The Ohio State University - a reason or arrogance?

[YourEconProf]

Originally Posted by CleveBucks

I doubt that's true, as the "The" has been there since 1878. When were the branch campuses added?

I may not have been clear in my earlier post; I believe that the word "The" existed in the name prior, but it only became a point of emphasis after the regional campus issue. 'The' exists in many schools names, but tOSU is the only school I know of that INSISTS that it be included in all references, logos, etc., and gets a bit touchy if it is forgotten. Just like middle initials--most people have 'em, but nobody uses 'em until you want to make clear that you are John K. Smith. :-)

YEP

[BayBuck]

Originally Posted by YourEconProf

I may not have been clear in my earlier post; I believe that the word "The" existed in the name prior, but it only became a point of emphasis after the regional campus issue. 'The' exists in many schools names, but tOSU is the only school I know of that INSISTS that it be included in all references, logos, etc., and gets a bit touchy if it is forgotten. Just like middle initials--most people have 'em, but nobody uses 'em until you want to make clear that you are John K. Smith. :-)

YEP

If you are suggesting that the "The" is used to distinguish the main campus from the regionals, that is mistaken. All of our campuses are parts of THE Ohio State University. The only reason OSU would "insist" that The be included on their logos is because this is a trademarked image:

It's just tradition.

[YourEconProf]

But that graphic is 'a trademarked graphic' because tOSU requires 'The' to be used, i.e. emphasized. It is my understanding that prior to some point in relatively recent times (I think the 50s or 60s), there was no big deal about 'The' at the administrative level. It was part of the name, but it was not used dogmatically. Now it is. I have no doubt that it was always part of the name, legally speaking, and I would expect that articles and prepositions are part of the names of many universities: 'The University of Missouri at Columbia', for example, but it is referred to as University of Missouri-Columbia, many times in official correspondence.

[BayBuck]

Originally Posted by YourEconProf

But that graphic is 'a trademarked graphic' because tOSU requires 'The' to be used, i.e. emphasized. It is my understanding that prior to some point in relatively recent times (I think the 50s or 60s), there was no big deal about 'The' at the administrative level. It was part of the name, but it was not used dogmatically. Now it is. I have no doubt that it was always part of the name, legally speaking, and I would expect that articles and prepositions are part of the names of many universities: 'The University of Missouri at Columbia', for example, but it is referred to as University of Missouri-Columbia, many times in official correspondence.

If that's the case, I'm sure there's some memos floating around the administrative archives of the university somewhere detailing the intricacies of OSU trademark practices... As for real tradition outside the legal system, the name originated in 1878 and most people today are familiar with the emphasis on "The" from Monday Night Football.

[OSU_Buckguy]

ahh, a discussion of proper grammar and usage. my favorite. sushi may remember me.

pronouncing "the" with the long 'e' has as much to do with being correct as it does with sounding confident and proud. the following link details the distinction:

http://www.englishclub.com/pronunciation/the.htm

[Steve19]

Originally Posted by YourEconProf

But that graphic is 'a trademarked graphic' because tOSU requires 'The' to be used, i.e. emphasized. It is my understanding that prior to some point in relatively recent times (I think the 50s or 60s), there was no big deal about 'The' at the administrative level. It was part of the name, but it was not used dogmatically. Now it is. I have no doubt that it was always part of the name, legally speaking, and I would expect that articles and prepositions are part of the names of many universities: 'The University of Missouri at Columbia', for example, but it is referred to as University of Missouri-Columbia, many times in official correspondence.

This is not really something to squabble about but are you sure about that?

I could be wrong but I have heard a number of times that Ohio State is one of only a handful of universities that are officially incorporated with a name that includes a capitalized The.

For instance, the University of Missouri style guide does not officially capitalize the word the in their name, except at the start of a sentence. Here is an excerpt and if you look through the entire document, in places like referring to the university system or the president, it is clear that the word the is not capitalized.
http://www.umsystem.edu/ums/departme...es/style.shtml...

Campus identification, UM. On first reference, spell out the entire name of the campus, e.g., the University of Missouri-Columbia, the University of Missouri-Kansas City, the University of Missouri-Rolla, the University of Missouri-St. Louis, University of Missouri Extension. Second and subsequent references can be either UM, UM-Columbia, UM-Kansas City, UM-Rolla, UM-St. Louis; or, alternatively, UMC, UMKC, UMR, UMSL.

Their official library site manual seems to indicate the same thing...

http://mulibraries.missouri.edu/admi...cies/POL54.htm