<p>As a matter of fact, (exactly as OP mentioned in the post), the character 她 has a history of fewer than like a hundred years. Therefore, it is actually kind of natural to use 他 when the person referred to is not so apparent. (Although not that politically-correct, phrases like his-or-her are rare in Chinese.)</p>

<p>By the way, in places other than mainland China, they differentiate 你／妳／祢、他／她／牠／它／祂。</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-27T01:35:23.747Z
+1, good point for related pronouns outside mainland China.
Stan
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-09-30T09:59:33.007Z
亻simply means "person" so 他 is neutral. 她/衪/牠/它 were all originated from the west in the modern times and they can be used to target a specified group of people. In places other than mainland China, such as Taiwan and HK they do not differentiate them as in languages like English. 他 is usually used for all gender.
Derek 朕會功夫
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-02-09T18:06:50.620Z
See http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/189/how-widespread-is-the-use-of-%E5%A6%B3
Colin McLarty
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-09-02T02:33:51.207Z
Fewer than like a hundred years? Check out this article 借字還魂的她字(http://classic-blog.udn.com/junk200/2506345). 她already existed in Song dynasty and it meant mother.
joehua
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-20T14:20:53.633Z
2014-02-20T14:20:53.633Z
phoeagon
<p><strong>As a local Chinese</strong>, I'd suggest @sotondolphin 's answer. Forget about the history usage, in my opinion, the key point is the target you would like to express to. For the modern Chinese people, "use 他 for male person, 她 for female person. 它 for animals both female and male." when you want to express a few people including both male and female, use 他们 as 'them'.</p>

<p>The stuff above fits for both written and oral Chinese. </p>

<p>Feel free to ask me anything about Chinese. I am glad to help you guys :)</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-21T03:36:55.893Z
2014-02-21T03:36:55.893Z
Jinzhao Huo
<p>for the third party, we always use 他 for male person, 她 for female person. 它 for animals both female and male.</p>

<p>but it's a little tricky when talking about "YOU", in mainland, we use 你 for both male and female, however you may encounter “女尔” mentioning "YOU" if you are female in tai wan and hong kong</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-09-30T10:00:52.753Z
That's not true. No one uses 妳 in Hong Kong.
Derek 朕會功夫
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-20T07:03:55.527Z
2014-02-20T07:03:55.527Z
sotondolphin
<p>Very interesting question. We use 他 for male, 她 for she male. But there are some tricky situations.</p>

<ul>
<li><p>When we do not know the gender, yes, we will use 他</p></li>
<li><p>她 means female, but it often suggest youngness and beauty. For example, simply write the character 她, most Chinese will picture a beautiful girl in their minds. That's probably the reason why so many poets and singers will use 她 in their poems and lyrics.</p></li>
<li>We do not have a common picture for 他</li>
</ul>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-03-14T02:34:43.493Z
2014-03-14T02:34:43.493Z
Ave Maleficum
<p>Just to mention that in recent few years (from 2018 I'd say), it's increasingly popular to use TA (the pinyin letters of 他/她) to mean either 他 or 她, in casual or online writing. This is similar to the usage of s/he or him/her in English. For example</p>
<p>大声告诉TA (say it loudly to him/her)</p>
<p>Formally, 他 is still used to refer to a single person of unknown gender, but watch this space.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-09-01T09:32:03.190Z
2020-09-01T09:32:03.190Z
jf328
<p>just remember this and you won't make any mistakes.</p>

<p>他 = he    他的 = his</p>

<p>她 = she   她的 = her</p>

<p>它 = it    它的 = its</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-21T04:21:19.273Z
2014-02-21T04:21:19.273Z
j5shi
<p>In my experience, when referring to a single subject, I have never seen <a href="http://www.zdic.net/z/15/js/4ED6.htm">他</a> used as a female pronoun. <a href="http://www.zdic.net/z/17/js/5979.htm">她</a> is used for females, and <a href="http://www.zdic.net/z/18/js/5B83.htm">它</a> used for non-gendered or non-human subjects.</p>

<p>Do note that 他 has meanings outside pronouns; it can have the meaning of "other". In these cases, 他 is used and never 她. Examples include <a href="http://www.zdic.net/c/6/3f/98488.htm">他人</a> (other people), <a href="http://www.zdic.net/c/6/9/14485.htm">他乡</a> (a place far away from home), <a href="http://www.zdic.net/c/6/3d/94553.htm">他日</a> (future).</p>

<p>There are two interesting cases for the 他/她 question though: in the group pronouns 他们/她们 and when the gender is unknown.</p>

<p>For <a href="http://www.zdic.net/c/6/10d/290322.htm">他们</a>/<a href="http://www.zdic.net/c/9/78/123290.htm">她们</a>, 他们 is indeed the gender-neutral term. Use this when referring to a group of people (other than yourself and your subject, i.e. "they" or "them"), where their genders are either mixed or not relevant. If you are specifically referring to a group of females though, use 她们. <a href="http://iask.sina.com.cn/b/17371072.html">Here's some discussion on this matter</a>. This is in contrast to English which has no gendered "they" or "them".</p>

<p>When gender is unknown, it is more proper to use 他. This is similar to older English style which considered <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender-neutral_pronoun#Generic_he">generic he</a> proper usage. Use 他 when in English you would have used "he / she". Note that some people use "他/她" which is perfectly understandable but less proper.</p>

<p>So to summarise:</p>

<ul>
<li>他 is <strong>gender neutral</strong>, except in two cases where you would use 她 instead:</li>
<li>When referring to a <strong>single female</strong> of known gender</li>
<li>When referring to a <strong>group of females</strong></li>
</ul>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-24T00:24:54.073Z
+1, this concurs with my own learning, and of the mainland Chinese teachers I've checked with.
Ming
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-27T01:34:18.727Z
+1. Totally agree.
Stan
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-27T05:16:25.523Z
Mostly agreed but as a native Chinese I've never seen anyone using 他 as gender neutral to specify someone whose gender is unknown. 他 has a strong feeling that the person IS MALE. In this case, 他/她 is a much better expression.
charlee
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-20T01:25:43.227Z
2014-02-20T01:25:43.227Z
congusbongus
<p>A couple of years ago I wrote this comment <a href="https://chinese.stackexchange.com/a/383/38">below an answer</a>:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>On mainland China 他 is used for both male and female. I've only seen 她
  used as a stylistic thing for advertising and some old formal writing.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Since I wrote that comment I have had a few people ask about whether or not this is true. When I think about it today I am not sure what my original thinking was and I am doubting myself over whether or not this is a true statement.</p>

<p>I haven't been back to China in 3 years (going in September, yay!) and I haven't picked up a newspaper in a while. What I do recall is seeing 她 used in social media (微信 posts) which has only become mainstream in the past few years.</p>

<p>Here is what <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender-specific_and_gender-neutral_pronouns" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Wikipedia says</a> on the subject:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>In 1917, the Old Chinese graph tā (她, from nǚ 女, "woman") was borrowed
  into the written language to specifically represent "she" by Liu
  Bannong. As a result, the old character tā (他), which previously also
  meant "she" in written texts, is sometimes restricted to meaning "he"
  only. In contrast to most Chinese characters coined to represent
  specifically male concepts, the character tā is formed with the
  ungendered character for person rén (人), rather than the character for
  male nán (男)."</p>
</blockquote>

<p>So how correct is my original statement and has social media and the internet caused an increase in the use of 她?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-20T01:59:48.227Z
Check out this interesting article on the matter: http://www.slate.com/blogs/lexicon_valley/2013/12/26/mandarin_chinese_a_gender_neutral_pronoun_meaning_he_she_or_it_gains_traction.html
amateur
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-20T02:01:44.627Z
It's ridiculous but "ta们" has over 200 million results in Google...
amateur
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-20T08:19:33.797Z
@amateur I think it dosen't matter. Cause you will find "wo们" has over 46.3 million results in Google
zz22
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-20T23:02:28.017Z
I have never seen 他 used to refer to a female third person unless it's written by a non-native speaker.
deutschZuid
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-07-07T02:38:53.127Z
它 is a common personal pronoun when referring to lifeless things or non-human, but when talking to some concrete animals, you may also use 他 or 她, like in TV programs about animals story.
xenophōn
<meaning><writing><pronouns><gender>
How gender specific in writing is the character 他
# How gender specific in writing is the character 他

(Asked by: username_0 on 2014-02-20)

A couple of years ago I wrote this comment [below an answer](https://chinese.stackexchange.com/a/383/38):

> On mainland China 他 is used for both male and female. I've only seen 她
> used as a stylistic thing for advertising and some old formal writing.

Since I wrote that comment I have had a few people ask about whether or not this is true. When I think about it today I am not sure what my original thinking was and I am doubting myself over whether or not this is a true statement.

I haven't been back to China in 3 years (username_0 in September, yay!) and I haven't picked up a newspaper in a while. What I do recall is seeing 她 used in social media (微信 posts) which has only become mainstream in the past few years.

Here is what [Wikipedia says](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender-specific_and_gender-neutral_pronouns) on the subject:

> In 1917, the Old Chinese graph tā (她, from nǚ 女, "woman") was borrowed
> into the written language to specifically represent "she" by Liu
> Bannong. As a result, the old character tā (他), which previously also
> meant "she" in written texts, is sometimes restricted to meaning "he"
> only. In contrast to most Chinese characters coined to represent
> specifically male concepts, the character tā is formed with the
> ungendered character for person rén (人), rather than the character for
> male nán (男)."

So how correct is my original statement and has social media and the internet caused an increase in the use of 她?

**Tags:** meaning, writing, pronouns, gender

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Check out this interesting article on the matter: http://www.slate.com/blogs/lexicon_valley/2013/12/26/mandarin_chinese_a_gender_neutral_pronoun_meaning_he_she_or_it_gains_traction.html  
> **username_1**: It's ridiculous but "ta们" has over 200 million results in Google...  
> **username_2**: @username_1 I think it dosen't matter. Cause you will find "wo们" has over 46.3 million results in Google  
> **username_3**: I have never seen 他 used to refer to a female third person unless it's written by a non-native speaker.  
> **username_4**: 它 is a common personal pronoun when referring to lifeless things or non-human, but when talking to some concrete animals, you may also use 他 or 她, like in TV programs about animals story.  

---

## 7 answers

### Answer by username_15 on 2014-02-20. Score: 13 | Accepted answer

In my experience, when referring to a single subject, I have never seen [他](http://www.zdic.net/z/15/js/4ED6.htm) used as a female pronoun. [她](http://www.zdic.net/z/17/js/5979.htm) is used for females, and [它](http://www.zdic.net/z/18/js/5B83.htm) used for non-gendered or non-human subjects.

Do note that 他 has meanings outside pronouns; it can have the meaning of "other". In these cases, 他 is used and never 她. Examples include [他人](http://www.zdic.net/c/6/3f/98488.htm) (other people), [他乡](http://www.zdic.net/c/6/9/14485.htm) (a place far away from home), [他日](http://www.zdic.net/c/6/3d/94553.htm) (future).

There are two interesting cases for the 他/她 question though: in the group pronouns 他们/她们 and when the gender is unknown.

For [他们](http://www.zdic.net/c/6/10d/290322.htm)/[她们](http://www.zdic.net/c/9/78/123290.htm), 他们 is indeed the gender-neutral term. Use this when referring to a group of people (other than yourself and your subject, i.e. "they" or "them"), where their genders are either mixed or not relevant. If you are specifically referring to a group of females though, use 她们. [Here's some discussion on this matter](http://iask.sina.com.cn/b/17371072.html). This is in contrast to English which has no gendered "they" or "them".

When gender is unknown, it is more proper to use 他. This is similar to older English style which considered [generic he](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender-neutral_pronoun#Generic_he) proper usage. Use 他 when in English you would have used "he / she". Note that some people use "他/她" which is perfectly understandable but less proper.

So to summarise:

* 他 is **gender neutral**, except in two cases where you would use 她 instead:
* When referring to a **single female** of known gender
* When referring to a **group of females**

> **Comments:**
> **username_16**: +1, this concurs with my own learning, and of the mainland Chinese teachers I've checked with.  
> **username_6**: +1. Totally agree.  
> **username_17**: Mostly agreed but as a native Chinese I've never seen anyone using 他 as gender neutral to specify someone whose gender is unknown. 他 has a strong feeling that the person IS MALE. In this case, 他/她 is a much better expression.  

---

### Answer by username_5 on 2014-02-20. Score: 5

As a matter of fact, (exactly as OP mentioned in the post), the character 她 has a history of fewer than like a hundred years. Therefore, it is actually kind of natural to use 他 when the person referred to is not so apparent. (Although not that politically-correct, phrases like his-or-her are rare in Chinese.)

By the way, in places other than mainland China, they differentiate 你／妳／祢、他／她／牠／它／祂。

> **Comments:**
> **username_6**: +1, good point for related pronouns outside mainland China.  
> **username_7**: 亻simply means "person" so 他 is neutral. 她/衪/牠/它 were all originated from the west in the modern times and they can be used to target a specified group of people. In places other than mainland China, such as Taiwan and HK they do not differentiate them as in languages like English. 他 is usually used for all gender.  
> **username_8**: See http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/189/how-widespread-is-the-use-of-%E5%A6%B3  
> **username_9**: Fewer than like a hundred years? Check out this article 借字還魂的她字(http://classic-blog.udn.com/junk200/2506345). 她already existed in Song dynasty and it meant mother.  

---

### Answer by username_10 on 2014-02-21. Score: 3

**As a local Chinese**, I'd suggest @username_11 's answer. Forget about the history usage, in my opinion, the key point is the target you would like to express to. For the modern Chinese people, "use 他 for male person, 她 for female person. 它 for animals both female and male." when you want to express a few people including both male and female, use 他们 as 'them'.

The stuff above fits for both written and oral Chinese.

Feel free to ask me anything about Chinese. I am glad to help you guys :)


---

### Answer by username_11 on 2014-02-20. Score: 2

for the third party, we always use 他 for male person, 她 for female person. 它 for animals both female and male.

but it's a little tricky when talking about "YOU", in mainland, we use 你 for both male and female, however you may encounter “女尔” mentioning "YOU" if you are female in tai wan and hong kong

> **Comments:**
> **username_7**: That's not true. No one uses 妳 in Hong Kong.  

---

### Answer by username_12 on 2014-03-14. Score: 2

Very interesting question. We use 他 for male, 她 for she male. But there are some tricky situations.

* When we do not know the gender, yes, we will use 他
* 她 means female, but it often suggest youngness and beauty. For example, simply write the character 她, most Chinese will picture a beautiful girl in their minds. That's probably the reason why so many poets and singers will use 她 in their poems and lyrics.
* We do not have a common picture for 他


---

### Answer by username_13 on 2020-09-01. Score: 1

Just to mention that in recent few years (from 2018 I'd say), it's increasingly popular to use TA (the pinyin letters of 他/她) to mean either 他 or 她, in casual or online writing. This is similar to the usage of s/he or him/her in English. For example

大声告诉TA (say it loudly to him/her)

Formally, 他 is still used to refer to a single person of unknown gender, but watch this space.


---

### Answer by username_14 on 2014-02-21. Score: 1

just remember this and you won't make any mistakes.

他 = he 他的 = his

她 = she 她的 = her

它 = it 它的 = its


---

