A Gender Neutral Language May Be the Most Important Invention in Mankind’s History
Old World, Old Bones and Paleolithic man are terms occasionally used by anthropologists to differentiate prehistoric human beings from anatomically modern humans or those of early archaic human group who lived some thirty five thousand years ago. Although the fossils of Old World and Old Bones only give us a rough idea about the history of early mankind, it is evident that the lifestyle of these archaic people was quite different from ours. They had less dense skulls and teeth, larger brains and jaws, shorter legs and hands – all features that are unique to us. These differences have led anthropologists to conclude that paleo-ethnology provides only a partial picture of the history of early mankind. Recent studies of dental pathology, however, have shed more light on the evolution of early mankind.
Ever since the appearance of first humans, humankind has been dreaming of escape from the pains and sweats of nature. Ever since then, mankind has been trying to recuperate itself from the devastating ecological changes it has undergone, by looking outside itself for external help. Looking for it within ourselves, through natural selection, has always been man’s attempt to create an environment that would help him escape the harsh conditions he is exposed to on a daily basis. During the Paleolithic period, this quest for an external environment produced both the problem of fighting off climate changes and the need for establishing order out of chaos, among other problems humanity was struggling with.
When gender-neutrality was introduced, humanity could finally look to nature for help and sanctuary. In fact, nature gave mankind a sort of shield against climate change, thanks to its adaptation to interchanging climates during the Neolithic period. This helped to regulate human reproduction and increase the size of their population numbers until they became more competitive with the other inhabitants of the planet. This led to the birth of the first races of men and women who came together and began to form family units. Gender fluidity was a welcome addition to the biological makeup of humankind.
However, the continued expansion of humankind into the Neolithic era and beyond brought with it a whole new set of problems. Men and women were no longer able to simply self-identify as a single gender. Instead, each pair of people could take pride in being members of two distinct genders. Even to this day, there are many instances where people present themselves as both male and female. While this may seem like a strange and complicated concept, it is an important one to humanity as a whole, especially when discussing matters of social gender roles. In recent years, with the advent of various technologies and the further evolution of computers, the possibilities for expanding humankind’s borders have become vastly expanded.
The advent of technology allowed people to communicate and interact with each other across great distances, something that was unthinkable not long ago. At the same time, the Internet has also opened up new possibilities for expanding humaneness across geographical lines. All of these factors point towards humankind’s expanding connectivity, and language is a fundamental aspect of communicating and interacting with others across this vast distance. If you consider it from this perspective, it makes perfect sense that we would want to have a gender-neutral language.
Indeed, gender-neutral languages may very well be the most important invention humanity has made. As a result of its seemingly obvious qualities, it may very well have the ability to bridge all of the gaps between men and women, between different races and ethnicities, and between generations and periods of history and civilization. It is truly a wonderful thing to contemplate.