History News Network

With support from the University of Richmond

History News Network puts current events into historical perspective. Subscribe to our newsletter for new perspectives on the ways history continues to resonate in the present. Explore our archive of thousands of original op-eds and curated stories from around the web. Join us to learn more about the past, now.

Source: The Conversation

12/1/2019

Spinster, old maid or self-partnered – why words for single women have changed through time

by Amy Froide

Attitudes toward single women have repeatedly shifted – and part of that attitude shift is reflected in the names given to unwed women.