Headscratchers / Star Trek: New Frontier

• Why bother giving Hermats their own set of pronouns? If the pronoun in Hermat language doesn't translate, they're welcome to borrow one from a language whose pronouns are not gendered. Chinese, for example has tā, which is gendered only when written, and then only when written in the logograms 他 or 她.
  • Hir/xie already existed as potential genderless pronouns in English before the series was written, used by and for people who do not fit traditional gender binary. They're just not seen often seen outside of maybe Tumblr.
  • In-Universe, the Hermats devised their own pronouns for use with other species, which may account for them not using previously existing ones. Also, Hermats emphatically do not regard themselves as genderless, but instead as having both genders. Burgoyne's reaction to Hermats being compared to the (literally) genderless J'Naii strongly implies that Hermats regard being considered genderless as an insult.