The pronoun “they” has sparked a global conversation, and in some instances controversy, as world citizens declare ownership over their bodies, their identities, their genders, and their pronouns. In 2019, the United States included “they” as a singular pronoun in the Merriam-Webster’s dictionary. Now, merely three years later, Norway has decided to give their nonbinary citizens the same freedom of inclusion.
Daniel lms, a representative of the Language Council of Norway, stated that the gender-neutral pronoun “hen” will most likely be implemented in the Norway’s dictionary as early as the spring 2022, but certainly within the year.
Hen is the derivative of the feminine pronoun “Han” and the masculine pronoun “hun.” The pronoun “hen” has been popularized amongst the citizens in Norway over the years, so it makes sense that the next logical step is to add it to the dictionary.
“Over the years, we have seen that “hen” has become increasingly used,” Daniel Ims.
Norway isn’t a strange bed fellow to the additional pronoun hen. In 2017, the Parliament of Norway declined the proposal to add hen to the dictionary. The proposal was rejected by the progress party, the conservative party, Christian Democratic Party, and the Centre party.
The Norwegian announcement has many human rights activists and organizations echoing full support of this epic act of inclusion and belonging. In fact, Nick Adams, the director of transgender representation for GLADD, is elated about the recent moves Norway is making, but he states that there is still a “long road ahead.”
According to them, he continues: “There’s a long road ahead before language, policy, and culture are completely affirming and inclusive.”
Jan Elisabeth Lindvik, the leader of the Association for Transgender People, expressed to the Swedish newspaper Dagen: “Only a few years ago, no one would have said we’d would have been able to determine our own legal sex (sic), either. That was also a maturation process which took on rocket speed with the aid of Amnesty.”
