Gender neutral titles

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A gender neutral title is an honorific title that does not indicate the gender of the person being formally addressed, such as in a letter or other communication, or when introducing the person to others. They are a form of gender neutral language. By comparison, the traditional honorifics of Miss, Mrs, Ms and Mr all indicate the binary gender of the individual.

The newer term "Mx" avoids specifying gender not only for persons who wish not to indicate a binary gender (male or female) but also for persons whose gender identity does not fit the gender binary. Honorifics are used in situations when it is inappropriate to refer to someone only by their first or last name, such as when addressing a letter "Dear Mx Jones" or when introducing the person to others. Activists, supporters and others are working toward awareness and acceptance of alternative honorifics including Mx.

Note that in Britain, honorifics are not ended with a period, while in the United States a period is used with the honorifics "Mr." and "Mrs." because they are abbreviations (for Mister and Mistress), as well as with "Ms." in order to preserve the form. "Miss" is not ended with a period because it is not an abbreviated form of a longer word.

Gender neutral titles

Mx

Mx is a title commonly used by nonbinary people as well as those who do not wish their gender to be known, which was first written about in the 1970s. Nat Titman spoke about its usage and brought it into popular acceptance. Among all other gender neutral titles, Mx is the most commonly used one, and is accepted by government and other organisations throughout the UK.

The "x" is intended to stand as a wildcard character, and does not imply a "mixed" gender. "Mx" is usually pronounced "mix" or with a schwa, "məx".

Misc

Misc or sometimes 'misk' is another gender neutral pronoun. The word is derived from the Latin word miscellus, meaning “mixed,” following the rationale that a lot of nonbinary people would say that they have aspects of various genders at various times.

In a 2016 international survey of nonbinary participants, 0.8% of over 3,000 participants preferred the title Misc.

Ind.

Ind, which stands for Individual, is a newly created gender neutral title. This title may be more appropriate for those who do not feel Mx meets their gender neutral standards, as Mx can sometimes be taken to stand for "mix". Ind was created to be free of gender, entirely, thus making it a better option for agender and gender nonconforming persons.

In a survey of over 3,000 nonbinary people in 2016, around 2.5% of nonbinary people used the title Ind.

Gender neutral forms of ma'am or sir

Comrade

Comrade is a gender neutral form of address. However, because of its communist associations, it is not suitable for all situations.

Tiz

Tiz, which is short for citizen, can be used instead of ma'am or sir.

Mirdam

Mirdam is a combination of sir and madam and can be used instead of either.

Mistdam

Similar to mirdam, mistdam is a combination of mister and madam.

Sir'ram

Sir'ram is another title created by combination, in this case, the combination of sir and ma'am.

Mir

Mir is a combination of sir and madam.

Sir

Sir is used as a gender neutral address in the military. However, outside a military context, it tends to be seen as a maculine form of address.

Usage

In March 2017, the bank HSBC introduced ten options for gender neutral titles for its customers, in addition to gendered titles. The titles are Ind, M, Mx, Misc, Mre, Msr, Myr, Pr, Sai, and Ser.

See also

• Pronouns
• Gender neutral language