Possessive pronoun referring to something belonging to or associated with a female person or animal previously mentioned.
From Old English 'hire' (genitive of 'heo,' meaning she) plus possessive 's.' The form developed in Middle English, following the pattern of other possessive pronouns like 'his' and 'its.'
What's linguistically elegant about 'hers' is how it formed by analogy with 'his' - English speakers felt the need for symmetrical possessive pronouns and created 'hers' even though it was historically unnecessary. This shows how language users actively reshape grammar for logical consistency.
Possessive pronouns became gendered in Middle English; 'hers' enforces binary gender. Modern usage assumes all subjects are either male or female, excluding non-binary identity.
Use 'theirs' or the person's name instead of gendered pronouns when gender is unknown or the person uses they/them.
["theirs","their","[person's name]'s"]
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