Horace Hart.
The Oxford comma has been attributed to Horace Hart, printer and controller of the Oxford University Press from 1893 to 1915, who wrote Hart’s Rules for Compositors and Readers in 1905 as a style guide for the employees working at the press.
How did Oxford comma get its name?
What Is the Oxford Comma? The Oxford comma is the final comma that comes before the conjunction in a list of three or more items. Its name comes from the Oxford University Press (OUP), where for over a century it has been standard in the Oxford Style Manual.
Who invented the serial comma?
The big shift in this thinking came in 1905, when a printer named Horace Hart updated his style guide for Oxford University Press, requiring his employees to use a comma before the last item in a series.
Is the Oxford comma a British thing?
The Oxford comma did not actually originate at Oxford University in England. One can trace its origin in English guides from the early 20th century. The Oxford comma is “correct” in American Standard English but does not exist in other languages, nor is it mandatory in British or International English.
Why is the Oxford comma so controversial?
This practice is controversial and is known as the serial comma or Oxford comma, because it is part of the house style of Oxford University Press.” There are cases in which the use of the serial comma can avoid ambiguity, and also instances in which its use can introduce ambiguity.
Why do Americans use Oxford comma?
British and American English both use the Oxford comma like this, but they differ on when it is used: Typically, in British English, we only use an Oxford comma when a list would be unclear without one, such as in the example sentence above. In American English, it is often standard to use an Oxford comma in lists.
Who founded Oxford and why?
According to legend Oxford university was founded in 872 when Alfred the Great happened to meet some monks there and had a scholarly debate that lasted several days. In reality, it grew up in the 12th century when famous teachers began to lecture there and groups of students came to live and study in Oxford.
What is the Shatner comma?
‘ The Shatner comma! That, is, you, know, a really, fantastic, idea. See, the problem people have with the Oxford comma is that it puts a pause where some think one doesn’t belong.
Is the Oxford comma still taught?
You may even know the Oxford Comma as the Harvard or Serial Comma. In primary schools today, students are taught how to use the Oxford comma but aren’t familiar with the name. The use of the Oxford Comma is typically taught on the second-grade level.
Are Oxford and serial commas the same?
What Is the Oxford Comma (or Serial Comma)? The Oxford (or serial) comma is the final comma in a list of things. For example: Please bring me a pencil, eraser, and notebook.
Does German use the Oxford comma?
Interestingly, many languages – including French, German and Italian – do not use the Oxford comma at all.
Is Oxford British or American?
In general, the Oxford standard, and indeed the British standard in general, unlike the American model, always choose the closest spelling to the root of the word or its etymology, whether with such words as organize and analyse or with words like yogurt instead of yoghurt, archaeology rather than archeology and
Does British use Z or S?
“Does the UK use ‘s’ instead of ‘z’?” Answer; no it doesn’t. For most words, z or s are interchangeable and both are correct; “-ise “ and “-ize” are perfectly acceptable.
Why do people hate Oxford comma?
Many opponents of the Oxford comma claim that it makes a piece of writing sound more pretentious and stuffy, and that it can make things seem cluttered and redundant. Many magazine publishers renounce its use as well, because sentences loaded with commas take up valuable page space.
Why don t lawyers use the Oxford comma?
Use of the Oxford comma is mostly a matter of preference and varies by region and profession. Lawyers should use the Oxford comma to help avoid ambiguity. Three ambiguities may arise without this comma: Whether the two final items in a list are one combined element or separate.
Is the Oxford comma pretentious?
The blue-blood punctuation mark, named after the Oxford University Press, acts as a social signifier, a sieve for the bookish and studious (and, perhaps, pretentious). It suggests personality traits that extend far beyond punctuation preferences. There are other ways of doing this in your Tinder profile, of course.
Why don t British people use the Oxford comma?
Despite being named after a British University, the Oxford comma (the comma used before “and” in lists (e.g., I like wookies, ewoks, and droids)) is not considered standard in UK English because only one style guide (Oxford) recommends it.
Why do Europeans use comma instead of point?
In the early 1700s, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, a German polymath, proposed the dot as the symbol for multiplication. Therefore, most of Europe favored the comma as a decimal separator.
Is British English considered proper English?
British English is ‘correct’ where it is spoken, and American or Australian English is correct in those areas of the world. While it might not seem clean and neat to have so many ‘correct’ versions of a language, that’s just the way it is. Of course, all of these versions of English are perfectly interchangeable.
Which country owns Oxford?
England
University of Oxford, English autonomous institution of higher learning at Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, one of the world’s great universities. It lies along the upper course of the River Thames (called by Oxonians the Isis), 50 miles (80 km) north-northwest of London.
What was Oxford originally called?
Oxnaford
Oxford was first settled by the Anglo-Saxons and was initially known in Old English as Oxnaford and in Old Norse as Öxnafurða. The name is a portmanteau of “oxen’s ford”, which literally meant oxen’s shallow river crossing.