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Original poster

Chairman or chairperson?

27 replies

OrlandoWoolf · 30/11/2013 13:21

What do you use?

DS has been asked to find the plural of Chairman and I feel it could be a teaching tool.

Chairmen? Chairpeople?

OP posts:
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Takver · 02/12/2013 18:49

Re more heavily gendered languages: in Spanish many people - admittedly generally of a certain political persuasion Grin - use the @ symbol in writing to denote unknown gender (so eg doctor@ )

(Good old Wikipedia says the anarchist A-in-a-circle is also sometimes used, but I've never seen that in practice. )

ChunkyPickle · 02/12/2013 16:41

Oh, and plurals default to male unless they're all women..

ChunkyPickle · 02/12/2013 16:40

www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/american_english/midwife

Right down at the bottom - old English - mid == with, wif == woman - although their definition assumes that a midwife is a woman.

The languages I have familiarity of are all heavily gendered - so you'd be presidente/a etc.

sashh · 02/12/2013 15:31

ChunkyPickle

I didn't know that, thank you.

What happens in other languages? Is it even an issue? I mean if you are a teacher in France you are Le Proffesor regardless of sex.

Original poster
OrlandoWoolf · 01/12/2013 20:33

piglet Never too young to make a feminist point

OP posts:
NoComet · 01/12/2013 20:19

male not make

NoComet · 01/12/2013 20:18

I don't care!

The astronomy society at university got so pissed off with PC edicts from the Guild of students, we decided to have a chairbeing. We had make and female ones while I was there.

PigletJohn · 01/12/2013 20:12

if it is 8-yo DS homework, surely they are testing to see if he says "Chairmans?"

and not to examine awareness of gender-specific titles.

ChunkyPickle · 01/12/2013 19:52

sashh - I know that I've seen on here that the wife bit of mid wife refers to the woman giving birth, not the midwife themselves, so midwife is non-gendered anyhow (at least until men can give birth)

Definitely Chairs, and Clergy - MIL works in local government and they all use 'Chair' rather than 'Chairman'

TeiTetua · 01/12/2013 19:19

I think we should stick with "chairman" so that we can continue to enjoy hearing someone else in the meeting addressing her as "Madam chairman".

TheDoctrineOfWho · 01/12/2013 18:00

Yes, but it's also a verb - eg Susan chaired the meeting.

GoldieMumbles · 01/12/2013 17:56

Isn't a chair a piece of furniture that you sit on?

Giyadas · 01/12/2013 09:59

Maybe we should revert back to calling men 'wermen' then man can go back to meaning human being. If only things were that easy.

sashh · 01/12/2013 07:55

I think 'chair' is quite common now.

Personally I see no reason why a woman cannot be a chairman, we are after all women not wopersons.

And men who become midwives are still midwives not midhusbands.

TheDoctrineOfWho · 30/11/2013 18:16

I like your style, WF.

WilsonFrickett · 30/11/2013 18:05

Chairs and clergy. And a nice note to the teacher saying you enjoyed helping DD find non-gendered plurals not that I'm PA, not me, no way

Takver · 30/11/2013 18:02

I would agree with educated that the plural of clergyman is 'clergy'. Perhaps that is the point being made? That you have one clergyman or clergywoman, but many clergy? (at least I don't, good thing as I have no naice tea nor thin biscuits, but one might)

Original poster
OrlandoWoolf · 30/11/2013 17:57

You're not kidding.

It will be interesting when they mark the test.

OP posts:
EduCated · 30/11/2013 17:44

Surely that would just be 'the clergy'? They seem an odd bunch of words!

Original poster
OrlandoWoolf · 30/11/2013 16:52

We also have clergyman.

So going to have a chat with DS about this. He's 8.

OP posts:
TheSmallClanger · 30/11/2013 16:29

We use Chair and Chairs.

I like the expression, "The Chair". It sounds suitably intimidating.

Takver · 30/11/2013 16:16

I was going to say 'facilitator', which seems to be the descriptor of choice these days in meetings I go to, but I see that won't help Grin

I think the answer has to be 'chairmen', but would be discussing with my ds why this is an outdated word.

mousmous · 30/11/2013 16:08

we use chair at work.
but for a very official work thing chairman is used. I always change it o chairwoman if applicable as it rankles me. no one has commented on it (yet).

EduCated · 30/11/2013 15:59

We just use Chair at work, so would use Chairs.

TheDoctrineOfWho · 30/11/2013 15:58

The plural of Chairman is Chairmen.

I use Chair, or Non-ExecChair/ExecChair where poss.