The centuries-old grammar rule that was actually a modern invention
We often think of the singular 'they' as a recent linguistic trend. In reality, it has been part of the English language since the 14th century, surviving centuries of aggressive attempts by grammarians to replace it with the generic 'he'.
While many view the singular 'they' as a contemporary response to non-binary identities, its use as an epicene pronoun for unknown persons dates back to the 1300s. This predates the 'plural they'—which arrived via Old Norse in the 13th century—by about a hundred years. For centuries, the pronoun functioned naturally to refer to indeterminate individuals, a usage that persists in informal spoken English today.
The push against 'they' began in the mid-18th century. Prescriptive commentators, such as Ann Fisher, began asserting that the masculine gender could encompass all people. By the 19th century, grammarians intensified this, insisting on 'he' for the sake of number agreement and rejecting 'he or she' as too clumsy. This movement was supported by legal precedents, such as a 1850 British Parliament act stating that masculine terms in legislation should include females.
Some historians argue this shift was driven by an androcentric worldview that prioritized the male as the human default. Despite these educational efforts to proscribe 'they' in favor of 'he', the practice was frequently ignored by writers and speakers alike. By the 20th century, the 'generic he' began to be viewed as outmoded.
In the 21st century, the landscape has shifted toward formal acceptance. By 2020, major authorities including the APA, AP, and the British Council accepted 'they' as a personal pronoun. Furthermore, the use of 'they' to refer to known individuals in a non-binary context has gained significant cultural prominence, earning 'they' the title of Word of the Year from the American Dialect Society in both 2015 and 2019.
Source: Singular they
