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Family Name Pluralization

Okay, so this is kind of a strange question... but a group on my fraternity calls itself "Popeye" and they refer to themself als "Popeyers". But I got the feeling that that isn't really spelled right.

But what would the correct English plural for "Popeye" be?

edit: oh and in case this should be trivial, English is not my mother tongue so to me it isn't

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    Duplicate of Family Name Pluralization
    – F'x
    Commented Apr 4, 2011 at 19:15
  • So then it would just be "The Popeyes"?
    – dtech
    Commented Apr 4, 2011 at 19:18
  • Yes. Unless you really wanted something else, Popeyes is correct.
    – MrHen
    Commented Apr 4, 2011 at 19:19
  • Awesome Question: Would the Sorority be called the Olive Oyls?
    – user5531
    Commented Apr 4, 2011 at 19:25
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    @JustnBeaver: why not the Olive Oylers?
    – Henry
    Commented Apr 4, 2011 at 22:17

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Popeye is a proper name, so the plural would be "Popeyes," just like "all the Johns" would refer to everyone named John. You could also consider that the name refers to the character's trait of having one eye "popped," in which case a group people, each of whom has a popped eye, would still be called "popeyes."

However, a group or team may choose to append the suffix ers to the name of a person or thing that they promote, in which case "Popeyers" would be perfectly acceptable, if they support or promote Popeye.

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  • Presumably the group is Popeye, a single member is a Popeyer and some or all of the members together are Popeyers.
    – Henry
    Commented Apr 4, 2011 at 22:14
  • That sounds reasonable if they seek to eliminate confusion between referring to the group itself or a single member.
    – snumpy
    Commented Apr 4, 2011 at 22:19
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What you're looking for here is similar to a Demonym. Figure that out and the pluralisation will follow.

If you're a member of the group, are you a Popeye or a Popeyer? Either one suggest the simple addition of an 's' to pluralise.

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    A demonym is the name derived from a locality, so: no.
    – F'x
    Commented Apr 4, 2011 at 19:18
  • @F'x: changed accordingly. It's not literally a demonym, but it serves precise the same function. It's a proper noun for a member of a group derived from the name of that group. Demonym is specific to location. Is there a more generic -nym term?
    – Dancrumb
    Commented Apr 4, 2011 at 19:27

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