advice

[fileg]

Since I can never decide whether to speak or not -

On one of my graphics lines, there's an icon maker who makes great graphics. I don't know her except by playing in several games together, but she seems nice, and I like her work.

She's got a Bean icon in her rotation at the moment, and the text is "Blonde."

She doesn't have an email address listed, so I can't do this privately - Do I leave her a comment and say that Blonde is female and Blond is male?

Or does this not even bother anyone else....

Comments

[liddle-oldman.livejournal.com]

Perhaps you'd best make sure she isn't completely aware of this, and that that's the whole point, first!

[http://users.livejournal.com/fileg_/]

Hmmmmm.......

[tehta.livejournal.com]

It bothers me, but I would not comment on it publicly unless I knew the person would not mind.

[http://users.livejournal.com/fileg_/]

I can't find a good way to approach her privately, since her journal is friends only, so I think I'm just going to hold my tongue this time.

[jcd1013.livejournal.com]

As one who had never realized that the word "blond(e)" had a gender, I appreciated the lesson (I thought it had to do more with "blonde" as a description of hair and "blond" as a color in general.)

I say go for it. I know you've run up against some very dumb people, but most people take criticism (especially when it's minor criticism like this) well.

[http://users.livejournal.com/fileg_/]

I know I've made some terrible typos on icons myself, and my own vision isn't always good enough to catch them. Thank goodness, someone usually catches them here before they get loose in the big world.

I know most people these days don't think about the difference, but I would expect the default to be "blond." I think that's because women get lumped in with men all the time, but men don't usually take a feminine tag on willingly.

[the-reverand.livejournal.com]

If it were me I would tell her, but then I've been conditioned through years of classroom critique to crticize at will, which is not always received well online (as you know).

[http://users.livejournal.com/fileg_/]

If I could do it privately, I think I would have gone right ahead - but I can't find a way to approach her privately.

[levadegratchets.livejournal.com]

Maybe comment in public and ask her to contact you about something, then you can take it out of the public eye and however she reacts won't be in front of everyone? I think you wanting to tell her is for a good reason, but some people do embarrass easily over even little mistakes.

[http://users.livejournal.com/fileg_/]

I can't find a way to approach her privately, so I am just going to let it go.

[stewardess.livejournal.com]

Are you sure it's male/female? My understanding is that blond is an adjective and blonde is a noun.

[http://users.livejournal.com/fileg_/]

I'm sure it was when I was in school, but that was a million years ago, and language is so fluid....

[redfiona99.livejournal.com]

I can only comment for English English but it's (in)famous for being one of the few words that is still modified by gender. Although that could be being phased out by general lack of care now.

[juno-magic.livejournal.com]

That's why I prefer saying "fair". I always feel weird when typing "blond", because that's the way the same word is spelled in German. Somehow it feels as if it ought to be spelled differently in another language!

[http://users.livejournal.com/fileg_/]

Also, blond/e has gotten to be an insult in english - maybe that's what really bothers me...

[juno-magic.livejournal.com]

That's the same here.

A blonde girl = a "Blondine" in German = stereotype of big breasts/blue eyes/and being at least naive and often stupid

[gookachu.livejournal.com]

english does not have gender assigned to either adjectives or verbs. "blonde" is merely an archaic way of spelling "blond" as it's is eytmologically french. you were misinformed as a child.

Dictionary.com"
blond also blonde (blŏnd) pronunciation
adj., blond·er, blond·est.

1. Having fair hair and skin and usually light eyes: blond Scandinavians.
2. Of a flaxen or golden color or of any light shade of auburn or pale yellowish brown: blond hair.
3. Light-colored through bleaching: blond furniture.

n.

1. A person with fair hair and skin and usually light eyes.
2. A light yellowish brown to dark grayish yellow.

[Middle English blounde, from Old French blonde, of Germanic origin.]

it's similar to saying, "someone is spelling 'theatre' wrong because of the R and E are transposed." they're both correct.

[fileg.livejournal.com]

But we do use it for nouns, which is how it's frequently used (aviatrix, commedienne...)


(I did look at dictionary.com, but I have to say I don't find them an in-depth resource. But if you look at brunette, you will find this:

.
bru·nette:
adj.: Having dark or brown hair.

n.: girl or woman with dark or brown hair.


[French, feminine of brunet. See brunet.]


As to being misinformed as a child - don't forget, I was a child in the 1950's. There are several other people just in this thread who obviously learned the same. I think it may be more a case of usage that is no longer current.

[gookachu.livejournal.com]

etymology of "blond": 1481, from O.Fr. blont, from M.L. adj. blundus "yellow," perhaps from Frank. *blund. If it is a Gmc. word, possibly related to O.E. blonden-feax "gray-haired," from blondan, blandan "to mix" (see blend). According to Littré, the original sense of the Fr. word was "a colour midway between golden and light chestnut," which might account for the notion of "mixed." O.E. beblonden meant "dyed," so it is also possible that the root meaning of blonde, if it is Gmc., may be "dyed," as the ancient Teutonic warriors were noted for dying their hair. Du Cange, however, writes that blundus was a vulgar pronunciation of L. flavus "yellow." The word was reintroduced into Eng. 17c. from Fr., and was until recently still felt as Fr., hence blonde for females. As a noun, used c.1755 of a type of lace, 1822 of people.

can't get onto OED for a more comprehensive etymology of "blond", so that will have to do.

so, vulgar usage as "blonde" relating to female prevalent, though not necessarily grammatically correct.

[http://users.livejournal.com/fileg_/]

I've decided not to speak to her in any case - I don't want to embarass her or me, and it's obvious this isn't something that's an error in 2006.

I have the 2 vol OED, but my eyes are too old for using it without a magnifier. I'll take a look later.

[droston.livejournal.com]

The blond/e mistake is one I find particularly annoying...