Author Topic: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?  (Read 4617 times)

Offline Scott Berson

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Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« on: January 09, 2010, 03:18:06 PM »
As in, instead of having both "Traceur" and "Tracuse", could Traceur be used as a universal term for all practitioners? Just wondering...



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Offline Sync

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #1 on: January 20, 2010, 06:44:10 PM »
Technically, yes.  You see the term "Man" being used for both Men and Women.

 Though it's better to call a Woman a Woman, rather than a Man.

I suggest you don't call Women Men.  It usually turns out badly.
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Offline Tanner O'Donnell

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #2 on: January 20, 2010, 07:10:29 PM »
Though it's better to call a Woman a Woman, rather than a Man.

I suggest you don't call Women Men.  It usually turns out badly.
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Offline Scott Berson

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #3 on: January 30, 2010, 07:07:14 AM »
Yeah, I was just wondering because it could have been like pilot or other words like that. You don't call a female pilot a "pilot-ess"



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Offline NiklasT

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #4 on: January 30, 2010, 07:22:19 AM »


 Though it's better to call a Woman a Woman, rather than a Man.

I suggest you don't call Women Men.  It usually turns out badly.

I'd second that.

Offline Hannah L

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #5 on: January 30, 2010, 08:08:06 AM »
It comes down to the "sexist language" thing, grammatically.
Technically, we all are traceurs, but...
I also take it to be a respect thing, too.  In other words, we are respecting the differences between men and women that we each bring different skills and strengths to parkour; thus the different terms for each sex. 
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Offline Rebecca Myers

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #6 on: February 03, 2010, 07:47:53 AM »
This goes right along with being PC. Actor is now a universally used term, as is waiter. But there are always two sides to every argument.
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Offline Hannah L

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #7 on: February 03, 2010, 10:45:08 AM »
Rebecca is right.  The male terms are "universal" and acceptable.
However, since now taking a women's studies class, I am realizing the 'importance' (if you will) of using both male and female terms.  Using traceur and traceuse recognizes that men are no longer the "default sex".
For what it's worth. :)
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Offline Casey Boatwright

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #8 on: March 14, 2010, 09:21:29 PM »
Could we merge or edit it to make a non-sexist universal word?  like 'traceum' or 'traceun'  or 'traceust' although that last one sounds like a guy with a speech impediment trying to say racist.  but you get the idea... cuz i wanna be PC but i can never say 'tracuese' correctly on my first try.. lol :P
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Offline GoldenSlumbers

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #9 on: March 14, 2010, 09:37:14 PM »
I'm pretty sure the French language uses a two gender system, similar to Spanish or Latin(e.g. Senor/Senorita.)  I was thinking the same thing not too long ago, but then I remembered that traceur is a French word.
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Offline Zoolu

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #10 on: March 14, 2010, 09:47:32 PM »
I think that it might be a handy thought, but hardly "necessary". No offense to you, but the traceuses I know enjoy their uniqueness quite a bit - they bring different skills and mindsets than most of us guys do so why not recognize that?

It's very possible that this discussion is way too late to be considered much. Sorry.
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Offline Suimen

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #11 on: March 24, 2010, 11:50:52 AM »
I studied French for a year, and the general idea - grammatically - is that, if there is a male in the group, the group is referred to in the masculine gender.  Even if you have a group of 1,000 females and one male, you're going to use masculine plural nouns and pronouns.  So I'd say as long as you can assume there is at least one male in the group of {practitioners of parkour} you're referring to, it's just fine to say "traceurs".  Don't take my word for it, because French isn't my best language, but I'm pretty sure that, according to French grammar, you're not excluding females when you say it that way.  The only other option would be to go around saying "traceurs/traceuses".

But let me say an interesting thing about languages, some insight I've gained after spending several (otherwise pointless) years studying several of them...
(Apologise in advance for the ensuing run-on sentence)
Since the word, being borrowed from a foreign language and used only by a miniscule percentage of the total population, is therefore such a specialized unit of vocabulary (being used mostly - almost exclusively - by the parkour/freerunning community, ignoring use by the media, which usually only indicate that the word exists and don't actually use it in sentences), that means that we make the rules about the word's use in the English language by choosing for ourselves how we use the word.  This also means that, until somebody can spot the word in a dictionary, or refer to its repeated and consistent use in major media and/or higher education, there really are no rules attached to the word, so it's up to each individual to use the word how they see fit, until a universal pattern arises, unless one has already. 
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Offline Casey Boatwright

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #12 on: March 24, 2010, 11:57:00 AM »
i like how you put that,   but just a side note on the US,  we're becoming too worried about being PC that we're destroying terms that identify gender, so in reality it'll become traceur as a general term anyway  (not saying that thats what i want,  that kind of stuff where they are worried that you can't have an actress only actors. )
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Offline Tex__

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #13 on: April 19, 2010, 02:08:57 PM »
I'm pretty sure the French language uses a two gender system, similar to Spanish or Latin(e.g. Senor/Senorita.)  I was thinking the same thing not too long ago, but then I remembered that traceur is a French word.
the french do i believe,the Germans it, there is no universal word in those languages, there is always a male and female version. the only thing i learned from three years of German.
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Offline Jon E

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #14 on: April 19, 2010, 02:35:45 PM »
the french do i believe,the Germans it, there is no universal word in those languages, there is always a male and female version. the only thing i learned from three years of German.

Yep, pretty much all I've learned to is Die for feminine, Der for masculine. But isn't Das used universally?
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Offline Tex__

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #15 on: April 19, 2010, 02:40:10 PM »
Yep, pretty much all I've learned to is Die for feminine, Der for masculine. But isn't Das used universally?
Das is neutral. my German teacher for German II tried to fail me so i gave up trying to learn
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Offline Jon E

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #16 on: April 19, 2010, 02:43:23 PM »
yeah its all confusing :(
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Offline Hannah L

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #17 on: April 20, 2010, 04:30:14 PM »
I think this is a time for Muse to make an appearance and be all French-grammar-epic on us :)
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Offline Dan Elric

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #18 on: April 23, 2010, 03:38:39 AM »
I think this is a time for Muse to make an appearance and be all French-grammar-epic on us :)

I agree :D

But yeah, French differs in masculine and feminine terms.
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Offline andrew

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Re: Could "Traceur" be used as a universal term?
« Reply #19 on: April 25, 2010, 02:53:45 PM »
Technically, yes.  You see the term "Man" being used for both Men and Women.

 Though it's better to call a Woman a Woman, rather than a Man.

I suggest you don't call Women Men.  It usually turns out badly.
lol you just won...
but, i dont see why not just call us all traceurs, or let the ladies decide...
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