Just learned a new term I've never heard of before, anywhere.

[csziggy]

21. Ms has been in use for decades for women

I fit it perfectly and use it as my designated form of formal address.

I am not a "Miss" since I am married. But I do not use my husband's surname so I am not a "Mrs." It is a battle I have waged since I married in 1977. I will NOT answer to "Mrs. Male Csziggy" because that is not me. I even had this disagreement with the IRS and the Social Security Administration.

Here in the South "Miz" has been a form of address for any woman whether their married status is known or unknown so the transition to "Ms" may be more common than in other parts of the country.

Once in a while I get a negative response to it - most often when I address a woman as Ms. Whatever. Mostly it is married women who want to have that status recognized, but unless they introduce themselves as Mrs. Male Surname I will assume they are not attached to a male and use the indeterminate "Ms."