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The Motivated Podcast, ep 139 : Practical strategies for teaching with gender-inclusive language

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The Motivated Podcast, ep 139 : Practical strategies for teaching with gender-inclusive language

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Host Dr Liam Printer is joined by the wonderful author and educator, Kodi Rain. They had a great conversation about belonging, representation and identity affirming teaching practices; with a particular focus on gender-inclusive language in the classroom. 28/06/26.

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139 ¦ Practical strategies for teaching with gender-inclusive language with Kodi Rain

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Resources for gender inclusive teaching in various languages. Shared by USC Dornsife, University of Southern California.

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Gender-Inclusive Teaching Resources - Center for Languages and Cultures

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USC Dornsife Center for Languages and Cultures Site

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Moore et al. (2024) Queer breaches and normative devices: language learners queering gender, sexuality, and the L2 classroom

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Moore et al. (2024) Queer breaches and normative devices: language learners queering gender, sexuality, and the L2 classroom

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Ashley R. Moore, James Coda, Julia Donnelly Spiegelman & Melisa Cahnmann-Taylor (2024) Queer breaches and normative devices: language learners queering gender, sexuality, and the L2 classroom, International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, DOI: 10.1080/13670050.2024.2306398

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@mxtheythem | Different Pronouns in Different Languages

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@mxtheythem | Different Pronouns in Different Languages

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TikTok Blossom Ruby Brown

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Different Pronouns in Different Languages 💖 #pronouns #neopronouns #nonbinary #multilingual #inclusivelanguage #nonbinarywoman

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@mxtheythem
Different Pronouns in Different Languages 💖 #pronouns #neopronouns #nonbinary #multilingual #inclusivelanguage #nonbinarywoman
♬ original sound - Blossom Ruby Brown 🌸

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What's in a word? How less-gendered language is faring across Europe

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What's in a word? How less-gendered language is faring across Europe

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A contentious vote in the French senate is only the latest battleground in the culture war over inclusive language. Article by

Sam Jones in Madrid, Kim Willsher in Paris, Philip Oltermann in Berlin and Angela Giuffrida in Rome. Published 04/11/23.

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The latest skirmish in the culture war over inclusive language has been playing out this week in France, where the senate voted in favour of a proposal to ban the use of less-gendered terms in official documents.

Les Républicains, the centre-right party behind the move, had claimed that inclusive neologisms such as iel - a mix of the male and female pronouns il and elle - and more general efforts to end the entrenched masculine bias in French were part of an "ideology that endangers the clarity of our language".

Similar arguments are taking place across Europe and beyond as people - from politicians to parents - debate the role language should play in protecting and promoting diversity, inclusion and representation. In countries whose languages have male and female nouns, the issue is proving particularly challenging.

France

Opposition sénateurs and s énatrices disagreed with the outcome of Monday's vote, describing it as a "retrograde and reactionary" text, a view shared by France's independent high commission for equality between women and men.

To become law, the bill would have to be passed in the Assemblée Nationale and there is no date set for a debate. There are, however, growing calls to make gendered French less sexist - a campaign that has been around since the 1980s but which has been rejected by the influential Académie Française, the guardian of the language.

What irks campaigners most is that French grammatical rules make the masculine form of a noun the default over the female. So, women on an all-female board of company directors are called directrices; if one man joins the board, they are referred to collectively as directeurs.

Emmanuel Macron gives a speech to members of the Académie Française in 2018. Photograph: Ludovic Marin/EPA

This was defended by the president, Emmanuel Macron, this week when he said: "In this language,the masculine acts as the neutral." (Macron, however addresses citizens as les Français et les Françaises - and not the strictly correct les Français.)

But, as the academy has pointed out, suggestions for inclusive writing can render the written language unreadable, and thus arguably less - not more - inclusive.

The most popular method is the use of the "median dot" to include both masculine and feminine, as in, Cher·e·s ami·e·s (Dear friends), which is sometimes replaced by a hyphen ( cher-e-s ami-e-s), by parentheses ( cher(e)s ami(e)s), or by slashes ( cher/e/s ami/e/s).

According to the academy, all the above not only "offend the democracy of language" but also create difficulties for those with dyslexia and dysphasia, and for non-French speakers who are learning the language.

"Far from attracting the support of a majority of contemporaries, it appears to be the preserve of an elite, unaware of the difficulties encountered on a daily basis by educators and users of the school system," the academy said in a statement.

Small steps, however, have been made. In 2019, the academy decided it was acceptable to say madame la maire, la ministre, la juge, despite being masculine nouns.

Silvia Luraghi, a professor of linguistics at the University of Pavia, says that in Proto-Indo-European - the reconstructed language from which all Indo-European languages originated - there is a three-gender system, as there is in German or Latin or Russian: masculine, feminine and neuter.

"In the course of their development, some languages lost gender partly - the Romance languages lost the neuter - or completely," she says. "Armenian has no gender distinction even in third person pronouns. Persian has also lost the gender system even in pronouns. English has lost it in nouns and now it only exists in pronouns."

Luraghi says it's possible that at a Pre-Proto-Indo-European stage, there was "a two-gender, animacy-based system, with a two-fold distinction between animate and inanimate".

She adds that while Romance languages cast off the neuter gender when they emerged from Latin, things today are hardly cut and dried. Take the Italian regional dialects from south of Rome, where there are four genders: male; female; an alternating gender for things that come in pairs, and a neuter for mass nouns.

All of which goes to prove that "languages don't necessarily become less complicated; they can become more complicated".

Luraghi is keenly aware of the tendency to "politicise everything" in Italy but says those who speak of the right way and the wrong way are missing the point. "From a linguist's point of view, you can't even say that something is correct or not correct because language is how people speak it and how they use it."

Thank you for your feedback.

Germany

In German, unlike in English, all nouns are grammatically coded as either masculine ( der), feminine ( die) or neuter ( das). A male citizen is a Bürger, a female citizen a Bürgerin, and no one is seriously trying to change that.

But, as in France, there is growing frustration with the fact that the masculine form is traditionally used to refer to groups of people, even if that group is made up of a mix of males and females.

Because Germany does not have a national body to prescribe or standardise language use, people have been free to experiment in order to fix this problem. Attempts to make generic nouns more inclusive have been around since the 1980s but used to be relatively marginal phenomena: the "gender gap" ( Bürger_innen) has been used in queer communities, while feminist groups more commonly capitalise the i ( BürgerInnen).

Over the last 10 years, however, the use of an asterisk or "gender star" in generic forms ( Bürger*innen) has started to be used outside subcultural groups or academic circles. Many universities, schools and some government bodies, such as the federal environment agency, recommend the use of the asterisk in their internal communications.

"The gender star is still not used by the majority of people in German society, but it has seen an impressive rise in a relatively short time," said Anatol Stefanowitsch, a linguist at Berlin's Freie Universität.

It has also inspired a backlash from political parties on the right, with the populist Alternative für Deutschland putting its opposition to "gender gaga" at the heart of its 2021 election campaign. In the eastern state of Saxony, the Christian Democrat government has banned the use of gender stars or gender gaps at schools or educational authorities, meaning that Schüler*innen would be marked as a mistake in students' homework.

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"Conservatives have discovered gender-inclusive language as a potent subject for their culture wars," Stefanowitsch said. "We are currently witnessing attempts to steer language use through the state, even if for now only at a regional level, which is a new phenomenon."

Spain

In April 2021, Spain's equality minister, Irene Montero, gave a speech in Madrid in which she attacked the rightwing regional government for its attitude to LGBTQ+ rights. But it wasn't the sentiment that made headlines - it was the language. Montero deliberately used male, female and gender-neutral terms, referring to "libertad para todos, para todas y para todes" ("freedom for all men, all women and all gender-neutral people''). She also spoke of "su hijo, hija e hije" - "your son, daughter or gender-neutral child" - and of niño, niña y niñe (boy, girl and gender-neutral child).

Spain's minister for equality, Irene Montero, centre, celebrates with LGBTQ+ activists after a transgender law was passed. Photograph: Susana Vera/Reuters

Her use of the terms has been ridiculed by her opponents and become yet another weapon in the culture wars between left and right. In 2018, the socialist deputy prime minister, Carmen Calvo, was criticised when she called for an overhaul of the Spanish constitution, arguing it was all written "in the masculine" because it used the male form to refer to "ministers and MPs".

The then head of the Real Academia Española (RAE) - the body that oversees the evolution of the Spanish language - replied by counselling against "confusing grammar with sexism" and saying that economy should always be the guiding principle of language. "False solutions, such as using -e instead of -o and -a, are absurd, ridiculous and totally inefficient," said Darío Villanueva.

In a 156-page report published in January 2020, the RAE said changes in language should be driven by common usage rather than edicts from on high. It did, however, stress that, as in France and Germany, the masculine plural, such as pasajeros (passengers), remained the unmarked or default form to cover both men and women, adding that it was both commonly used and inclusive. Saying pasajeros, it continued, "does not render female passengers invisible nor does it disrespect them".

Italy

Giorgia Meloni has made her position on the gender-inclusive language debate clear. Soon after becoming Italy's first female prime minister, the ultra-conservative Meloni issued a note to journalists saying her preferred title of Presidente del Consiglio (President of the Council of Ministers) ought to be preceded by the masculine article il rather than the feminine la.

Giorgia Meloni laughs during a meeting with the Ethiopian prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, in Rome. Photograph: Simona Granati/Corbis/Getty Images

The decision sparked controversy, with the leftwing politician Laura Boldrini saying: "There is something strange about her; she hides behind the masculine." Meloni sarcastically hit back that she did not think a woman's "greatness" should be defined by being called capatrena - a nonexistent feminine form of capotreno, or train conductor.

A few months later, the Accademia della Crusca, watchdog of the Italian language, said Italy's courts ought to stick to tradition and avoid the "novelty" of gender-neutral symbols in legal documents.

In Italian, gender-neutral noun endings to get around the masculine default include asterisks or the so-called schwa, a symbol that looks like an inverted e. The language watchdog argued that using gender-neutral nouns, for example when addressing the recipient of a letter with car* instead of the male caro or female cara (dear), would be artificial and only supported by minority groups.

Luisa Rizzitelli, a feminist and LGBTQ+ activist, said: "A lot of experimentation has come from the LGBTQ+ and feminist movement, and there is no shortage of heated debates about this: some people use the asterisk, x, u, y, slash, apostrophe, schwa, etc. Non-binary people in particular use these possibilities, which are innovative for the Italian language and increasingly widespread."

Rizzitelli said the "common point" at the heart of the debate was the "legitimate need not to feel erased; the right to see a language capable of recognising and thus respecting one's choices", adding: "Non-binary people have every right to value this battle."

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What's in a word? How less-gendered language is faring across Europe

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A contentious vote in the French senate is only the latest battleground in the culture war over inclusive language

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Faculty of Modern and Medieval Languages and Linguistics, University of Cambridge.  Diversity in German Studies online workshop series November 2023 - March 2024

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Faculty of Modern and Medieval Languages and Linguistics, University of Cambridge.  Diversity in German Studies online workshop series November 2023 - March 2024

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Diversity in German Studies - CPD Workshop series aimed at secondary teachers of German | Faculty of Modern and Medieval Languages and Linguistics

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Polish | The amazing revolution of niebinarszczyzna 2/2

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Polish | The amazing revolution of niebinarszczyzna 2/2

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Usage examples of personal pronouns and gender neutral language.

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Federica Formato is Senior Lecturer in Sociolinguistics at the University of Brighton, UK

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Lingua di Genere, provo a condividere idee e riflessioni sull'uso di un linguaggio ingiusto (o giusto), discriminatorio. Mi impegno quotidianamente affinchè il mio lavoro raggiunga persone al di là dell'ambiente accademico. Qui raccolgo i lavori extra-universitari.

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Grade 6 students in French class drafting a story about the daily routine of their invented character. Their character is called Charlie. They are non-binary. They use French gender neutral pronouns. #deij ❤️

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Grade 6 students in French class drafting a story about the daily routine of their invented character. Their character is called Charlie. They are non-binary. They use French gender neutral pronouns. #deij ❤️ https://t.co/Xrcgn8jdw1

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Grade 6 students in French class drafting a story about the daily routine of their invented character. Their character is called Charlie. They are non-binary. They use French gender neutral pronouns. #deij ❤️ pic.twitter.com/Xrcgn8jdw1
— Claire Cuthbert (@ClaireCuthbert4) May 17, 2023

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Grade 6 students in French class drafting a story about the daily routine of their invented character. Their character is called Charlie. They are non-binary. They use French gender neutral pronouns. #deij ❤️ https://t.co/Xrcgn8jdw1

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Grade 6 students in French class drafting a story about the daily routine of their invented character. Their character is called Charlie. They are non-binary. They use French gender neutral pronouns. #deij ❤️ https://t.co/Xrcgn8jdw1

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Grade 6 students in French class drafting a story about the daily routine of their invented character. Their character is called Charlie. They are non-binary. They use French gender neutral pronouns. #deij ❤️

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Willkommen in unserem Flaggenlexikon. Hier findet ihr alle Flaggen der LSBTI*-Community sowie deren Bedeutung. Regenbogenflagge Was bedeutet die Flagge? Die LGBT+ Pride Flag, auch Regenbogenfahne genannt, entstand 1978 in San Francisco, als Harvey Milk, der erste geoutete schwule Mann, der in den USA ein öffentliches Amt bekleidete, Gilbert Baker damit beauftragte, der queeren community ein positives [...]

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Published 21/10/21

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Improving equality, diversity and inclusion in our qualifications – an update

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Kaplan. J. (2022) Binary constrained code-switching among non-binary French-English bilinguals

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Kaplan. J. (2022) Binary constrained code-switching among non-binary French-English bilinguals

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Are you aware of this type of code-switching among bilingual or multilingual students who identify as non-binary?

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'It's like coming out twice' - Welsh/English bilingual and non-binary in Wales, UK

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'It's like coming out twice' - Welsh/English bilingual and non-binary in Wales, UK

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Regarding one of the minoritised languages of Wales, one of the four home nations of the United Kingdom.

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Non-binary Welsh speakers have said they feel unable to express their identities in the language due to its gendered nature.

They want to see more awareness and use of inclusive LGBTQ+ language.

Like many European languages, Welsh nouns are gendered, which changes their mutations, and professions also tend to be gendered.

One tutor working for the government-funded Welsh learning programme, Dysgu Cymraeg, has altered his teaching.

Tomos Hopkins said it has led to more inclusivity towards a non-binary student but he added first-language Welsh speakers are less likely to encounter gender-neutral Welsh.

Many non-binary people use the plural "nhw" as a gender-neutral singular pronoun.

Plural mutations can be used to talk about a person in the singular - eliminating gendered mutations for many words.

However, many professions are gendered, such as the word "athro" for a male teacher and "athrawes" for a female.

The lack of knowledge of LGBTQ+ terms in Welsh means when people use "nhw" sometimes they are unable to be understood, according to Rowan Gulliver, a 22-year-old teacher in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan.

Working in a Welsh-speaking school, Rowan - who uses the non-binary Mx prefix and they/them pronouns - had to come out to colleagues in English because they did not feel they could be understood in Welsh, nor did they have the vocabulary to do so.

"You should be able to speak about your identity and other people in your first language," they said. "It's like a little part of you is dying when you have to say it in English."

"It just makes you feel like... you're some strange thing that doesn't belong or have value within society," they added.

Though the vocabulary does exist, it is not in common use.

Mx Gulliver said Welsh-speakers will understand if terms are explained, but the language barrier stops non-binary people from being confident in talking about their identity.

"It's like you have to come out twice," they added.

While dictionaries lack many words which would help to describe LGBTQ+ identities, Stonewall Cymru has an inclusive Welsh glossary to fill these gaps.

"There needs to be more awareness, more representation in the media like S4C and it needs to be taught in schools," Mx Gulliver explained.

For those learning Welsh, there are more opportunities to learn non-gendered ways of speaking.

"The gendered nature of the language makes me feel excluded and not sure where I fit in," Ems Rixon, 38, from Llandeilo, Carmarthenshire, said.

"Often I feel like I am causing problems in my speaking classes when I say that I don't want to say one gender or another."

Mx Rixon said non-binary people were often told to use the plural but were also corrected by others when they did.

Mx Rixon's Welsh tutor Mr Hopkins changed lesson material for new learners to be inclusive to non-binary identities.

The Learn Welsh textbooks used by Dysgu Cymraeg are also updated every two years, meaning they are able to update the way it is taught to be more inclusive.

Mr Hopkins said the way to increase knowledge of correct pronouns is to increase representation in the media.

"I think it is certainly getting better with programmes like S4C Hansh," he added. "I think they're doing a brilliant job of showing lots of queer identity content.

"It's extremely important the Welsh language evolves and is inclusive, the language dies if it gets stuck in a box that stays with the old ways.

"There's new words for everything everyday. Over the pandemic there had to be new terminology to describe technology, so this is just a natural step for the language."

LGBTQ+ words have been coined in Welsh for several years, but have not yet passed into common usage, said Dr Gareth Evans Jones, of Bangor University, who is editing the first Welsh-language anthology of LGBTQ+ rights.

"I think because Welsh is so deeply rooted in gendered terms, it would be difficult to try to de-gender the language," he said. "But if newer terms were coined as alternatives to these gendered terms, that certainly is a possibility."

To help other non-binary Welsh speakers, Ella Peel, the founder of Heart of Wales LGBTQ+ set up Cymuned Cymraeg, a fortnightly Welsh speaking group in east Carmarthenshire and Powys.

"The purpose of language is to understand each other and to communicate, so if you're saying words and people don't understand you, that's when language breaks down," Ms Peel said.

The class practices using "-ydd" for gender neutral endings. This is already in use for some professions such as commissioner which is "comisiynydd" in Welsh and has no gender.

Mx Rixon added: "Representation is so important. You can only be what you see and can talk about."

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Welsh language: Non-binary speakers want gender-neutral help

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Non-binary Welsh speakers have said they feel unable to express their identities in the language due to its gendered nature. They want to see more awareness and use of inclusive LGBTQ+ language. Like many European languages, Welsh nouns are gendered, which changes their mutations, and professions also tend to be gendered.

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@mitreden

♬ original sound - mitreden

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The Search for Non-Binary Pronouns in Chinese

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The Search for Non-Binary Pronouns in Chinese

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Article on the Multilingual blog, published 26/06/21

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The Search for Non-Binary Pronouns in Chinese | MultiLingual

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Gender-inclusive language is become imperative in international products. This essay analyzes the challenges in localizing non-binary pronouns in Chinese. The author suggests that developers can let users customize their own pronouns when there is not yet a universal set of non-binary pronouns.

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How non-binary Chinese people seeking a gender-neutral third-person pronoun for themselves are coming up with solutions, including a new Chinese character

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How non-binary Chinese people seeking a gender-neutral third-person pronoun for themselves are coming up with solutions, including a new Chinese character

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Article on South China Morning Post magazine website (subscription required to read the full article)
Author: Wee Kek Koon.  Published:14/02/22

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'What are your pronouns?' New gender-neutral Chinese character being touted

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Non-binary Chinese people seeking a gender-neutral third-person pronoun for themselves have come up with several solutions, including a new character that features an 'x' in it.

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Your Complete Guide to Chinese Gender-Inclusive Pronouns

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Your Complete Guide to Chinese Gender-Inclusive Pronouns

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Author: Lu Zhao.  Published: 02/07/21 on RADII

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The Chinese language is largely genderless; nouns aren't associated with any gender, and once upon a time, the same third-person pronouns were applied across gender, such as qí 其, zhī 之 or more modernly, tā 他. But that changed in the early 20th century.

When the New Culture Movement took place in China in the 1910s and 1920s, scholars were translating literature into Chinese to promote the incorporation of Western ideals like democracy and science into Chinese culture. But these scholars found it difficult to translate she/her into Chinese. Thus, tā 她 was created using the female radical 女 (a radical is a basic graphical component of a Chinese character that imparts linguistic meaning). The invention was met with some initial backlash, but gradually it has become widely accepted as part of the standardized written Mandarin system.

As the world incorporates gender-neutral and gender-inclusive pronouns, such as "they/them" or "ze/zir" in English, Chinese queers and gender activists have also been advocating for more gender-friendly Chinese pronouns.

Instead of the female radical tā, in 2015, an intersex information platform called The Missing Gender 0.972 suggested using the English letter X as a genderfluid radical to create a new pronoun: X也.

Another example of new pronouns commonly used within the country is the pinyin romanization TA, sidestepping the now masculine 他, with the human radical, and 她, both pronounced as tā.

"Some genderfluid, genderqueer or nonbinary people use TA, and Chinese queer and feminist online communities seem more comfortable with this usage than mainstream media, both when speaking about a generic or anonymous third person and when speaking about a nonbinary individual," Jinghua Qian, an Australia-based writer, replies via email, who goes by ey/eir/em or they/their/them in English, yi 伊 in Shanghainese or TA in Mandarin.

Qian also notices that "TA" has become more mainstream for younger generations beyond Chinese queer and transgender circles. For example, Chinese streaming platform Bilibili uses "Videos of TA" rather than "His/Her Videos" on each creator's homepage.
Screenshot of tech video creator He Tongxue's Bilibili page
Though mainstream outlets like CCTV also use TA when referring to a person whose gender remains unknown or irrelevant in context, it seems more accidental than a conscious choice to Lilian Shen (she/her/她), a co-founder of Queer Talks, a biweekly bilingual discussion-based event for LGBTQIA+ individuals.
CCTV's use of TA on Weibo, screengrab from Weibo
"Gender binary trans like Jin Xing are a bit easier for mainstream media to conceptualize because they still go by he or she," Shen says via voice messages. "Even if people are aware of trans folks and want to use the correct pronouns, they are more likely to use he or she instead of TA."

"I think pronouns actually provide an opportunity to show trans exist," says Xiao (she/TA), a trans woman and gender studies graduate student in the U.S. TA says via text that correct pronouns are very important for people who disagree with their assigned genders or are frequently misidentified.

Xiao hates being mistaken as he and appreciates being asked preferred pronouns during first encounters. TA recalls an incident where pronouns were not included in a self-introduction in a gender group where TA volunteered.

"At that time, I felt I was discouraged from showing up as a trans," Xiao says.

Another gender studies scholar Alexwood (she/her/她) explains via voice message that the use of gender pronouns is not only an expression of gender identity but also a political statement. "Ideologically, we are showing resistance and challenging the binary gender system."

Yang Yinyan, the founder of Xi'an Relax LBT Center, grew up hating having to fill out the gender column in any form. Yang doesn't like any pronouns and prefers to be called by name.

"Neither is me. I'm both a male and female, I have both characteristics and personalities, I don't belong to either one," Yang says, adding that it's not easy to type TA or X也 on Chinese keyboards. "It's too inconvenient to switch between Chinese and English input methods in order to type them out. I only use TA when I write official reports. I don't like to use it on a daily basis."

Instead, Yang continues using 他, unless the person referred to has a preference, arguing that it's not a male radical but a human radical.

Yang also notices that very few people in the community use gender-neutral pronouns. Some are genderfluid just like Yang, some stopped bothering with it after they pass a certain stage of identity crises, some just haven't found the best language.

"It makes them feel uncomfortable anyway, so they were like 'whatever,'" Yang explains.

More importantly, as Qian points out, pronouns make less of a difference in Chinese than in English because 他 and 她 have the same pronunciation in speech.

"In the Chinese languages I speak (Shanghainese and Mandarin), pronouns are already gender-inclusive by default, they're only gendered in written text and even then it's kind of subtle, so it makes sense to me that trans communities in China are less preoccupied with pronouns compared to English speakers," Qian says in the email.

"There are so many other issues that are a higher priority for trans people everywhere, such as access to healthcare and education and protection from discrimination, violence and abuse," says Qian.

All the same, most activists believe that establishing proper pronouns can be a good start to addressing some gender issues.

"We should use more gender-friendly pronouns, not just because of trans or queers. I think the use and mindset of binary pronouns hurt everyone. Because gender itself is a fictitious concept," Shen says.

She has noticed that some customer services on Taobao have started to use TA to address customers. Shen is unsure if it's a gender-aware approach but thinks it's a promising sign.

In another instance, Yang also felt respected when cashiers at clothing store Uniqlo began addressing shoppers as guests, instead of using sir or ma'am.

At the very least, the hope is that gender-neutral pronouns will become more mainstream. Queer director Da Jing (他/TA/they) says that they believe new genderless Chinese pronouns will appear in the future as sex and gender education gradually improve in China.

Jing says, "from my observation, queers who were born after 2000 place great emphasis on individualism, independent thinking, and self-realization. So I am very optimistic that queer culture will completely break the traditional Chinese binary gender education and become the mainstream."

Cover image and infographic design by Sabina Islas

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Your Complete Guide to Chinese Gender-Inclusive Pronouns

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The Chinese language is largely genderless; nouns aren't associated with any gender, and once upon a time, the same third-person pronouns were applied across gender, such as qí 其, zhī 之 or more modernly, tā 他. But that changed in the early 20th century.

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Cheng, V. T-W. (2016) Radical Equity: A Case Study of the use of Chinese Third Person Pronouns in Taiwan's Third Grade Social Studies Textbooks.  Intercultural Communication Studies, XXV (3): pp.99-111.

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Inclusive Hindi is a collection of peer-generated, age appropriate open educational resources (OERs) that aim to make the Hindi classroom and Hindi language more inclusive, and thereby send a loud and clear message of You Belong Here!

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Leitfaden für eine geschlechtersensibleund inklusive Sprache

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Leitfaden für eine geschlechtersensibleund inklusive Sprache

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Geschickt gendern - das Genderwörterbuch

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Geschickt gendern - das Genderwörterbuch

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Gendergerechte Sprache: Das erste umfangreiche Wörterbuch mit knapp 2.000 alternativen Begriffen, Sammlung gängiger Schreibweisen, Tipps+Tricks, Blog, Links.

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Thanks to all the suggestions I got about door decorations! It was a labor of love that took many days, but I’m so happy with the way it turned out.

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Thanks to all the suggestions I got about door decorations! It was a labor of love that took many days, but I’m so happy with the way it turned out. https://t.co/zClJhOjmFO

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Thanks to all the suggestions I got about door decorations! It was a labor of love that took many days, but I’m so happy with the way it turned out. pic.twitter.com/zClJhOjmFO
— Wendy Farabaugh (@MmeFarab) September 15, 2022

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Thanks to all the suggestions I got about door decorations! It was a labor of love that took many days, but I’m so happy with the way it turned out. https://t.co/zClJhOjmFO

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
Thanks to all the suggestions I got about door decorations! It was a labor of love that took many days, but I’m so happy with the way it turned out. https://t.co/zClJhOjmFO

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.text
Thanks to all the suggestions I got about door decorations! It was a labor of love that took many days, but I’m so happy with the way it turned out.

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Stop using Latinx if you really want to be inclusive

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Stop using Latinx if you really want to be inclusive

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Article in The Conversation by Melissa K. Ochoa, Assistant Professor of Women's and Gender Studies, Saint Louis University. Published 09/09/22

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'Latine' is much more adaptable to the Spanish language. Mario Garza, CC BY-SA

Most of the debates on the usage of "Latinx" - pronounced "la-teen-ex" - have taken place in the U.S. But the word has begun to spread into Spanish-speaking countries - where it hasn't exactly been embraced.

In July 2022, Argentina and Spain released public statements banning the use of Latinx, or any gender-neutral variant. Both governments reasoned that these new terms are violations of the rules of the Spanish language.

Latinx is used as an individual identity for those who are gender-nonconforming, and it can also describe an entire population without using "Latinos," which is currently the default in Spanish for a group of men and women.

As a Mexican-born, U.S.-raised scholar, I agree with the official Argentine and Spanish stance on banning Latinx from the Spanish language - English, too.

When I first heard Latinx in 2017, I thought it was progressive and inclusive, but I quickly realized how problematic it was. Five years later, Latinx is not commonly used in Spanish-speaking countries, nor is it used by the majority of those identifying as Hispanic or Latino in the U.S.

In fact, there's a gender-inclusive term that's already being used by Spanish-speaking activists that works as a far more natural replacement.

Low usage

Though the exact origins of Latinx are unclear, it emerged sometime around 2004 and gained popularity around 2014. Merriam-Webster added it to its dictionary in 2018.

However, a 2019 Pew research study and 2021 Gallup poll indicated that less than 5% of the U.S. population used "Latinx" as a racial or ethnic identity.

Nonetheless, Latinx is becoming commonplace among academics; it's used at conferences, in communication and especially in publications.

But is it inclusive to use Latinx when most of the population does not?

Perpetuating elitism

The distinct demographic differences of those who are aware of or use Latinx calls into question whether the term is inclusive or just elitist.

Individuals who self-identiy as Latinx or are aware of the term are most likely to be U.S.-born, young adults from 18 to 29 years old. They are predominately English-speakers and have some college education. In other words, the most marginalized communities do not use Latinx.

Scholars, in my view, should never impose social identities onto groups that do not self-identify that way.

I once had a reviewer for an academic journal article I submitted about women's experiences with catcalling tell me to replace my use of "Latino" and "Latina" with "Latinx." However, they had no issue with me using "man" or "woman" when it came to my white participants.

I was annoyed at the audacity of this reviewer. The goal of the study was to show catcalling, a gendered interaction, as an everyday form of sexism.

How was I supposed to differentiate my participants' sexism experiences by gender and race if I labeled them all as Latinx?

The 'x' factor

If a term is truly inclusive, it gives equitable weight to vastly diverse experiences and knowledge; it is not meant to be a blanket identity.

Women of color, in general, are severely underrepresented in leadership positions and STEM fields. Using "Latinx" for women further obscures their contributions and identity. I have even seen some academics try to get around the nebulous nature of Latinx by writing " Latinx mothers" or " Latinx women " instead of "Latinas."

Furthermore, if the goal is to be inclusive, the "x" would be easily pronounceable and naturally applied to other parts of the Spanish language.

Some Spanish speakers would rather identify by nationality - say, "Mexicano" or "Argentino" - instead of using umbrella terms like Hispanic or Latino. But the "x" can't be easily applied to nationalities. Like Latinx, "Mexicanx" and "Argentinx" don't exactly roll off the tongue in any language. Meanwhile, gendered articles in Spanish - "los" and "las" for the plural "the" - become "lxs," while gendered pronouns -"el" and "ella" becomes "ellx."

The utility and logic of it quickly falls apart.

'Latine' as an alternative

Many academics might feel compelled to continue to use Latinx because they fought hard to have it recognized by their institutions or have already published the term in an academic journal. But there is a much better gender-inclusive alternative, one that's been largely overlooked by the U.S. academic community and is already being used in Spanish-speaking parts of Latin America, especially among young social activists in those countries.

It's "Latine" - pronounced "lah-teen-eh" - and it's far more adaptable to the Spanish language. It can be implemented as articles - "les" instead of "los" or "las," the words for "the." When it comes to pronouns, "elle" can become a singular form of "they" and used in place of the masculine "él" or feminine "ella," which translate to "he" and "she." It can also be readily applied to most nationalities, such as "Mexicane" or "Argentine."

Because language shapes the way we think, it's important to note that gendered languages like Spanish, German and French do facilitate gender stereotypes and discrimination. For example, in German, the word for bridge is feminine, and in Spanish, the word for bridge is masculine. Cognitive scientist Lera Boroditsky had German speakers and Spanish speakers describe a bridge. The German speakers were more likely to describe it using adjectives like "beautiful" or "elegant," while the Spanish speakers were more likely to describe it in masculine ways - "tall" and "strong."

Moreover, the existing gender rules in Spanish are not perfect. Usually words ending in "-o" are masculine and those ending in "-a" are feminine, but there are many common words that break those gender rules, like "la mano," the word for "hand." And, of course, Spanish already uses an "e" for gender-neutral words, such as "estudiante," or "student."

I believe Latine accomplishes what Latinx originally meant to and more. Similarly, it eliminates the gender binary in its singular and plural form. However, Latine is not confined to an elite, English-speaking population within the U.S. It is inclusive.

Nevertheless, problems can still arise when the word "Latine" is imposed onto others. "Latina" and "Latino" may still be preferable for many individuals. I don't think the "-e" should eliminate the existing "-o" and the "-a." Instead, it could be a grammatically acceptable addition to the Spanish language.

Yes, Argentina and Spain's ban of Latinx also included a ban on the use of Latine. Here is where I diverge from their directive. To me, the idea that language can be purist is nonsensical; language always evolves, whether it's through technology - think emojis and textspeak - or increased social awareness, such as the evolution from "wife beating" to " intimate partner violence. "

Linguistic theory posits that language shapes reality, so cultures and communities can create words that shape the inclusive world they want to inhabit.

Language matters. Latine embodies that inclusivity - across socioeconomic status, citizenship, education, gender identity, age groups and nations, while honoring the Spanish language in the process.

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Stop using 'Latinx' if you really want to be inclusive

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Most of the debates on the usage of "Latinx" - pronounced "la-teen-ex" - have taken place in the U.S. But the word has begun to spread into Spanish-speaking countries - where it hasn't exactly been embraced. In July 2022, Argentina and Spain released public statements banning the use of Latinx, or any gender-neutral variant.

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Follow the link in the tweet to access the document in the photograph in GoogleDrive.

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Explore identity & inclusive language in your classes. We are not experts in the field, but we try each day to be better than the last and we are pretty darn good at making our classes a safe & supportive! Check this lesson out w/ 2⃣ #authres https://t.co/AbCU39D6np #langchat https://t.co/fE0P3qkWp9 https://t.co/7ivVH3uilp

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Lenguaje inclusivo y pronombres no binarios (2).pdf

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Explore identity & inclusive language in your classes. We are not experts in the field, but we try each day to be better than the last and we are pretty darn good at making our classes a safe & supportive! Check this lesson out w/ 2⃣ #authres https://t.co/AbCU39D6np #langchat https://t.co/fE0P3qkWp9 https://t.co/7ivVH3uilp

# data[].attributes.wish_content.attachment_props.referenced_tweets[].text
Hey #langchat- I am #ISO a video (preferably less than 3 minutes to accompany this article on gender/identity for my AP class. I have searched and searched but I am not finding what I want- any suggestions? Gracias :) https://t.co/7YHPUC5r13

# data[].attributes.wish_content.attachment_props.referenced_tweets[].entities.urls[].title
¿Por qué es urgente que empecemos a usar pronombres 'no binarios'?

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En español, la gente utiliza pronombres cuando habla de nosotros. A menudo, cuando se habla de un ser humano singular en tercera persona.

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Explore identity & inclusive language in your classes. We are not experts in the field, but we try each day to be better than the last and we are pretty darn good at making our classes a safe & supportive! Check this lesson out w/ 2⃣ #authres https://t.co/AbCU39D6np #langchat https://t.co/7ivVH3uilp pic.twitter.com/fE0P3qkWp9
— A/Cquisition (@cquisition) August 31, 2022

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Lenguaje inclusivo y pronombres no binarios (2).pdf

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props_source.data.text
Explore identity & inclusive language in your classes. We are not experts in the field, but we try each day to be better than the last and we are pretty darn good at making our classes a safe & supportive! Check this lesson out w/ 2⃣ #authres https://t.co/AbCU39D6np #langchat https://t.co/fE0P3qkWp9 https://t.co/7ivVH3uilp

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props_source.includes.tweets[].entities.urls[].title
¿Por qué es urgente que empecemos a usar pronombres 'no binarios'?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props_source.includes.tweets[].entities.urls[].description
En español, la gente utiliza pronombres cuando habla de nosotros. A menudo, cuando se habla de un ser humano singular en tercera persona.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props_source.includes.tweets[].text
Hey #langchat- I am #ISO a video (preferably less than 3 minutes to accompany this article on gender/identity for my AP class. I have searched and searched but I am not finding what I want- any suggestions? Gracias :) https://t.co/7YHPUC5r13

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
Explore identity & inclusive language in your classes. We are not experts in the field, but we try each day to be better than the last and we are pretty darn good at making our classes a safe & supportive! Check this lesson out w/ 2⃣ #authres https://t.co/AbCU39D6np #langchat https://t.co/fE0P3qkWp9 https://t.co/7ivVH3uilp

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.text
Explore identity & inclusive language in your classes. We are not experts in the field, but we try each day to be better than the last and we are pretty darn good at making our classes a safe & supportive! Check this lesson out w/ 2⃣ #authres https://t.co/AbCU39D6np #langchat https://t.co/fE0P3qkWp9 https://t.co/7ivVH3uilp

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.entities.urls[].title
Lenguaje inclusivo y pronombres no binarios (2).pdf

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.referenced_tweets[].entities.urls[].title
¿Por qué es urgente que empecemos a usar pronombres 'no binarios'?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.referenced_tweets[].entities.urls[].description
En español, la gente utiliza pronombres cuando habla de nosotros. A menudo, cuando se habla de un ser humano singular en tercera persona.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.referenced_tweets[].text
Hey #langchat- I am #ISO a video (preferably less than 3 minutes to accompany this article on gender/identity for my AP class. I have searched and searched but I am not finding what I want- any suggestions? Gracias :) https://t.co/7YHPUC5r13

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Originally designed for teaching Portuguese in a university context in the United States, this open access and non-commercial textbook, Plural: Português Pluricêntrico is built upon the following pillars: the pluricentric nature of the Portuguese language, social justice pedagogy and project-based teaching.  With the urgency to address the complexities of a globalized society focused on Portuguese-speaking communities (and with an added emphasis on diasporas), we present this material as a means to support teachers and learners in their Portuguese language development journey utilizing transformative and inclusive practices.

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How one Mexican magazine adopted inclusive language in Spanish 

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How one Mexican magazine adopted inclusive language in Spanish 

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Article by By Hanaa' Tameez on the NiemanLab website, published 27/07/22

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For the March 2022 issue of Chilango - a news and culture magazine covering Mexico City, Mexico - the staff knew they had to top the year before to commemorate International Women's Day.

"Chilango" is a term used to refer to people from the capital. As a masculine singular noun, it can also mean a man from Mexico City. "Chilangos," as a masculine plural noun, can mean either a group of men of Mexico City or a group of people of any gender. That's what's called the generic masculine, where the masculine form of a word is employed when more than one gender is involved.

In 2021, the magazine changed its logo to "Chilanga" for the March edition as a way to recognize and honor the city's women and explore issues related to feminism, motherhood, gender inequality, and femicide.

Gina Jaramillo, the editorial director of the magazine, said that conversations about feminism led to conversations about marginalization and inclusivity. So in 2022, Chilango wanted to serve people of all gender identities by adopting inclusive, nonbinary language.

Todo cambia y nosotres también. En marzo, Chilango cambia a lenguaje inclusivo no binario, un cambio y transformación en la manera de expresarnos que redefine nuestra forma de entender el mundo.

¡Conoce más del #LenguajeINB aquí! 👉 https://t.co/SpLDcZjeNy ✨ pic.twitter.com/ZLZz5gtV6V

- Chilango (@ChilangoCom) March 2, 2022

The first few pages of " Chilango para todes " debunk common misconceptions and excuses about not using gender-inclusive language and commits to using it in all of the magazine's content going forward.

"When it comes to gender, our language has two ways of expressing it: feminine and masculine," Jaramillo wrote in an editorial in that issue. "But far from being two fixed points, the expression of human identity offers various possibilities that deserve to be named, recognized, and that also enrich those aforementioned conversations and discussions in every way. Between 'her' and 'him,' there is a spectrum of realities that the forms of binary language fail to express. The movement for inclusive language seeks to enable these multiple existences to manifest and feel represented in the use of language."

Adopting inclusive language proved to be a learning experience, but also an editorial and linguistic challenge for the newsroom. Jaramillo organized workshops and trainings for the staff with local experts. They put together a style guide, which serves as a practical guide but also includes Chilango's editorial position on using inclusive language, and defines different things like nondiscriminatory language, nonsexist language, and neutral language. They started introducing it in stories prior to the March edition but made it official policy with "Chilango para todes."

"There are situations that still elude us," Jaramillo said. "With this manual, it definitely helped us to generate certain concepts. For example, instead of saying 'el hombre' [mankind], an inclusive possibility would be 'la humanidad' [humanity]. Instead of saying 'los ciudadanos' [citizens], we could use 'la ciudadanía' [population]. Instead of saying 'los investigadores' [researchers], 'el equipo de investigación' [research team]. Instead of 'los empleados' [employees], 'el personal' [staff]."

Jaramillo recruited Paulina Chavira, founding editor of The New York Times en Español and Mexico City's grammar queen, to co-author the editorial and explain to readers why adopting inclusive language was necessary.

"When I'm talking to people who openly and explicitly tell me that they don't identify with the male or female gender, it seems so basic," Chavira said. "To the point where it seems a little illogical to explain it, but it's about respect ...Words are for expressing reality. And our reality is changing. For those of us that work in journalism, it's a matter of our commitment to the truth."

Chavira has always had an interest in grammar and developed the Times' first style guide in Spanish. She's done freelance copyediting since 2011 and has been offering grammar and editing classes since 2014. In 2017, her piece in the Times led Mexico's Soccer Federation to add the correct accents to every player's jersey for the first time for the 2018 World Cup.

She told me that for the last few years, she's been talking about using inclusive language more broadly. Her interest began when she had to translate a story for NYT en Español and one of the people mentioned in the story was nonbinary. The pronoun "elle" (they) wasn't as widely used then, and she could have skirted around it in the translation, but then decided if now wasn't the time to learn, then when?

"We explain our reality thanks to the words we have," she said. "Reality is there. We need to name it and we need certain structures, which are not so foreign to what we already know. It's just a little tweaking and adjusting."

Inclusive language has been met with resistance and ignorance in Mexican journalism, Chavira said. Lots of people, in media and society in general, argue against it because the Royal Spanish Academy, one of 23 official Spanish language institutions but the most commonly cited, doesn't recognize it. But that hasn't stopped people from using new words like "Omicron" or "Covid," she pointed out. Life and language are always changing. Only dead languages stay the same.

In 2021, when pop star Demi Lovato announced that they are nonbinary, Chavira recalled that leading national news outlets in the country said Lovato used "ellos" (the plural masculine of they) and "ellas" (the plural feminine of they) as their pronouns, when both are incorrect. That showed how ill-equipped journalists were to describe reality and tell the truth with precision, she said.

En un capítulo más de "Los medios se rehúsan al cambio":

ELLE ES DEMI LOVATO

Gracias a @apchavira por hablar del tema con toda la autoridad que le respalda como asesora lingüística y periodista ✨💜🖤💛 pic.twitter.com/T7gQIScfMs

- Láurel Miranda (@laurelyeye) May 20, 2021

With that and other examples in mind, Jaramillo was pleasantly surprised with the public's response to the March issue. Chilango lost some followers, she said, but also gained followers and readers who understand that the future must be collective and inclusive.

"The use of non-discriminatory language can become a tool to make diversity visible," Jaramillo said. "It can also combat stereotypes and promote a greater sense of inclusion, which is [Chilango's] main objective. These are processes that will take us a long time, and there are going to be many opinions against us, but there will be others in our favor."

Read the full issue here.

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How one Mexican magazine adopted inclusive language in Spanish

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For the March 2022 issue of Chilango - a news and culture magazine covering Mexico City, Mexico - the staff knew they had to top the year before to commemorate International Women's Day. "Chilango" is a term used to refer to people from the capital.

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Resources and information to help language teachers make their lessons more LGBT-inclusive. French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish.

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Research has shown that schools can be unwelcoming and hostile environments for many LGBT students. Unsurprisingly, it impacts their well-being and can have a detrimental impact on their learning.

As educators, it is our role to ensure that every student feels safe and included in our classrooms. Too often, LGBT topics and issues are kept invisible in schools. This makes our students think there is something wrong with having a different sexual orientation or gender identity. It's up to us to break that cycle.

Making your lessons LGBT-inclusive does not mean teaching a specific LGBT lesson once a year or organising a big pride event. Keep it simple and build on what you are already doing, ensuring your resources are relevant to LGBT members of your class. Little changes can have a big impact.

Below, you'll find a non-exhaustive list of simple ideas to get you started.

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Research has shown that schools can be unwelcoming and hostile environments for many LGBT students. Unsurprisingly, it impacts their well-being and can have a detrimental impact on their learning. As educators, it is our role to ensure that every student feels safe and included in our classrooms. Too often, LGBT topics and issues are kept invisible in schools.

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Usage examples of personal pronouns and gender neutral language.

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Teacher Attitudes, Experiences and Strategies Towards Gender-Inclusive Language Across Languages webinar hosted by Avant MORE Learning & AATSP

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Teacher Attitudes, Experiences and Strategies Towards Gender-Inclusive Language Across Languages webinar hosted by Avant MORE Learning & AATSP

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Recording of webinar 06/04/22

Currently, gender-inclusive and gender-neutral language is being discussed by teachers K-16+ and others. This webinar seeks to contribute to the discussion of attitudes, experiences, and strategies towards gender-inclusive language in the US classrooms and beyond in a variety of languages that include French, German, Portuguese, Polish, Russian, and Spanish.

The panelists explored the following questions among others:

What does gender-inclusive language in the classroom look like?

How are attitudes and strategies towards gender-neutral language voiced in different languages?

What groups or individuals engage in the debate (e.g., parents, educators, administrators), and what are their views and attitudes?

Are there strategies for navigating different varieties of gender-fair language?

What kinds of tools need to be developed for teachers to support gender-inclusive language in the classroom?

Panellists are:

Abelardo Almazán-Vázquez The Putney School, Vermont

Christopher Caes, Columbia University, New York

Christopher Gwin, Haddonfield Memorial

High School and University of Pennsylvania

New Jersey and Pennsylvania

Anne Jensen, San José State University, California

Joe Parodi-Brown, Marianapolis  Preparatory School, Connecticut

Ben Rifkin, Hofstra University, New York

Eduardo

Viana da Silva, University of Washington, Washington

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"TEACHER ATTITUDES, EXPERIENCES, AND STRATEGIES TOWARDS GENDER-INCLUSIVE LANGUAGE ACROSS LANGUAGES"

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BSL Glossary by Scottish Sensory Centre, University of Edinburgh

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This LGBTQ+ Pride Month, make your activism Deaf inclusive by visiting @DeafRainbowUK. They have an incredible BSL glossary of LGBTQ+ terms and explanations at: https://t.co/0h0ApwsESL 
🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️
Check them out and share to help #makePrideInclusive.

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This LGBTQ+ Pride Month, make your activism Deaf inclusive by visiting @DeafRainbowUK. They have an incredible BSL glossary of LGBTQ+ terms and explanations at: https://t.co/0h0ApwsESL 
🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️
Check them out and share to help #makePrideInclusive.

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Something went wrong, but don’t fret — let’s give it another shot.

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This LGBTQ+ Pride Month, make your activism Deaf inclusive by visiting @DeafRainbowUK. They have an incredible BSL glossary of LGBTQ+ terms and explanations at: https://t.co/0h0ApwsESL
🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️
Check them out and share to help #makePrideInclusive.
— BSL Glossary (@BSLGlossarySSC) June 28, 2022

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This LGBTQ+ Pride Month, make your activism Deaf inclusive by visiting @DeafRainbowUK. They have an incredible BSL glossary of LGBTQ+ terms and explanations at: https://t.co/0h0ApwsESL 
🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️
Check them out and share to help #makePrideInclusive.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
This LGBTQ+ Pride Month, make your activism Deaf inclusive by visiting @DeafRainbowUK. They have an incredible BSL glossary of LGBTQ+ terms and explanations at: https://t.co/0h0ApwsESL 
🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️
Check them out and share to help #makePrideInclusive.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.text
This LGBTQ+ Pride Month, make your activism Deaf inclusive by visiting @DeafRainbowUK. They have an incredible BSL glossary of LGBTQ+ terms and explanations at: https://t.co/0h0ApwsESL 
🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🧏🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️
Check them out and share to help #makePrideInclusive.

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Der Vielfalt gerecht werden – Wie Neo-Pronomen eine Lücke füllen

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Der Vielfalt gerecht werden – Wie Neo-Pronomen eine Lücke füllen

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Article on The Gap website, written by Bernhard Frena, published 08/06/22

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© Illi Anna Heger / www.annaheger.de

Was ist ein Name? Eine Bezeichnung, eine Anrufung, etwas, das uns andere nennen. Namen sind etwas, das wir über uns hören, das uns zugerufen wird, worauf wir trainiert sind zu reagieren. Aber Namen sind mehr. Sie sind Teil unserer Identität. Wenn ich sage, "Ich bin Bernhard", dann bedeutet das mehr als nur "Ich heiße Bernhard" oder "Ich werde Bernhard genannt". Mein Name gehört zu mir, ist Teil von mir, mit allen Ambivalenzen, die dazugehören: etwa meiner Ambivalenz gegenüber den germanischen Wurzeln des Namens, der Kultur und Geschichte, mit der mich dieser Name verbindet. Oder meiner Ambivalenz gegenüber der Ästhetik des Namens, seiner Übersetzbarkeit in andere Sprachen, seiner Aussprache und Aussprechbarkeit. Oder meine Ambivalenz gegenüber seiner eindeutigen geschlechtlichen Zuschreibung, die mich nachhaltig mit einem Geschlecht verbindet, in dem ich mein Leben lang sozialisiert wurde, aber zu dem ich schon lange keine besondere Zugehörigkeit mehr fühle.

Doch mit meinem Namen verbinden sich auch schöne Dinge, Erinnerungen, meine eigene Geschichte. Mein Name ist mit mir und ich bin mit meinem Namen gewachsen. Wir haben uns über die Jahre zerstritten, ausgesöhnt, angefreundet. Mein Name steht für diese Geschichte, er ist Platzhalter und Kürzel für mich, für meine Identität. Dabei hilft, dass Namen vielschichtig, divers und - gemessen an der gesamten Menschheit - selten sind. "Bernhard" schreibt mich in eine bestimmte kulturelle Linie ein, aber nicht nur. Es schreibt mich in einen bestimmten Sprachraum ein, aber nicht nur. Es schreibt mich in eine bestimmte Geschlechtlichkeit ein, aber nicht nur. "Bernhard" gehört zumindest so viel zu mir, wie zum Rest der Welt.

Auch Pronomen sind eine Bezeichnung, eine Anrufung, etwas, das uns andere nennen. Sie sind Platzhalter für unseren Namen, für unsere Identität, für uns. Sie verkürzen uns auf bis zu zwei Buchstaben. Sie nehmen uns Arbeit ab, wenn wir über uns, zu anderen oder über andere reden. Doch gerade im Deutschen sind Pronomen kaum divers, kaum vielschichtig und der Ballast, den sie mitschleppen, rekurriert vor allem auf eine Kategorie: Gender. Für Menschen - abseits von kleinen Kindern, deren Namen wir nicht kennen - haben wir in der dritten Person Singular in der Regel die Wahl zwischen exakt zwei Optionen: "er" und "sie", männlich und weiblich. All die Komplexität, all die Diversität menschlicher Erfahrung runtergebrochen auf diese binäre Entscheidung: männlich oder weiblich?

Täglicher Spießroutenlauf

Nicht-binäre Menschen, die sich außerhalb der Binarität von männlich oder weiblich verstehen, haben in diesen beiden Optionen kaum Platz. Vielleicht ist ihr Geschlecht irgendwo zwischen den Schubladen einzuordnen (bigender), vielleicht fluktuiert es mit der Zeit oder der Situation (genderfluid), vielleicht besteht es völlig unabhängig von diesen beiden Schubladen (genderqueer) oder vielleicht hat die Person gar kein Gefühl davon, überhaupt so etwas wie ein Gender zu haben (agender) - um nur ein paar Möglichkeiten zu nennen. Manche nicht-binäre Menschen verwenden für sich die binären Pronomen, manche vermeiden Pronomen ganz. Für viele Menschen, deren Gender nicht in die beiden klassischen Schubladen passt, bedeuten Pronomen einen täglichen Spießroutenlauf.

In der Forschung hat sich dafür der mitunter missverstandene Begriff der Mikro-Aggressionen etabliert. Diese sind - nicht unbedingt böswillig oder gar aggressiv gemeinte - Akte gegenüber einer Person, die diese in ihrer (marginalisierten) Identität verletzen. Mikro-Aggressionen sind trügerisch, weil sie als Einzelakte kaum greifbar und damit auch kaum kritisierbar sind. Die Anzahl und Wiederholung ist es, die ihnen ihr aggressives Potenzial verleiht. Wenn mich etwa Menschen immer und immer wieder als "Bernd" anreden würden, den ganzen Tag. Wenn ich permanent entweder Menschen korrigieren müsste oder aber ertragen, dass sie für mich den falschen Namen verwenden. Wenn mir ständig signalisiert würde, dass Menschen mich und meine Identität nicht genug respektieren, um meinen richtigen Namen, den Namen, mit dem ich mich identifiziere und mit dem ich mich selbst bezeichne, zu verwenden. Das wären Mikro-Aggressionen - ihre Folgen: konstante Irritation, zunehmende Selbstzweifel, soziale Distanzierung.

Wie viel schlimmer, wenn sich diese Mikro-Aggressionen gegen Teile der Identität richten, die ohnehin schon Angriffspunkte von Marginalisierungen sind, von Diskriminierungen. Wunde Punkte, aufgerieben und empfindlich durch weit größere, sichtbarere und direktere Akte von Gewalt. Solch wunde Punkte attackiert etwa die Verwendung von falschen Pronomen für trans und - im spezifischen Fall - nicht-binäre Menschen. Jedes falsche "er" oder "sie" ist ein winziger Schnitt in die eigene Identität, dutzende winzige Schnitte im Alltag. Immer wieder, mal erwartet, mal überraschend. So viele Schnitte im Laufe der Zeit, bis die ganze Identität zur offenen Wunde wird.

Die Lücke füllen

Unter anderem deswegen entwickelt Illi Anna Heger seit 2008 das Neo-Pronomen "xier" auf der Website www.annaheger.de/pronomen gemeinsam mit Freund*innen und Nutzer*innen. Illi hat einen naturwissenschaftlichen Hintergrund, macht dokumentarische Comics und leitet queere Workshops - auch zu Neo-Pronomen. Neo-Pronomen sind Pronomen, die es vorher in dieser Form nicht gab. Sie sollen die Lücke schließen, die zwischen, neben und rund um "er" und "sie" aufklafft. Alternativen zum dritten Fall Singular, oder wie Illi es nennt: zu den "Tratsch-Pronomen", also Pronomen, die wir eigentlich eh nur verwenden, wenn wir über andere Menschen sprechen: "Die meisten Pronomen, die wir benutzen, sind nicht geschlechter-unterteilt, z. B. ich, dein oder uns."

Die Lücke, die Pronomen wie "xier" hier schließen sollen, ergibt sich einerseits aus nicht-binären Menschen im deutschsprachigen Raum, für die herkömmliche Pronomen eben nicht funktionieren. Sie brauchen eine Alternative, um sich selbst zu bezeichnen und um verletzungsfrei bezeichnet zu werden. Andererseits klafft die Lücke aber auch durch Übersetzungen von Filmen, Büchern und Comics aus Sprachen, in welchen sich ein neutrales Pronomen bereits etabliert hat.

Englisch beispielsweise kennt Singular "they" schon seit dem 14. Jahrhundert für Personen, deren Geschlecht unbekannt oder unbestimmt war. Also vorwiegend, wenn allgemein gesprochen wurde oder mit mangelndem Wissen. Im aktuellen Jahrtausend hat sich "they" dann zunehmend als häufigstes Pronomen für nicht-binäre Menschen etabliert. Neben "they" gab und gibt es jedoch auch eine Reihe von alternativen Neo-Pronomen, etwa "ze", "fae" oder - ein Vorschlag aus dem 19. Jahrhundert - "thon", kurz für "that one".

Dass sich "they" mittlerweile in weiten Kreisen durchgesetzt hat, liegt wohl nicht zuletzt an der langen Geschichte und der damit einhergehenden Gewohnheit. "They" fiel nicht weiter auf, es lenkte nicht vom Inhalt ab. Doch das Schwedische zeigt, dass diese Gewohnheit oft schneller gehen kann, als man, frau und eins glauben. Das Neo-Pronomen "hen" wurde zwar schon 1966 vom Linguisten Rolf Dunås als neutrale Alternative zu "hon" ("sie") und "han" ("er") vorgeschlagen. Allerdings begann es sich erst um 2010 tatsächlich zu etablieren, um dann bereits 2015 ins offizielle schwedische Wörterbuch aufgenommen zu werden. Mittlerweile ist es in Zeitungen, Filmen, Gesetzestexten und Alltag gut verbreitet. Auch wenn es vielleicht noch nicht dieselbe Selbstverständlichkeit der binären Geschwisterpronomen erreicht hat, zeigt Schweden, wie schnell verkrustete Sprachkonventionen aufbrechen können. Sobald der notwendige Druck da ist.

Eine Karte häufiger Neo-Pronomen in europäischen Sprachräumen (Bild: Bernhard Frena / rechtefreie Wikimedia)

Kultur als Multiplikator

Im Deutschen baut sich dieser Druck gerade auf. Auf der Website sammelt Illi akribisch alles, was zur Verwendung von "xier" auf dem Radar aufpoppt. Es wird zunehmend mehr: "Wenn Neo-Pronomen jetzt breiter aufgegriffen werden, liegt das daran, dass sich Menschen auf verschiedenen Ebenen eines Mangels bewusst werden. Übersetzenden Personen fällt auf, dass ihnen eine Entsprechung für das englische Singular ›they‹ fehlt. Das ist eine Übersetzungslücke. In queeren Communitys gibt es das Bedürfnis nach einer funktionierenden Alternative zu ›er‹ und ›sie‹, um respektvoll übereinander sprechen zu können." Laut Illi ist "xier" im Moment das häufigste Pronomen in Untertiteln und Synchronisationen, insbesondere aus dem Englischen. Das trägt stark zur Verbreitung bei. "Künstlerische Medien wirken über sich hinaus", sagt Illi. "Sie sind eine Form von Kommunikation und Weitergabe von Kultur - oft amerikanischer Kultur - darunter auch von so kleineren Phänomenen wie ›they/them‹."

Neben kulturellen Medien sind es aber vor allem die sozialen, welche für eine Popularisierung sorgen. Die meisten dürften das "he/him", "she/her", "they/them" aus Instagram-Bios kennen. Die Angabe von Pronomen hat sich ausgehend von queeren und insbesondere trans Communitys verbreitet - meist mit weiteren angegebenen Fällen, um die Deklination bei Neo-Pronomen klarer zu machen.

Für progressive Internet-Nutzer*innen ist die Angabe zum De-facto-Standard geworden. Indem auch cis Personen ihre Pronomen angeben, soll die Abfrage und Angabe für trans Personen erleichtert und normalisiert werden. Doch das ist nicht für alle nur positiv, insbesondere nicht für Menschen, die sich noch nicht outen können oder wollen. "Die müssen sich dann möglicherweise selbst misgendern, weil sie mitmachen müssen", erklärt Illi. "In meinen Workshops habe ich mitgekriegt, wie stressig das ist für Menschen, die questioning sind und gerade ihr Geschlecht hinterfragen, oder für Leute, für die es noch keine etablierten Pronomen gibt. Es stresst dann genau jene Gruppen, die wir eigentlich schützen wollen." Hier ist es wichtig, dass eine Normalisierung nicht zu einem neuen Zwang wird (siehe "Dos & Don'ts im Umgang mit Neo-Pronomen").

Positiv-negative Shitstorms

Doch die Verbreitung der Neo-Pronomen erfolgt nicht nur über positiv gemeinte Aktionen, wie Illi beschreibt: "Ich habe drei große Shitstorms in sozialen Medien miterlebt, wo sich Leute über Menschen lustig machen, die ›xier‹ für sich verwendeten. Wenn queere Kultur als Belustigung verwendet wird, ist das verletzend. Es ist jedoch ein positiver Aspekt, dass Hater ›xier‹ nochmal sehr viel weiter verbreitet haben. Sie haben es in Kreise getragen, die weit weg von queerem Aktivismus sind. Ich finde, es ist etwas Gutes, wenn mehr Menschen mitbekommen, was Neo-Pronomen sind. Das Wissen um diese Option macht einen Unterschied."

Das bringt Illis Zugang zu Neo-Pronomen auf den Punkt. Einfach mal Angebot schaffen und schauen, wer es annimmt. "Sprachnerdigen Spieltrieb" nennt Illi das augenzwinkernd. Es braucht ein Ausprobieren, ein Wissen um die Optionen. Wenn wir nicht wissen, dass es überhaupt Alternativen gibt, sei es unmöglich, sich darüber zu unterhalten, welche Alternative am besten ist, so Illi: "Wir müssen erst einmal wissen, dass wir so was haben dürfen, bevor wir überlegen können, was wir haben wollen. Ich muss erst mal wissen, dass ich Eis kriegen könnte, bevor ich entscheide, dass Schoko das leckerste ist. Es muss erst Eiscreme geben."

Das vielfältige Angebot an Pronomen-Eiscreme ist in den letzten Jahren beständig gewachsen. Neben "xier" gibt es mittlerweile eine Vielzahl von anderen Neo-Pronomen (siehe "Das kleine Einmaleins der Neo-Pronomen"). Manche haben sich parallel zu "xier" entwickelt, manche als Alternative, oder weil sie sich einfach individuell für einen Menschen richtiger anfühlten. Das Missy Magazin hat sich erst vor Kurzem entschieden, als Magazin von nun an das "dey"-Pronomen als eine neutrale Option zu verwenden. Es ist sprachlich angelehnt an das Englische "they" und findet aktuell gerade in queeren Kreisen zunehmende Verbreitung.

Illi Anna Heger: "Klar wirkt sich veränderte Sprache auf Gesellschaft aus. Aber gleichzeitig führen gesellschaftliche Veränderungen zu neuer Sprache." (Foto: Illi Anna Heger)

Sprache im Wandel

Für Illi ist das allerdings alles keine Frage der Konkurrenz: "Letzten Endes arbeiten wir alle zusammen daran, die Sprachlücke zu füllen. Wir sind gerade in einer Entwicklungsphase, wo es einfach Vielfalt geben muss - egal, was später passieren wird. Wird es ein neues Pronomen geben, das sich durchsetzt? Wird es eine große Vielfalt an etablierten Pronomen geben? Wird es überhaupt nur noch ein Pronomen für alle geben, wie zum Beispiel im Ungarischen? Das hängt davon ab, wohin der Sprachwandel geht, also von allen Menschen, die Deutsch sprechen."

Von Seiten der Kritiker*innen wird oft eingeworfen, das sei doch alles nur Sprachpolitik, das habe kaum reale Auswirkungen, das sei bestenfalls rein akademische Energieverschwendung, schlimmstenfalls lenke es von den eigentlich wichtigen Dingen ab. Das ist einerseits ein müßiger Diskurs, weil wir alle keine Aktivismus-Roboter sind. Wir entscheiden nicht nach rein rationalen Gesichtspunkten, wofür wir uns engagieren, welche Probleme uns besonders stören und wo wir das Gefühl haben, uns gut einbringen zu können.

Inwiefern diese Kritik den eigentlichen Punkt ignoriert, weiß Illi: "Es ist für mich eben keine Frage von Politik, sondern von einem Sprachwandel, der ausgelöst wird durch einen Mangel. Klar wirkt sich veränderte Sprache auf Gesellschaft aus. Aber gleichzeitig führen gesellschaftliche Veränderungen zu neuer Sprache. Das sind parallele Entwicklungen, die sich auch gegenseitig beeinflussen." Es ist also kein entweder-oder, sondern ein und.

Neo-Pronomen sind für Illi nicht der letzte Schritt in dieser sprachlich-gesellschaftlichen Veränderung. Sie bedienen einen Mangel, der jetzt gerade herrscht, doch wohin sich die deutsche Sprache in Zukunft entwickelt, ist für Illi im positivsten Sinne offen: "Wir brauchen Sprache, um die diversen Menschen der Gesellschaft abbilden zu können. Für mich stellt sich die Frage: Warum muss das Geschlecht von Menschen immer wieder in Texten angegeben werden? Was bringt es auch binären Männern und Frauen eigentlich, dass über sie als Männer und Frauen gesprochen wird? Wo ist es überhaupt nötig zu gendern?"

Gerechte(re) Sprache

Vielleicht schaffen wir es eines Tages, die starke Geschlechtlichkeit der deutschen Sprache loszuwerden. Oder vielleicht wird es einmal ein oder mehrere etablierte neutrale Pronomen im Deutschen geben. Klassische Medien wie Film, Fernsehen, Radio und Print sind essenziell, um diese Entwicklung voranzutreiben. Es reicht hier nicht, sich auf den Posten der neutralen Beobachter*innen zurückzuziehen. Wir müssen Stellung beziehen. Nur so wird dieser Diskurs zu einem breiten Diskurs, einem Diskurs, der Sprache nachhaltig ändert.

Bis dahin muss ich mich wohl damit abfinden, dass jedes "er" über mich ein kleines bisschen zwickt. Vielleicht nicht genug, um zu verletzen, nicht genug, um meine Identität zu einer offenen Wunde werden zu lassen. Aber genug, um mir den Tag herbeizuwünschen, an dem auch die deutsche Sprache der menschlichen Vielfalt ein kleines bisschen gerechter geworden ist.
Comics, Pronomen und alles andere von Illi Anna Heger findet man im Internet unter www.annaheger.de. Übersicht und Diskurse über Neo-Pronomen und nicht-binäre Identitäten unter www.nibi.space. Nächste Seite: Das kleine Einmaleins der Neo-Pronomen

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Der Vielfalt gerecht werden - Wie Neo-Pronomen eine Lücke füllen - The Gap

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© Illi Anna Heger / www.annaheger.de Was ist ein Name? Eine Bezeichnung, eine Anrufung, etwas, das uns andere nennen. Namen sind etwas, das wir über uns hören, das uns zugerufen wird, worauf wir trainiert sind zu reagieren. Aber Namen sind mehr. Sie sind Teil unserer Identität.

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My first contribution to Pride month is a CPD session on inclusive writing in MFL (French and Spanish mostly but can be modified). You've got about an hour worth of content with some group/pair activities for your colleagues and an information sheet 😊 https://t.co/gmH87Orte7

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𝑴𝒙 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒊𝒏𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒛

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CPD on inclusive writing.pptm inclusive writing in MFL to print.docx No files in this folder. Sign in to add files to this

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My first contribution to Pride month is a CPD session on inclusive writing in MFL (French and Spanish mostly but can be modified). You've got about an hour worth of content with some group/pair activities for your colleagues and an information sheet 😊 https://t.co/gmH87Orte7 https://t.co/b4cRnv5Hzd

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Don’t miss what’s happening

People on Twitter are the first to know.

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𝑴𝒙 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒊𝒏𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒛

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𝑴𝒙 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒊𝒏𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒛

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My first contribution to Pride month is a CPD session on inclusive writing in MFL (French and Spanish mostly but can be modified). You've got about an hour worth of content with some group/pair activities for your colleagues and an information sheet 😊 https://t.co/gmH87Orte7 pic.twitter.com/b4cRnv5Hzd
— 𝑴𝒙 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒊𝒏𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒛 (@liles_67) June 6, 2022

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My first contribution to Pride month is a CPD session on inclusive writing in MFL (French and Spanish mostly but can be modified). You've got about an hour worth of content with some group/pair activities for your colleagues and an information sheet 😊 https://t.co/gmH87Orte7 https://t.co/b4cRnv5Hzd

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CPD on inclusive writing.pptm inclusive writing in MFL to print.docx No files in this folder. Sign in to add files to this

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𝑴𝒙 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒊𝒏𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒛

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
My first contribution to Pride month is a CPD session on inclusive writing in MFL (French and Spanish mostly but can be modified). You've got about an hour worth of content with some group/pair activities for your colleagues and an information sheet 😊 https://t.co/gmH87Orte7 https://t.co/b4cRnv5Hzd

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.text
My first contribution to Pride month is a CPD session on inclusive writing in MFL (French and Spanish mostly but can be modified). You've got about an hour worth of content with some group/pair activities for your colleagues and an information sheet 😊 https://t.co/gmH87Orte7

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𝑴𝒙 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒊𝒏𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒛

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Gender-neutral language and inclusivity in the MFL classroom

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Gender-neutral language and inclusivity in the MFL classroom

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By Sheena Newland. Published on TeachIt blog 15/03/22

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Sheena Newland, Languages Subject Advisor at Pearson, explores the difficulties involved in achieving gender neutrality in grammatically gendered languages and shares her advice and teaching resources on how to be inclusive of all genders in modern foreign language teaching.

Words are powerful things. Pronouns, in particular, are such small words but pack a punch beyond their size. These little words are currently at the centre of controversy in many of the grammatically gendered modern foreign languages widely taught in the UK.

For example, Le Robert dictionary recently added the French gender-neutral pronouns iel/ielle/iels/ielles to its pages. Jean-Michel Blanquier, the French Minister of National Education, rejected this innovation, stating that ‘L’écriture inclusive n’est pas l’avenir de la langue française’ (inclusive writing is not the future of the French language).

How should teachers, schools and exam boards, who want to support all students and create inclusive classrooms, navigate this changing linguistic landscape?

The evolution of language

Modern languages are like living creatures – they adapt, they evolve, they cross-pollinate. In recent years, for example, we have seen the rapid social changes around gender identity being reflected in how we use language. In English, many people routinely provide their preferred pronouns in their email footers, whether it’s he, she, they (used as a singular pronoun) or another option.

It is relatively easy to use gender-neutral language in English, but what happens in a grammatically gendered language? Sometimes it can be straightforward to choose expressions that are inclusive. For example:

French: les droits humains rather than les droits de l’homme.

German: Lehrende und Studierende rather than Lehrer/Lehrerinnen und Studenten/Studentinnen.

Spanish: la gente rather than los hombres / las mujeres.

But in languages like these, where nearly every noun and adjective carries a gender label, there is often a stark grammatical choice between masculine and feminine forms. In human terms, by the time you have taken the register, students in your class who identify as non-binary may already have had to face the dilemma of declaring themselves either ‘présent’ or ‘présente’.

Language activists

As a result, people who speak these languages, and who want to support gender-neutral forms of expression, are getting creative. They are coining new pronouns, like iel in French, xier in German and nosotres in Spanish. They are inventing alternative adjective endings, like petit.e or heureuxe in French or latin@ in Spanish. They are producing neologisms such as xadres or mapadres to replace the gendered terms madre/padre/padres (mother/father/parents) in Spanish.

Many people, including media outlets and corporations, are starting to adopt these new, more flexible forms. Some governments also support the use of gender-neutral language in certain contexts. For example, in Germany the Federal Ministry of Justice has required all state bodies to use gender-neutral language in official documents since 2014.

Language purists

Purists may object – indeed, they often do. There is widespread psychological and linguistic resistance to this revolution in usage for grammatical, practical and aesthetic reasons.

The Académie française, the official authority on the French language, considers inclusive writing (using gender-neutral forms) to be a ‘mortal danger’ to French. The introduction of inclusive writing in some French textbooks (for example, using ami.e.s instead of amis, to make the word ‘friends’ cover both genders) prompted the prime minister to ban this usage in all official government documents. The French government recently directed schools across the country to stop using gender-neutral spellings of words, labelling them as ‘harmful’ to the practice and understanding of the French language.

Similarly, in Germany, the Gesellschaft für deutsche Sprache (GfdS) – the official association for the German language – has criticised the trend for using a ‘gender star’ or asterisk at the end of nouns as ‘ridiculous’ and ‘nonsense’. An example of this is Freund*in (friend), which is a new, gender-neutral, form that some German-speakers have adopted.

Spain’s official language institution, the Real Academia Española (RAE), also remains inflexible when it comes to gender-neutral forms like ellx and ells (they). In Italy, the Accademia della Crusca considers the new ‘schwa’ suffix to be ‘dangerous’ for the Italian language, despite the country’s Ministry of Education being an early adopter of this gender-neutral ending in official documents (for example, professor ə in the singular and professor3 in the plural).

Prescriptive or descriptive?

For linguists, there is always tension between prescriptive and descriptive approaches to grammar and language. The role of a language teacher is essentially prescriptive to a large extent – to teach students how the foreign language should be used and to give feedback on what is correct or incorrect according to the established rules.

This approach is also embedded into exam board specifications and qualifications. We expect students to know how to make adjectives agree, how to conjugate verbs and tenses accurately, and how to pronounce words correctly, for example.

However, teachers are also alert to how native speakers use language in practice, whether that is slang, abbreviations, ‘text-speak’ or gender-neutral words. For educators who want to step up as allies to their non-binary students, embracing and exploring linguistic changes can make the MFL classroom a more engaging and inclusive space that reflects real life.

Inclusive approaches

It is fascinating for language students to consider that grammar may not just be a matter of rules to follow but can also be a mirror of social change – and an instrument of equality. If you are interested in exploring this further with your students, you can download my free teaching resource, ‘Celebrating LGBT+ history and inclusivity in languages’.

Designed as a pack of cultural activities for key stage 3–4 learners, it includes cultural information in English as well as activities exploring the use of new gender-neutral forms in French, German and Spanish. It offers a chance to discuss how students feel about these changes and who they think should decide the rules of a language. You can dip into just one section for an interesting lesson starter or use it for flipped learning, tutor time or a colourful display. You may also want to explore the rest of our diversity and inclusion collection.

Inclusive assessments

In my role as Languages Subject Advisor at Pearson, I have noticed a steady stream of teachers seeking reassurance that their students will not be penalised or discriminated against if they choose to use gender-neutral target language in Edexcel speaking and writing assessments. That is why I’ve recently produced written guidance and a support video to outline our inclusive approach, in liaison with the wider MFL team at Pearson.

At Pearson, we are committed to assessments that are inclusive and relevant for all, which means supporting learners’ use of their preferred ways of referring to themselves within the confines of the target language. If native speakers of a language support gender neutrality in a particular way, by using new pronouns for example, then our examiners will accept these when used by a candidate correctly – even though this usage may not be recognised by language ‘academies’ in some countries.

Get in touch

If you would like to contribute to the discussion in relation to a language that you speak or teach, please do contact me via teachinglanguages@pearson.com.

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Author: Sheena Newland Published: 15/03/2022

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Gender-neutral language and MFL | Expert advice for teachers | Teachit CPD

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Find out how grammatically gendered languages are trying to achieve greater inclusivity of non-binary genders, and download advice and resources on approaching the issue in class.

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Towards greater inclusivity for gender and sexual diversity in Japanese language education

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Towards greater inclusivity for gender and sexual diversity in Japanese language education

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A recording of Launch of the International Network of Gender, Sexuality & Japanese Language Education (INGS-J) on 10 December, 2021. Featuring invited lectures by Ashley R. Moore (University of British Columbia)

@INGS_JLng on Twitter

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INGS-J: "Towards greater inclusivity for gender and sexual diversity in Japanese language education"

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INGS-J: "Towards greater inclusivity for gender and sexual diversity in Japanese language education"

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Much Language Such Talk | Series 2, Episode 11 with Joe Pearce 

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Much Language Such Talk | Series 2, Episode 11 with Joe Pearce 

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Listen to the episode here.

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#Didyouknow that language influences the way we think?

Learn more about #language and #gender in this week's episode! Available on all platforms now! 

#mlstpodcast #PodcastRecommendations #TIL

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#Didyouknow that language influences the way we think?

Learn more about #language and #gender in this week's episode! Available on all platforms now! 

#mlstpodcast #PodcastRecommendations #TIL https://t.co/Gej4KIZHKP

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#Didyouknow that language influences the way we think?

Learn more about #language and #gender in this week's episode! Available on all platforms now! #mlstpodcast #PodcastRecommendations #TIL pic.twitter.com/Gej4KIZHKP
— Much Language Such Talk (@MLST_podcast) April 30, 2022

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#Didyouknow that language influences the way we think?

Learn more about #language and #gender in this week's episode! Available on all platforms now! 

#mlstpodcast #PodcastRecommendations #TIL https://t.co/Gej4KIZHKP

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#Didyouknow that language influences the way we think?

Learn more about #language and #gender in this week's episode! Available on all platforms now! 

#mlstpodcast #PodcastRecommendations #TIL https://t.co/Gej4KIZHKP

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#Didyouknow that language influences the way we think?

Learn more about #language and #gender in this week's episode! Available on all platforms now! 

#mlstpodcast #PodcastRecommendations #TIL

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Gender and Non-Binary Language in German

This site includes resources for both learning and instructing queer language and culture in German. You will find links to information on non-binary pronouns, Gendergerechte Sprache, queer-centered blogs, interviews, articles, journals, and more!

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Wilkommen! This site includes resources for both learning and instructing queer language and culture in German. You will find links to information on non-binary pronouns, Gendergerechte Sprache,...

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Spiegelman, J.D. (2022) "You used 'elle,' so now you're a girl": Discursive possibilities for a non-binary teenager in French class. L2 Journal, 14(3)

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Spiegelman, J.D. (2022) "You used 'elle,' so now you're a girl": Discursive possibilities for a non-binary teenager in French class. L2 Journal, 14(3)

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Open access article from the Univesity of California

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Abstract

Non-binary individuals comprise one third of the transgender population and may be especially vulnerable to marginalization. The study of languages such as French, grammatically based in a binary gender system, offers unique challenges to non-binary learners for representing themselves in accordance with their identity. Grounded in a poststructuralist understanding of identity (Butler, 1990; Norton Peirce, 1995; Weedon, 1987), this exploratory case study employs discourse analysis (Blommaert, 2005) to delve into the experiences of a non-binary high school student of French. What subject positions are imposed on the student through the discursive systems of English and French, and how is the student able to assert alternative positions? Findings demonstrate the varied and strategic linguistic constitution of the student's identity based on factors including linguistic resources and social positioning, illustrating the student's agency, creativity, and resilience. Implications for teachers are discussed, including the harm caused by misgendering and recommendations for gender-expansive pedagogies.

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"You used 'elle,' so now you're a girl": Discursive possibilities for a non-binary teenager in French class

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Author(s): Spiegelman, Julia Donnelly | Abstract: Non-binary individuals comprise one third of the transgender population and may be especially vulnerable to marginalization. The study of languages such as French, grammatically based in a binary gender system, offers unique challenges to non-binary learners for representing themselves in accordance with their identity.

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Open Access download | Freese, A. & Völkel, O. N. (2022) (Hg.) Gender_Vielfalt_Sexualität (en) im Fach Deutsch als Fremd- und Zweitsprache

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Open Access download | Freese, A. & Völkel, O. N. (2022) (Hg.) Gender_Vielfalt_Sexualität (en) im Fach Deutsch als Fremd- und Zweitsprache

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LiKuM Bd. 4 - Freese, Anika / Völkel, Oliver Niels (Hg.): Gender_Vielfalt_Sexualität(en) im Fach Deutsch als Fremd- und Zweitsprache

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Freese, Anika / Völkel, Oliver Niels (Hg.) Gender_Vielfalt_Sexualität(en) im Fach Deutsch als Fremd- und Zweitsprache

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Twitter thread by Spencer Williams @burritothief from March 2022. Sharing personal viewpoint as a trans educator.

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This might be a hot take but I’ll say that the introduction of pronouns at the beginning of a class has always made me, a trans person, uncomfortable because it suspends me—maybe me and one other person depending—in a state of hypervisibility.

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This might be a hot take but I’ll say that the introduction of pronouns at the beginning of a class has always made me, a trans person, uncomfortable because it suspends me—maybe me and one other person depending—in a state of hypervisibility.

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Something went wrong, but don’t fret — let’s give it another shot.

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This might be a hot take but I’ll say that the introduction of pronouns at the beginning of a class has always made me, a trans person, uncomfortable because it suspends me—maybe me and one other person depending—in a state of hypervisibility.
— Spencer Williams (@burritotheif) March 11, 2022

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This might be a hot take but I’ll say that the introduction of pronouns at the beginning of a class has always made me, a trans person, uncomfortable because it suspends me—maybe me and one other person depending—in a state of hypervisibility.

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This might be a hot take but I’ll say that the introduction of pronouns at the beginning of a class has always made me, a trans person, uncomfortable because it suspends me—maybe me and one other person depending—in a state of hypervisibility.

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This might be a hot take but I’ll say that the introduction of pronouns at the beginning of a class has always made me, a trans person, uncomfortable because it suspends me—maybe me and one other person depending—in a state of hypervisibility.

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In vielen Artikeln in diesem Wiki wird versucht, Begriffe, die mit nichtbinärem Geschlecht zusammenhängen, zu erklären. Dabei kann der Eindruck entstehen, es gäbe hier irgendwelche besonderen Wahrheiten zu finden. Das ist nicht der Fall. Der Anspruch des Nichtbinär-Wikis ist:

zusammenzutragen, wie Begriffe verwendet werden

ihre Entstehung nachzuverfolgen

sie mit anderen Überlegungen zu ähnlichen Themen in Bezug zu setzen

Das gelingt mal besser, mal weniger gut. Jeder Artikel kann weitere Quellen vertragen.

Und selbst bei den gut recherchierten gilt, und auch für die Quellen an sich gilt: Sie bilden momentane Vorstellungen dieser Dinge ab.

Sie zeigen uns, wie andere Menschen ihre Existenz als weder-das-noch-das in einer patriarchalen, cisnormativen Welt begreifen. Als eine Checkliste zur Findung der wahren Identität, was auch immer das sein mag, sollten sie nicht dienen.

Hilfe dabei gibt es hier! Auch ein paar Anhaltspunkte dafür, was toll ist und was nicht, finden sich dort.

Prinzipiell geht es darum, möglichst viel nichtbinäres Wissen zusammenzutragen und einander dabei zu ergänzen.

Das muss nicht perfekt sein. Und nicht alles muss ein langer Text sein, eine Sammlung hilfreicher Links ist genauso toll.

Lose verbandelt sind wir mit nonbinary.wiki, einem englischsprachigen Wiki für nichtbinäre Themen. Wenn wir Artikel zum selben Thema haben, verlinken wir sie gegenseitig. Seine Vorgänger_innenseite hat das Entstehen des Nichtbinär-Wikis inspiriert. Links zu nonbinary.wiki sind mit einer kleinen nonbinary-Flagge markiert, und eins kann sie so erzeugen: [[nbw>Seitenname]]

Das Admin dieses Wikis ist nicht mehr kaoskatz, vielen Dank an die beiden neuen Admins 💜 Bei Problemen schreib bitte an nibi [ät] uber [punkt] space.

Logo und Favicon sind Teil von Mutant Standard, einem Emoji-Set von Dzuk, lizensiert als CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.

(Automatically exported to Dokuwiki from Mediawiki by Yamdwe on 12/24/17.)

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In vielen Artikeln in diesem Wiki wird versucht, Begriffe, die mit nichtbinärem Geschlecht zusammenhängen, zu erklären. Dabei kann der Eindruck entstehen, es gäbe hier irgendwelche besonderen Wahrheiten zu finden. Das ist nicht der Fall. Der Anspruch des Nichtbinär-Wikis ist: zusammenzutragen, wie Begriffe verwendet werden ihre Entstehung nachzuverfolgen sie mit anderen Überlegungen zu ähnlichen Themen in Bezug zu setzen Das gelingt mal besser, mal weniger gut.

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A Student's Guide to Non-Binary French by Julia Spiegelman

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A Student's Guide to Non-Binary French by Julia Spiegelman

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A Student's Guide to Non-Binary Spanish by Julia Speigelman

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A Student's Guide to Non-Binary Spanish by Julia Speigelman

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Règles de grammaire neutre et inclusive, Divergenres, 2021, Québec.

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Règles de grammaire neutre et inclusive, Divergenres, 2021, Québec.

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Dr Rachel Allan le mìneachaidhean air briathrachas LGDT+ sa Ghàidhlig. An robh sibhse eòlach orra?

Did you know these LGBTQ+ terms in Gaelic?

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Dr Rachel Allan le mìneachaidhean air briathrachas LGDT+ sa Ghàidhlig. An robh sibhse eòlach orra?

Did you know these LGBTQ+ terms in Gaelic? https://t.co/iccZVdft1e

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Dr Rachel Allan le mìneachaidhean air briathrachas LGDT+ sa Ghàidhlig. An robh sibhse eòlach orra?

Did you know these LGBTQ+ terms in Gaelic? pic.twitter.com/iccZVdft1e
— LearnGaelicScot (@LearnGaelicScot) February 22, 2022

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Dr Rachel Allan le mìneachaidhean air briathrachas LGDT+ sa Ghàidhlig. An robh sibhse eòlach orra?

Did you know these LGBTQ+ terms in Gaelic? https://t.co/iccZVdft1e

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Dr Rachel Allan le mìneachaidhean air briathrachas LGDT+ sa Ghàidhlig. An robh sibhse eòlach orra?

Did you know these LGBTQ+ terms in Gaelic? https://t.co/iccZVdft1e

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Dr Rachel Allan le mìneachaidhean air briathrachas LGDT+ sa Ghàidhlig. An robh sibhse eòlach orra?

Did you know these LGBTQ+ terms in Gaelic?

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Emilia Alegre y el lenguaje inclusivo: “El castellano no es sexista, sino el uso que le damos”

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Emilia Alegre y el lenguaje inclusivo: “El castellano no es sexista, sino el uso que le damos”

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18/02/22

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Emilia Alegre y el lenguaje inclusivo: “El castellano no es sexista, sino el uso que le damos”

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Importantes referentes participaron en las jornadas educativas que organizó Ticmas para “volver al futuro” de la educación. Entre ellos, Emilia Alegre participó del panel “Educación inclusiva y diversa” moderado por Lucía Rennella, periodista y Content Creator en Ticmas.

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Prògram sònraichte de Eòrpa a’ coimhead ri cuspair dearbh-aithne gnè.
An extended Eòrpa programme on the subject of gender identity, ahead of a draft bill amending the Gender Recognition Act.
Available on BBC iplayer until 18/03/22

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Prògram sònraichte de Eòrpa a' coimhead ri cuspair dearbh-aithne gnè.
An extended Eòrpa programme on the subject of gender identity, ahead of a draft bill amending the Gender Recognition Act.

Prògram sònraichte de Eòrpa a' coimhead ri cuspair dearbh-aithne gnè. Air thoiseach air foillseachadh dreach bhile mu bhith ag atharrachadh Achd Aithneachaidh a' Ghnè, tha Eòrpa a' bruidhinn ri daoine tar-ghnèitheach air a' Ghàidhealtachd agus nas fhaide air falbh mun bhuaidh a bhios aig a leithid air am beatha.

Bidh am prògram cuideachd a' sealltainn ris a' bhuaidh a dh'fhaodadh a bhith aig a seo air prìosain, àiteachan aona-ghnè, agus a bhith a' lùghdachadh an aois far am biodh e ceadaichte teisteanas aithneachaidh gnè fhaighinn.

An extended Eòrpa programme on the subject of gender identity. Ahead of a draft bill amending the Gender Recognition Act, Eòrpa has been speaking to trans people in the Highlands and further afield about the impact this could have on their lives. We also ask about potential changes to the rules for self-ID and the impact these could have on prisons and single-sex spaces, and we look at reducing the minimum age for obtaining a Gender Recognition Certificate.

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Prògram sònraichte de Eòrpa a' coimhead ri cuspair dearbh-aithne gnè. An extended Eòrpa programme on the subject of gender identity, ahead of a draft bill amending the Gender Recognition Act. Prògram sònraichte de Eòrpa a' coimhead ri cuspair dearbh-aithne gnè.

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Permission to Speak: Amplifying Marginalised Voices Through Languages

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Permission to Speak: Amplifying Marginalised Voices Through Languages

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Learn Gaelic newsletter, February 2022

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It's important that we are all respectful to everyone, and respect their individual identities. For example, if someone asks you to use different pronouns when referring to them, be kind and courteous.

If you're interested in the wider Gaelic LGBTQ+ community, we would recommend the Instagram page, @angeidhealur. They have lots more interesting vocabulary and important news.

That's it from us for another week. From your pals and allies at team LearnGaelic , see you soon.

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Mìos Eachdraidh na Coimhearsnachd LGDTC+ sona dhut!🌈

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It's important that we are all respectful to everyone, and respect their individual identities. For example, if someone asks you to use different pronouns when referring to them, be kind and courteous. If you're interested in the wider Gaelic LGBTQ+ community, we would recommend the Instagram page, @angeidhealur.

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When a pronoun makes the French 'iel' - recorded presentation by Dr Emmanuelle Labeau

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When a pronoun makes the French 'iel' - recorded presentation by Dr Emmanuelle Labeau

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Aston Centre for Applied Lingusitics YouTube channel, posted 04/02/22

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French CLIL with Emmanuelle Labeau and Aleksandar

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Aston Centre for Applied Linguistics (#ACAL) : When a pronoun makes the French 'iel'

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Teaching colour vocabulary (and more!) with Year 7 (S1, aged 12/13) learners of German.

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I'm looking forward to teaching colours to year 7 next week. #pridemonth

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I'm looking forward to teaching colours to year 7 next week. #pridemonth https://t.co/qFhael11ny

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New gender-neutral pronoun likely to enter Norwegian dictionaries

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New gender-neutral pronoun likely to enter Norwegian dictionaries

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New gender-neutral pronoun likely to enter Norwegian dictionaries

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A new gender-neutral pronoun is likely to enter the official Norwegian language within a year, the Language Council of Norway has confirmed.

" Hen" would become an alternative to the existing singular third-person pronouns, the feminine " hun" and the masculine " han ".

"Over time, we have seen that the actual use of hen has increased and stabilised," Daniel Ims, a representative of the council, told Norwegian media.

Ims said that while gender-neutral pronouns had been discussed in Norway's linguistic and grammar community for some time, the arguments for their use were not initially mirrored by Norwegian speech patterns.

Similar debates have been taking place around the world. Most recently, the French education minister, Jean-Michel Blanquer, accused a reference dictionary of "US-inspired wokeism" for including an entry for the word " iel", used by some in France as a gender-neutral pronoun.

In the US, the Merriam-Webster dictionary included a singular gender-neutral definition of the pronoun "they" in 2019.

"They" first entered English language in its plural form via Old Norse. In turn, the English singular use of the pronoun has caught on with some non-binary Norwegians in recent years, with many using the Norwegian equivalent " de" in the same way.

"A hundred years ago it was normal to use singular deto address people of a higher rank," said Carl-Oscar Vik, 18, from Skien in south-east Norway. Vik, who is non-binary, has been experimenting with pronouns over the past year. Although they do not mind using hen,they feel most at home with de, which they feel sounds more natural in Norwegian. "Ultimately it's just a question of preference," they said.

For Vik, the debate sparked by the plans to recognise henhas been a positive way to increase the visibility of non-binary people in public life. "I think that a normal person on the street doesn't know anyone who identifies as non-binary," they said. "But I hope that by getting hen into the dictionary we can get the idea out there, because there are many people who don't feel at home in certain pronouns but don't have the words to describe it."

Vik also hopes that the official recognition of gender-neutral pronouns could be a first step to legal recognition of a third gender.

Hen could enter Norwegian dictionaries as early as spring or early autumn, Ims said, after a consultation phase open to "all in the [Norwegian] language community".

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New gender-neutral pronoun likely to enter Norwegian dictionaries

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A new gender-neutral pronoun is likely to enter the official Norwegian language within a year, the Language Council of Norway has confirmed. " Hen" would become an alternative to the existing singular third-person pronouns, the feminine " hun" and the masculine " han ".

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Interactive article. Written by Minami Funakoshi. Illustrated by Samuel Granados. Published by Reuters 25/01/22

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Minami Funakoshi
Illustrated by Samuel Granados

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The movement to recognize a spectrum of genders is changing languages around the world.

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An overview of Polish nonbinary pronouns

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Kompendium wiedzy o języku niebinarnym i neutralnym płciowo.

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Parra & Serafini (2022) “Bienvenidxs todes”: el lenguaje inclusivo desde una perspectiva crítica para las clases de español

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Parra & Serafini (2022) “Bienvenidxs todes”: el lenguaje inclusivo desde una perspectiva crítica para las clases de español

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EN ABIERTO por tiempo limitado:
El propósito de este artículo es proporcionar herramientas conceptuales y pedagógicas para integrar el tema del lenguaje inclusivo (LI) en el currículum de las clases de español LE/L2 y de español como lengua de herencia (ELH). Adoptamos una perspectiva crítica que expone la complejidad del tema desde dos diferentes perspectivas: la normativa y la sociolingüística. Las herramientas conceptuales incluyen: a) la definición de LI, b) las propuestas actuales de LI en español y c) las perspectivas y posiciones generales desde las cuales se analiza e interpreta el LI. Las herramientas pedagógicas funcionan a modo de sugerencias didácticas para acercar a los estudiantes a la complejidad del tema, fortalecer sus habilidades argumentativas, expandir su competencia transcultural, su conciencia lingüística y social, así como promover su propia agencia como usuarios del español. La información que aquí presentamos también lleva a reflexionar sobre las dinámicas relacionales entre docentes y estudiantes y colegas con una diversidad de identidades de género, incluyendo miembros y no miembros de las comunidades LGBTIQ+ dentro y fuera del aula de español.

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A big fuss over a little word? New French pronoun 'iel' sparks debate

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A big fuss over a little word? New French pronoun 'iel' sparks debate

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Report on France24, released 2 Dec 2021

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France's prominent Le Petit Robert dictionary, considered a linguistic authority in the country, recently added a new pronoun to its online edition. The word is "iel", a gender-neutral merging of the masculine "il" (he) and the feminine "elle" (she). This new pronoun, intended for those who identify as neither male nor female, is already used online and by younger generations. But the move to include it in the dictionary provoked a backlash from politicians and linguists. One vocal critic of the new pronoun is French Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer. He says it's the latest expression of "wokism" which, he claims, threatens France's universalist model. We take a closer look.

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French connections - A big fuss over a little word? New French pronoun 'iel' sparks debate

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France's prominent Le Petit Robert dictionary, considered a linguistic authority in the country, recently added a new pronoun to its online edition. The word is "iel", a gender-neutral merging of the masculine "il" (he) and the feminine "elle" (she). This new pronoun, intended for those who identify as neither male nor female, is already used online and by younger generations.

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Feedback from students

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These days have been difficult, but there is joy when your Ss have these reflections, and remind you of the long journey towards creating safe and affirming spaces for all identities present in your classes. #LangChat #mflchat #mfltwitterati

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These days have been difficult, but there is joy when your Ss have these reflections, and remind you of the long journey towards creating safe and affirming spaces for all identities present in your classes. #LangChat #mflchat #mfltwitterati https://t.co/lffqNhtjBs

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Don’t miss what’s happening

People on Twitter are the first to know.

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These days have been difficult, but there is joy when your Ss have these reflections, and remind you of the long journey towards creating safe and affirming spaces for all identities present in your classes. #LangChat #mflchat #mfltwitterati pic.twitter.com/lffqNhtjBs
— Abelardo Almazán-Vázquez (@AbelardoAlmazan) January 13, 2022

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These days have been difficult, but there is joy when your Ss have these reflections, and remind you of the long journey towards creating safe and affirming spaces for all identities present in your classes. #LangChat #mflchat #mfltwitterati https://t.co/lffqNhtjBs

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These days have been difficult, but there is joy when your Ss have these reflections, and remind you of the long journey towards creating safe and affirming spaces for all identities present in your classes. #LangChat #mflchat #mfltwitterati https://t.co/lffqNhtjBs

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These days have been difficult, but there is joy when your Ss have these reflections, and remind you of the long journey towards creating safe and affirming spaces for all identities present in your classes. #LangChat #mflchat #mfltwitterati

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05 Scots - Language An Accent - Pairts o Speech - Determiners, Pronouns & adjectives

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From Dr Michael Dempster, Director of the Scots Language Centre and Creative Scotland’s Scots Scriever.

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05 Scots - Language An Accent - Pairts o Speech - Determiners, Pronouns & adjectives

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CITOYEN.NE.S - open source, inclusive textbook

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CITOYEN.NE.S - open source, inclusive textbook

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Recording of conversation with Dr Annabelle Dolidon, Associate Professor French at Portland State University, USA hosted by Diversity, Decolonization, and the French Curriculum Forum. 1 hour.

Citoyen.ne.s open source French conversation textbook, authored by Dr Dolidon.  Inclusive. Up-to-date. Free to download. Intermediate to advanced learners.

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Pronoun propaganda - inclusive written answers to grammar exercises in German.

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pronoun propaganda: now in my german homework 😈
(xier, dey and nin are german neopronouns)
(if i'm doing these wrong, someone please tell me)

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pronoun propaganda: now in my german homework 😈
(xier, dey and nin are german neopronouns)
(if i'm doing these wrong, someone please tell me) https://t.co/md1qH4nDdW

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Guidance on the use of gender neutral (or non-binary) pronouns and adjective agreements in Pearson speaking and writing assessments for languages qualifications

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Guidance on the use of gender neutral (or non-binary) pronouns and adjective agreements in Pearson speaking and writing assessments for languages qualifications

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Guidance published December 2021

Sheena Newland explaining this guidance: https://youtu.be/OeBaARAG3wg
Slides from this presentation: https://qualifications.pearson.com/content/dam/pdf/GCSE/French/2016/teaching-and-learning-materials/Gender-diversity-and-inclusion-in-languages-final.pdf

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Beyond Gender Binaries in Italian Language

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Beyond Gender Binaries in Italian Language

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An overview of inclusive, nonbinary terms across languages and some proposals for the Italian language. Dr. Amanda Minervini, Colorado College

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Beyond Gender Binaries in Italian Language

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How can we normalise different gender identitites in the MFL classroom?

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How can we normalise different gender identitites in the MFL classroom?

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By Sadie Thompspn @missmclachlan for Oxford Educator blog. Published 06/12/21

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Inclusive Classrooms: How can we normalise different gender identities in the MFL classroom? - Oxford Education Blog

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Sadie Thompson reflects on how we can sensitively normalise different gender identities in the MFL classroom.

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Pronouns and other gendered words in our Latin classrooms

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Pronouns and other gendered words in our Latin classrooms

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Post by Jenn Jarnagin, published 02/12/21

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Brighter Thinking Blog | Cambridge University Press

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Pronouns and other gendered words in our Latin classrooms

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To some readers, bringing attention to the gendered language we use may sound like common knowledge, and for some readers, it may feel like puzzling or...

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We are building a bigger tent for nonbinary Jews through a third-gender grammar systematics for Hebrew, guided by our Torah and Talmud that teach us to rejoice that which cannot be neatly categorized.

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Creating imaginary characters with our Novice students offers a wonderful opportunity to experience inclusive language for the first time. They kept asking “is it a boy or a girl?” And my natural response was “we don’t have to choose”. #langchat

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Creating imaginary characters with our Novice students offers a wonderful opportunity to experience inclusive language for the first time. They kept asking “is it a boy or a girl?” And my natural response was “we don’t have to choose”. #langchat https://t.co/aIHO2LRdQf

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Creating imaginary characters with our Novice students offers a wonderful opportunity to experience inclusive language for the first time. They kept asking “is it a boy or a girl?” And my natural response was “we don’t have to choose”. #langchat pic.twitter.com/aIHO2LRdQf
— Cécile Lainé (she/her) (@CecileLaine) November 25, 2021

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Creating imaginary characters with our Novice students offers a wonderful opportunity to experience inclusive language for the first time. They kept asking “is it a boy or a girl?” And my natural response was “we don’t have to choose”. #langchat https://t.co/aIHO2LRdQf

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
Creating imaginary characters with our Novice students offers a wonderful opportunity to experience inclusive language for the first time. They kept asking “is it a boy or a girl?” And my natural response was “we don’t have to choose”. #langchat https://t.co/aIHO2LRdQf

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Creating imaginary characters with our Novice students offers a wonderful opportunity to experience inclusive language for the first time. They kept asking “is it a boy or a girl?” And my natural response was “we don’t have to choose”. #langchat

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Shared by @alenord and @MrFisherSays. Chat mat linked to talking about ‘the important people in my life’ in German

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French dictionary adding gender-neutral pronoun is 'important step' for equality

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French dictionary adding a gender-neutral pronoun is ‘important step’ for equality

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French dictionary adding a gender-neutral pronoun is ‘important step’ for equality

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PinkNews | Latest lesbian, gay, bi and trans news | LGBT+ news

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The gender-neutral pronoun "iel" has been added to a French dictionary in a major shake-up for the strictly-controlled language.

Le Robert, a reference book for the French language, included the gender-neutral pronoun after noticing an uptick in its usage, the dictionary's managing director Charles Bimbenet said in a statement.

Bimbenet said most people had expressed "satisfaction" at seeing "iel" included in its latest edition, but he said some were "surprised, if not indignant" about the decision. The French language is notoriously conservative and debate is often sparked when there are shifts that are seen as being influenced by outside sources.

Writing on the dictionary's official website, Bimbenet said the dictionary's committee met in early October and decided to include "iel" in its online dictionary.

You would be forgiven for thinking the inclusion of a gender-neutral pronoun in a dictionary wouldn't be big news - but somehow, it has become something of a scandal in France. Politicians have hit out at the move, including education minister Jean-Michel Blanquer, who insisted that "inclusive writing is not the future of the French language". Francois Jolivet, a member of parliament, said the adoption of a gender-neutral pronoun was part of a "woke ideology".

Jolivet has asked L'Académie Francaise to weigh in on the issue. The 400-year old institution is responsible for ruling on issues relating to the French language.

Including gender-neutral pronouns in the French dictionary 'recognises' non-binary people's identities

While politicians are furious at the natural evolution of language, LGBT+ people and organisations are broadly accepting and welcoming of the move.

The news was welcomed by ILGA Europe, an LGBT+ rights organisation that works to deliver meaningful change for queer people across Europe and Central Asia.

"Allowing for non-binary gender markers in official documents is primarily an issue of accuracy, privacy, and respect for a person," an ILGA Europe spokesperson told PinkNews. "Non-binary people who must choose between only 'male' or 'female' gender markers are unable to have their documents match their identities, and as a result are often exposed to privacy violations because of assumptions about their sex assigned at birth.

"Including gender neutral pronouns in the dictionary is not only recognising the reality of non-binary people, but an important step in ensuring non-discrimination and representation of non-binary people in our societies."

People have also shared their joy at seeing the gender-neutral pronoun adopted in the dictionary on Twitter, while others have hit out at the politicians who have taken the opportunity to disregard LGBT+ identities.

i thought France was a modern, open-minded country that respects personal freedoms, but seeing the government's resistance towards the non-gendered noun 'iel' is making me think otherwise.

- ani mosity (@vhenanigans) November 18, 2021

France is tearing itself over pronouns. One it dictionary included the gender neutral "iel" and they are losing it.

Whew.

- vii (@lvisxvii) November 18, 2021

France's leading dictionary added "iel" (=non-gendered pronoun used by some as contraction of il/he & elle/she). So of course Macron's government is having an anti-"wokisme" meltdown over it. "Inclusive writing is not the future of the French language." https://t.co/TIbM8aL8rD

- Taniel (@Taniel) November 17, 2021

France just added a genderless pronoun to the dictionary 💪🏻

Standard 3rd person use is genderless by default in Turkish pic.twitter.com/ju5JAIKFRS

- ✨ Δslı (@AsliYonce) November 13, 2021

2021 in France, the country where a dictionary publisher accused of "wokism" by the minister of national education for adding a gender-neutral pronoun in their dictionary, has to write a whole essay explaining why and how new words are added.🤷🏻‍♀️ https://t.co/9g10K4aAPv

- Rim-Sarah Alouane (@RimSarah) November 17, 2021

Gender-neutral pronouns have become increasingly popular in other languages in recent years as more non-binary and gender diverse people open up about their identities.

In the English language, many non-binary people use they/them pronouns, but there are many other gender-neutral pronouns used by people who don't fit into rigid gendered categories.

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French dictionary adding gender-neutral pronoun is 'important step' for equality

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The gender-neutral pronoun "iel" has been added to a French dictionary in a major shake-up for the strictly-controlled language. Le Robert, a reference book for the French language, included the gender-neutral pronoun after noticing an uptick in its usage, the dictionary's managing director Charles Bimbenet said in a statement.

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French dictionary sparks debate with non-binary 'iel' pronoun

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Article from Reuters news agency

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Tumblr thread about non-binary parents.
Twitter thread begun by @alenord on this issue.

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He visto que han preguntado sobre una manera "neutra" de llamar a una madre o a un padre. Vamos, una palabra que podrían usar para las personas no binarias con hijes. Un amigo mío (género fluido) y yo (mutogender) empezamos a inventarnos palabras y a contrastarlas con la opinión de amigues nuestres. Al cabo de un tiempo se empezaron a popularizar más y más en nuestro grupo de gente, así que os las dejo por si alguien quiere usarlas ^_^:

- Neidre.

Esta palabra está pensada para ser usada por personas de género neutro, con todas sus variantes de género neutro, pues el género neutro es un tanto "complicado". Si no eres neutre pero te gusta esta palabra, puedes usarla, pues cualquier persona no binaria es libre de usarla si le gusta ^^. Yo soy mutogender y creo que, si tengo hijos, me denominaré como su "neidre", por ejemplo.

Neidre viene de "neutro" (nei) y el "dre" de "madre" y "padre".

Ahora bien, une niñe no usa "madre" y "padre", al menos donde yo vivo, pues es considerado demasiado "formal". En el día a día se usa "mamá" o "papá", así que también pensamos en una forma más "informal" para designar a une neidre: "Neinei". Como "mamá" son dos veces la primera vocal de "madre", y "papá" son dos veces la primera vocal de "padre", pensamos que tendría sentido que fuera "neinei", ya que sería dos veces la primera vocal de "neidre". Además, "neinei" es fácil de pronunciar para les niñes pequeñes.

También existe una manera equiparable a "mami" y "papi"; "neini".

- Adre.

Esta palabra está pensada para ser usada por personas agénero y por personas que no tengan identidad de género (sin género). Claro está, si te sientes cómode con ella, puedes usarla sin problema alguno ^^.

Adre viene de "agénero" (a) y el "dre" de "madre" y "padre".

Una manera más "informal" de llamar a une adre sería "adá", y la manera "cariñosa" equiparable a "mami" y "papi" sería "adi".

- Hadre.

"Hadre" es una versión más "fantasiosa" porque suena a "Hada", y si eres de las personas que usa el pronombre inglés "FAE", puede que prefieras usar esta otra forma de escribir en vez de "adre". Además, esta otra manera está pensada para personas cuya identidad de género tire hacia identidades más "fantasiosas" (estas identidades suelen ser un tanto abstractas, así que es complicado de explicar, sorry).

"Hadre" viene de "hada" (ha) y el "dre" de "madre" y "padre". Se pronuncia igual que "adre".

Una manera más informal de llamar a une madre sería "hadá", y la manera "cariñosa" equiparable a "mami" y "papi" sería "hadí". Las haches no se pronuncian, claro está.

- Edre.

"Edre" es otra palabra que puede ser usada por cualquier persona no binaria que desee usarla ^^. Su forma informal sería "edé", y la más cariñosa "edi".

En resumen:

- Madre, mamá, mami.

- Padre, papá, papi.

- Neidre, neinei, neini.

- Adre, adá, adi.

- Hadre, hadá, hadi.

- Edre, edé, edi.

Por supuesto, si una persona de género no binario está cómoda usando "madre" o "padre", también puede usar esas palabras, desde luego >.<.

Bueno, espero que les sea de utilidad ^_^.

1:58 am - Wed Dec 31

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“Madre”, “Padre”, “Neidre”, “Adre”, “Hadre” y “Edre”

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He visto que han preguntado sobre una manera “neutra” de llamar a una madre o a un padre. Vamos, una palabra que podrían usar para las personas no binarias con hijes. Un amigo mío (género fluido) y yo...

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Language Learners Literature Advisory Board

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Language Learners Literature Advisory Board

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The mission of the Language Learner Literature Advisory Board (LLLAB) is to provide well-rounded feedback about Classroom Library material as it pertains to race, ethnicity, cultures, social class, gender, sexual orientation, gender expression, age, religion, family structure, neurodiversity, abilities, and experiences. The board is composed of a group of diverse members that are well-advanced in their field and can provide trustworthy information to help dismantle social inequalities and support teachers and authors in developing and curating culturally-sustaining reading material.

We are committed to (un)learning and welcome feedback and suggestions for honoring and validating everyone’s identities, experiences, and realities.

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N EVER MISS A REVIEW!

Our mission

The mission of the Language Learner Literature Advisory Board (LLLAB) is to provide well-rounded feedback about Classroom Library material as it pertains to race, ethnicity, cultures, social class, gender, sexual orientation, gender expression, age, religion, family structure, neurodiversity, abilities, and experiences. The board is composed of a group of diverse members that are well-advanced in their field and can provide trustworthy information to help dismantle social inequalities and support teachers and authors in developing and curating culturally-sustaining reading material.

We are committed to (un)learning and welcome feedback and suggestions for honoring and validating everyone's identities, experiences, and realities.
Acknowledgements
At LLLAB, we situate our work in a bigger movement in literature and education-or rather, a series of movements-aimed at improving the quality and thoughtfulness of books, the accountability of authors, and the education of readers. We recommend following these hashtags:

#bookaudit

#dignidadliteraria

#ownvoices

#stayinginourlanesproject

#wlbookaudit

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Language Learner Literature Advisory Board

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N EVER MISS A REVIEW! The mission of the Language Learner Literature Advisory Board (LLLAB) is to provide well-rounded feedback about Classroom Library material as it pertains to race, ethnicity, cultures, social class, gender, sexual orientation, gender expression, age, religion, family structure, neurodiversity, abilities, and experiences.

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Gender Distinctions in Independent Personal Pronouns

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Gender Distinctions in Independent Personal Pronouns

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By Anna Siewierska, published in the World Atlas of Language Structures Online

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1. Introduction

Independent personal pronouns, in contrast to bound forms (i.e. clitics and affixes), are separate words capable of taking primary stress. Virtually all languages have independent personal pronouns, though in some they occur rather infrequently. Gender, as defined by Corbett (1991), is a form of classification of nominals, as shown by agreement (see Map 30A). Most gender contrasts on personal pronouns are sex-based, i.e. pronouns used for male referents are masculine and those used for females are feminine. The treatment of other referents varies. They may be referred to by a separate set (or sets) of neuter pronouns, as is the case in English and many other European languages. Alternatively, they may be grouped with the referents of masculine gender (e.g. Amharic), or less commonly with the referents of feminine gender (e.g. Warekena), or split over the masculine and feminine genders in an arbitrary way or according to some semantically based principle (e.g. Garifuna).

Gender oppositions in personal pronouns are characteristic of the third rather than the first or second person. This is suggested by Greenberg (1963: 96) Universal 44: "If a language has gender distinctions in the first person, it always has gender distinctions in the second or third person or in both". Moreover, gender is seen as being typical of singular rather than non-singular personal pronouns. This, in turn, is expressed in Greenberg's Universal 45: "If there are any gender distinctions in the plural of the pronoun, there are some gender distinctions in the singular also". There are some exceptions to universals 44 and 45 involving independent person pronouns, but not many (cf. especially Plank and Schellinger 1997).

2. Defining the values

The distribution of gender marking on independent personal pronouns is shown in Map 44A. In the case of languages which have more than one series of independent personal pronouns, the forms considered are those that may be used as subjects. The six values depicted in the map are based on the relationship between gender and person as reflected in the above-mentioned Greenbergian universals. The values are:

The first value represents languages in which gender is highly prominent in the pronominal system, i.e. in addition to gender in the third person, there is also gender in either second person or first person or both. The gender distinctions in question may involve just the singular, or any combination of both singular and non-singular. For instance, in Hausa (Chadic; Nigeria and Niger) and many other Chadic and Semitic languages, gender is exhibited only in the second and third person singular:

In Ngala (Ndu, Sepik; north-western Papua New Guinea), there are gender distinctions in all three persons in the singular:

(2) Ngala ( Laycock 1965a: 133)

Rif Berber ( Morocco) has a gender contrast in the second and third person in both the singular and plural (see (3)), while the Murui dialect of Huitoto ( Huitotoan; Colombia and Peru) has a two-way gender contrast in the first and second person dual and a three-way gender contrast in the third person singular, dual and plural (see (4)).

And Korana ( Central Khoisan; South Africa) has gender distinctions for all three persons in three numbers and in both the exclusive and inclusive forms in the dual and plural (here C = common gender):

The Korana paradigm is particularly worthy of attention as it is the most complete person/number/gender paradigm in the sample.

Languages in which gender in personal pronouns is confined to the third person but not just to the singular are covered by value two. The relevant languages may display gender in all the singular and non-singular third person forms, as in Worora ( Wororan; Western Australia), which has gender distinctions in the singular, dual, trial and plural.

Alternatively, they may have gender in the singular and only some of the non-singular numbers, for instance, the dual but not the plural, as in Lavukaleve ( Solomons East Papuan; Solomon Islands):

(In Lavukaleve four degrees of distance are distinguished in the third person forms. Only the proximal forms are given in (7).)

Value three encompasses languages which have a gender contrast solely in the third person singular, irrespective of the variety of number oppositions exhibited: singular/plural as in English, singular/dual/plural as in Mundari ( Munda; India), Trumai (isolate; Brazil), and Yessan-Mayo ( Sepik; Papua New Guinea) or even singular/dual/paucal/plural as in Ungarinjin ( Wororan; Western Australia).

Value four represents languages which display gender in either the first or second person but not the third. The only instance of gender just in the first person that I have come across with respect to independent personal pronouns is in Macá ( Mataco-Guaicuru; Argentina and Bolivia), in which feminine gender is marked on the first person inclusive ( Aikhenvald 2000: 252). Gender just in the second person is slightly more common. It is illustrated in (8) from Iraqw (Cushitic, Afro-Asiatic; Tanzania), which has both long and short forms of independent personal pronouns.

Some other languages which have gender just in the second person are Burunge (Cushitic, Afro-Asiatic; Tanzania), Kofyar (Chadic, Afro-Asiatic; Nigeria) and Minangkabau ( Malayic, Austronesian; Sumatra, Indonesia).

Value five has been assigned to languages which display gender only in the third person non-singular. These languages constitute a sub-type of exceptions to Greenberg's Universal 45. A case in point is Dagaare ( Gur; Ghana), which has a human/non-human distinction only in the third person plural. This is illustrated in (9).

Plank and Schellinger (1997: 62-65) mention several other languages belonging to this type, which are not in the sample, namely the Sauias dialect of Biak, Wandamen and Windesi ( Austronesian; Papua, Indonesia); Katu ( Katuic, Mon-Khmer; Vietnam and Laos); and Palauan (Western Malayo-Polynesian; Palau Island).

Finally, value six represents languages that have no overt gender contrasts in the independent personal pronouns. Included in this category are languages in which third person pronouns are confined solely to humans or animates while other referents are referred to by demonstratives, classifiers or full NPs. Such languages are sometimes interpreted as displaying a covert gender opposition.

3. Geographical distribution

Gender in independent pronouns is found in about 30 per cent of the languages in the sample. The greatest concentration of languages with gender in personal pronouns is in Africa. Gender is very prominent among the Afro-Asiatic languages of northern Africa, in the Niger-Congo languages of sub-Saharan Africa and also in the Khoisan languages of the southern part of the continent. It is not, however, a regular feature of Nilo-Saharan languages. The other major area with gender distinctions in independent pronouns is Eurasia and especially Europe. Gender is also very much in evidence among the non-Pama-Nyungan languages of northern Australia.

Turning to areas where gender is much less prominent, in New Guinea gender is found mainly among the non-Trans-New Guinea languages of northern New Guinea, particularly in the Sepik area and neighboring areas of West Papua. It also occurs among some of the West Papuan languages on the extreme northwest tip of New Guinea and in northern Halmahera. There is even less gender in the Americas, especially North America. The North American languages that do have gender are scattered throughout the continent. In South America gender is found primarily in the northern part of the continent and especially among the languages of the Amazon basin. The area in which gender is encountered most rarely is Southeast Asia and Oceania. Gender occurs in some Austro-Asiatic languages but hardly at all in Austronesian languages. All but one ( Drehu) of the languages exhibiting gender from this area are non-Austronesian.

Among the languages that do have gender distinctions in independent pronouns, gender just in third singular is dominant in all areas but for Africa. In Africa the dominant pattern seems to be gender in third person irrespective of number. In the case of the Afro-Asiatic and Khoisan languages, the favoured distribution of gender is in both the second and third person. Outside of Africa gender in other than the third person, particularly in the singular, is rare. Instances of gender in the first and second person non-singular are found in Europe ( Spanish, Lithuanian, Slovene), New Guinea (Baniata, Dumu) and Australia ( Anindilyakwa, Ndjébbana, Nunggubuyu). Only in Africa do we find languages displaying gender exclusively in some person other than the third.

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WALS Online - Chapter Gender Distinctions in Independent Personal Pronouns

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Independent personal pronouns, in contrast to bound forms (i.e. clitics and affixes), are separate words capable of taking primary stress. Virtually all languages have independent personal pronouns, though in some they occur rather infrequently. Gender, as defined by Corbett (1991), is a form of classification of nominals, as shown by agreement (see Map 30A).

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«Le Cerveau pense-t-il au masculin ?» by Pascal Gygax, Ute Gabriel et Sandrine Zufferey.
Review by Pierre Demoux in Les Echos, published 19/10/21

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Le propos. La langue française n'a pas été toujours accordée au masculin, son actuel statut dominant, avec la fameuse règle du masculin l'emportant sur le féminin. Cette vague de masculinisation a été réalisée par des grammairiens au XVII e siècle pour faire du masculin le standard neutre, et ce statut créé dans l'ambiguïté dans notre cerveau. Par la force de l'habitude, celui-ci construit inconsciemment des stéréotypes en associant certains mots à un genre, et ces associations nous conduisent à percevoir le monde à travers un prisme masculin.

Par exemple, inverser l'ordre de la plupart des expressions en plaçant le féminin en premier ne nous semble plus naturel (" femme et mari ", " soeurs et frères ", et même " Eve et Adam "), tandis que des métiers ou des activités ont perdu leur traduction féminine (autrice, professeuse...), participant à des constructions sociales loin d'être neutres.

L'intérêt. Pascal Gygax, Ute Gabriel et Sandrine Zufferey font le point sur quarante ans de recherche en psycholinguistique explorant le lien entre langage et représentations mentales. Alors que la question de l'inclusivité du langage provoque parfois des réactions épidermiques, l'ouvrage donne les clefs pour nourrir un débat argumenté, tout en présentant différents outils pour dégenrer. Certains, comme les accords de proximité de majorité, ont d'ailleurs longtemps existé avant d'être désuets.
La citation." La langue française n'est pas du tout une langue figée. Et si elle a vécu des vagues de masculinisation, on peut tout à fait envisager qu'elle vive non seulement des vagues de reféminisation, mais également d'autres vagues de changements accompagnant des révolutions sociétales. "
Essai

" Le cerveau pense-t-il au masculin ? "

Par Pascal Gygax, Ute Gabriel, Sandrine Zufferey, éditions Le Robert, 176 pages, 18 euros.

P. Dx

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Le propos. La langue française n'a pas été toujours accordée au masculin, son actuel statut dominant, avec la fameuse règle du masculin l'emportant sur le féminin. Cette vague de masculinisation a été réalisée par des grammairiens au XVII e siècle pour faire du masculin le standard neutre, et ce statut créé dans l'ambiguïté dans notre cerveau.

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Latine is a celebration. Site includes blog and teaching resources from @callmelatine

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Call me Latine was inspired by a viral Facebook post written to introduce my friends to the gender-neutral Spanish word, Latine. When I first shared the post I had no idea how much attention it would receive.

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Call me Latine was inspired by a viral Facebook post written to introduce my friends to the gender-neutral Spanish word, Latine. When I first shared the post I had no idea how much attention it would receive.

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Example from @FioFerox's  classical languages classroom.
The LGBT meets SPQR blog might also be of interest.

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It’s been a long time coming. This week I said my Ss could break free from binary gender endings in #Latin by giving them an option to use neuter for NB. Today 2 expressed themselves this way in front of peers. So proud. #genderinclusive #latinisforeveryone @TeamRidgely

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It’s been a long time coming. This week I said my Ss could break free from binary gender endings in #Latin by giving them an option to use neuter for NB. Today 2 expressed themselves this way in front of peers. So proud. #genderinclusive #latinisforeveryone @TeamRidgely https://t.co/RnpqA2CK7p

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It’s been a long time coming. This week I said my Ss could break free from binary gender endings in #Latin by giving them an option to use neuter for NB. Today 2 expressed themselves this way in front of peers. So proud. #genderinclusive #latinisforeveryone @TeamRidgely pic.twitter.com/RnpqA2CK7p
— Magistra Fiorito she/her (@FioFerox) October 1, 2021

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It’s been a long time coming. This week I said my Ss could break free from binary gender endings in #Latin by giving them an option to use neuter for NB. Today 2 expressed themselves this way in front of peers. So proud. #genderinclusive #latinisforeveryone @TeamRidgely https://t.co/RnpqA2CK7p

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It’s been a long time coming. This week I said my Ss could break free from binary gender endings in #Latin by giving them an option to use neuter for NB. Today 2 expressed themselves this way in front of peers. So proud. #genderinclusive #latinisforeveryone @TeamRidgely https://t.co/RnpqA2CK7p

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It’s been a long time coming. This week I said my Ss could break free from binary gender endings in #Latin by giving them an option to use neuter for NB. Today 2 expressed themselves this way in front of peers. So proud. #genderinclusive #latinisforeveryone @TeamRidgely

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Adjectivos de personalidad y carácter by @ChelaCrinnion

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Adjectivos de personalidad y carácter by @ChelaCrinnion

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Vocab List - Adjetivos de personalidad y carácter (includes non-binary).docx

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'Ask your pronouns' discourse thread begun by @ErinInTheMoon

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'Ask your pronouns' discourse thread begun by @ErinInTheMoon

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Amplified by @MundodePepita and @RinaTMazor

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Thank you @RinaTMazor for retweeting this post-I do not make it a practice of asking my sts their pronouns, but rather create a space where all are comfortable to share when/if ready. Not to mention being cognizant not to send the message they must choose only 1 #gobeyondtrinary

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Thank you @RinaTMazor for retweeting this post-I do not make it a practice of asking my sts their pronouns, but rather create a space where all are comfortable to share when/if ready. Not to mention being cognizant not to send the message they must choose only 1 #gobeyondtrinary https://t.co/i1giMm9Gi6

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The “ask your pronouns” discourse is happening again.

Asking pronouns is touchy. It can out trans people, can indicate you clocked one, can make someone who is unsure uncomfortable.

The best thing to do is to make your surroundings a safe space for someone to volunteer theirs.

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Thank you @RinaTMazor for retweeting this post-I do not make it a practice of asking my sts their pronouns, but rather create a space where all are comfortable to share when/if ready. Not to mention being cognizant not to send the message they must choose only 1 #gobeyondtrinary https://t.co/i1giMm9Gi6
— Mundo de Pepita (@MundodePepita) September 25, 2021

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props_source.data.text
Thank you @RinaTMazor for retweeting this post-I do not make it a practice of asking my sts their pronouns, but rather create a space where all are comfortable to share when/if ready. Not to mention being cognizant not to send the message they must choose only 1 #gobeyondtrinary https://t.co/i1giMm9Gi6

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props_source.includes.tweets[].text
The “ask your pronouns” discourse is happening again.

Asking pronouns is touchy. It can out trans people, can indicate you clocked one, can make someone who is unsure uncomfortable.

The best thing to do is to make your surroundings a safe space for someone to volunteer theirs.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
Thank you @RinaTMazor for retweeting this post-I do not make it a practice of asking my sts their pronouns, but rather create a space where all are comfortable to share when/if ready. Not to mention being cognizant not to send the message they must choose only 1 #gobeyondtrinary https://t.co/i1giMm9Gi6

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.text
Thank you @RinaTMazor for retweeting this post-I do not make it a practice of asking my sts their pronouns, but rather create a space where all are comfortable to share when/if ready. Not to mention being cognizant not to send the message they must choose only 1 #gobeyondtrinary https://t.co/i1giMm9Gi6

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.referenced_tweets[].text
The “ask your pronouns” discourse is happening again.

Asking pronouns is touchy. It can out trans people, can indicate you clocked one, can make someone who is unsure uncomfortable.

The best thing to do is to make your surroundings a safe space for someone to volunteer theirs.

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Lecture. "Jérôme par coeur", Thomas Scotto / Olivier Tallec (Ed. Actes Sud Junior)

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Lecture. "Jérôme par coeur", Thomas Scotto / Olivier Tallec (Ed. Actes Sud Junior)

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Lecture. "Jérôme par coeur", Thomas Scotto / Olivier Tallec (Ed. Actes Sud Junior)

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Posters in a wide variety of languages by Sophie Labelle @AssignedMale, free to download

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Livres en français. Serious Trans Vibes - Comics by Sophie Labelle 

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Livres en français. Serious Trans Vibes - Comics by Sophie Labelle 

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Serious Trans Vibes - Comics by Sophie Labelle

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Serious Trans Vibes - Comics by Sophie Labelle

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Inclusive Language in Spanish as Interpellation to Educational Authorities 

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Inclusive Language in Spanish as Interpellation to Educational Authorities 

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Banegas, D. L. and López, M. F. (2019) Inclusive Language in Spanish as Interpellation to Educational Authorities. Applied Linguistics, 42(2): pp.342–346, https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/amz026

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Welcome from day 1 with children in Early Years

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It’s Day 1 w the kiddos & im ready to go!! Hope everyone who is also starting today has a safe & wonderful day ❤️#langchat #earlylang #firstday

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It’s Day 1 w the kiddos & im ready to go!! Hope everyone who is also starting today has a safe & wonderful day ❤️#langchat #earlylang #firstday https://t.co/ZRSwSI9ZQd

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It’s Day 1 w the kiddos & im ready to go!! Hope everyone who is also starting today has a safe & wonderful day ❤️#langchat #earlylang #firstday pic.twitter.com/ZRSwSI9ZQd
— Mundo de Pepita (@MundodePepita) September 8, 2021

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It’s Day 1 w the kiddos & im ready to go!! Hope everyone who is also starting today has a safe & wonderful day ❤️#langchat #earlylang #firstday https://t.co/ZRSwSI9ZQd

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
It’s Day 1 w the kiddos & im ready to go!! Hope everyone who is also starting today has a safe & wonderful day ❤️#langchat #earlylang #firstday https://t.co/ZRSwSI9ZQd

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It’s Day 1 w the kiddos & im ready to go!! Hope everyone who is also starting today has a safe & wonderful day ❤️#langchat #earlylang #firstday

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Recorded presentation by James Sturt-Schmidt @james_ssch on Twitter.  Associated post on The Millenial blog.

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0:00 / 30:57•Watch full video

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Making the curriculum LGBT+ inclusive (with MFL examples)

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How Language Classes Are Moving Past the Gender Binary

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How Language Classes Are Moving Past the Gender Binary

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Article in The New York Times, by Molly Lipson published 01/09/21.  Please also read this associated Twitter thread by Kris Knisely explaining their contribution to the article.

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Languages that contain only "he" and "she" pronouns pose problems for communicating about gender identity. Here's how some language teachers are helping.

A gender normative Hebrew lesson. Credit... Emily Macinnes for The New York Times

Tal Janner-Klausner teaches Hebrew. There is nothing unusual about that, but the language presents a frustration that Mx. Janner-Klausner, who is nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns in English, feels compelled to discuss with their students.

Hebrew, as well as French, Spanish, Italian, Arabic and other languages, uses binary pronouns, which means that gender identities outside of he/she and male/female don't exist in any formal capacity.

In Hebrew, even the word "they" is gendered. In French, "ils" refers to a group of men or a mixed-gender group, and "elles" refers to a group of all females. All nouns in gendered languages - including people - are categorized as either masculine or feminine, and any adjectives associated with these words must reflect that gender.

That presents a problem for students who are gender-nonconforming, and, of course, for the speakers of the language in general. Is it possible for learners of a gendered language to refer to themselves and others when their identities are not represented?

In order to get around it, Mx. Janner-Klausner, who teaches in Jerusalem, asks their students to refer to them using male and female pronouns interchangeably. "As well as wanting to feel comfortable myself, I do this so that they can be informed about genders outside of the binary," they said.

As societies that speak gendered languages have become more open to nonconforming identities, native speakers have crafted mechanisms for removing or avoiding the gendered element of words.

But these adaptations are seldom part of the official syllabuses for those who are learning a second language. Even where the understanding of gender identity is quickly evolving in native-speaking populations, language learning lags. This presents a unique challenge for teachers and students who embrace traditional grammar but want to reflect these changing values.

Despite some claims to the contrary, it is grammatically correct to use "they"and "them"in English to refer to the third-person singular. We do this when the person's gender is unknown. On the road, for example, we might say of a driver: "That person just ran a stop sign. I don't know what they think they're doing."

"They" has been used in this way for hundreds of years. It first appeared in the 1370s in " William and the Werewolf" instead of using "he"to refer to "each man."Shakespeare employed it frequently in much the same way: "There's not a man I meet but doth salute me/ As if I were their well-acquainted friend," he wrote in "The Comedy of Errors." Jane Austen used it, too: "It had been a miserable party, each of the three believing themselves most miserable," she wrote in "Mansfield Park."

Tal Janner-Klausner is based in Jerusalem and is the coordinator for Hebrew and English teaching the TINAU (This is Not an Ulpan) language school. Credit... Emily Macinnes for The New York Times

English is not unique in the singular use of "they/them," but many Romance languages, along with Hindi, Arabic and Hebrew, use gender as the basis of their nouns.

One norm that can frustrate language learners and speakers is the dominance of the masculine form, which is used as the default or standard. For example, the masculine "todos," meaning "everybody," is used in Spanish to address a group of people regardless of their genders at events like conferences or in official speeches. And the presence of even one man in an otherwise female group tends to consign the gender to the masculine.

Louis Moffa, who is nonbinary and uses "he" and "they"pronouns, is a teaching fellow in the Department of Italian at Columbia University. Italian is a gendered language with no equivalent to the English singular usage of they/them.

"I didn't think much about my own gender identity until I began thinking and expressing myself in Italian," Mx. Moffa said. "When I thought about how much more complex reality is than just an array of binaries, I realized that my own identity and self-expression could never really reside within those confines. It was actually by learning Italian that my understanding of gender was freed from the nature of binary thought altogether."

Mx. Moffa believes that the first step to overcoming gender binaries in Italian is to openly discuss how they appear in the language. "Being able to teach the gendered nature of Italian grammar has given me the opportunity to be more fully seen and understood by my students, because gender can never remain implicit or unquestioned in our classroom," he said.

In addition to breaking open Italian's limits on human beings, Mx. Moffa highlights the "absurd" nature of assigning gender to inanimate objects. "Instead of calling it masculine and feminine, you can just pick other polarities: light and dark, full and empty, round and square. It doesn't even really matter what it is," he said.

Kris Knisely, an assistant professor of French at the University of Arizona, gets even more specific. At the start of the semester, he introduces students to a number of linguistic developments used by native French nonbinary speakers. For example, the forms of the plural "they" - "ils"and "elles" -are combinedto create a new word: "iels." Similarly, to refer to "them," the masculine "eux"and the feminine "elles"become "elleux."

He has found that teaching these new forms has a profound impact on his nonbinary and L.G.T.B.Q. students: Some who had been on the verge of dropping French subsequently declared it their major.

"I've had students tell me that this is the first time they've felt like there's a way for them to become an actual French speaker," he said. "They can see that there's space for them in this language," Dr. Knisely said.

He is keen to make sure this learning extends to cisgender students - those whose gender identity matches their sex as assigned at birth. "If cis students are allowed to continue to believe that cis people are always the default, or that only cis people matter, that does a great disservice to all students, because they're not prepared for the world as it actually is," he said.

This approach is not widespread in language teaching. Agnes M., who chose to use an initial because they are a minor, is a gender-fluid high school student who attends an all-girls school in London. Though they use a mix of pronouns for themselves in English, in their Spanish class they must adhere to the female gender.

"I sometimes connect with feminine pronouns, but not all of the time, since my gender is quite fluid and it kind of changes over time. So when I am feeling more like I'm leaning toward masculine pronouns, it's quite upsetting to have to use the feminine version and it feels sort of wrong," Agnes said.

An explanation on using nonbinary grammar, from the Non-Binary Hebrew Project. Credit... Emily Macinnes for The New York Times

According to some teachers, language learning provides fertile ground for discussing the concept of gender both within and outside the language. As Mx. Janner-Klausner summarizes, it's not just the gender binary that can be reconfigured through study.

"Language learning is the breaking down of a binary: You started off with a binary of familiar and foreign, and then you break it down," they said. "What was foreign becomes familiar as you learn the language."
Molly Lipson is a writer and social justice advocate based in Britain. She is working on her first book, about dismantling harmful socioeconomic systems and envisioning a different world. You can find her on Twitter at @molly_lipson.
Join us here to solve Crosswords, The Mini and other games by The New York Times.

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How Language Classes Are Moving Past the Gender Binary

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Languages that contain only "he" and "she" pronouns pose problems for communicating about gender identity. Here's how some language teachers are helping. Tal Janner-Klausner teaches Hebrew. There is nothing unusual about that, but the language presents a frustration that Mx. Janner-Klausner, who is nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns in English, feels compelled to discuss with their students.

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Podcast ‘Al habla... con Warkentin’: “No hay que seguir sin condición a la RAE”.  | Ep. 19: Paulina Chavira

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Podcast ‘Al habla... con Warkentin’: “No hay que seguir sin condición a la RAE”.  | Ep. 19: Paulina Chavira

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La comunicadora de W Radio, Gabriela Warkentin, analiza con la lingüista y periodista Paulina Chavira la última polémica con el lenguaje inclusivo. 25 mins. Published 31/08/21

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En el último episodio del podcast Al habla... con Warkentin, la comunicadora de W Radio afronta una de las últimas polémicas sobre el lenguaje inclusivo: "¿Por qué hace enojar tanto y de manera tan visceral a tantas personas?". Para responder a la pregunta cuenta con la periodista y lingüista Paulina Chavira. "Que a lo mejor no conozcas todavía a nadie que no se identifique con uno de estos dos géneros o que no se sienta cómoda con el masculino genérico no quiere decir que no existan, están ahí, simplemente no están cerca de ti", explica Chavira, a propósito del vídeo en una clase en el que Andra Escamilla, una persona identificada como de género no binario, lloraba y pedía al resto de los alumnos: "¡No soy tu compañera, soy tu compañere!". Sobre el posicionamiento de la Real Academia de la Lengua (RAE), que no reconoce estas variaciones, Chavira tercia: "La RAE, sin duda, es una academia de la lengua a la que hay que escuchar, pero no hay que seguir sin condición, sin cuestionar, sin criticar".
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"No hay que seguir sin condición a la RAE". Podcast 'Al habla... con Warkentin' | Ep. 19: Paulina Chavira

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En el último episodio del podcast Al habla... con Warkentin , la comunicadora de W Radio afronta una de las últimas polémicas sobre el lenguaje inclusivo: "¿Por qué hace enojar tanto y de manera tan visceral a tantas personas?". Para responder a la pregunta cuenta con la periodista y lingüista Paulina Chavira.

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Updated “how are you feeling” chart with inclusive language, accompanying blog post from Cécile Lainé @CecileLaine

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9.01.2021: LONG OVERDUE. Updated my "how are you feeling" chart with inclusive language here (French) and here (Spanish).

8.24.2017 EDIT: here is a PowerPoint and here is a Google Slides showing the progression of the "How do you feel" routine for a 7th grade class of 27 French 1 students. Each class is different but I hope this provides an idea for how you can introduce this in your Novice classes.

At my TPRS training last summer, Lynette Saint George always started her lessons by asking students how they felt, she would circulate an iPad with a slide full of faces expressing different emotions. At the time, I thought it was a very neat way of starting class. I have since then discovered it is a wonderful path to language acquisition.

I started the experiment with my very small High School French 1 class. Every day since the beginning of the year, we have been gathering around the smartboard and I have been asking each of them "Comment tu te sens?". At first, students would simply point at the face and word that best represented their feeling. I started with three faces: exhausted, happy, and frustrated (I figured most teenagers experience one or more of these feelings every day of the week). I then started providing Comprehensible Input and options for answers such as "you feel frustrated because there is an exam?" ("there is" is a phrase I teach early on + "exam" is a cognate). Of course, I am the one doing most of the talking but since it is about something they greatly care about, they are engaged.

Slowly, I increased the amount of faces on the slide and taught them a few easy rejoinders so that they could react to how others were feeling: "Poor Kelsey", "Good luck", "That's life", and "Hooray". They also started asking for useful words/phrases, which I happily gave them such as "my _____ hurts".

Our daily "How ARE YOU FEELING?" routine

We are now in the second quarter of their first year in French and my students are saying things like "I feel exhausted because I did not sleep well" or "I feel happy because there is a new One Direction song" or "I feel ecstatic because I have rowing practice". I am now moving on to "talking" about our week-end on Monday (in the past) and on Friday (in the near future), feeling SO thankful for the " Shelter vocabulary, not grammar " TPRS advice! Finally, I have started shifting the responsibility of questioning to the students, we take turn asking the "how do you feel" question and "why"; sometimes students will ask an additional question (like when Erika said she felt happy because she was going to the movies, everyone wanted to know "Avec qui????"). Sometimes, our "How are you feeling" routine takes 5 minutes, sometimes it takes 20 min. I usually just follow the students' lead and energy.

One day, I was in a rush to get to an assessment and skipped "how do you feel?", the students called me on it "are we not doing our therapy circle today?". I thought I was going to cry: they don't see it at language or classwork, they see it as therapy! This reminds me of Stephen Krashen's blog post, "The End of Motivation". Krashen says: "Here is the crucial part: Jack's Mandarin was improving, but he was not aware of it. He was only interested in the stories." I guess I could probably say "My students' French was improving, but they were not aware of it. They were only interested in whom Erika was going to the movies with."

Now, I realize I am lucky to have a class of 7 students. With a much bigger class, the pace is so much slower. I cannot gather my 27 7th graders around the board, nor can I ask each and everyone one of them how they feel every day. By now, all of them can pretty much ask and say how they feel but very few can elaborate beyond "I am happy because it's Friday". And that's totally OK, I just follow their pace and keep providing as much comprehensible input as possible. If anyone is successfully using a personal guiding question such as "How are you feeling?" with a big class and would like to share, I would really love it!

The other day, I wrote on the board some of the answers my students used to respond to "how do you feel?" (in blue at the top).

Below their sentences is the input I provided in this particular session (in blue and black).

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Begin your students' journey towards proficiency with a single question: "How are you feeling?"

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9.01.2021: LONG OVERDUE. Updated my "how are you feeling" chart with inclusive language here (French) and here (Spanish). 8.24.2017 EDIT: here is a PowerPoint and here is a Google Slides showing the progression of the "How do you feel" routine for a 7th grade class of 27 French 1 students.

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¿No acabas de entender porqué es importante respetar los pronombres de las personas no binarias?
Mira este hilo.

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¿No acabas de entender porqué es importante respetar los pronombres de las personas no binarias? 

Mira este hilo.

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¿No acabas de entender porqué es importante respetar los pronombres de las personas no binarias? 

Mira este hilo. https://t.co/v7kzwZdVBw

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¿No acabas de entender porqué es importante respetar los pronombres de las personas no binarias?

Mira este hilo. pic.twitter.com/v7kzwZdVBw
— AJ+Español (@ajplusespanol) August 26, 2021

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¿No acabas de entender porqué es importante respetar los pronombres de las personas no binarias? 

Mira este hilo. https://t.co/v7kzwZdVBw

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
¿No acabas de entender porqué es importante respetar los pronombres de las personas no binarias? 

Mira este hilo. https://t.co/v7kzwZdVBw

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¿No acabas de entender porqué es importante respetar los pronombres de las personas no binarias? 

Mira este hilo.

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- Hola, me llamo Juan.
- Hola, Pedro.

Jamás harías eso, ¿o sí? ¿Entonces por qué hacerlo cuando la gente se identifica como no binaria?

@hola_amigue y @the0dio nos explican por qué el lenguaje incluyente nos concierne a todes. #LaRAEQué

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- Hola, me llamo Juan.
- Hola, Pedro.

Jamás harías eso, ¿o sí? ¿Entonces por qué hacerlo cuando la gente se identifica como no binaria?

@hola_amigue y @the0dio nos explican por qué el lenguaje incluyente nos concierne a todes. #LaRAEQué

# data[].attributes.wish_content.attachment_props.original_text
- Hola, me llamo Juan.
- Hola, Pedro.

Jamás harías eso, ¿o sí? ¿Entonces por qué hacerlo cuando la gente se identifica como no binaria?

@hola_amigue y @the0dio nos explican por qué el lenguaje incluyente nos concierne a todes. #LaRAEQué https://t.co/AVvamefD5L

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- Hola, me llamo Juan.
- Hola, Pedro.

Jamás harías eso, ¿o sí? ¿Entonces por qué hacerlo cuando la gente se identifica como no binaria?@hola_amigue y @the0dio nos explican por qué el lenguaje incluyente nos concierne a todes. #LaRAEQué pic.twitter.com/AVvamefD5L
— Ruido en la Red (@RuidoEnLaRed) August 26, 2021

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- Hola, me llamo Juan.
- Hola, Pedro.

Jamás harías eso, ¿o sí? ¿Entonces por qué hacerlo cuando la gente se identifica como no binaria?

@hola_amigue y @the0dio nos explican por qué el lenguaje incluyente nos concierne a todes. #LaRAEQué https://t.co/AVvamefD5L

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
- Hola, me llamo Juan.
- Hola, Pedro.

Jamás harías eso, ¿o sí? ¿Entonces por qué hacerlo cuando la gente se identifica como no binaria?

@hola_amigue y @the0dio nos explican por qué el lenguaje incluyente nos concierne a todes. #LaRAEQué https://t.co/AVvamefD5L

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.text
- Hola, me llamo Juan.
- Hola, Pedro.

Jamás harías eso, ¿o sí? ¿Entonces por qué hacerlo cuando la gente se identifica como no binaria?

@hola_amigue y @the0dio nos explican por qué el lenguaje incluyente nos concierne a todes. #LaRAEQué

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Preaching to Acquire in the Teachers' Lounge podcast

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Preaching to Acquire in the Teachers' Lounge podcast

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Kaitlin Leppert and Ben Fisher chat about supporting LGBTQ+ students in the languages classroom

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Teachers’ Lounge: Kaitlin & Ben Fisher chat about supporting LGBTQ+ students in the WL classroom by Preaching To Acquire

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Ben shares his journey as a student and teacher as a member of the LGBTQ+ community. He also shares experiences about students in his own classes and tips for how we, as educators, can support our LGBTQ+ students so they know they are loved and safe in our classrooms. Connect with Ben on Twitter at…

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La personnalité

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La personnalite - gender neutral language

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Non gendered language in French family unit

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Non gendered language in French family unit

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Blog post by Mme Moghtader, published 15/08/21

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When a person has told us that they are gender non-binary, we refer to them with language that is not gendered. In addition, when we are speaking to people who have not specified their gender or to all people, we can use inclusive terms that aren't gendered, we can use traditional language that is gender neutral or we can alternate between feminine and masculine forms.

In the French language there isn't an official way to use gender neutral language. We have to go looking for examples in newspapers and explanations online for ideas of how to do this. While there are ideas for making language gender neutral, I need to clearly state there are no official rules and not everyone will accept these options.

Here is a slide deck to use in your teaching. Of course, these additions are not static nor are they finalized. As the will evolve and change, keep in touch with others about the latest accepted versions of non-gendered speech.

Categories Uncategorized

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Non gendered language in French family unit

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When a person has told us that they are gender non-binary, we refer to them with language that is not gendered. In addition, when we are speaking to people who have not specified their gender or to all people, we can use inclusive terms that aren't gendered, we can use traditional language that is gender...

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Bringing Trans, Non-Binary, and Queer Understandings to Bear in Language Education

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Bringing Trans, Non-Binary, and Queer Understandings to Bear in Language Education

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Knisely, K. A. and Paiz, J. M. (2021) Bringing Trans, Non-Binary, and Queer Understandings to Bear in Language Education. Critical Multilingualism Studies, 9(1): pp.23-45

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Keywords:
Trans, Non-binary, Gender, Language Learner, LGBTQ

Abstract

Language education represents a site for identity (re)construction, mediated through language acquisition and use (Atkinson, 2011). As students develop linguistic abilities, they also develop a multilingual sense of self. Pedagogies that engage with students as whole persons inherently encourage identity-focused reflection and may facilitate more ethical teaching (Moore, 2016; Norton, 2013). Increasingly, literature considers sexual diversity's role in language curricula, textbooks, research, and pedagogy (Nelson, 2009; Paiz, 2018; Saunston, 2017). However, herein, there is a marked focus on lesbian and gay considerations-perpetuating trans, non-binary, gender-non conforming (TGNC), bisexual, and queer invisibility (Knisely, 2020a, 2021a; Paiz, 2020). This paper addresses how TGNC lives and concerns can interface with the process of language education, highlighting its importance for applied linguistics, language teachers, and learners. Ultimately, the authors present a toolkit for integrating TGNC understandings of the world into language-learning contexts, outlining potential advantages and challenges as they relate to creating more critical and equitable pedagogies.

Author Biographies

Kris Aric Knisely, University of Arizona

Kris Aric Knisely (Ph.D., French and Educational Studies, Emory University) is an Assistant Professor of French and Intercultural Competence as well as affiliated faculty in both SLAT and TSRC at the University of Arizona. Knisely's research, in its broadest form, considers gender and sexuality in the linguistic, socio-cultural, and instructional dimensions of language learning. This entails asking how the linguistically- and culturally-situated ways that we perceive and embody gender enter into language education, what normativities manifest there, and how those normativities can be laid bare, upended, and unscripted by language teachers and learners. Within this general frame, Knisely focuses on the culturally-situated linguistic practices of trans, non-binary, and gender non-conforming speakers of French, particularly as they can inform the development and articulation of trans-affirming language curricula, materials, research, training, and pedagogies. Dr. Knisely's work has appeared in a variety of edited volumes and journals including Contemporary French Civilization, Critical Multilingualism Studies, Foreign Language Annals, The French Review, Gender and Language, Journal of Applied Measurement, and Pensamiento Educativo, among others.

Joshua M. Paiz, The George Washington University

Joshua M. Paiz holds a doctorate in applied linguistics from Purdue University. Their research interest includes LGBTQ+ issues in second language teaching, as well as building access and equity for neurodiverse students. Dr. Paiz has taught writing, rhetoric, and linguistics courses in the U.S. and China. Their published work has appeared in such outlets as the Journal of Second Language Writing, TESOL Journal, ELT Journal, the Journal of Language and Sexuality, and the Journal of Language, Identity, and Education. Their first book, Queering the English Language Classroom: A Guide for Teachers is currently available from Equinox UK. They are currently completing work on an edited collection looking at intersectional issues in sexuality, gender, and language education with Dr. James Coda (University of Georgia), which is expected out in fall of 2021 through Palgrave MacMillan. Out now from Dr. Paiz is their first monograph on queer-inclusive pedagogies, Queering the English Language Classroom: A Guide for Teachers from Equinox UK.

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Bringing Trans, Non-Binary, and Queer Understandings to Bear in Language Education

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Trans, Non-binary, Gender, Language Learner, LGBTQ Language education represents a site for identity (re)construction, mediated through language acquisition and use (Atkinson, 2011). As students develop linguistic abilities, they also develop a multilingual sense of self. Pedagogies that engage with students as whole persons inherently encourage identity-focused reflection and may facilitate more ethical teaching (Moore, 2016; Norton, 2013).

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Statement about Standard Language Ideology and Equity among Languages - excerpts

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Statement about Standard Language Ideology and Equity among Languages - excerpts

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Happy to see, and eager to practice applying, this "Statement about Standard Language Ideology and Equity among Languages" from a university (and department, @UMichLing) from which I graduated. (Excerpts pictured) #langchat #edchat

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Happy to see, and eager to practice applying, this "Statement about Standard Language Ideology and Equity among Languages" from a university (and department, @UMichLing) from which I graduated. (Excerpts pictured) #langchat #edchat https://t.co/MK0KXbYnLG

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Happy to see, and eager to practice applying, this "Statement about Standard Language Ideology and Equity among Languages" from a university (and department, @UMichLing) from which I graduated. (Excerpts pictured) #langchat #edchat pic.twitter.com/MK0KXbYnLG
— Justin Slocum Bailey (@IndwellingLang) August 8, 2021

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Happy to see, and eager to practice applying, this "Statement about Standard Language Ideology and Equity among Languages" from a university (and department, @UMichLing) from which I graduated. (Excerpts pictured) #langchat #edchat https://t.co/MK0KXbYnLG

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Happy to see, and eager to practice applying, this "Statement about Standard Language Ideology and Equity among Languages" from a university (and department, @UMichLing) from which I graduated. (Excerpts pictured) #langchat #edchat https://t.co/MK0KXbYnLG

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Happy to see, and eager to practice applying, this "Statement about Standard Language Ideology and Equity among Languages" from a university (and department, @UMichLing) from which I graduated. (Excerpts pictured) #langchat #edchat

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Blog post by Alex Benjamin (alexatseawriter), published 2017

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non binaire, pronoms

Si vous voulez soutenir mon activité sur ce site, vous pouvez aller regarder une courte publicité sur mon Utip : https://utip.i o/alexbenjamin
Quels pronoms neutres en français ?

Comme je vous l'expliquais dans un précédent article, il existe de nombreux genres non-binaires, différents des genres les plus courants que sont homme et femme. Parfois, les personnes non-binaires utilisent les pronoms " classiques " que sont il et elle*. D'autres fois, ces pronoms ne conviennent pas : ils sont trop connotés, trop genrés.

Face à l'absence de pronoms neutres ou non-binaires en français, des néologismes ont été crées. Les plus courants sont résumés sur l'image à la une de cet article, et détaillés dans la liste ci-dessous. Cette liste n'est pas exhaustive ! Si votre pronom n'en fait pas partie, n'hésitez pas à m'envoyer un message pour que je l'ajoute !

*

- iel est le pronom "non-binaire" le plus courant, il est utilisé par certaines personnes non-binaires et peut également servir pour parler d'une personne dont on ne connaît pas le genre. Il ne convient cependant pas à tout le monde, notamment les personnes s'identifiant en dehors du spectre masculin-féminin, qui lui reproche d'être un "mélange" de il et elle. Il existe aussi une orthographe alternative, yel, prononcée de la même façon.

- ul et ol sont souvent préférés par les personnes dont le genre est totalement extérieur aux notions de féminin et de masculin/ de femme et homme. Bien sûr ce n'est qu'une remarque, et si vous êtes demigirl mais que vous préférez utiliser ol, aucun problème !

- ael a également l'avantage de ne pas ressembler de trop près aux pronoms il et elle, tout en ayant une forme assez " classique " de pronom (voyelle(s) + l). Il peut être utilisé avec les accords en -ae mais tous les accords sont possibles.

- im et em ont l'avantage d'être "à moitié" proches des pronoms il et elle et peuvent convenir particulièrement bien aux personnes ayant un genre proche du masculin ou du féminin, ou ayant plusieurs genres dont homme ou femme.

- ille et el ont aussi cet avantage, en plus de sonner comme les pronoms il et elle à l'oreille ! On peut aussi rencontrer le pronom ille prononcé comme dans le mot " grille ".

*

Tous ces éléments constituent des pistes de réflexions si vous souhaitez choisir quel pronom utiliser, mais nullement des règles ! Utilisez le pronom avec lequel vous êtes le plus à l'aise, et ne laissez personne vous dire que vous n'êtes pas légitime dans votre choix de pronom !

Comment les utiliser ?

Les deux infographies ci-dessous résument les moyens les plus courants de s'exprimer au neutre à l'oral et à l'écrit. Il est également possible d'utiliser un pronom non-binaire, mais des accords au masculin ou au féminin. Il n'y a pas de règle gravé dans le marbre, les accords dépendent de votre ressenti !

Quelques petites précisions sur cette infographie :

on peut aussi utiliser les accords en -ae, comme dans " yel est fatiguae ", ce qui a de plus le mérite de pouvoir s'utiliser à l'écrit et à l'oral

les pronoms objets soi et ellui sont des pronoms réfléchis, ils servent dans des phrases comme " je vais chez ellui " ou "je vais chez soi " mais sont moins lisibles si on les utilise comme des pronoms non réfléchis, comme dans " je vais ellui chercher " (préférer : " je vais lea/lo chercher ").

Si vous appréciez mon travail et que vous voulez m'aider à financer ma transition, vous pouvez le faire ici : Ko-Fi est un système de " pourboire " pour aider les créateurs grâce à des dons de petites sommes. http://ko-fi.com/alexbenjamin !
J'espère que cet article vous aura donné quelques éléments pour vous exprimer de façon non genrée en français ! Si vous avez des questions, besoin de plus d'exemples ou des suggestions, n'hésitez pas à laisser un commentaire ou à me contacter !

* il est tout à fait légitime de la part de personnes non-binaires de vouloir utiliser les pronoms il ou elle, même s'il s'agit des pronoms qui leur ont été " assignés " à la naissance. Le choix des pronoms qu'une personne utilise est personnel et ne doit pas être remis en question !

Tagué blog transgenre, em, genre, iel, ille, im, langage neutre en français, non binaire, ol, pronoms, ul, yel

Alex Benjamin, 27 ans. Je suis un homme trans et j'écris surtout à propos des identités trans non binaires et binaires et des questions LGBTQI+ en général. J'ai aussi un Twitter, Alex_at_sea Voir tous les articles par alexatseawriter

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Voir tous les articles par alexatseawriter

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Le langage neutre en français : pronoms et accords à l’écrit et à l’oral

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Si vous voulez soutenir mon activité sur ce site, vous pouvez aller regarder une courte publicité sur mon Utip : https://utip.io/alexbenjamin Quels pronoms neutres en français ? Comme je vous l'expliquais dans un précédent article, il existe de nombreux genres non-binaires, différents des genres les plus courants que sont homme et femme.

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Thread from Te Tangaroa Turnbull - neurodivergent, non binary, decolonial, Māori

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So, I use Te Reo terms for my Neural  Divergence, because they have less emotional baggage and have a nice brain feel. 
It's in my bio, along with the Te Reo term for nonbinary. 
I could use English. 
Or they could be googled.

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So, I use Te Reo terms for my Neural  Divergence, because they have less emotional baggage and have a nice brain feel. 
It's in my bio, along with the Te Reo term for nonbinary. 
I could use English. 
Or they could be googled.

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So, I use Te Reo terms for my Neural Divergence, because they have less emotional baggage and have a nice brain feel.
It's in my bio, along with the Te Reo term for nonbinary.
I could use English.
Or they could be googled.
— The Mad Chef Red (@madchefred) July 24, 2021

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So, I use Te Reo terms for my Neural  Divergence, because they have less emotional baggage and have a nice brain feel. 
It's in my bio, along with the Te Reo term for nonbinary. 
I could use English. 
Or they could be googled.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
So, I use Te Reo terms for my Neural  Divergence, because they have less emotional baggage and have a nice brain feel. 
It's in my bio, along with the Te Reo term for nonbinary. 
I could use English. 
Or they could be googled.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.text
So, I use Te Reo terms for my Neural  Divergence, because they have less emotional baggage and have a nice brain feel. 
It's in my bio, along with the Te Reo term for nonbinary. 
I could use English. 
Or they could be googled.

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La diversité des genres, c’est un fait! genres, c’est un fait

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La diversité des genres, c’est un fait! genres, c’est un fait

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Cahier de discussion pour la salle de classe. Par la

Fédération canadienne
des enseignantes et des enseignants, juillet 2021.

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🇪🇸 @enriqueanarte explains how you can use non-binary pronouns in Spanish. 👇

Tell us: do you know how to be gender neutral in other languages? 🌈

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🇪🇸 @enriqueanarte explains how you can use non-binary pronouns in Spanish. 👇

Tell us: do you know how to be gender neutral in other languages? 🌈 https://t.co/zOlsOJAH1E

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🇪🇸 @enriqueanarte explains how you can use non-binary pronouns in Spanish. 👇

Tell us: do you know how to be gender neutral in other languages? 🌈 pic.twitter.com/zOlsOJAH1E
— Openly 🏳️‍🌈 (@Openly) July 13, 2021

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props_source.data.text
🇪🇸 @enriqueanarte explains how you can use non-binary pronouns in Spanish. 👇

Tell us: do you know how to be gender neutral in other languages? 🌈 https://t.co/zOlsOJAH1E

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
🇪🇸 @enriqueanarte explains how you can use non-binary pronouns in Spanish. 👇

Tell us: do you know how to be gender neutral in other languages? 🌈 https://t.co/zOlsOJAH1E

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.text
🇪🇸 @enriqueanarte explains how you can use non-binary pronouns in Spanish. 👇

Tell us: do you know how to be gender neutral in other languages? 🌈

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Pronomi per trans non binari | Richard Thunder

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La periodista @andreaburga5, quien tiene discapacidad visual, te explica en TikTok la importancia de usar lenguaje inclusivo y te invita a checar tus prioridades.

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¿Te molesta el lenguaje inclusivo? 

La periodista @andreaburgav, quien tiene discapacidad visual, te explica en TikTok la importancia de usar lenguaje inclusivo y te invita a checar tus prioridades.

# data[].attributes.wish_content.attachment_props.original_text
¿Te molesta el lenguaje inclusivo? 

La periodista @andreaburgav, quien tiene discapacidad visual, te explica en TikTok la importancia de usar lenguaje inclusivo y te invita a checar tus prioridades. https://t.co/TQN6ibveSx

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¿Te molesta el lenguaje inclusivo?

La periodista @andreaburgav, quien tiene discapacidad visual, te explica en TikTok la importancia de usar lenguaje inclusivo y te invita a checar tus prioridades. pic.twitter.com/TQN6ibveSx
— AJ+Español (@ajplusespanol) March 24, 2021

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props_source.data.text
¿Te molesta el lenguaje inclusivo? 

La periodista @andreaburgav, quien tiene discapacidad visual, te explica en TikTok la importancia de usar lenguaje inclusivo y te invita a checar tus prioridades. https://t.co/TQN6ibveSx

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
¿Te molesta el lenguaje inclusivo? 

La periodista @andreaburgav, quien tiene discapacidad visual, te explica en TikTok la importancia de usar lenguaje inclusivo y te invita a checar tus prioridades. https://t.co/TQN6ibveSx

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.text
¿Te molesta el lenguaje inclusivo? 

La periodista @andreaburgav, quien tiene discapacidad visual, te explica en TikTok la importancia de usar lenguaje inclusivo y te invita a checar tus prioridades.

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Article by Karina Piser, published 04/07/21

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In early May, France's education minister, Jean-Michel Blanquer, announced a ban on the use in schools of an increasingly common-and contested-writing method designed to make the French language more gender-inclusive.

Specifically, Blanquer's decree focuses on the final letter "e," which is used to feminize words in French- étudiant, for example, becomes étudiante when referring to a female student. Like many other languages, French is gendered: Pronouns, nouns, verbs, and adjectives reflect the gender of the object or person they refer to; there is no gender-neutral term like "they." Most critically, say the proponents of the inclusive method, the masculine always takes precedence over the feminine-if there's a group of 10 women and one man, a French speaker would still refer to the group in the masculine plural, ils.

Feminist activists argue this linguistic bias has real-life consequences and have crafted what they call more inclusive forms of writing, incorporating both the feminine and masculine into words that would otherwise be gendered. An example of how this looks: A group of male and female high school students would appear as lycéen·nes-adding an extra "ne," preceded by a "middle dot," rather than defaulting to the standard-and masculine-plural of lycéens. In the absence of a nongendered pronoun, the method's proponents have adopted a hybrid version of he, or il, and she, or elle, resulting in the gender-neutral iel.

The writing style, known as écriture inclusive, or "inclusive writing," has gained attention in recent years, particularly among feminist activists who argue it's an essential element in the fight for a more equitable future. Some media companies have adopted the method, such as Netflix France and Canal+, and in 2016, Microsoft Word started including an inclusive writing option in French.

Prominent podcasters-such as Lauren Bastide, host of the popular show La Poudre -even use it while speaking. But it has also angered pundits and legislators alike, who contend that the method is not only clunky and grammatically incorrect but-in classrooms especially-confusing and could alienate children with special needs.

Blanquer's ban on the style's use in public schools is just the latest attempt to relegate écriture inclusive to the margins. Since 2017, legislators have introduced a series of bills, most recently in March, to ban the form altogether; the education minister's decree followed a 25,000-strong petition calling for the style to be banned.

It's easy to lump recent tensions over écriture inclusive into France's seemingly endless and all-encompassing culture wars-about religion, race, how girls should dress, and what kids should eat at school cafeterias. But the push to strip languages of masculine bias is hardly a French phenomenon. From Brazil to Germany, feminist activists have sought to rewrite national laws, change school curricula, and draw awareness to what they consider the straight line between language and gaps in wealth, opportunity, and representation between men and women. In many cases, these efforts have met fierce resistance-from government officials, linguistic traditionalists, and citizens who bristle at what they consider an abstract and ideologically driven attack on language.

In Germany, activists' attempts to promote gender neutrality-in part by using an asterisk, or "gender star," to include both the feminine and masculine forms-prompted the popular Duden dictionary to alter its 12,000 website entries for nouns to include feminine versions and explicitly state that masculine versions refer to men-rather than everyone. The move sparked outcry among prominent politicians and the German Language Society, whose chairman went so far as to liken efforts to de-gender language to a "modern Hitler salute" used by "left-wing ideologues."

In Brazil, right-wing politicians moved to ban the term presidenta-which former President Dilma Rousseff had opted for over the standard presidente, the Portuguese word for president, which lacks an explicitly feminine form.

Gender-neutral language saw less resistance in Sweden, which in 2015 added a gender-neutral pronoun- hen -to its official dictionary, following advocacy not only from LGBTQ groups but nurseries and preschools, which argued that the term would help children evolve without strict gender binaries.

Young activists have made headway in their push for a gender-neutral Spanish in Argentina, where universities across the country have adopted inclusive writing, publishers have reprinted books using the method, and even prominent government officials have adopted gender-neutral terms; President Alberto Fernández regularly employs the style in speeches addressing "Argentines," using a nongendered term that doesn't exist in traditional Spanish. But the Madrid-based Royal Spanish Academy-the arbiter on the language spoken by nearly 600 million people worldwide-has dismissed gender-neutral writing as "unnecessary and artificial"-a position it maintains amid a similar debate in Spain, where Socialist leaders have called for the constitution to be rewritten in inclusive language.

Language has long been a fixture of feminist activism, driving changes we now take for granted, such as 1970s efforts to rid job titles of their gendered connotation-salesman and fireman, on the one hand, and waitress and stewardess, on the other. These changes "provoked considerable resistance," according to Deborah Cameron, a professor of language and communication at Worcester College, who focuses on gender and language. But even if certain terms- "salesperson" and "firefighter," for example-initially drew ridicule, they sparked a conversation about more inclusive terms that people could agree on. "People generally dislike linguistic innovation. Most are conservative-with-a-small-c when it comes to language, but eventually changes bed down-or are tweaked to make them more acceptable," Cameron said. "We're in a very acrimonious phase currently, but that will change." And while some gender-neutral terms will survive, like salesperson and firefighter, others-like waitperson-will, after briefly entering the conversation, ultimately see little use.

Today, these ongoing tensions have been grafted onto broader discontents over identity and representation. "In the current culture war between the 'woke' and conservatives [and] some liberals, gendered language/inclusive writing has become a more prominent point of resistance," Cameron said. That dynamic is on full display in France, where a deputy education minister-a member of the centrist Mouvement Démocratique party-called inclusive writing a "danger for our country" that will "sound the death knell for the use of French in the world."

In countries where religious, far-right voices hold sway, the fight for inclusive language has met "opposition to old-style feminism as well as to the newer politics of sexuality in gender identity," Cameron said. In Brazil, for example, critics framed efforts to adopt gender-neutral Portuguese as part of a "gay Marxist agenda."

Still, Cameron notes that resistance tends to fade over time, intensifying with new forms of inclusive language, even as previous versions gain subtle acceptance. "The thing people resist most at any point in time is usually the newest thing and the thing associated with the most radical political stance," she said. In France, past iterations of écriture inclusive that were once considered controversial-such as "doubling" the masculine and feminine, by referring to clients and clientes in French or he/she in English-are now widely used. There's hostility toward the middle dot, she explained, "partly because it's new(ish), but also because it symbolizes a more radical ('woke') political stance than either doubled forms or earlier 'split' forms, like 'client(e)s.'"

Indeed, the long history of disputes over gendered language shows that these tensions are not, exactly, about language itself, explains Gwenaëlle Perrier, a researcher at the Université Sorbonne Paris Nord who in 2020 oversaw a special issue of an academic journal devoted to gender and language in France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, Brazil, and Sweden. "It's not only about conservatism, or a preoccupation over language, but a strong statement against feminism, even if it's rarely framed in those terms," she said.

Disputes over efforts to "de-gender" or "neutralize" language tend to escalate amid other gains for gender equity. "What stands out is that, in every case, these debates take place at a time of gains for women and growing contestation to that progress," Perrier said.

In France, opposition to écriture inclusive has consistently peaked in the context of other laws advancing women's rights; recent tension and Blanquer's decree, for example, came the same week as new legislation to establish gender quotas on major company boards.

"Opponents to écriture inclusive tend to oppose changes that go far beyond language in advancing women's rights" in France and elsewhere, Perrier added. She points to François Jolivet, a legislator from Macron's party, who drafted legislation in February banning gender-neutral language in public service-and, one month later, backed an anti-trans bill.

Not all critics frame their pushback in ideological terms. Instead, they contend that adding a middle dot makes texts confusing and illegible. But often, those not-unreasonable grammatical gripes accompany more ideologically charged reasoning. In claiming that écriture inclusive promotes a "disunited language ... creating a confusion that borders on illegibility," the Académie Française-the elite, conservative guardian of the French language-also warned that gender-neutral writing will compromise the International Organization of La Francophonie-the group of 88 states and governments for which French is an official language and a particularly enduring aspect of France's colonial legacy.

Perrier and others say critics' focus on the middle dot misrepresents the debate and have warned against reducing the conversation to that tool alone. Even as Blanquer sought to ban its use, they note, he acknowledged-and even encouraged-other inclusive linguistic tweaks, notably by feminizing job titles.

That marks progress from previous efforts to legislate against inclusive language, Perrier says. In 2017, Prime Minister Édouard Philippe banned the method in all official documents, reiterating the grammatical rule that equates masculine with neutral. With that in mind, Blanquer's recent decree "is a form of victory for proponents of écriture inclusive and the product of previous battles," Perrier said.

In a recent op-ed for Le Monde, Raphaël Haddad, founder of the Mots-Clés communications agency, and the literary scholar Eliane Viennot called the recent controversies "formidable moments of public deliberation" around language. The middle dot's usage, they write, can be refined and limited depending on context, improving readability without undermining "our attention to gender equity."

Beneath these semantic disputes lies a more practical question-one that, amid a pandemic that reversed decades of progress for women, seems more urgent than ever. With a spike in domestic violence and an exodus of women from the labor force, some critics question whether focusing on language distracts from more tangible goals. But rarely do proponents of inclusive writing argue that language is the only avenue for progress. Instead, they point to research that highlights a correlation between gender-inclusive language and attitudes toward gender equity.

"Language structures the way we can express ourselves, and the language we speak draws our attention to certain things and away from other things," said Margit Tavits, a professor at Washington University in St. Louis and the co-author of a 2019 study assessing gendered language and public opinion on women's equality and LGBTQ rights. "If a language has a grammatical gender, as a speaker you pay attention to that, and so the gender difference becomes more salient for you. Whereas if a language doesn't have gendered terms, then you won't be forced to notice the difference as you speak."

In another study, conducted as a partnership between Mots-Clés and Harris Media, respondents were asked to list well-known French TV personalities off the top of their head, with questions phrased using gendered and gender-inclusive language. And while respondents listed more men than women in both cases, they identified a higher number of female TV personalities when questioned in gender-neutral language. And a 2012 study found evidence that countries with gendered grammar systems had smaller female labor-force representation than those without.

Critics of inclusive writing call this research inconclusive. But its proponents contend that, even absent a direct correlation between linguistic changes and more equitable societies, less gendered language is worth fighting for.

Cameron, for example, doesn't consider herself a "linguistic determinist"; she doesn't believe grammar and usage "predict the way a society treats women." But she does point to some evidence that when the masculine is no longer the default, perceptions shift. "French-speaking kids are more likely to report that a girl could become a successful pilot or a mathematician if they read a description of what pilots/mathematicians do in écriture inclusive than if they read one that uses the traditional generic masculine," she said.

Backlash from the top, she adds, doesn't necessarily mean the push for gender-neutral language has stalled. "Language reforms that fail, or only partially succeed, may still have a consciousness-raising effect," she argued.

Nor are the politics of language zero-sum: Where activists and critics alike might contend that changing language changes everything-and others might see it as a "trivial side-issue and not 'real' politics"-Cameron opts for a middle ground. "Changing language isn't going to change the world on its own," she said, "but both actual linguistic changes and conversations about linguistic changes are part of the process through which norms and attitudes change."

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Gender-neutral terms have sparked an explosive battle over the future of the French language.