McDonald's - Chili's ?

[white.rose]

Hi,

I don't understand why there is an apostrophe in such words: McDonald's, Chili's ... I know that apostrophe shows possession. So, where is the possession?

Thank you in advance,

 

[emsr2d2]

Presumably the person who started the burger company was called Mr McDonald. Therefore it is "Mr McDonald's Burger Company". I am not suggesting that it used to be called that but "McDonald" is a surname, "McDonalds" isn't.

I don't know of a shop/restaurant called "Chili's" - perhaps we don't have it in the UK.

 

[TheParser]

***** NOT A TEACHER *****


Here is one explanation. I do not know how accurate it is. The source DOES seem to be authoritative.

"In reality there is no apostrophe in the Chili's name. Instead the apostrophe is a substitute for the word pepper."

So the source tells us that Chili's actually means CHILI-pepper-S.

Source: go to Google and type in: [PDF] Chili's -- Super Brands

 

[Skrej]

McDonald's, Chili's, etc. are franchise corporations, so the restaurant name belong to the company, even though the actual franchises are owned by individuals.

So when we say 'McDonald's', it is a short form of 'McDonald's restaurant', thus the possessive, belonging to the corporation.

Just as tidbits of extra info - McDonald's was actually started by a man named Ray Kroc. I don't remember where the 'McDonald' part comes in, but I'm sure you can find out on the internet.

Chili's is an American restaurant bar and grill chain that serves pseudo Tex-Mex cuisine. However, their menu is very loosely based on Tex-Mex cuisine, I wouldn't consider them Tex-Mex. It's not bad food by any means, just not terribly authentic.

Parser is correct that the 'Chili' in 'Chili's' represents a chili pepper, which is commonly associated with Mexican food. However, the rest his theory, I'm afraid is incorrect.

 

[white.rose]

So, 's in "chili" doesn't represent possession? Substitution is another use of apostrophe, isn't it?

 

[MikeNewYork]

The apostrophe in Chili's is a possessive for Chili's restaurant.

 

[SoothingDave]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonald's

Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald. In 1948, they reorganized their business as a hamburger stand using production line principles. Businessman Ray Kroc joined the company as a franchise agent in 1955. He subsequently purchased the chain from the McDonald brothers and oversaw its worldwide growth.[SUP][7][/SUP]