Hannover translates official documentation into gender-sensitive language
All documents, memos and articles of Hanoverian officials must now be written in accordance with the new administrative language — gender-neutral. What exactly is the new language?
The traditional phrase «ladies and gentlemen» is replaced by «attendees/recipients» or the usual greeting. Instead of «schoolboy/schoolgirl» you should write «students», instead of «teacher/teacher» you should write «trainees» and so on.
In difficult linguistic situations, you should insert an asterisk (*). For example, the familiar address «Dear colleagues» / «Liebe Kolleginnen und Kollegen» should appear as «Liebe Kolleg*innen».
The transition is a continuation of a series of changes to the German Constitutional Court that were approved a year ago. Recall that thanks to them the term «third gender» appears in the documentation for those whose gender position has not yet been defined.