[ExI] Language Changing Before Our Very Eyes

[BillK]

On 5/22/07, Eliezer S. Yudkowsky <sentience at pobox.com> wrote:
> Richard Loosemore wrote:
> >
> > Alas, History would have issues with you there:  IIRC, she would tell
> > you that about three centuries ago, the normal, correct form of a
> > singular, gender-neutral pronoun was "they".  This was then deliberately
> > (?) changed by men who decided to go with the male gender for neutral
> > references, as a more fitting reflection of their status in society.
>
> I'd be interested in a source for this, if anyone knows it.
>

Richard did say IIRC.   So he is allowed to be not exact.  :)

Technically 'they' was originally masculine plural from c.1200
See:
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=they
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/They


What Richard is probably remembering is this:
http://www.etymonline.com/columns/thee.htm

Quote:
The pronoun of the second person in English grammar used to break down
like this:
Nominative singular: THOU
Nominative plural: YE
Objective singular: THEE
Objective plural: YOU

In the Middle Ages, people began to use plural forms in all cases, at
first as a sign of respect to superiors, then as a courtesy to equals.
By the 1600s, the singular forms had come to represent familiarity and
lack of status, and fell from use except in the case of a few
dialects.

So what began as a clear distinction based on number turned into a
distinction based on formality and social status.
--------------


The 'Singular they' before 1800 is a disputed discussion in Wikipedia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singular_they
(Nothing to do with male domination really,
although that was assumed in ancient times)


BillK