This is the blog of a Norwegian (Marianne, aka 'M') who moved to Australia in 2007 to be with Roger (aka R) and feels lucky to have escaped a comparatively communistic country with ridiculous weather!

I find the English use of titles likes Mr, Mrs and Miss very sexist and very dated.

If you're a man, you're a Mr, no matter what. If you're a woman your title changes with your marital status, for whatever reason. And your new title 'Mrs' is a Mr with an s at the end, as if your identity is somehow tied up to your husband.

Titles are used a lot in English speaking countries. Pretty much every time you put your name in online to pay for something or sign up for something, you have to choose your title from a dropdown menu. Today I was asked for my title when I dropped my car off for a repair, and I felt like I had just travelled 50 years into the past.

In Norwegian we have words for titles, but they are hardly ever used. I don't think I have ever been referred to as 'miss' in Norwegian, and have only ever heard someone else referred to by title two or three times in my entire life. And then it was always an older person speaking to another older person. I suspect that if it wasn't for the English use of the terms, Norwegians would no longer bother learning their own words for them.

And there is a big flaw in the title system. I'm sure it wasn't an issue 60 years ago, but these days a woman doesn't always take her husband's name; so if I married R, would I then be 'Mrs Hovde', despite having a different name than my husband?

I think a woman should always be 'miss', or they could make up a new, less sexist way to address women. Or they could just get rid of the titles altogether, Norwegians seems to do just fine without them.