Learn English – How to Correctly Imply Possession for the Surname “Camus”

apostrophegrammarpossessives

My surname is Camus. Spoken by the French it is correctly pronounced "Camu" (loosing the "s"), but spoken by the English it is all too often pronounced "Camus" using the "s". This leads to a slight change in the way one might imply possession.

In all articles written on Albert Camus, I see "Camus's" used to illustrate possession, but here I wonder what is correct; if you are French you would choose the pronunciation /is/ over /izis/ (ie. "Camus'"), but if you were English, you would choose /isiz/ over /iz/ (ie. "Camus's").

Am I right to suggest that both of /isiz/ and /iz/ these are acceptable depending on the choice of pronunciation of the name itself? Or is there a "right way"?

Best Answer

Both "Camus'" and "Camus's" are acceptable.

Here's a good explanation: http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/possessives.htm

Excerpt:

Some writers will say that the -s after Charles' is not necessary and that adding only the apostrophe (Charles' car) will suffice to show possession. Consistency is the key here: if you choose not to add the -s after a noun that already ends in s, do so consistently throughout your text. William Strunk's Elements of Style recommends adding the 's. (In fact, oddly enough, it's Rule Number One in Strunk's "Elementary Rules of Usage.") You will find that some nouns, especially proper nouns, especially when there are other -s and -z sounds involved, turn into clumsy beasts when you add another s: "That's old Mrs. Chambers's estate." In that case, you're better off with "Mrs. Chambers' estate."

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