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There are 493 million Spanish speakers, and the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) generates mixed feelings. Some argue that it is the highest authority on the language, while others argue that it is an outdated institution that opposes the evolution of the Spanish language. Anti-rights groups have used the RAE as justification for denying identities. But what does this private institution do?

In recent years, the biggest debates—especially on social media—have centered on inclusive language.

While it's true that the most recent update of the Spanish Language Dictionary (DLE) includes the term "non-binary," this is actually a half-hearted recognition . It has also led to the spread of misinformation regarding inclusive language and fostered stigmatizing narratives.

On the inclusion of the word "non-binary, ria" in the RAE dictionary pic.twitter.com/Rjz0zElbtl

— No Binaries Spain (@NoBinaries_es) November 30, 2023

The RAE rejects inclusive language

Update 23.7 of the DLE (Spanish Royal Spanish Academy of Spanish Language) incorporates 4,381 words, articles, variants, and deletions. Social media users responded to posts claiming that the RAE (Spanish Royal Academy of Spanish Language) still rejects the use of inclusive language despite incorporating the concept of "non-binary."

"The RAE rejects the use of todos y todas, todxs y todes. If you speak or write like this, you are not inclusive, you are ignorant. Spanish is a highly inclusive language in its grammatical rules. Deforming language in the name of inclusion is unnecessary," reads several publications.

Regarding the image that has been circulating since 2022, the RAE responded via X (formerly Twitter) that “inclusive language” is a set of strategies that aim to avoid the generic use of the grammatical masculine, a mechanism firmly established in the language and that does not imply any sexist discrimination.

However, the generic masculine is an exclusionary parameter in writing and speech that renders women and other identities invisible.

According to the United Nations (UN) , inclusive language refers to the way of expressing oneself orally and in writing without discrimination based on sex, gender or identity.

Through inclusive language, discrimination in spoken, written, or visual language can be avoided. It is an affirmative action of a corrective nature.

Inclusive language is that which makes visible

The Language Guide for the Inclusion of Non-Binary People, prepared by It Gets Better, Homosensual, and Pride Connection Mexico, describes inclusive language as language that appropriately recognizes and names groups and individuals experiencing discrimination. For example, racialized individuals, individuals with an illness or disability, LGBTTTIQA+ individuals, migrants, and others.

The representative language of non-binary people is that in which the neutral pronoun (marked by the 'e', ​​the 'x', the '@' or the '_') is used in words to refer to a group of people with different gender identities that are outside the male-female binary. 

Likewise, it opposes the use of the masculine in a generic sense, since it does not name women, trans people, or non-binary identities.

The RAE led by men

The organization has acknowledged that it is undergoing a slow renewal process. But the reality is that since its founding in 1713, the RAE has only been led by men and has only produced 12 female academics .

Over the years, the RAE has fallen into various contradictions. The institution has declared "totally opposed to any type of sexism, whether directed at women or members of the LGBTI community."

But at the same time, she has defended the use of the generic masculine. She argues that "proposals to make women visible in the language seem to be heading in the opposite direction." And she has denied the identity of non-binary people by rejecting the use of inclusive language.

Half-hearted recognition is just as stigmatizing. The RAE is there to document how Spanish-speaking people contribute to the evolution of the language, and despite its refusal to do so, non-binary people continue to modify it, much less stop existing. 💛 https://t.co/hiAjnz2yQQ

— Alex Orué 🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍🌈 (@Alex_Orue) November 29, 2023

The RAE does not regulate language 

Some social media and media users point out that the use of inclusive language is incorrect. They say it distorts language given that the Royal Spanish Academy does not accept its use.

This narrative is not new . For years, the RAE has been a resource used by anti-rights groups to prevent the addition of words to the dictionary and the recognition of the people who represent them.

Since 2005, conservative parties and anti-rights groups opposing same-sex marriage have similarly cited the RAE (Royal Spanish Academy) to deny its validity. At that time, the only definition of marriage that appeared in the DLE (Spanish Royal Decree) was the "union of a man and a woman arranged through certain rites or legal formalities."

On June 30, 2005 , Spain became the fourth country in the world to approve same-sex marriage, although it was not until June 22, 2012 that the RAE finally added a new meaning to the word marriage to recognize unions between homosexual couples.

A private institution that does not regulate the language

Contrary to the misinformation spread online, the RAE is a private institution that does not regulate the language, but rather registers it and therefore does not have the authority to add or delete words from Spanish.

The same organization has even recognized that "languages ​​are not modified at will, but rather through natural evolution based on the use made of them by their speakers."

Regarding inclusive language, although the RAE insists that the -e ending cannot be made official until the general population uses it, the decision of how to name non-binary people rests with the people who speak the language, individually at first and then as a group as a consensus is reached.

The RAE has just publicly recognized not only the existence of the -e ending but also its specific use to refer to non-binary people, rejecting the proposal of an official alternative to the -e ending and stating the reasons why it does not officially incorporate it into the Spanish language.🧵 pic.twitter.com/eWLBk4T9t1

— Guille Jiménez 🏳️‍⚧️ (@GuilleJiCan) January 5, 2023

This article was produced as part of a partnership between Agencia Presentes and Verificado. We seek to combat misinformation and hate speech on gender and diversity issues.