Opinion: Should Spanish-Speaking Countries Integrate the Gender-Neutral Pronoun “Elle”?

Anyone who has ever taken an introductory-level Spanish class was taught the binary gender pronouns “ella” and “él”, which parallel the English-language feminine and masculine identities “she” and “he”. These gendered pronouns are necessary to certain Spanish language sentence constructions, which have not seen widespread use of a nonbinary pronoun like “they.” 

For example, the English-language sentence “they went to the movies” could refer to an individual; whereas the closest Spanish translations–“ella fue al cine” or “él fue al cine” are gendered. No official pronoun equivalent of “them” is widely accepted in Spanish.

So, what are people who don’t identify in the binary meant to do? How can someone express that identity when the fundamental grammatical structure of a language doesn’t include a fitting pronoun? The solution is simple: the integration of the gender-neutral pronoun “elle”. 

Dramatized confusion is the main talking point that opposition parties use to argue against this shift in language, but when it comes down to it, it’s clear that these arguments are based on plain and simple homophobia, disguised as concern for clarity. 

In any case, this pronoun would be used only in specific instances, seeing as only around 3% of Spanish-speaking individuals identify with the term “Latinx” (another way to express Latin heritage, devoid of gender), according to a 2020 poll by Pew Research Center. In cases when “elle” would be used, context clues would inform individuals involved in these interactions of who was being referred to. 

Language is ever-changing, and new terminology is constantly being introduced into the dictionary due to things like internet culture. Fifty years ago, phrases like “I’m going to snap someone”, a reference to Snapchat culture, and “Just send me a DM!”, a reference to the direct messaging feature on Instagram, meant nothing. Now, they are commonplace, just like the 520 additional words that are added to the Merriam-Webster dictionary every year.

There is no reason for a small shift–the introduction of a new pronoun–to be causing this much controversy, especially seeing how fluid the rest of language historically has been. Existing as a non-binary individual in the Spanish-speaking world is already challenging enough, due to the machismo culture that is omnipresent. The integration of “elle” would only work to validate gender non-conforming individuals. 

The Rhode Island Institute of Technology defines the phenomenon of machismo culture as, “a strong sense of masculine pride. In Latino culture, machismo is more than just a word, as it is so embedded in the culture that it is not only accepted but often even expected.” 

This same machismo culture, which perpetuates gender norms and works to enforce male superiority is the driving force that is working against including non-binary individuals in the first place. No matter how vehemently advocates argue in support of introducing “elle” into the common vernacular, it’s a cultural shift that’s unfortunately unlikely to happen soon.