A slip of the tongue.

[Swissclaret]

.





it's all about the "earlier" - Kritti.


.a mix of etymology tells us....


The Germanic word developed into Old English mann. In Old English, the word still primarily meant "person" or "human," and was used for men, women, and children alike.....as “human” and “mankind” referring to both male and female.

An interesting convention that was thought up in the early 1900s to deal with this issue of “man” coming to mean both male and female and also sometimes meaning males exclusively is, in literature, to do the following: when referring to humans, “man” should be capitalized as in “Man”; when referring to “man” as in “male”, it is to be left lower case. This convention was used in such literary works as “The Lord of the Rings” and was a key point in the prophecy concerning the Witch-king of Angmar: “no man can kill me”, meaning that according to the prophecy a woman, Eowyn, could because “man” in the prophecy was not capitalized.

The word “wer” or “wǣpmann” was commonly used to refer to “male human”. This word almost completely died out around the 1300s, but survives somewhat in words like “werewolf”, which literally means “man wolf”

Women at the time were referred to as “wif” or “wīfmann“, meaning “female human”. The latter “wifmann”, eventually evolved into the word “woman”



lets see what the wef says....

Thanks, Norder. Etymology has long been one of my interests.

It interests me too why, linguistically, female nouns often defer to male nouns. Once we had actress. Now all are generally referred to as actor. Similarly, authoresses are now authors. Yet so many rail against male dominance in society.

Why are male actors not referred to as actresses?

Any thoughts?

[The Bedlington Terrier]

Thanks, Norder. Etymology has long been one of my interests.

It interests me too why, linguistically, female nouns often defer to male nouns. Once we had actress. Now all are generally referred to as actor. Similarly, authoresses are now authors. Yet so many rail against male dominance in society.

Why are male actors not referred to as actresses?

Any thoughts?

They are not usually so compliant on mattresses I suggest S_c.

[kritichris]

Thanks, Norder. Etymology has long been one of my interests.

It interests me too why, linguistically, female nouns often defer to male nouns. Once we had actress. Now all are generally referred to as actor. Similarly, authoresses are now authors. Yet so many rail against male dominance in society.

Why are male actors not referred to as actresses?

Any thoughts?

Ironically in Elizabethan times there were no actresses, all female parts being played by young men. Is this how Panto evolved?

[The Bedlington Terrier]

Ironically in Elizabethan times there were no actresses, all female parts being played by young men. Is this how Panto evolved?

Perhaps that's how "Fairies" evolved k_c?

[sinkov]

Thanks, Norder. Etymology has long been one of my interests.

It interests me too why, linguistically, female nouns often defer to male nouns. Once we had actress. Now all are generally referred to as actor. Similarly, authoresses are now authors. Yet so many rail against male dominance in society.

Why are male actors not referred to as actresses?

Any thoughts?

I think the use of actor for for actresses is a political construct. The Guardian banned the use of the word 'actress' in it's pages a long while ago, which gives you a clue to the origins.

"Similar moves have been made by government agencies across the U.S. over the past several years. For example, in 2007 the California state senate approved the removal of the phrase man and wife from all official references to marriage and its replacement with two persons.

Most recently, and most comprehensively Washington concluded its six-year effort to root out “gender bias” in its state laws by rewriting all its statutes using “gender-neutral vocabulary.” As reported by Reuters (Apr. 22, 2013), this sweeping, almost Herculean, task was overseen by a 40-member team in the state’s Code Reviser’s Office. After submitting a series of bills since 2007, each reportedly over hundreds of pages long, the Code Reviser’s Office issued its final bill, a massive 475-page tome, which was signed into law by Governor Jay Inslee on April 22, 2013.

Among code reviser Kyle Thiessen’s “achievements” is the substitution of the following words:

 fisher for fisherman
 signal operator for signalman
 journey-level plumber for journeyman plumber
 handwriting for penmanship
 first-year student for freshman

Clearly, one of the code reviser’s chief goals was to neuter the inclusive masculine form in as many words as possible."

George Orwell saw it coming in '1984'.

[army88]

Ironically in Elizabethan times there were no actresses, all female parts being played by young men. Is this how Panto evolved?

Go on then Kriti I’ll play the game

Oh no it isn’t !

[Norder]

.

Cool Norder.very interesting.��

thought you'd appreciate - Alf...being I know how much you like hitting the road in the camper....around the time of a full moon.


Man Wolf

Thanks, Norder. Etymology has long been one of my interests.

It interests me too why, linguistically, female nouns often defer to male nouns. Once we had actress. Now all are generally referred to as actor. Similarly, authoresses are now authors. Yet so many rail against male dominance in society.

Why are male actors not referred to as actresses?

Any thoughts?

to me, Swiss....there was never the need to set actor or author (etc) apart with "esses", because in essence.... they're both professions, so unless only one member of a species can fulfill the vocation - how can said profession be either masculine or feminine ?

[alfinyalcabo]

It's passed its MOT Norder,just a question of where and when to go.

😎👍

[sinkov]

I wonder how our lady footballers feel about being the Lionesses, shouldn't they just be the Lions ?

[Norder]

.

It's passed its MOT Norder,just a question of where and when to go.

����

good luck with the MOT - Alf....just watch out for silver bullets.

I wonder how our lady footballers feel about being the Lionesses, shouldn't they just be the Lions ?

you guzzling the Savoie again - Sinkov ?