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Angliholic Posted 15 years ago
Grammar
A lot of ancient civilizations, such as the Egyptians/Egyptians'
A lot of ancient civilizations, such as the Egyptians, Hindus, Greeks and Mayans, have left writings and drawings which indicate contacts with superior beings "from the stars."
Hi,
The above is from an article serving as a test for students here. I wonder why it's "such as the Egyptians, Hindus, Greeks and Mayans" rather than "such as the Egyptians, Hindus', Greeks and Mayans' (civilizations)." Am I right? Thanks.
Hi,
The above is from an article serving as a test for students here. I wonder why it's "such as the Egyptians, Hindus, Greeks and Mayans" rather than "such as the Egyptians, Hindus', Greeks and Mayans' (civilizations)." Am I right? Thanks.
Top answer
There is no need for making them possessives – and it is excessively awkward.
- There is no need for making them possessives – and it is excessively awkward.
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8 Answers
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There is no need for making them possessives – and it is excessively awkward.
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The apostrophe may be the simplest and yet most frequently misused mark of punctuation in English.
To form the possessive of a plural noun that already ends in -s, add an apostrophe.
There is nothing possessive about the plural nouns "Egyptians, Hindus, Greeks and Mayans" as used in the first sentence.
John
To form the possessive of a plural noun that already ends in -s, add an apostrophe.
There is nothing possessive about the plural nouns "Egyptians, Hindus, Greeks and Mayans" as used in the first sentence.
John
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Thanks, Mister and John.
But how can civilizations be the Egytians, the Greeks, ... etc?
But how can civilizations be the Egytians, the Greeks, ... etc?
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This sentence is quite logical. What seems off to you, Angliholic?
It is parallel to....
Toys, such as soccer *****, basketballs and baseballs...
Rivers, such as the Danube, the Mississippi and the Po...
In this case, the author is writing about civiliazations. When we study civilizations in school, we learn about the Romans, the Egyptians, the Greeks, etc.
It is parallel to....
Toys, such as soccer *****, basketballs and baseballs...
Rivers, such as the Danube, the Mississippi and the Po...
In this case, the author is writing about civiliazations. When we study civilizations in school, we learn about the Romans, the Egyptians, the Greeks, etc.
00
Thanks, Lindsay.
My question is that the ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome could be civilizations. But I don't think the ancient people could.
So at least, I would say, "A lot of ancient civilizations, such as Egypt, Greece, and Rome ..."
My question is that the ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome could be civilizations. But I don't think the ancient people could.
So at least, I would say, "A lot of ancient civilizations, such as Egypt, Greece, and Rome ..."
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No, the 'countries' could no more be civilizations than the 'people' could, grammatically. The fact of the matter is that there is a logical communicative shortcut here, where the reader accepts the original sentence as meaning what we all know it means:
A lot of ancient civilizations, such as the Egyptians, Hindus, Greeks and Mayans
Each name is pronomial: Egyptians = An
A lot of ancient civilizations, such as the Egyptians, Hindus, Greeks and Mayans
Each name is pronomial: Egyptians = An
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Thanks, Mister.
But how come I couldn't find the definition of a dictionary that says "Each name is pronomial: Egyptians = Ancient Egyptian civilization?"
But how come I couldn't find the definition of a dictionary that says "Each name is pronomial: Egyptians = Ancient Egyptian civilization?"
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