The Linguist

8 The Linguist Vol/64 No/3 ciol.org.uk/thelinguist NEWS & EDITORIAL The Norwegian Maritime Authority (NMA) has proposed a change of the language and titles it uses to make them gender neutral, e.g. removing mann from terms like mann-over- bord-situasjon ('man overboard situation') and replacing it with person. The consultation, which closed in March, drew a wide range of comments, mostly supportive, though some expressed concern over choice of terms and loss of maritime identity. At time of printing, the NMA was still considering the responses. The Language Council of Norway, an expert government body aimed at strengthening the Norwegian language and enhancing linguistic diversity, argued that while it is fine to come up with gender-neutral terms for titles, such as sjømann ('seaman') and styrmann ('officer'), it is not necessary otherwise. It warned against excessively long new terms. "Words depicting a boat, a technical installation or organisation do not relate to anything with a biological sex," it said in its submission. "Language as a system is by nature conservative and has many traits of earlier times' language use. It is to be expected that expressions which can be regarded as denoting gender will live on for a long time. This is not something that can be avoided by changing regulation texts." The maritime trade unions all expressed support for the idea of change. Many favoured terms that are in line with international terminology in maritime conventions, especially when it comes to safety and competence, and stressed that change should not introduce ambiguity. One training ship for female cadets conducted a survey which found that the majority do not support changing traditional terms. Many of the women feel a sense of status from being able to call themselves styrmann or motormann ('motorman'), and do not see a problem that the title contains the word mann. "It was also pointed out that the changes will not necessarily contribute to strengthening the position of women in the industry, but might lead to irritation and resistance among those already working there," said Gunvor Amalie Bruvik, a cadet on the ship. The Equality and Anti-Discrimination Ombud agreed that the shipping industry would not become more neutral just because titles change, though they pointed out that language change is a significant signal. This was echoed by the Norwegian Maritime Officers' Association (NSOF), which said more inclusive and attractive workplaces for women are key – and that includes changed attitudes, legal entitlements and PPE that fits women. Kurt Inge Angell, leader of the Norwegian Seafarers' Union (NSU), outlined why language choice is so important: "Language is power and we should never forget that. Titles in our maritime industry are therefore not incidental. They often say more about the industry, both now and in the past, than we initially realise. The maritime industry has historically been very male-dominated and that is the reason why many titles have naturally been something with 'man' in them. But do we also want that to shape the maritime Norway of the future?" The union is fully behind the development, and the battle against discrimination, bullying and harassment, but unsure about altering some terms, for example changing sjømann to the non-specific arbeidstaker ('employee'). Similarly, despite its overall support, the NSOF objected to selected terms. It does not agree with replacing overstyrmann ('chief officer') with sjefdekksoffiser ('chief deck officer') as the current Norwegian title is associated with identity and position, or replacing MOB (from mann-over-bord), which appears in software menu functions and on console buttons. As MOB exists on hardware and software, it makes the task of changing it more complicated. Equality at sea Norway's consultation on changes to its maritime language offers insights into the practical complications of going gender-neutral Andrew Draper MCIL is an editor, journalist and translator from Scandinavian languages into English. TL ANDREW DRAPER CC BY-SA 3.0 PJOTR MAHHONIN

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