"a nation who has ..."?

[Arnold M. Zwicky]

On Oct 26, 2007, at 10:26 AM, Joel  Berson wrote:

> What do the experts say about --
>
> In a trial for invasion of privacy and intentional infliction of
> emotional distress by protestors at the funeral of an Iraq War
> marine, a defendant said "He's fighting for a nation who has made God
> a No. 1 enemy."
>
> Who vs. that?

"that" (or "which") is standard, but relative "who" is not
infrequently used with heads referring to human institutions,
organizations, etc.: "a company who cares about you".  an actual cite:

When Zucker telegraphed the German firm who made and packed his
special rocket fuel, he discovered that the Nazis had banned its export.
   (Christopher Turner, "Letter Bombs", _Cabinet_ 23 (Fall 2006), p. 29)

i find the usage jarring enough that i'm inclined to notice it when
it goes past me, but i haven't been collecting examples
systematically.  and i don't know anything about the history or the
spead of the usage.  (so i tend to think of it as a recent
development, or a recently spreading one, but i'm probably wrong.)

not in MWDEU, apparently.

> Has vs. have?

only "has".

arnold

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org