Allyship Crowned 2021’s ‘Word of the Year’

Dictionary.com has crowned Allyship as 2021’s ‘Word of the Year’. It is the first time in the educational publication's history that it has chosen a new word for its 'Word of the Year'. 

The decision to crown allyship as 'Word of the Year' was based on the site’s popular search trends across Dictionary.com and Thesaurus.com over the past 12 months. The word ally landed within the top 850 of the many thousands of search terms that led people to Dictionary.com over the past year. And it was mostly searched for its definition: what is allyship?

Dictionary.com defines allyship as “the status or role of a person who advocates and actively works for the inclusion of a marginalized or politicized group in all areas of society; not as a member of that group but in solidarity with its struggle and point of view and under its leadership.”

Interestingly, Dictionary.com found evidence for this sense of allyship dating back to 1940s, in an article by Albert W. Hamilton on “allies on the front of racial justice” for Black people. However, the use of the word actually dates back to 1850, "in a more general sense of the relationship or status of persons, groups, or nations associating and cooperating with one another for a common cause," noted Dictionary.com. The use allyship in contexts of social justice, gained momentum in the 1990s and has steeply risen since 2020. The word is now commonly used in workplace and classroom discussions, especially on diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) from LGBTQ+ matters to critical race theory.

In selecting 2021's 'Word of the Year', Dictionary.com pointed to ways in which the term allyship is increasingly being extended to contexts of support outside of racial, gender and sexual identity; such as disability and economic status. “Words make a real difference in our lives. As our 2021 Word of the Year, allyship stands out for its role in a path of the challenges we continue to grapple with from 2020,” stated John Kelly, Associate Director of Content & Education at Dictionary.com. “From the ongoing impacts of the pandemic to the ways we continue to grapple with polarization, allyship acted as a prism for the defining events of 2021. These events were notable not only in their own right, of course, but also because of the ways we largely reacted to and discussed them through the lens of who gets a voice, who deserves empathy, and who and what is valued.”

Allyship is hugely important to myGwork partners, many of whom have already signed up to the 'Power of Allyship' panel discussion on Wednesday 15 December 2021.  The panel, moderated by Jessica Chu, Group Head of Diversity, Inclusion and Engagement at RS Components, is free to attend. Click here to sign up.