gentlewoman gentleman

why doesnt the english language have a word "gentlewoman"?
as a woman i think its unfair.....

I think they used to have this word, but I could be wrong.

Actually the word "gentlewoman" does exist ( http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/gentlewoman ), and apparently it's used in the United States Congress, but generally the feminine equivalent of "gentleman" is "lady".

Here are some equivalencies in English:

boy - girl
guy - girl
lord - lady
gentleman - lady
sir - madam (ma'am)
Sir - Dame
Mr. - Mrs./Ms./Miss
Mr. [position] - Madam [position]

If you ever watch C-SPAN, you'll hear this word a lot.

To me, when I hear the term "gentlewoman" I think of a "goodwife." In the modern US this would not be taken as a compliment ("good wife" would, of course, be a compliment, but "goodwife" refers to the Puritans and what they expected of their wives).

I could be wrong.