New Fix To The Pronoun Problem: `Hu' Latest Substitute For `He,' And `She'

[Chigun]

Forget being PC. Use whatever works and move on heh. If PC people nip at ya, then their a little high strung in my opinion.

 

[Sapheron]

1:"Hu did it!"

2:"Who?"

1:"Hu!"

2:"Are you ok, you seem to be coughing a lot..."

1:"Oh alright, he did it!"

2:"Sexist! Argh!"

God bless loony academics with nothing meaningful to do with themselves.

 

[scalem X]

It's grammatically acceptable to use "they" as a singular pronoun in British English - see here.

I clicked the link and started reading: The factual accuracy of this article or section is disputed. Please see the relevant discussion on the talk page.
Sorry I haven't read further, using wikipedia as a source is a big no-no Ian

Anyway as in French, one uses male by default (gender there like 'ils' for a boy and a girl together), one can always rely on the following argumentation: he is shorter than she

 

[dustinzgirl]

You know, this could really change the entire language of Spanish, since nearly every term is male/female, so they would have to change all of the -o and -a to -u

So, Amigo (male friend) and Amiga (female friend) would have to become Amigu (both) and "la" (female the) and "el" (male the) would have to become lu and ul

 

[Lith]

Those poor Latin-based languages are in a world of hurt and just don't know it yet.



This whole thing is just a bunch of HU-ey.

 

[lin robinson]

French might come out of it okay since they already have a neuter and can jiust lop off everything else to match.

Spanish has already suffered a few volleys of PC inanity. The word "macha" was being tossed around Hollywood for a while. (Sigourney Weaver in Alien: macha) Since "macho" simply means "male", the new term is a bit of a feathered kangaroo. Didn't catch on for some reason.

 

[scalem X]

French might come out of it okay since they already have a neuter and can jiust lop off everything else to match.

How do you mean?
two dudes go to the sea:
Ils vont à la mer
two girls go to the sea:
Elles vont à la mer
a boy and girl go to the se (or a hundred girls and one boy)
Ils vont à la mer

So what would your neutral term for the last sentence be?

Since correct me if I'm wrong, but you can use male and female terms even with this system. If the murderer is clearly male saying: he did it! won't be a problem. The argument is in replacing it when the sex is unknown.

 

[iansales]

I clicked the link and started reading: The factual accuracy of this article or section is disputed. Please see the relevant discussion on the talk page.
Sorry I haven't read further, using wikipedia as a source is a big no-no Ian

There's a lively discussion on the page, but that doesn't invalidate it. The discussion mostly centres on the differences between singular they and indeterminate they - with citations from the OED, Shakespeare, and many others.

Using wikipedia is like using any other secondary source - handle with care. But as such sources go, it's the most convenient and the most inclusive there has ever been.

 

[iansales]

Spanish has already suffered a few volleys of PC inanity. The word "macha" was being tossed around Hollywood for a while. (Sigourney Weaver in Alien: macha) Since "macho" simply means "male", the new term is a bit of a feathered kangaroo. Didn't catch on for some reason.

That'll be like "ladette", then

 

[chrispenycate]

It's grammatically acceptable to use "they" as a singular pronoun in British English - see here.

Besides, when the alternatives are a) tying yourself in knots with "he or she", b) pandering to the PC crowd, or c) stupid made-up words like "hu", then as far as I'm concerned there's no sensible reason not to use the singular they.

And, when you decide that your "they" is singular, do you associate it with the singular form of the verb (they is) or accept its inherent plurality?
Admittedly, I've been guilty of posting tongue in cheek occasionally (it's easier than getting the keyboard in) but I can actually see nothing wrong with the rule I learnt at my father's knee, that humans (and other species too) are assumed to be male until proof is discovered to the contrary. It wasn't sexist, really, and languages like French don't even notice it, it's just there (there again, with all objects possessing gender, they'd almost have to have a simplification)

But introducing a new term, against the mass of existing literature already existing (as a first stage, imagine the sheer number of government forms that would require modifying ) seems like the occasional "rationalisation of spelling" movements, excessive, and a source of problems far more complicated than those it solves.

 

[iansales]

You use the correct verb form. For example,

- the doctor has bought a new car
- what sort of car did they buy?

 

[iansales]

Has anyone pointed out that "hu" is a particularly poor choice... as Hugh (or Huw) is a man's name. Unless it's pronounced hoo... which would just make you sound like a demented owl.

 

[scalem X]

Hu is also the name of the Chinese president. That was my first impression.

 

[lin robinson]

And, when you decide that your "they" is singular, do you associate it with the singular form of the verb (they is) or accept its inherent plurality?

Interesting. It's a peculiarity of English to refer to people as objects in certain contexts.
"It's me" or "It is I" What is the it doing there. In most languages I'm familiar with it would be more like the SPanish "Soy yo", not "Es yo"

Same way with "Oh, it's Bill" "Is it you?" etc.

 

[scalem X]

Isn't that just some part of a larger conversation and having the expression remained without the circumstances?

like:
(*sound of knocking on the door*)
-What's that noice?
-Oh, it is Bill (the noice is Bill=Bill made the noice)

It's the same in German and Dutch, so I guess it's the difference between romanic languages and Germanic languages here, Lin.

 

[Curt Chiarelli]

Why don't we refer to everyone as "it". That way everyone will be equally offended! This should appease the P.C. Gestapo.

 

[HappyHippo]

good solution!

In Mary Gentle's Orthe books, the children of the species (sorry, it's late, brain disfunction) are all gender neutral until puberty when it goes one way or the other. Until then they are ke (he/she) or kir (they/his/her). It doesn't half make tiring reading!

Political correctness is inane and self-serving. And if we just need to invent gender neutral terms, I'm sure my eight year old could come up with something more appropriate than 'hu'. Academics....*head shaking*

 

[Pyan]

Why don't we refer to everyone as "it". That way everyone will be equally offended! This should appease the P.C. Gestapo.

Lois Bujold uses "it" for hermaphrodites - presumably they would object to single-sexers hi-jacking the term!

 

[dustinzgirl]

The problem is:

It's got a malfunction.
He's got a malfunction.
She's got a malfunction.

Would that be it is got a malfunction, its got a malfunction, or he/she has got a malfunction?

It would get confusing.

 

[lin robinson]

"Hu's on first.
I thought hu was on second.
No, hu moved to third.
Then whose hu is on who's first?
Left field!"