<P> Fräulein is the diminutive form of Frau , which was previously reserved only for married women . Frau is in origin the equivalent of `` Mylady '' or `` Madam '' , a form of address of a noblewoman . But by an ongoing process of devaluation of honorifics , it came to be used as the unmarked term for `` woman '' by about 1800 . Therefore , Fräulein came to be interpreted as expressing a `` diminutive of woman '' , as it were implying that a Fräulein is not - quite - a-woman . By the 1960s , this came to be seen as patronising by proponents of feminism , and during the 1970s and 1980s , the term Fräulein became nearly taboo in urban and official settings , while it remained an unmarked standard in many rural areas . This process was somewhat problematic , at least during the 1970s to 1980s , since many unmarried women of the older generation insisted on Fräulein as a term of distinction , respecting their status , and took the address of Frau as offensive or suggestive of extra-marital sexual experience . </P>
<P> Fräulein is the diminutive form of Frau , which was previously reserved only for married women . Frau is in origin the equivalent of `` Mylady '' or `` Madam '' , a form of address of a noblewoman . But by an ongoing process of devaluation of honorifics , it came to be used as the unmarked term for `` woman '' by about 1800 . Therefore , Fräulein came to be interpreted as expressing a `` diminutive of woman '' , as it were implying that a Fräulein is not - quite - a-woman . By the 1960s , this came to be seen as patronising by proponents of feminism , and during the 1970s and 1980s , the term Fräulein became nearly taboo in urban and official settings , while it remained an unmarked standard in many rural areas . This process was somewhat problematic , at least during the 1970s to 1980s , since many unmarried women of the older generation insisted on Fräulein as a term of distinction , respecting their status , and took the address of Frau as offensive or suggestive of extra-marital sexual experience . </P>
how do you say young lady in german
how do you say young lady in german
Fräulein
Fräulein