Pronouns: Difference between revisions
→Esperanto neutral pronouns
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==Esperanto neutral pronouns== | ==Esperanto neutral pronouns== | ||
Normally, Esperanto doesn't have any neutral pronouns | Normally, Esperanto doesn't have any singular gender-neutral personal pronouns, only female or male. Some proposed grammatical reforms suggest adding a neutral pronoun. None of the proposals are recognized by the Akademio de Esperanto (Academy of Esperanto), an official body that aims to provide guidance to Esperanto users. While the Akademio takes a conservative approach to Esperanto usage, they have been known to adopt neologisms as their sustained use becomes widespread. For more information about this issue, see Wikipedia's article [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender_reform_in_Esperanto gender reform in Esperanto]. | ||
Some proposed gender-neutral pronouns in non-standard Esperanto include: | Some proposed gender-neutral pronouns in non-standard Esperanto include: | ||
'''gi'''. "A popular proposal because it is iconic: in writing, it resembles ''ĝi'', which it also resembles in meaning, and it is similar to the occasionally epicene prefix ''ge-''. This makes it readily recognizable. Also along these lines is the use of the epicene prefix itself, ''geli''."<ref name="esperanto wikipedia">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender_reform_in_Esperanto Wikipedia page on gender reform in Esperanto]</ref> | '''gi'''. "A popular proposal because it is iconic: in writing, it resembles ''ĝi'' ('it'), which it also resembles in meaning, and it is similar to the occasionally epicene prefix ''ge-''. This makes it readily recognizable. Also along these lines is the use of the epicene prefix itself, ''geli''."<ref name="esperanto wikipedia">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender_reform_in_Esperanto Wikipedia page on gender reform in Esperanto]</ref> | ||
''' | '''ĝi'''. "Ĝiist Esperanto," or "ĝiismo," is a grammatical reform similar to "riism" (see ''ri'' below) that proposes using the existing pronoun ''ĝi'' ('it') as a gender-neutral pronoun when referring to a person whose gender is "unknown or unimportant" to the context, in addition to its traditional sense of referring to animals and objects. Among "ĝiists," ''ri'' is used exclusively in reference to nonbinary people.<ref name="seksneuxtrala">[https://eo.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seksne%C5%ADtrala_homa_triapersona_pronomo Esperanto Wikipedia page on gender-neutral pronouns]</ref> However, some argue that use of ''ĝi'' in reference to people is objectifying, and for this reason the popular reference ''Plena Manlibro de Esperanta Gramatiko'' advises against it.<ref name="pmeg">Wennergren, Bertilo. "[https://bertilow.com/pmeg/gramatiko/pronomoj/tria.html Tria persono]". ''[https://bertilow.com/pmeg/index.html Plena Manlibro de Esperanta Gramatiko 2022].'' Accessed 2022-08-29.</ref> | ||
'''li'''. | '''hi/li'''. In orthodox Esperanto, ''li'' is gendered masculine ('he') when a person's gender is known, and used as the epicene singular pronoun when a person's gender is unidentified or hypothetical. "Hiist Esperanto," or "hiismo," proposes ''hi'' as a new masculine singular pronoun "so that the gendered pronouns ''hi'' and ''ŝi'' both derive from English" while retaining ''li'' only in gender-neutral contexts.<ref name="hiismo">[https://eo.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiismo Esperanto Wikipedia page on hiismo]</ref> | ||
'''ri'''. "Riist Esperanto," or " | '''oni'''. In orthodox Esperanto, ''oni'' is the gender-neutral indefinite/impersonal pronoun, similar to the English pronoun ''one.'' Some propose extending its use as a definite pronoun to refer to a known person whose gender is unknown or irrelevant, and/or as a personal pronoun.<ref name="seksneuxtrala"></ref> | ||
'''ri'''. "Riist Esperanto," or "riismo," is a grammatical reform to Esperanto that makes the language more gender-neutral in several ways. One of these changes is to replace the gendered pronouns entirely with the neutral pronoun ''ri''. This was popular for some time for the Esperanto community on the Internet in the 1990s.<ref name="esperanto wikipedia"></ref> ''Ri'' is currently favoured as a personal pronoun by nonbinary Esperantists, and is sometimes used in cases when the gender of a person is unknown or not relevant to the context.<ref name="enjoy esperanto">Owen, Tim. ''Enjoy Esperanto.'' London (2022): Teach Yourself.</ref> The widely used ''Plena Manlibro de Esperanta Gramatiko'' (''Complete Handbook of Esperanto Grammar'') no longer advises against the usage of ''ri,'' stating that, while "not everyone is familiar with" ''riismo,'' it "is, however, sufficiently widespread, especially among youth, that many who themselves do not use ''ri'' or ''ria'' [the possessive form] do understand the new words."<ref name="pmeg"></ref> An entry for ''ri'' does appear in the widely used ''Reta Vortaro'',<ref name="revo">[https://www.reta-vortaro.de/revo/dlg/index-2f.html#ri.0 ''Reta Vortaro'' entry for "ri."]</ref> and the English-language textbook ''Enjoy Esperanto'' includes a chapter on inclusive language, including discussion of riismo and nonbinary Esperantists.<ref name="enjoy esperanto"></ref> | |||
'''ŝli (sxli)'''. "Instantly recognizable to most Esperantists ... This is just the reading pronunciation of the abbreviation ''ŝ/li'', the equivalent of English "s/he", and is not infrequently seen in informal writing."<ref name="esperanto wikipedia"></ref> | '''ŝli (sxli)'''. "Instantly recognizable to most Esperantists ... This is just the reading pronunciation of the abbreviation ''ŝ/li'', the equivalent of English "s/he", and is not infrequently seen in informal writing."<ref name="esperanto wikipedia"></ref> | ||