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f you were to send an email to me and my family, you’d have no problem writing my surname, because it is Andersen. The etiquette rules for writing a plural surname are simple: just add s! But this doesn’t work for a lot of names, so it can get confusing fast. “Pluralising is nearly foolproof in speech; it just gets tricky in writing,” says Dr Lisa McLendon, the author of The Perfect English Grammar Work- book and a professor of journalism and mass communications. “No one gets ‘keeping up with the Joneses’ wrong when speaking, but have them write it, and you get a range of attempts, such as Jones, Jones’s, Joneses and Jones’.” The big- gest problem, she says, is that people are unsure about how to use apos- trophes because apostrophes are so often used incorrectly. But it’s worth taking the time to do it right, says Diane Gottsman, an et- iquette expert and author of Modern Etiquette for a Better Life . “Spelling someone’s name correctly, and that includes plurals, is a way to show re- spect and care,” she says, “especially when you’re writing it out on birthday cards, wedding invitations, RSVPs, thank-you cards or sympathy cards.” Don’t worry, you don’t need a de- gree in English to get it right. Here are the few simple grammar rules that will help you easily write a plural surname. How To Pluralise Most Names Most of the time, writing a plural surname is easy: simply add an s to the end. For example: Anderson → Andersons, Smith → Smiths, Gupta → Guptas, and Nguyen → Nguyens. There are exceptions, though. When The Surname Ends In Ch, S, Sh Or Z Sending warm wishes to the March, Walsh, Davis and Gonzalez families? These are some of the names most pluralised incorrectly. For instance, Gonzalez very often gets pluralised as Gonzalez’s, which is incorrect. The apostrophe indicates possession. The right way to pluralise names that end in z is by adding an ‘es’ at the end. Do the same when making a surname plural if it ends in s, ch or sh. So, Mr and Mrs Claus becomes the Clauses. Other examples include: March → Marches, Jones → Joneses, Walsh → Walshes, Davis → Davises, Gutierrez → Gutierrezes and Gonza- lez → Gonzalezes. When It Ends In X There are two possible ways to plu- ralise a surname ending in x, and to avoid a grammar mistake, you may need to say the name aloud. Pay at- tention to whether you can hear the x sound. For last names ending in an x sound, add es. For surnames ending with a silent x, add an s. For example: Beaux → Beauxs and Cox → Coxes. readersdigest.com.au 17 The Tricky World Of Plurals