I know that the female equivalent of "Lord" is "Lady," as in Lord and Lady Somethingham. but what if a woman were to be appointed First Sea Lord or Lord of the Admiralty (yes, one of those positions is defunct, but the question holds). "First Sea Lady" sounds really weird, is there a better term, or would she still be a lord despite her gender?
I think it would work having Lord as the official title. "May I introduce The Right Honourable Lady Grey, Countess of Bammerham, and First Lord of the Admiralty."
For the Admiralty, I don't think it's ever come up. There's some precedent in both directions - when a woman enters the House Of Lords I think she's given the title Baroness rather than Lord if she doesn't already have one, but when Lord is part of the job description it's still used there (e.g. 'Baroness Hale of Richmond, Law Lord'). So you can probably use whatever you think sounds best.
As has been mentioned above, Lord is fine if it's a job title more than a title of nobility. Law Lord is the best extant example, I think. Female ones aren't called Law Lady or anything else like that.
Cool. I adjusted my search terms and discovered that Lords Mayor are lords, regardless of gender, so I guess I've got the answer. Thanks!
I thought ladies bring bad luck to ships? It does come up in my WIP... “Father told me to give you this,” she said, and handed him the envelope. “Very good. I shall read it after we dine.” He glanced up. “Men! Careful with that trunk! See it gets to the Viola, and be quick about it.” He threw each man a copper coin. Adeline turned to the two ships gently swaying on the rain dappled river. “I thought ladies bring bad luck to ships.” The captain smiled again. “Some ladies do.”
It's relevant in my WIP, although I've decided it's simpler to make Satan the Queen of Hell rather than muck about with Lord given the way the UK styles these things, however the issue popped back into my head when this Bonequest* comic showed up. *Bonequest, formerly Jerkcity, is a surrealist webcomic guaranteed to offend practically everyone at some point. Spoiler: Moderately NSFW
Jaina Proudmore in the Warcraft universe is currently the Lord Admiral of Kul'tiras. It sounds pretty awesome, woman or not.
"Sir, the men have been expressing concern over having a female on board." "Oh?" "They think women bring bad luck to ships, sir" "And what do you think?" "I think women and seamen don't mix." "Yes, yes, we all know what you think. Either way, niece is to be with us until we deliver her to her father on his expedition, my dear Bosun." "They say she'll attract bears, sir," the officer said with renewed emphasis. "Poppycock! Besides, that's only during her lady times --" " -- Uncle, I don't feel so good," Claire interrupted as she collapsed to the deck clutching her ovaries. At that moment a barrage of cannon fire and the blast of a war horn drew their attention to the port side. There a most fearsome sight awaited them. "Ya har!" cried the ship's captain in a clear strong voice. Standing by the mizzen, his blue deck coat with silver hardware and the glint of steel in hand made the blackness of his pelt even more striking. "I be Captain Grumbles," he said. "Lay down your arms and prepare to be boarded. All your honeys are belong to us!"
I remember having this discussion some years ago, about female military officers. Male officers are always greeted with sir, so how do you greet a female officer? Normally, the female form of sir is ma'am, or madam. And yes, some use that for female officers. But sir can work just as well, as you're greeting the title, not necessarily the person. So in this case, Lord should be fine. If I were to have an army of my own and start conquering other nations, I would call myself a warlord, not a warlady. Of course, these days a lot of people are looking for excuses to be offended. It kinda makes me wonder how we have female priests, yet I have never heard anyone insisting on being called a priestess? Even if priestess is a normal female form of priest. Likewise, Harry Potter was a wizard, but no one called Hermine a wizardess, or even a witch. She's a wizard, just like the boys. Even if that's the male form.
Except they did call her a witch. Specifically "the brightest witch of her age." There's even a meme about it.
In the US military, female officers are ma'am. Always. Try saying "sir" to one, you'll get strong with the pushups.
It's because in male-dominated professions most women want the same title as the men rather than being singled out for their gender. Women in male-dominated professions (of which I am one, in my day gig) typically do not insist on a special title, because it singles them out as separate and therefore not equal...kind of like being called a "female singer" as opposed to a "singer" like the guys. Just a guess on my part, but the exception for the US military is probably because being called "Sir" or "Ma'am, is as much a reference to gender as a form of address as it is a title. Most guys wouldn't want to be called "Miss" in the course of their jobs, and vice-versa.
