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436:"Hamilton v. Alabama, 376 US 650 – Supreme Court 1964 – Google Scholar"
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Prepare for the LSAT, Law School Admission Test
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271:"Messrs., Mmes. and Mses.: Quick Guide to Meaning & Use"
105:. Originating in the 17th century, it is a contraction of
40:"Misses" redirects here. For the clothing size range, see
302:"Mistresses and Marriage: or, a Short History of the Mrs"
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by many adult single women in 18th-century
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101:"), or for a married woman retaining her
34:For the honorific for married women, see
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93:(when not using another title such as "
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300:Erickson, Amy Louise (Autumn 2014).
239:, an archaic Swedish equivalent of
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370:. April 10, 1964. Archived from
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27:Honorific for an unmarried woman
442:from the original on 2022-11-06
163:Evolution of meanings and usage
203:protester arrested in 1963 in
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269:Gormandy White, Mary (2020).
337:. LexisNexis. p. 1207.
331:Lawless, Joseph F. (2008).
248:, the French equivalent of
230:, the German equivalent of
215:United States Supreme Court
150:has its roots in the title
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213:, 376 U.S. 650 (1964), a
488:English social honorific
385:(Subscription required.)
306:History Workshop Journal
46:Misses (disambiguation)
396:Bobrow, Jerry (2005).
275:www.yourdictionary.com
193:Southern United States
44:. For other uses, see
628:Women's social titles
187:Racial discrimination
167:The meanings of both
85:typically used for a
210:Hamilton v. Alabama
89:, for an unmarried
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633:Honorifics
622:Categories
446:2022-11-06
256:References
547:Masculine
280:14 August
83:honorific
18:Signorina
523:Mistress
503:Goodwife
496:Feminine
440:Archived
420:July 13,
414:Archived
378:July 13,
228:Fräulein
222:See also
152:Mistress
108:mistress
78:) is an
594:Neutral
564:Esquire
554:Goodman
132:Origins
127:History
569:Master
490:titles
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237:Fröken
117:Misses
97:" or "
95:Doctor
528:Madam
136:Like
91:woman
584:Lord
579:Sire
538:Lady
533:Dame
513:Miss
422:2013
404:ISBN
380:2013
367:Time
339:ISBN
282:2023
250:Miss
241:Miss
232:Miss
199:, a
177:Miss
171:and
169:Miss
157:Miss
148:Miss
142:and
121:Mses
113:Miss
99:Dame
87:girl
53:Miss
36:Mrs.
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314:doi
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