British question

[Pam Scruton]

No: HPFGUIDX 573

--- In HPforGrownups at egroups.com, summers.65 at o... wrote:
> 
> Ah, thanks Pam.  So what word would you suggest I use in the 
following sentence:
> 
> "There is a mailing list for [blanks] of Hogwarts."  The word I'd 
use over
> here is "alums."

Ah now you put me on the spot!  Well, I used to be a member of my 
former school's OGA (Old Girls Association) and my husband is an Old 
Boy of his former school.   But my son, who goes to a mixed school, 
will become a Former Pupil when he leaves and be a member of the FPA 
(Former Pupils Association).  In Scotland there are lots of amateur 
sports clubs based on FP associations who play each other regularly.  
So you could have Hogwarts FPs playing quidditch against other 
wizarding schools - and there must be more than one in the UK surely.

However, a more elegant solution, frequently found amongst long 
established more traditional schools,  would be to call them Old-
Something- or-another derived from the name, thus former pupils of a 
school founded by King Charles, say, would be Old Carolians, or from 
King Edward's School would be Old Edwardians.  So Hogwarts FPs could 
be Old Hogwertians or some such.  

Does that give you some thoughts?

Cheers for now

Pam