The European Union has advised against using common words containing "man" in its latest English style guide, suggesting they are not inclusive.

Officials and translators have been told to avoid terms like "tradesman" and "man-made", with the European Commission recommending alternatives such as "labour hours" for "man hours" and "humanity" for "mankind".

The guide specifically targets phrases like "man in the street", recommending "the average person" as a replacement.

"Wherever possible, use alternatives for terms containing man to mean people of all genders," the guidance explains.

The European Union has advised against using common words containing 'man' in its latest English style guide

The document also suggests replacing "in layman's terms" with alternatives like "simply put", "in simple terms" or "in everyday language".

The guidance has drawn sharp criticism from prominent figures.

Lord Young, founder of the Free Speech Union, told The Telegraph: "This sort of woke nonsense now feels completely outdated. The European Commission clearly hasn't got the memo."

Alka Sehgal Cuthbert, director of campaign group Don't Divide Us, criticised the guidance as anti-democratic.

Officials and translators have been told to avoid terms like 'tradesman' and 'man-made'

"Ordinary people need the freedom to speak freely in the language which they, and previous generations, have grown up with," she said.

"A patronising linguistic putsch by the European Commission is anti-democratic, not inclusive. No HR department should have any truck with this language guide."

The guide also recommends replacing "husband" and "wife" with "spouse" or "partner".

Terms like "chairman", "spokesman" and "fisherman" should be changed to "chair", "spokesperson" and "fisher", according to the document.

"Christian name" is also discouraged, with "first name", "forename" or "given name" suggested as alternatives.

European Commission President Ursula von der LeyenReuters

This is not the first controversy over EU language guidance.

In 2021, a previous version of the guide was withdrawn after it suggested replacing "Christmas" with "holiday season".

A 2024 document from the European Institute for Gender Equality recommended changing "no man's land" to "unclaimed territory" and advised against terms like "pushy" and "shrill" as being gender-biased.

The European Commission declined to comment on the latest guidance.