Raphael Moneo’s “On Typology” explores the statement: “The very act of naming the architectural object is also a process that from the nature of language is forced to typify” (Moneo 1978, 3) in terms of how theorists have kept trying to evolve the architectural language to better represent their approach to architecture. With our common architectural language, words like “column [and] courthouse…implicitly acknowledge the concept of type” (Moneo 1978, 3). This issue behind language is one that is a big issue with English and gender pronouns. While it is gradually evolving it is still grammatically recognized that there are only two sets of singular pronouns, he/him/his and she/her/hers. The English language has been enforcing the gender binary since its beginnings. Other languages like Japanese naturally imply more of a spectrum with looser grammar rules surrounding gender. There is a large list of first person pronouns like watashi, uchi, boku, ore and many versions beyond that. Watashi and uchi are seen as femenine and boku and ore are seen as masculine but they are not supposed to be understood as using boku means the person is male, but just using masculine pronouns. The variety of options for first person pronouns allows more variety in how one identifies themselves. Similarly, in Japanese, ano hito means, “that person” or kochira meaning “this person” singularly refers to a person without implying gender. While English is attempting to adapt by normalizing they/them/theirs as singular and even coming up with Ze/Zir, they are less socially accepted than the already normalized genderless pronouns in Japanese and in many other languages. Modern architecture sees the language with typology as “a set of restrictions imposed on the creator” calling for “a new architect [who] must offer a new language” (Moneo 1978, 12).
Moneo, Rafael. On Typology, 1978.