Old English had a single third-person pronoun — from the Proto-Germanicdemonstrative base *hi-, from PIE *ko- "this"[3] — which had a plural and three genders in the singular. The modern pronoun it developed out of the neuter singular, starting to appear without the h in the 12th century. Her developed out of the feminine singular dative and genitive forms, while the other feminine forms and the plural were replaced with other words. The older pronoun had the following forms:
In the 12th century, it started to separate and appear without an h. Around the same time, one case was lost, and distinct pronouns started to develop. The -self forms developed in early Middle English, with hine self becoming himself.[5] By the 15th century, the Middle English forms of he had solidified into those we use today.[4]: 120
He had three genders in Old English, but in Middle English, the neuter and feminine genders split off. Today, he is the only masculine pronoun in English. In the 18th century, it was suggested as a gender-neutral pronoun, and was thereafter often prescribed in manuals of style and school textbooks until around the 1960s.[6]
He's referents are generally limited to individual malepersons, excluding the speaker and the addressee. He is always definite and usually specific.
Generic
The pronoun he can be used to refer to an unspecified person, as in If you see someone in trouble, help him. (See Gender above). This can seem very unnatural, even ungrammatical, as in these examples:
?When somebody gives birth, it's good for him to have assistance.
?If either your mother or father would like to discuss it, I'll talk to him.
The dominant epicene pronoun in modern written British English is 'they'.[8] Many style guides now reject the generic 'he'.[9]