English neutral pronouns: Difference between revisions
Cleaning up refs and links
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==History== | ==History== | ||
In English, people are usually called by a [[pronouns|pronoun]] that implies their gender. For example, [[English neutral pronouns#She|she]] for women, and [[English neutral pronouns#He|he]] for men. The use of [[singular they]] as a gender-neutral pronoun has been documented as standard usage in English throughout the past thousand years. However, prescriptive grammarians in the late eighteenth century decided that it was bad grammar because it works like a plural and because it isn't done in Latin.<ref>Henry Churchyard | In English, people are usually called by a [[pronouns|pronoun]] that implies their gender. For example, [[English neutral pronouns#She|she]] for women, and [[English neutral pronouns#He|he]] for men. The use of [[singular they]] as a gender-neutral pronoun has been documented as standard usage in English throughout the past thousand years. However, prescriptive grammarians in the late eighteenth century decided that it was bad grammar because it works like a plural and because it isn't done in Latin.<ref name-"Churchyard">{{cite web|first=Henry|last= Churchyard|title=Jane Austen and other famous authors violate what everyone learned in their English class|url=http://www.crossmyt.com/hc/linghebr/austheir.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120319092926/http://www.crossmyt.com/hc/linghebr/austheir.html |archive-date=19 March 2012}}</ref> | ||
Prescriptive grammarians of the late eighteenth century instead recommended using "he" as a gender-neutral pronoun when one is needed, instead of "singular they."<ref name="bustillos 250"> | Prescriptive grammarians of the late eighteenth century instead recommended using "he" as a gender-neutral pronoun when one is needed, instead of "singular they."<ref name="bustillos 250">{{Cite web |title=Our Desperate, 250-Year-Long Search for a Gender-Neutral Pronoun |last=Bustillos |first=Maria |work=The Awl |date=6 January 2011 |access-date=17 October 2020 |url= https://www.theawl.com/2011/01/our-desperate-250-year-long-search-for-a-gender-neutral-pronoun/}}</ref> However, "gender-neutral he" results in writings that are unclear about whether they mean only men or not, which makes problems in law.<ref name="Pullum">{{cite web|first=Geoffrey|last=Pullum|title=Canada Supreme Court Gets the Grammar Right.|work=Language Log|date=18 August 2004 |url=http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/001362.html}}</ref> | ||
===Regional nominative pronouns=== | ===Regional nominative pronouns=== | ||
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===E=== | ===E=== | ||
There are several very similar sets of pronouns with the nominative form of "E," which have been independently proposed or revived over the last hundred years.<ref name="aetherlumina listing 2">[https://web.archive.org/web/20070310130020/http://aetherlumina.com/gnp/listing.html ''4.2.5. Comprehensive Listing of Neologisms'', March 10 2007]</ref><ref name="d baron epicene">Dennis Baron | There are several very similar sets of pronouns with the nominative form of "E," which have been independently proposed or revived over the last hundred years.<ref name="aetherlumina listing 2">[https://web.archive.org/web/20070310130020/http://aetherlumina.com/gnp/listing.html ''4.2.5. Comprehensive Listing of Neologisms'', March 10 2007]</ref><ref name="d baron epicene">{{cite web|first=Dennis|last= Baron|title=The Words that Failed: A chronology of early nonbinary pronouns|url=http://www.english.illinois.edu/-people-/faculty/debaron/essays/epicene.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170622223218/http://www.english.illinois.edu/-people-/faculty/debaron/essays/epicene.htm|archive-date=22 June 2017}}</ref> | ||
====E (Spivak pronouns)==== | ====E (Spivak pronouns)==== | ||
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===Fae=== | ===Fae=== | ||
'''fae, faer, faer, faers, faerself'''. A fairy (faery, faerie, fey or Fair Folk) themed set created by Ciel (Tumblr user shadaras) in 2014 (or earlier?)<ref>http://quasiboi.co.vu/post/74445593229/list-of-pronouns</ref> It may also have been independently coined earlier by someone else. This is the most commonly used [[nounself pronouns|nounself pronoun]] set, and it may have been created earlier than them. It may have been what inspired many people to create nounself pronouns in 2014. A similar fairy-themed set is '''fey, fey, feys, feys, feyself''', which was recorded in 2014,<ref name="askanonbinary general">[http://askanonbinary.tumblr.com/general Ask A Nonbinary's list of unthemed pronouns], captured March 2016</ref> of unknown origin. Additionally, as coined by Lake in 2020 (discord user lake.sato#6026) '''fey, feyr, feyrself'''. Further evidence shows use of fey, feyr, feyrself in 2018 by Kallifrey (discord user 物の哀れ#1760). | '''fae, faer, faer, faers, faerself'''. A fairy (faery, faerie, fey or Fair Folk) themed set created by Ciel (Tumblr user shadaras) in 2014 (or earlier?)<ref>http://quasiboi.co.vu/post/74445593229/list-of-pronouns (dead link)</ref> It may also have been independently coined earlier by someone else. This is the most commonly used [[nounself pronouns|nounself pronoun]] set, and it may have been created earlier than them. It may have been what inspired many people to create nounself pronouns in 2014. A similar fairy-themed set is '''fey, fey, feys, feys, feyself''', which was recorded in 2014,<ref name="askanonbinary general">[http://askanonbinary.tumblr.com/general Ask A Nonbinary's list of unthemed pronouns], captured March 2016</ref> of unknown origin. Additionally, as coined by Lake in 2020 (discord user lake.sato#6026) '''fey, feyr, feyrself'''. Further evidence shows use of fey, feyr, feyrself in 2018 by Kallifrey (discord user 物の哀れ#1760). | ||
'''Usage:''' | '''Usage:''' | ||
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===He=== | ===He=== | ||
'''he, him, his, his, himself'''. Often called male pronouns, grammarians acknowledge that this standard set of pronouns can also be used as gender-neutral or gender-inclusive pronouns for unspecified persons, such as in instructions and legal documents. In the eighteenth century, when prescriptive grammarians decided that "singular they" was no longer acceptable as a gender-neutral pronoun, they instead recommended, "gender-neutral he." "Prescriptive grammarians have been calling for 'he' as the gender-neutral pronoun of choice since at least 1745, when a British schoolmistress named Anne Fisher laid down the law in ''A New Grammar''."<ref name="bustillos 250"></ref> The use of "gender-neutral he" can make problems in how laws are interpreted, because it's unclear whether it is meant to be gender-inclusive or male-only. For example, in 1927, "the Canadian Supreme Court ruled that women were not persons because its statutes referred to 'persons' with male pronouns."<ref>"Pronoun perspectives." ''Gender neutral pronoun blog.'' [https://genderneutralpronoun.wordpress.com/links/pronoun-perspectives/ https://genderneutralpronoun.wordpress.com/links/pronoun-perspectives/]</ref><ref | '''he, him, his, his, himself'''. Often called male pronouns, grammarians acknowledge that this standard set of pronouns can also be used as gender-neutral or gender-inclusive pronouns for unspecified persons, such as in instructions and legal documents. In the eighteenth century, when prescriptive grammarians decided that "singular they" was no longer acceptable as a gender-neutral pronoun, they instead recommended, "gender-neutral he." "Prescriptive grammarians have been calling for 'he' as the gender-neutral pronoun of choice since at least 1745, when a British schoolmistress named Anne Fisher laid down the law in ''A New Grammar''."<ref name="bustillos 250"></ref> The use of "gender-neutral he" can make problems in how laws are interpreted, because it's unclear whether it is meant to be gender-inclusive or male-only. For example, in 1927, "the Canadian Supreme Court ruled that women were not persons because its statutes referred to 'persons' with male pronouns."<ref>"Pronoun perspectives." ''Gender neutral pronoun blog.'' [https://genderneutralpronoun.wordpress.com/links/pronoun-perspectives/ https://genderneutralpronoun.wordpress.com/links/pronoun-perspectives/]</ref><ref name="Pullum" /> In the USA in the nineteenth century, suffragists Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton fought for laws to stop using the "gender-neutral he," because there were cases where this pronoun had been arbitrarily interpreted as a "male he" in order to exclude women from legal protections, or from the right to a license that they had passed exams for. This abuse of legal language happened even in if the documents explicitly said that "he" was meant to include women.<ref name="bustillos 250"></ref> Thanks to the work in the 1970s by feminists Casey Miller and Kate Swift, "gender-neutral he" has been significantly phased out of use, replaced by the more inclusive [[English neutral pronouns#He or she|he or she]].<ref>{{cite journal |first=Elizabeth|last=Isele|title=Casey Miller and Kate Swift: Women Who Dared To Disturb the Lexicon|journal=Women in Literature and Life Assembly|volume=3|date=Fall 1994|url=http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/old-WILLA/fall94/h2-isele.html}}</ref> | ||
'''Use for real non-binary people:''' There are non-binary people who ask to be called by "he" pronouns, such as comedian [[ | '''Use for real non-binary people:''' There are non-binary people who ask to be called by "he" pronouns, such as comedian [[Eddie Izzard]], writer [[Richard O'Brien]], autobiographer [[Jennie June]], and guitarist [[Pete Townshend]]. | ||
'''Forms:''' | '''Forms:''' | ||
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====Ne (ner)==== | ====Ne (ner)==== | ||
'''ne, ner, nis, nis, nemself'''. In a 1974 issue of ''Today's Education,'' "Mildred Fenner attributes this to Fred Wilhelms."<ref name="d baron epicene"></ref><ref name="aetherlumina listing 2"></ref> Veterinarian Al Lippart independently proposed the same set of pronouns in 1999, recommending them for use when it would be inappropriate to specify the gender of a human, animal, or deity.<ref>Al Lippart | '''ne, ner, nis, nis, nemself'''. In a 1974 issue of ''Today's Education,'' "Mildred Fenner attributes this to Fred Wilhelms."<ref name="d baron epicene"></ref><ref name="aetherlumina listing 2"></ref> Veterinarian Al Lippart independently proposed the same set of pronouns in 1999, recommending them for use when it would be inappropriate to specify the gender of a human, animal, or deity.<ref>{{cite web|first=Al|last= Lippart|title=Introducing the New Neutral Third Person Singular Personal Pronoun|date=1999|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090318000953/http://www.lippart.com/ne.html |archive-date=18 March 2009|url=http://www.lippart.com/ne.html}}</ref> Lawyer Roberta Morris also independently proposed this same set of pronouns in 2009, saying that these pronouns would be more efficient for within the 140 character limit of Twitter than "he or she." Morris also pointed out that the "n" can refer to "neuter."<ref>Roberta Morris, "The need for a neuter pronoun: A solution." September 29, 2009. [http://myunpublishedworks2.blogspot.com/2009/09/need-for-neuter-pronoun-solution.html http://myunpublishedworks2.blogspot.com/2009/09/need-for-neuter-pronoun-solution.html]</ref> | ||
'''Forms:''' | '''Forms:''' | ||
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* Cartoonist [[Rebecca Sugar]] [http://www.reddit.com/user/RebeccaSugar explained] that in her animated science fiction series, ''Steven Universe,'' the alien people called Gems really have no sex or gender, even though they all look like women. For this reason, the Gems are only arbitrarily called by "she" pronouns. Sugar said, "Technically, there are no female Gems! There are only Gems! [...] Why not look like human females? That's just what Gems happen to look like! [...] There's a 50 50 chance to use some pronoun on Earth, so why not feminine ones-- it's as convenient as it is arbitrary!"<ref>Rebecca Sugar. ''Reddit.'' [http://www.reddit.com/user/RebeccaSugar http://www.reddit.com/user/RebeccaSugar]</ref> This is a gender-neutral use of "she" pronouns. | * Cartoonist [[Rebecca Sugar]] [http://www.reddit.com/user/RebeccaSugar explained] that in her animated science fiction series, ''Steven Universe,'' the alien people called Gems really have no sex or gender, even though they all look like women. For this reason, the Gems are only arbitrarily called by "she" pronouns. Sugar said, "Technically, there are no female Gems! There are only Gems! [...] Why not look like human females? That's just what Gems happen to look like! [...] There's a 50 50 chance to use some pronoun on Earth, so why not feminine ones-- it's as convenient as it is arbitrary!"<ref>Rebecca Sugar. ''Reddit.'' [http://www.reddit.com/user/RebeccaSugar http://www.reddit.com/user/RebeccaSugar]</ref> This is a gender-neutral use of "she" pronouns. | ||
'''Use by real nonbinary people:''' There are nonbinary people who ask people to use "she" pronouns for them, such as singer-songwriter [[ | '''Use by real nonbinary people:''' There are nonbinary people who ask people to use "she" pronouns for them, such as singer-songwriter [[Elly Jackson]]{{citation needed}}, musician [[JD Samson]], American comedian, writer, and nurse [[Kelli Dunham]],<ref name="story">{{Cite web |title=THE STORY |author= |work=kellidunham.com |date= |access-date=24 July 2020 |url= http://www.kellidunham.com/the-story/}}</ref> British musician [[Du Blonde]],<ref>[https://www.instagram.com/p/B26o9pvHwMk/ Sept 27, 2019 instagram post]</ref> poet [[jayy dodd]],<ref name="Kelly">{{Cite web |title=Interview with jayy dodd, author of Mannish Tongues |last=Kelly |first=Devin |work=entropymag.org |date=January 23, 2017 |access-date=May 15, 2020 |url= https://entropymag.org/interview-with-jayy-dodd-author-of-mannish-tongues/}}</ref><ref name="Instagram">[https://www.instagram.com/jxzz_hndz/ Instagram bio], retrieved May 15 2020</ref> author and public speaker [[Olave Basabose]],<ref name="Basabose2019">[https://www.facebook.com/OlaveTalks/videos/489898301767964/ This is your annually scheduled PSA: My pronouns are she/her/hers.], July 22, 2019</ref> actor [[Cara Delevingne]], activist [[Chao Xiaomi]],<ref name="FangLuu">{{Cite web |title=Chao Xiaomi leads China's fight for transgender rights |last1=Fang |first1=Nanlin |last2=Luu |first2=Chieu |work=CNN |date= |access-date=30 May 2020 |url= https://www.cnn.com/style/article/china-transgender-activist/index.html}}</ref> and rapper [[Angel Haze]].<ref name="tweet2018" /> In the 2018 Gender Census, 29% of participants were happy for people to use ''she'' pronouns when referring to them.<ref name="Census2018"></ref> | ||
'''Forms:''' | '''Forms:''' | ||
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<blockquote>"I asked Beacon Press to use ''s/he'' [sic] in the author description of me on the cover of ''Transgender Warriors'' [another book by Feinberg]. That pronoun is a contribution from the women's liberation movement. Prior to that struggle, the pronoun 'he' was almost universally used to describe humankind-- 'mankind.' So ''s/he''' opened up the pronoun to include 'womankind.' I used ''s/he'' on my book jacket because it is recognizable as a gender-neutral pronoun to people. But I personally prefer the pronoun ''ze'' because, for me, it melds mankind and womankind into humankind."<ref>Leslie Feinberg, ''Trans Liberation: Beyond Pink or Blue.'' Page 71.</ref></blockquote> | <blockquote>"I asked Beacon Press to use ''s/he'' [sic] in the author description of me on the cover of ''Transgender Warriors'' [another book by Feinberg]. That pronoun is a contribution from the women's liberation movement. Prior to that struggle, the pronoun 'he' was almost universally used to describe humankind-- 'mankind.' So ''s/he''' opened up the pronoun to include 'womankind.' I used ''s/he'' on my book jacket because it is recognizable as a gender-neutral pronoun to people. But I personally prefer the pronoun ''ze'' because, for me, it melds mankind and womankind into humankind."<ref>Leslie Feinberg, ''Trans Liberation: Beyond Pink or Blue.'' Page 71.</ref></blockquote> | ||
At different times, Feinberg has asked to go by "s/he," "ze," or "she" pronouns depending on hir needs and the message meant to send. As quoted in hir obituary, Feinberg had said, "I care which pronoun is used, but people have been disrespectful to me with the wrong pronoun and respectful with the right one. It matters whether someone is using the pronoun as a bigot, or if they are trying to demonstrate respect."<ref>Minnie Bruce Pratt | At different times, Feinberg has asked to go by "s/he," "ze," or "she" pronouns depending on hir needs and the message meant to send. As quoted in hir obituary, Feinberg had said, "I care which pronoun is used, but people have been disrespectful to me with the wrong pronoun and respectful with the right one. It matters whether someone is using the pronoun as a bigot, or if they are trying to demonstrate respect."<ref name="Pratt">{{cite web|author=Minnie Bruce Pratt|title=Transgender Pioneer and Stone Butch Blues Author Leslie Feinberg Has Died|work=The Advocate|date= 17 November 2014| url= http://www.advocate.com/arts-entertainment/books/2014/11/17/transgender-pioneer-leslie-feinberg-stone-butch-blues-has-died}}</ref>. Another notable nonbinary person, singer-songwriter [[Genesis Breyer P-orridge]] asks to be referred to by a different version of the s/he pronouns: '''s/he, h/er, h/er, h/ers, h/erself'''.<ref>"Genesis Breyer P-orridge." [http://www.genesisbreyerporridge.com/genesisbreyerporridge.com/Genesis_BREYER_P-ORRIDGE_Home.html http://www.genesisbreyerporridge.com/genesisbreyerporridge.com/Genesis_BREYER_P-ORRIDGE_Home.html]</ref> The Taiwanese intersex activist [[Hiker Chiu]] goes by another variation: s/he, her/him.<ref name="Entenmann">{{Cite web |title="We Are Not Monsters. We Are Full of Love." — Hiker Chiu, Taiwan |last=Entenmann|first=Leah |work=Medium |date=21 December 2015 |access-date=24 June 2020 |url= https://medium.com/alturi-world/we-are-not-monsters-we-are-full-of-love-hiker-chiu-taiwan-62ea9b456d4e}}</ref> | ||
'''Forms:''' | '''Forms:''' | ||
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===Thon=== | ===Thon=== | ||
'''thon, thon, thons, thon's, thonself'''. American composer Charles Crozat Converse of Erie, Pennsylvania proposed this pronoun in 1858, based on a contraction of "that one."<ref name="barge viewpoints">Fred Barge | '''thon, thon, thons, thon's, thonself'''. American composer Charles Crozat Converse of Erie, Pennsylvania proposed this pronoun in 1858, based on a contraction of "that one."<ref name="barge viewpoints">{{cite journal|first=Fred|last=Barge|title=Viewpoints from involvement -- 'thon'|journal=Dynamic Chiropractic.|date= August 14, 1992|url= http://www.dynamicchiropractic.com/mpacms/dc/article.php?id=43422}}</ref> The Gender-Neutral Pronoun FAQ gives this pronoun's date of origin as 1884 instead,<ref name="aetherlumina listing 2"></ref> while ''Words and Women'' gives 1859.<ref>Casey Miller and Kate Swift, ''Words and Women.'' Page 130.</ref> The "thon" pronoun was included in some dictionaries: Webster's International Dictionary (1910), and Funk & Wagnalls New Standard Dictionary (1913), and Webster's Second International (1959). Funk & Wagnalls offered these sentences to show how it should be used: "If Harry or his wife comes, I will be on hand to greet thon," and "Each pupil must learn thon's lesson." "Thon" was used throughout the writings by the founders of chiropractic, B.J. and D.D. Palmer, in 1910.<ref name="barge viewpoints" /> "Thon" is therefore familiar to chiropractors, and sometimes still appears in chiropractic writings, and in works by people who were influenced by that field. | ||
'''Use for real nonbinary people:''' In the 2019 Gender Census, 18 (0.2%) people said that they were happy for people to use ''thon'' to refer to them.<ref name="Census2018"/> | '''Use for real nonbinary people:''' In the 2019 Gender Census, 18 (0.2%) people said that they were happy for people to use ''thon'' to refer to them.<ref name="Census2018"/> | ||
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====Ze, hir==== | ====Ze, hir==== | ||
'''ze, hir, hir, hirs, hirself'''. Compare the similar "[[English neutral pronouns#Xe|xe]], hir..." set, which is the version less attested by print sources. [[Sarah Dopp]] wrote a blog post about the "ze" version in 2006.<ref>Sarah Dopp | '''ze, hir, hir, hirs, hirself'''. Compare the similar "[[English neutral pronouns#Xe|xe]], hir..." set, which is the version less attested by print sources. [[Sarah Dopp]] wrote a blog post about the "ze" version in 2006.<ref>{{cite web|first=Sarah|last=Dopp|authorlink=Sarah Dopp|title=How transgender folk are fixing an age-old literary problem|date=13 August 2006|url=http://www.sarahdopp.com/blog/2006/how_transgender_folk_are_fixing_an_age_o/ }}</ref> Leslie Feinberg also used the "ze" version in the book ''Drag King Dreams'' (2006),<ref>Leslie Feinberg, ''Drag King Dreams.'' New York: Carroll & Graf, 2006.</ref> Erika Lopez used the "ze" version in ''The Girl Must Die: A Monster Girl Memoir'' (2010).<ref>Erika Lopez, ''The Girl Must Die: A Monster Girl Memoir.'' Hicken, Jeffrey, San Francisco: Monster Girl Media, 2010.</ref> M. J. Locke used the "ze" version in the book ''Up Against It'' (2011).<ref>M. J. Locke, ''up Against It.'' New York: Tor, 2011.</ref> | ||
'''Use in fiction:''' | '''Use in fiction:''' | ||
* Kameron Hurley used these pronouns in the fantasy novels ''The Mirror Empire'' and ''Empire Ascendant,'' for characters who are ''ataisa,'' an in-between gender role where their culture puts everyone who has a nonbinary gender.<ref>Kameron Hurley | * Kameron Hurley used these pronouns in the fantasy novels ''The Mirror Empire'' and ''Empire Ascendant,'' for characters who are ''ataisa,'' an in-between gender role where their culture puts everyone who has a nonbinary gender.<ref>{{cite web|first=Kameron|last=Hurley|title=Beyond He-Man and She-Ra: Writing nonbinary characters|date=3 September 2014|url=https://intellectusspeculativus.wordpress.com/2014/09/03/guest-post-beyond-he-man-she-ra-writing-non-binary-characters-by-kameron-hurley/}}</ref> | ||
* In Seth Dickinson's short science fiction story, "[http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/stories/sekhmet-hunts-the-dying-gnosis-a-computation/ Sekhmet Hunts the Dying Gnosis: A Computation]" (2014), a transhuman character of "uncertain ... sex" is called by the pronoun "ze," which only appears in the nominative form.<ref>Seth Dickinson, "Sekhmet Hunts the Dying Gnosis: A Computation." ''Beneath Ceaseless Skies,'' issue 143. March 20, 2014. [http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/stories/sekhmet-hunts-the-dying-gnosis-a-computation/ http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/stories/sekhmet-hunts-the-dying-gnosis-a-computation/]</ref> | * In Seth Dickinson's short science fiction story, "[http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/stories/sekhmet-hunts-the-dying-gnosis-a-computation/ Sekhmet Hunts the Dying Gnosis: A Computation]" (2014), a transhuman character of "uncertain ... sex" is called by the pronoun "ze," which only appears in the nominative form.<ref>Seth Dickinson, "Sekhmet Hunts the Dying Gnosis: A Computation." ''Beneath Ceaseless Skies,'' issue 143. March 20, 2014. [http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/stories/sekhmet-hunts-the-dying-gnosis-a-computation/ http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/stories/sekhmet-hunts-the-dying-gnosis-a-computation/]</ref> | ||
* In K. A. Cook's short story "Blue Paint, Chocolate and Other Similes," in ''Crooked Words,'' when the narrator Ben recognizes that Chris identifies as nonbinary, Ben begins using "ze, hir" pronouns for Chris, before finding a good moment to ask for Chris's actual pronoun preference.<ref>K. A. Cook, "Blue Paint, Chocolate and Other Similes." ''Crooked Words.'' Unpaged.</ref> In another story by K. A. Cook, "The Differently Animated and Queer Society," the character Pat goes by "ze, hir" pronouns, and uses them for other characters before finding out each of their own pronoun preferences.<ref>K. A. Cook, "The Differently Animated and Queer Society." ''Crooked Words.'' Unpaged.</ref> | * In K. A. Cook's short story "Blue Paint, Chocolate and Other Similes," in ''Crooked Words,'' when the narrator Ben recognizes that Chris identifies as nonbinary, Ben begins using "ze, hir" pronouns for Chris, before finding a good moment to ask for Chris's actual pronoun preference.<ref>K. A. Cook, "Blue Paint, Chocolate and Other Similes." ''Crooked Words.'' Unpaged.</ref> In another story by K. A. Cook, "The Differently Animated and Queer Society," the character Pat goes by "ze, hir" pronouns, and uses them for other characters before finding out each of their own pronoun preferences.<ref>K. A. Cook, "The Differently Animated and Queer Society." ''Crooked Words.'' Unpaged.</ref> | ||
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'''Use for real people:''' | '''Use for real people:''' | ||
* [[Kate Bornstein]] used them in the books ''Nearly Roadkill'' (1996) (with Caitlin Sullivan June)<ref>Caitlin Sullivan June and Kate Bornstein. ''Nearly Roadkill: An Infobahn erotic adventure.'' New York: Serpent's Tail, 1996, p. 10.</ref>, and ''My Gender Workbook'' (1998) in reference to hirself, and to other specific transgender people, as well as hypothetical persons of unspecified gender.<ref>Kate Bornstein, ''My Gender Workbook.'' 1st ed. 1998, p. 106-107, 119, 130-131, 154, 248.</ref> Today, Bornstein goes by any pronouns.<ref>{{cite tweet|user=katebornstein|number=1149734426890424320|date=July 12, 2019|title=Over 71 years, I’ve at one time or another insisted on every pronoun in the book. Finally settled in to it doesn't matter to me what pronouns people use for me—it tells me more about them than it could ever say about me. So thanks for asking, it’s up to you.}}</ref><ref name="Raymond">{{Cite web |title=Interview: Kate Bornstein on Their Broadway Debut in Straight White Men |last=Raymond |first=Gerard |work=Slant Magazine |date=July 11, 2018 |access-date=May 16, 2020 |url= https://www.slantmagazine.com/interviews/pretty-damn-bowie-kate-bornstein-on-their-broadway-debut-in-straight-white-men/}}</ref> | * [[Kate Bornstein]] used them in the books ''Nearly Roadkill'' (1996) (with Caitlin Sullivan June)<ref>Caitlin Sullivan June and Kate Bornstein. ''Nearly Roadkill: An Infobahn erotic adventure.'' New York: Serpent's Tail, 1996, p. 10.</ref>, and ''My Gender Workbook'' (1998) in reference to hirself, and to other specific transgender people, as well as hypothetical persons of unspecified gender.<ref>Kate Bornstein, ''My Gender Workbook.'' 1st ed. 1998, p. 106-107, 119, 130-131, 154, 248.</ref> Today, Bornstein goes by any pronouns.<ref>{{cite tweet|user=katebornstein|number=1149734426890424320|date=July 12, 2019|title=Over 71 years, I’ve at one time or another insisted on every pronoun in the book. Finally settled in to it doesn't matter to me what pronouns people use for me—it tells me more about them than it could ever say about me. So thanks for asking, it’s up to you.}}</ref><ref name="Raymond">{{Cite web |title=Interview: Kate Bornstein on Their Broadway Debut in Straight White Men |last=Raymond |first=Gerard |work=Slant Magazine |date=July 11, 2018 |access-date=May 16, 2020 |url= https://www.slantmagazine.com/interviews/pretty-damn-bowie-kate-bornstein-on-their-broadway-debut-in-straight-white-men/}}</ref> | ||
* [[Leslie Feinberg]] asked to be called by "ze, hir" pronouns, along with "zie, hir" and "she."<ref | * [[Leslie Feinberg]] asked to be called by "ze, hir" pronouns, along with "zie, hir" and "she."<ref name="Pratt" /> In a magazine interview from 2014, Gabriel Antonio and another anonymous person both asked to be called by these pronouns.<ref>{{Cite web |title=He And She, Ze And Xe: The Case For Gender-Neutral Pronouns |author=Donato, Al |work=The Plaid Zebra |date=25 November 2014 |access-date=17 October 2020 |url= https://www.theplaidzebra.com/ze-xe-case-gender-neutral-pronouns/}}</ref> | ||
*Writer [[Sassafras Lowrey]] uses ze/hir pronouns.<ref name="Lowrey2017">{{Cite web |title=A Guide To Non-binary Pronouns And Why They Matter |last=Lowrey |first=Sassafras |work=HuffPost |date=8 November 2017 |access-date=8 May 2020 |url= https://www.huffpost.com/entry/non-binary-pronouns-why-they-matter_b_5a03107be4b0230facb8419a }}</ref> | *Writer [[Sassafras Lowrey]] uses ze/hir pronouns.<ref name="Lowrey2017">{{Cite web |title=A Guide To Non-binary Pronouns And Why They Matter |last=Lowrey |first=Sassafras |work=HuffPost |date=8 November 2017 |access-date=8 May 2020 |url= https://www.huffpost.com/entry/non-binary-pronouns-why-they-matter_b_5a03107be4b0230facb8419a }}</ref> | ||
* In the 2019 Gender Census, 4.7% of participants said they would be happy for people to use ''"ze/hir/hir/hirs/hirself"'' to refer to them.<ref name="Census2018"/> | * In the 2019 Gender Census, 4.7% of participants said they would be happy for people to use ''"ze/hir/hir/hirs/hirself"'' to refer to them.<ref name="Census2018"/> | ||