Gender equality is a much-discussed perspective all over the world. Most European countries have been marching ahead and are in constant effort to come out of the patriarchal fold. France is a country which has shown exemplary attitude in respecting individual rights. But no doubt, there were concerns regarding the male domination in the French language.
Nevertheless, finally, there’s some good news as official guardians of the French language have decided to end male linguistic dominance. This means that feminine words for all professions will be formally accepted in this beautiful language.
In the French circle, the conservative Academie Francaise was criticized for its male dominated stance. In fact, despite all appeals, they were the ones who resisted change. Finally, they have agreed to the feminisation of job titles and have no objection whatsoever. Now on, French women doctors will be referred to as docteures, while teachers would be addressed as professeures in its official dictionary. Remarkably, the French countrymen can now address their female President as Presidente instead of using the term “female leader”.
Very recently, there was been a call to make French language female friendly. Concerns were rife about the Academie Francaise. Some insiders even commented that “such reforms are putting the French in mortal danger”. Unfortunately, the stance of Prime Minister Edouard Philippe wasn’t inspiring either who mentioned last year that masculine (form) is a neutral form which should be used for terms liable to apply to women.
Nevertheless, things are looking up now with the male-dominated Academie taking an unprecedented decision. It stated, “The Academie considers that all developments in the language aimed at recognising the place women have in society today can be envisaged”.
Though initially there were some concerns regarding the use of the –eure ending in docteure, the French-speaking Canada has already used it decades back. In Canada, a female doctor can be called une medecin or une docteure. Same goes for Belgium and Switzerland.
The entire transition in this inclusive writing phase in the French language is an impressive change. Incidentally, the Academie Francaise compiles the country’s official dictionary. Hence, an inclusiveFrench language is a big shout out for gender equality for other male-dominated languages across the globe.
