why i find fae pronouns harmful; a thread made by a practicing witch of 10 years

so let’s start with the basics: what are the fae? the fae are beings in many cultures, most notably, celtic, irish, salvic and british cultures. they’re also prominent in paganism and witchcraft. the fae are harmful and are extremely dangerous towards humans.

now that the basics are out of the way, let’s just get onto debunking some arguments because i am a tired little witch.

“they’re not based on the fae; they’re based off of fairies!” is a common one i’ve heard. if they were based on fairies then use fai/fairy so they don’t get confused with the fae. let’s not forget what fairies are based off of though.

“the fae are fine with it!” in most cases, that is not the fae you’re working with. the fae reject and hate human concepts of gender and pronouns so why would they be okay with you using them as pronouns? unless you’re working with some incredibly nice fae, clense yourself.

“they make me feel pretty/feminine!” that is still my culture plus the fae are not your beautiful and feminine beings. they are powerful beings who are capable of harmful things, most of which are horrifying. plus see above about fae and gender.

“my ___ friend says its ok!” and i’m here telling you that i find it harmful and appropiation of my culture. plus that argument sounds familiar to other harmful situations anyway. someone being ___ does not automatically make them knowlegable on ___ culture; especially if they’re

in this case, a baby witch. witches with more practice are more knowledgeable on their culture than those who are only just starting.

“i’ve been using them for ages and nothings happened yet!” just because something hasn’t happened yet doesn’t mean that something won’t happen. you are taking the fae’s name and using them for yourself without giving anything in return. this is highly disrespectful.

“what about the children named fae!” then their parents are at fault for naming their child that. just because it’s someone’s name doesn’t mean it’s ok. it’s still disrespectful.

also before anyone asks: i am a practicing witch of ten years, i was taught by my celtic nan who is a witch. our family has had bad experiences with the fae. we both find them extremely disrespectful.

also i’ll add on but yeah <3 i’m tired.

BOOM IM BACK ON THIS THREAD
“they come from the word faerie”
faerie is another word to refer to the fair folk as; the other words are fay, fey, fair folk, unseen folk and faery. all pronouns based off of these are considered offensive.

“if the fae were offended they’d make it known”
saying this can provoke them which is the last thing you want to do. that’s literally all i have to say to this. saying this phrase can make them angry.