The Order Of People's Names When You List Them.

This is purely a grammatical question. Anyone here teach grammar in some school? High school or college? But, what order should you include things when you list them as you write something? And what order should you list humans, is what I was thinking of specifically.

I know my mother told me as a child, when you send out a Christmas card for example, it is the order of the person who is most closely related to you. Your blood relative in other words. If you are sending a card to Uncle John and Aunt Jane, and Uncle John is you father's brother, and Aunt Jane is just who he married, it goes: "Dear Uncle John and Aunt Jane". If the it's the other way around, then it is: "Dear Aunt Jane and Uncle John ", etc.

Outside of that, I guess it is order of importance, chronology and degree. In other words for importance, if you got money on your birthday from your uncles A, B, and C. And A gave you the most, but C gave you the least, it would be in that order. Uncle A, Uncle B and Uncle C. I'm right, aren't I? Or in order of time. If I visited aunts A, B and C on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday in that order, again it would "A, B and C". Right? Or maybe for my last example above, degree. In other words, any degree. If my neighbors A, B and C are not mowing their lawns, and the grass is tallest in that order, then you list it in that order whenever you talk of those three.

That's what I think at least. Is that correct?

 

Can't say I ever thought about it, nor do I recall being taught any of that in school.

When referring to two people, myself and others in my family would refer to two people based on how things flowed. I'd say "Mom and Dad" because "Dad and Mom" sounds a little less fluid. They eventually divorced and got other partners, but then it'd be my parent's first and then their partner's second, thus "Mom & Partner's Name" and "Dad & Partner's Name." - We all kind of accepted their partners were not our moms and dads. Step Mother and Father legally, but I'd still refer to them by first name. I was also in my mid 20s when they started new relationships, so it's not like their new partners had any role in raising me.

Same with "Grammie and Papa", "Aunt and Uncle?" Seems it's a Ladies First Rule, but there are uncles, aunts, cousins and such who's names swap around in order. Again, all based on how it flows when saying it. It doesn't mean one person is more important than the other. That seems like over thinking things.

As for cards and gift money, I never categorised others based on who gave me the most. That seems a bit disrespectful and greedy. I appreciate whatever gift anyone gives me, because nobody is obligated to give me gifts in the first place & I don't expect them. Everyone gets equal thanks and appreciation from me and will acknowledge based on order of me interacting with them next time I saw them.

Which then leads to your other example of listing names based on who you're going to visit and what time. It would seem logical to list based on order of when you will see them, but for me, that's mostly to help me keep a schedule.

Not mowing lawns and based on grass height? Uhhh, I dunno. That sounds a bit odd. Do you mean you would go and talk to them to complain about their lawns in order of grass height so that you could somehow guilt the person with the longest grass first so they mow sooner?

I personally couldn't care about someone else's grass or how often they mow it or don't. It's their property and I got better things to do than be an asshole to my neighbours based on some superficial hang up on vegetation.

Is that some sort US HOA type thing? I've heard a bit about HOA's in the US and I'd personally want nothing to do with people like that or their little group. If someone like that came knocking on my door to tell me what I should be doing with my own property, they would end up getting the flat side of a shovel smashed into their face..... And that would he based on the order of who came knocking first. First come, First served and all that.