NEWS

The WSFS has officially recognised the feminitives «skipper» and «captain»

Share on social media


From now on in all official documents andpress releases the All-Russian Sailing Federation will use the feminitives «skipper» and«captain» in relation to women sailing crews.

In this way, the federation hopes to increase the popularity of sailing among the female sex.

«We pondered for a long time over which linguistic form is preferable - captain or captainess, skipper or skippers. We even brought the question to the general discussion during the regular meeting of the Presidium of the Russian Yachting Federation, but opinions were divided», - told itBoat source in the leadership of the Federation.

In the end, to clarify the issue, the Russian Sailing Federation turned to the Institute of Russian Language, Russian Academy of Sciences.

«Although the word "skipperka" already exists in the Russian language and denotes headgear, it is rarely used. The Dahl's explanatory dictionary does not contain the word with such a meaning at all. At the same time, the suffix "ka" in the feminitive "skipperka" causes the least negative connotations and sounds logical, as it causes an analogy with the word "sportswoman," explained the Academy of Sciences. - The feminative "captain" has already established itself in the Russian language. In the XIX century, the suffix "sha" was used to denote the wives of the carriers of the profession, but with a change in the social status of women, this suffix began to be used in relation to a woman engaged in what was previously considered a male occupation».

It should be reminded that earlier, during a direct line on the social networking site «VKontakte»,Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev acknowledged the existence of gender discrimination in Russia.

In addition, in March, feminists held a picket at the door of the executive office of World Sailing in London against the use of the terms pitman, bowman and mast man in describing the roles of sailing crew members.

Share on social media