Palgrave Studies in Language, Gender and Sexuality

This volume is the first book-length collection of research on language, gender and sexuality in the societies of central and eastern Europe. Spanning a range of languages and political contexts, the chapters shed light on the intense debates that connect language use, gender equality, sexuality, history and belonging in this region today, while advancing perspectives on semiotic resignification that complicate some western-dominated frameworks in the discipline. Focused on a space increasingly described as a hub of ‘anti-gender’ hostility – as we currently witness in the curtailing of abortion rights, removal of gender from curricula and institutionalisation of anti-LBGTQ rhetoric – the book also foregrounds the rich continuities of feminist theory and protest in post-socialist societies, and their import for rethinking transnational sociolinguistic perspectives on heteronormative patriarchy, ‘anti-genderism’, neoliberalism, imperialism and conflict. Showcasing a range of approaches, themes and angles of inquiry, the book will be of interest to scholars and postgraduate students researching the topics of gender and sexuality within linguistics, but also within other interdisciplinary areas of the humanities and social sciences.

This edited book explores the ambiguity and overlap in the usage of terms such as “gender-inclusive”, “gender-fair”, and “gender-neutral” across various disciplines and languages, aiming to achieve conceptual clarity and advocate for standardisation. The authors examine different aspects of gender-inclusivity in European languages including Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Polish, Romanian, Spanish, and Swedish. This book will be of interest to students and scholars of fields such as Linguistics, Psychology, Anthropology, and Cultural Studies.