Just hu are you? Fae or xe?

EIGHTEEN pronouns have been included in a guide used by thousands of Victorian school students and staff designed to celebrate gender inclusion.

The Wear It Purple guide to pronouns includes Chinese, French and Arabic pronouns, as well as lesser-known choices such as “fae”, “xe” and “hu”. It’s been in use since 2020 and mirrors similar material used by people across Australia.

Wear It Purple Day is a student-led day of gender and sexual diversity run at more than 500 schools nationally, with the pronoun guide sent out on request to schools.

“We put together the guide because we still get some questions about pronouns,” Wear It Purple incoming president Lara Husselbee said.

“By emphasising the issue within an empathy context, we show that it’s not just about inclusive language, but it’s something that can change lives.

“It can have really dramatic results for an individual.”

Wear It Purple Day is due to take place this year in August.

Data from the Safe Schools Coalition and Minus 18 shows that about 10 per cent of people are same-sex-attracted, 4 per cent are gender diverse or transgender, and about 1.7 per cent are intersex.

LGBTIQ Health Australia deputy chief executive Zed Tintor said awareness days such as Wear It Purple were extremely important.