Feminine Honorifics

Gentry are "well-born, genteel and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past. In the United Kingdom, the term gentry refers to the landed gentry, the majority of the land-owning social class who were typically armigerous, but did not have titles of nobility. Wikipedia

from Old French genterie, from gentil, "high-born, noble"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gentry

So, the word "gentry" is derived from the root word "genteel".

The last I checked genteel, means gentle.

I am a limited and fallible human being able to admit that fact readily.

I don't like calling people up on their criticisms of my posts unless they appear to border on insult.

Yes making stuff up is not helpful and neither is dismissing sound research.

The gentry were named as such because they were more genteel to the higher class than the mob and riffraff that were openly scourged by their serfdom. The gentry were also the ones who continuously enabled this serfdom which also included the suppression of women's rights and other egregious human rights violations.

Could you please point out where I have made stuff up and present irrefutable substantiation of my error?

Thanks.

It is not a coincidence that the word gentry also morphed into the word "gents"...

I personally have never heard a woman referred to as a gent.

So the term "gentlewoman" contains both the of the root words "gent" and "man"...

The Western ideal of the lady is at the core of modern feminism. A lady is to be respected, honored and defended; this is as true today as it was 500 years ago.

Certain things haven't changed under feminism. Ladies (unlike men) are said to be traumatized by off-color jokes. Ladies are emotionally damaged by being insulted, whereas men are expected to suck it up. A lady's honor is to be defended by those around her.

Some of the specifics of putting ladies on a pedestal have changed, but the basic story is the same... delicate respectable ladies are vulnerable to brutish men.

Western feminism stems from earlier ideas about chivalry. Without traditional European ideals about ladies you don't have feminism.

Miss is available, Mrs. is taken and Ms is generic. Language was created by men so focused on male superiority and ownership of females.

Really? How could you possibly know this? You are putting modern White American values on pre-historic humans from somewhere around 100,000 years ago or earlier. It is possible that the first language was created by something other than Homo Sapiens (i.e. modern humans).

This seems awfully silly. Americans think that all of history fits into their ideological world view.

Miss, Mrs and Ms are used in many different countries not a white supremacist label i am no America girl

Miss, Mrs and Ms are English words. England (and Western Europe in general) colonized much of the world... they forced their culture on indigenous cultures (in a process that included several barbaric practices including the slave trade and genocide).

Modern ideas on feminism sprang up from the same culture; England and the US. I think it is fine for there to be a feminist critique of Western cultures from a Western cultural worldview.

Western European cultures have a very bad habit of forcing their ideas and narrative on indigenous cultures. You should very aware of the colonial history of your culture when you make statements judging indigenous cultures. You were judging prehistoric cultures, but the point stands.

It is one thing to judge your own culture using your own cultural values. Once you start judging indigenous cultures it becomes a problem, especially given our history of dominating or decimating them.

When modern Western feminists make judgments about indigenous cultures, it is carrying on a long history of colonialism and domination.

"Gent" is not the root word. You're just making it up as you go along, as always. In fact, gentil in French also means "nice," as in O, ça, c'est gentil., "Oh, that's nice." You have no basis for your claims about English, you should leave French alone.

men have a root girls do not

Doesn't "girls" count as a root?

Men are "nicer" than ladies?

The same argument applies...

Ladies are not nice too?

If you have severe reading comprehension problems (as it appears that you do), there are programs for that. I suspect they would not be expensive, and in some communities might constitute free adult education.

I am reminded again why I have you on ignore...

You like to insult others to elevate yourself... Not very emotionally bright.

Irony is not your strong suit, is it? You complain about being insulted as you insult the person you accuse.

The irony is that I have to be trolled by you nearly every time I have a new thread I start.

I do not see how defending one's self after being insulted is "ironic" it is perhaps in many cases a useless endeavor though.

I can say I am not infallible and people can make accusations that are not supported by facts and logic and I am only pointing that out.

I disagree with the insults not because I am offended by being called out on an error or to soothe a wounded pride, but, because I have not been convinced that the reasons and examples that have been set forward here prove I am in error.

If I was in error I would admit, I have made things up, and be done with it.

I have no problem with being embarrassed by being totally wrong on issues. I have been wrong many times on this forum and if you know me you will realized I have changed many of my views over the years.

When I came to A2k around 15 years ago (and Abuzz years before that) I used to be a religious fanatic, as I am ordained clergy, I used to also be a republican now I am an agnostic and a card carrying democrat. I have no problem with being told I am wrong and admitting it afterwards if I feel I have lacked understanding.

It is also hard to believe that reading posts here for 15 years has made me illiterate and a newcomer to etymology.

My many years in studying biblical languages i.e. Greek, Aramaic, Hebrew and Elizabethan English through Bible concordances, interlinears, memorizing my prepositions (do you have your prepositions memorized?) and learning hundreds of variants of figures of speech... etc. which should qualify me for, at least, some literary credence. Being a songwriter by profession with nearly 500 songs... which does mean I have perused through words to find the perfect rhyme on more than a few occasions.

I have posted 30 thousand posts on this forum and 65 thousand tweets on Twitter, nearly double that on Facebook and many more strewn all over the cybersphere... I have posted these posts out of millions of articles and memes I have read. I am still learning every day. I do not think it is appropriate to treat me as if I am an idiot.

I do not really need to resort to making stuff up.

Every one has gaping holes in their understanding, this is part of the human condition.

Many years ago I came here to learn and I have had many erroneous posts thrown back in my face.

If you are going to criticize something I have written, you can do better than a hollow and unsubstantiated insult.

I do not mind criticism but expect me to scrutinize and find fault also without you getting your knickers in a twist.

The irony is that you insult me while whining about being insulted yourself. I pointed out the gentil also means nice. You came up with your typical out-of-nowhere, made-up bullshit. I called that to your attention, to which you replied by whining about being insulted.

Be assured that nothing you do or say upsets me. I am an American. I don't wear "knickers," and my underwear is not "in a twist" because you make **** up--constantly.

Once again you supply a completely irrelevant reply...

gentil also means nice? Is that your argument? Really?

Just in case I am accused of overlooking another synonym

gentle see definition of gentle
adj having a mild or kind nature adj mild, temperate in effect on senses adj of noble birth

Synonyms for gentle
adj having a mild or kind nature
affable
amiable
benign
compassionate
considerate
cool
genial
humane
mellow
moderate
placid
pleasant
quiet
soft
tame
tender
cultivated
disciplined
domesticated
pleasing
taught
trained
agreeable
biddable
bland
docile
dove-like
easy
kindly
laid back
lenient
manageable
meek
merciful
pacific
peaceful
pliable
softhearted
sweet-tempered
sympathetic
temperate
tractable
warmhearted

I was the one who supplied the Wikipedia definition and somehow you imagine that I did not even read that when posting the definition.

You supply it as if it facilitates some incredible mind blowing evidence that verifies your supposition and proves that I am "making stuff up" or somehow completely errant...

The only irony is that you are the one making stuff up and grandstanding and considering your own constant whining you seem to live in a state of antagony.

Knickers, panties whatever something is choking off your oxygen supply...

If you are here to derail the topic well consider, it is you who seem to find it sport to come into my threads and troll your insults. Then accuse me of insult for defending my position, that is why your ass is on ignore. No, I will not be reading your next lame post either.

If I found it my life's goal to troll your threads eventually you might get upset and start your whine to the moderators... I have better things to do with my time, apparently you don't.

Something has upset you greatly and perhaps if you talk it out with a therapist that might help.

It was relevant, because you were whining about having been insulted. In fact, as you were doing your usual routine of taking unrelated and incoherent ideas about "gentle," I simply pointed out another meaning it has in French. You took that and started babbling something about whether or not men are nicer than women. There was no rational way to abstract that from my comments--so I asked about your reading comprehension. That's when you started your pity party. It wasn't an argument, it was an example of the shallowness of your approach, and the extent to which you always just make things up as you go along. Get over it. If you don't want the criticism, don't make things up as you go along.

Now, having whined about insults, you make a snarky comment about me being upset and needing counseling. If you're going to dish out, be sure that you're prepared to take it.

I always thought this was Nice. Perhaps a name change is in order.

I've never been there, but I've heard it's Nice.

(I'm so ashamed.)