Gender is the most widespread means of noun categorization. Genders—frequently, masculine and feminine—constitute grammatical classes of nouns based on core semantic properties such as sex (female and male), animacy, humanness, and also shape and size. Traditional grammar used the term ‘gender’ for categories in Indo-European and Semitic languages which typically involve masculine and feminine. As linguists roamed further afield, they met larger systems which did not necessarily involve just masculine and feminine. The label ‘noun class’ came into use for these. Gender can be realized covertly, via agreement on an adjective, a demonstrative, an article, or a verb, or also be marked on the noun itself—this is known as overt gender. Gender assignment always involves meaning, but the choice can be transparent or opaque. Gender can be chosen based on morphological and phonological features of a noun. Loans and neologisms are a testing ground for gender choice. |