Learn English – Difference between “Education Institute” & “Institute of Education”

attributive-nounsdifferencespossessives

Also, what is this property called? X Y versus Y of X.

Best Answer

Education Institute modifies the head noun institute with a noun adjunct, also called an attributive noun or sometimes an adjectival noun. More simply, it is a noun used as an adjective.

Institute of Education modifies it with a genitive construction. Genitives express a relationship between nouns, usually possession, but in this case the relationship is one of composition (the nature of the institute).

Hypothetically, noun adjuncts are less restrictive about the kinds of relationships they can express than genitives are, but in practice, X Y and Y of X are often interchangeable, as in this example.