MSGID: 2:221/6.0 608a6848   
   REPLY: 1:153/716.0 088be411   
   PID: SmapiNNTPd/Linux/IPv6 1.3 20210401   
   CHRS: LATIN-1 2   
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   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2021-04-18   
      
   Hi, Ardith Hinton! -> Alexander Koryagin   
   I read your message from 27.04.2021 21:46   
      
    AK>> So, if you are a headmaster in school,   
    AH> Usage note: as a female I might well be headmistress of a private   
    AH> school in this country but principal (gender neutral) of a public   
    AH> school.   
      
   Although, I spoke in general, not about you. And don't you find that   
   "principal" is a more formal word?  "Principal came to the boy and asked..."   
   or "Headmaster/mistress came to the boy..."   
      
    AK>> and you want to find out who is that naughty boy throwing rocks,   
    AK>> you will ask him, "Why you are not at a lesson?   
      
    AH> Assuming the incident occurred during class hours I'd probably   
    AH> say.. as Anton suggested... "Why are you not in class?   
      
   But in informal speech I often hear questions asked as an affirmative sentence   
   with questionable intonation?   
      
    AK>> What's your second name?"   
      
    AH> I'd start by saying "What's your name?" If he replied with only a   
    AH> given name I'd pursue the matter further, because in a large high   
    AH> school there could easily be dozens of kids who are known by the   
    AH> same first name. The term "second name" could be confusing, though,   
    AH> in English. Let's say we have a boy whose full legal name is on   
    AH> record in the office as   
      
    AH>                   John Jacob Jingleheimer-Schmidt   
      
   Poor boy, but, nevertheless, there is no other way to establish boy's identity   
   (to call his parents to Principal). ;)   
      
      
    AH> Now, what to do instead? If Mr. & Mrs. Jones & their 2.3 children   
    AH> use the surname "Jones" you can refer to it as a family name... but   
    AH> things are often more complex these days. A woman may prefer to use   
    AH> her maiden name, for any number of reasons, and/or she may remarry.   
    AH> IOW a parent's surname may not be the same as that of the   
    AH> individual who's throwing rocks or whatever. I say "surname"   
    AH> because it covers a lot of territory including historical   
    AH> characters like Harold Bluetooth who may not have had family names   
    AH> as we know them. :-))   
      
   But any child is written in the school register with a certain surname. And   
   probably he must know his surname.   
      
    AH> If "surname" is beyond the limits of the other person's vocabulary   
    AH> you could try "last name", but this might not work with e.g. recent   
    AH> immigrants from parts of Southeast Asia where the family name comes   
    AH> first. "John what??" works in many cases although it sounds   
    AH> unbecoming of a principal... [chuckle].   
      
   I think it is better to use "surname" in that circumstance. But it's too late   
   to correct my translation. ;)   
      
   Bye, Ardith!   
   Alexander Koryagin   
   english_tutor 2021   
      
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