Gender-Neutral Pronoun

Posted by eeksie-peeksie@reddit | CrazyIdeas | View on Reddit | 32 comments

Humbly submitting my idea to adopt the Chinese word “chi” as a gender-neutral pronoun in English. It sounds similar enough to he/she to sound natural as a replacement, and its meaning (“life force” in Chinese), imho aligns well with how non-binary people would like to be seen

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notdbcooper71@reddit

Dear Lord help us 😂😂

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Dry_System9339@reddit

People suggest new pronouns every few decades and none of them stick.

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Turbulent-Name-8349@reddit

English desperately needs a gender neutral pronoun.

We've had he-she, s-he, ze/zir/zirs. Now chi, that's really quite good.

Another possibility for a gender neutral pronoun is "doctor", which has been gender neutral for over 200 years.

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xFblthpx@reddit

“They” has been a gender neutral singular for longer than 200 years.

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solid_reign@reddit

I find they very confusing when reading it as a gender neutral pronoun.

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xFblthpx@reddit

We just need to reteach it. It’s fair to be confused because we stopped using it that way, but all we need is to be familiarized with it again

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MediocreDesigner88@reddit

We didn’t stop using it that way, every child understands— You see someone riding their bike, you don’t know their gender, because you don’t know them. See, all three forms of singular they/them/their.

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crunchyhands@reddit

major skill issue

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ArcTruth@reddit

Skill issue.

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zachy410@reddit

Isn't doctor an honorific and not a pronoun?

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Ardub23@reddit

Every few decades? More like every few hours

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Polisskolan6@reddit

Chinese already has a gender neutral pronoun, "ta", why not use that?

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Ok-Lavishness-349@reddit

Technically, English has a gender neutral first person singular pronoun - "he". Webster dictionary lists the second definition of "he" as "pronoun used in a generic sense or when the gender of the person is unspecified". Just because "he" is sometimes used in a gender specific context is irrelevant to whether it can be used in a gender neutral context - words can have more than one meaning.

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eeksie-peeksie@reddit (OP)

Yes, “he” was commonly used to refer to either gender, and it still can be used that way, though it has definitely fallen out of favor with many writers preferring to instead alternate between he and she.

English does have a dedicated, gender-neutral pronoun—“it.” Of course, super offensive to refer to a human with this pronoun, so that’s not an acceptable option

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Philisterguyguster@reddit

There are loads of people who prefer to be referred to as “it”

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eeksie-peeksie@reddit (OP)

I’ve heard that. But I’ve never met any “in the wild.” I bristle when people refer to a pet as “it,” so I can’t imagine using “it” for a person

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endymon20@reddit

I'm friends with a few online. and when you meet an it, no matter how uncomfortable you are, you still have to respect it's pronouns. not getting that basic respect is way more dehumanizing than the connotations in your mind ever will be

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eeksie-peeksie@reddit (OP)

I agree. I’ve never met an “it,” but would use it if asked. Using “it” for a person (unless asked), is a tremendous insult. It even rubs me wrong when people use “it” for the beloved family dog/cat

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endymon20@reddit

we have "they/them"

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eeksie-peeksie@reddit (OP)

I know we do! I’m saying it would be great to use an option that would continue to clarify singular/plural

For that matter, “he” has been traditionally used as a gender neutral and “it” is a clear-cut gender neutral pronoun (which can’t be used with humans)

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endymon20@reddit

meh, most nonbinary people are fine with they/them. gender neutral third person pronouns have been invented multiple times, they just never catch on because they sound unnatural or just the fact that languages tend to resist new pronouns. plus, if we're introducing new pronouns I'd focus more on codifying a plural/singular split in second person pronouns. also, it absolutely can be used for humans, it just generally isn't

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eeksie-peeksie@reddit (OP)

That’s why I like chi: it sounds similar to he/she

I don’t find the second person plural to be a felt lack, but I feel it more with third person singular/plural. Of course, I live in the South where we have y’all. But I don’t use that much if at all

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ACNSRV@reddit

You can refer to me as an it

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crunchyhands@reddit

idk i prefer they. full respect to people who like using new pronouns but i already get enough scoffs and sneers asking people to call me "them". i am not asking them to call me "chi".

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wiccangame@reddit

We definitely need one. How can we invent entire fictional languages(Klingon for example) and yet stumble for neutral pronouns?

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eeksie-peeksie@reddit (OP)

Exactly!!!!! We have an opportunity here to make the language richer and more descriptive/encompassing. Let’s take advantage of it!

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