neuter plural = feminine singular

A sometime classical scholar experiences high dudgeon at reading "your data is held securely" in a communication from one of his university's offices. "If," he laments, "the University of Oxford can no longer recognise a neuter plural in broad daylight, what hope is there for the rest of civilisation?"

What hope indeed? But then we no longer live in the Age of Prescriptive Grammar. Times they are a-changing! Now such rules are there are depend on observation and description of what people actually write and say. It's all happened before, of course. A classical scholar who matriculated in 1954 may not - but a mediaevalist of any age would - have been aware of the gradual sliding of some manuscripted nouns from neuter plurals to feminine singulars. And the marks are still there on the animal skins to prove it.

There was a time, even in my own earlier days, when the 'nice' word Datum was to be found on His Majesty's Ordnance Survey maps. We accepted that as the one and only correct usage. But now even we bus-pass savants needs must give pause before requiring, very politely of course, that data 'are' to be treated with all due deference.

And what about agenda? Ho! Ho! Ho! Dare we ask the Secretary of our Favourite Committee (indulge me but a little more) if the agenda 'are' complete? I think not.

francis cameron, oxford, 26 june 2010

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