#linguistic

So let the wheel decide your Japanese first-person pronoun

'Gelynes' is the word you want for a woman. Interestingly, 'gelynddyn' would be the word for a man - 'gelyn' by itself is more like. The concept of The Enemy.

BUT you can also use gelyn as a generic word regardless of gender. Gelynes and gelynddyn are more for when you want to be Very Specific about the gender of this particular enemy.

Hi! Do you use nounpronouns (i.e. pronouns such as flower/flowerself or 🌸/🌸-self, stemming from a noun), aliuspronouns (such as xe/xir, which differ from the canonical pronouns she/he/they/it, and do not fall under the umbrella of nounpronouns), or both? Are you 18 years or older and would you like to add to the scientific/linguistic understanding we have of these types of pronouns?

With my current paper I attempt to gain more understanding as to why people use these pronouns, and in which contexts they are used! The survey won't take more than 15 minutes to complete, and can be done in your own time! 🥰

There are three different surveys:

Individuals who only use nounpronouns and not aliuspronouns, click here: https://uva.fra1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_eOSpls9MfrUeyaO

Individuals who only use aliuspronouns and not nounpronouns, click here: https://uva.fra1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_82ZibuKreDmnIFM

Individuals who use both, click here: https://uva.fra1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_eJSSRoCDKHRZZaK

If you have ever used the words:

- Naff

- Butch

- Camp

You have unknowingly been speaking the sociolect known as Polari, the language of queer people primarily used in the 30s to the 70s. Polari is now an endangered language, as labelled by the University of Cambridge

Something of note: Many resources out there imply (or state) that Polari was a language invented and used solely by white cis gay men, which is decidedly untrue. Many words of Polari come from drag culture, lesbians, and the Romani people and their language. The use of ‘the language of British gay men’ may be a more palatable title to the general public, but it is not to me. I did my best to curate a variety of resources, but unfortunately much of queer history has been lost many more decades than I’ve been alive, if you have any other resources for studying Polari I would love to read them, message me or leave a link in the replies.

Articles

Learn Polari, the Secret Language of the Gays ⚢ Out Magazine

Polari: The code language gay men used to survive ⚢ BBC

Polari and the Hidden History of Gay Seafarers ⚢ National Museums Liverpool

The Story of Polari, Britain’s Secret Gay Language ⚢ Fabulosa!

Polari People ⚢ Fabulosa!

Polari: a language born from prejudice ⚢ Englishpanish

The secretive gay language that gave LGBTQ people a voice ⚢ GAYTIMES

A brief history of Polari: the curious after-life of the dead language for gay men ⚢ The Conversation

Study Material

The Polari Bible ⚢ Internet Archive

Fantabulosa: A Dictionary of Polari and Gay Slang ⚢ Internet Archive

Sociolinguistics / Polari ⚢ StudySmarter

FlashCards ⚢ Quizlet

New Polari Translator ⚢ LingoJam

Polari: A sociohistorical study of the life and decline of a secret language. ⚢ Dissertation, University of Manchester

Polari: a language born from prejudice ⚢ Englishpanish