{"id":682,"date":"2010-02-06T00:15:00","date_gmt":"2010-02-06T04:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/polish\/?p=682"},"modified":"2010-02-06T00:15:00","modified_gmt":"2010-02-06T04:15:00","slug":"in-search-of-the-right-ending%e2%80%a6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/polish\/in-search-of-the-right-ending%e2%80%a6\/","title":{"rendered":"In Search of the Right Ending\u2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today I would like to introduce to you our brand new guest blogger – Adam Blomberg<\/strong>. He will be helping me out with the Polish Blog this month, because I think that after all this time of mostly Anna, you all must be hungry for something exciting and fun. And a new (and male at that!) point of view should make things fresh and interesting. <\/em><\/p>\n

This is Adam’s first contribution to the Polish Blog, and after reading it I am sure will enjoy his posts as much as you do mine. If not more. (Yes, he’s that good!)<\/em><\/p>\n

So, please put your hands together for Adam!!!<\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Adam, the floor is yours!<\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

There are some things in the Polish language that you will never get right. You can learn your declensions by heart, you can get the spelling right, but sometimes it just won\u2019t do. It\u2019s when the language, the map that describes our world, actually meets the world\u2026 and doesn\u2019t fit. The world is constantly changing while language patterns are deeply ingrained in people\u2019s souls, in our brains, and in our dusty books.<\/p>\n

The thing I am talking about here are female names for professions or positions of honor. This subject has been mentioned on this blog before, however in the light of the fact that this issue touches half of the human population (women), I thought it was a good idea to give the readers of this blog some more insight into the matter. In Polish, of course.<\/p>\n

The style of addressing a woman-professor, woman-driver, or a woman-judge, woman-prime-minister or woman-MP (etc.) in Polish could be one of the trickiest things, even for native Poles. Sometimes it\u2019s balancing on a thin line: someone might get offended.<\/p>\n

It all began in the past, when as in most of the Western world, it was believed that men and women were created to perform different roles, and so they did. Men conquered the world, or pursued high-flying careers. Women rocked the cradle and provided domestic service. These prehistoric conditions have long since changed. But the language hasn\u2019t changed that much \u2013 just yet \u2013 to fit them.<\/p>\n

Therefore the Polish language is inconsistent with those profession names. Various occupations have only one generally accepted gender version:<\/p>\n