Community hub
Recent from talks
Contribute something to knowledge base
Content stats: 0 posts, 0 articles, 0 media, 0 notes
Members stats: 0 subscribers, 0 contributors, 0 moderators, 0 supporters
Subscribers
Supporters
Contributors
Moderators
Hub AI
Transgender history AI simulator
(@Transgender history_simulator)
Hub AI
Transgender history AI simulator
(@Transgender history_simulator)
Transgender history
Accounts of transgender people (including non-binary and third gender people) have been identified going back to ancient times in cultures worldwide as early as 1200 BCE Egypt. Opinions vary on how to categorize historical accounts of gender-variant people and identities.
The galli eunuch priests of classical antiquity have been interpreted by some scholars as transgender or third-gender. The trans-feminine kathoey and hijra gender roles have persisted for thousands of years in Thailand and the Indian subcontinent, respectively. In Arabia, khanith (like earlier mukhannathun) have occupied a third gender role attested since the 7th century CE. Traditional roles for transgender women and transgender men have existed in many African societies, with some persisting to the modern day. North American Indigenous fluid and third gender roles, including the Navajo nádleehi and the Zuni lhamana, have existed since pre-colonial times.
Some medieval European documents have been studied as possible accounts of transgender persons. Kalonymus ben Kalonymus's lament for being born a man instead of a woman has been seen as an early account of gender dysphoria. John/Eleanor Rykener, a male-bodied Briton arrested in 1394 while living and doing sex work dressed as a woman, has been interpreted by some contemporary scholars as transgender. In Japan, accounts of transgender people go back to the Edo period. In Indonesia, there are millions of trans-/third-gender waria, and the extant pre-Islamic Bugis society of Sulawesi recognizes five gender roles.
In the United States in 1776, the genderless Public Universal Friend refused both birth name and gendered pronouns. Transgender American men and women are documented in accounts from throughout the 19th century. The first known informal transgender advocacy organisation in the United States, Cercle Hermaphroditos, was founded in 1895.
Early modern gender-affirming surgeries, including an ovary and uterus transplant, were performed in the early 20th century at the Institut für Sexualwissenschaft in Germany, which was later raided and destroyed by Nazi Germany. The respective transitions of transgender women Christine Jorgensen and Coccinelle in the 1950s brought wider awareness of gender-affirming surgery to North America and Europe respectively. The grassroots political struggle for transgender rights in the United States produced several riots against police, including the 1959 Cooper Donuts Riot, 1966 Compton's Cafeteria Riot, and the multi-day Stonewall Riots of 1969. In the 1970s, Lou Sullivan became the first publicly self-identified gay trans man and founded the first organization for transgender men. At the same time, some radical feminists opposed construals of womanhood inclusive of transgender women, creating what would later be known as trans-exclusionary radical feminism (TERF). In the 1990s and 2000s, the Transgender Day of Remembrance was established in the United States, and transgender politicians were elected to various public offices. Legislative and court actions began recognizing transgender people's rights in some countries, while some countries and societies have continued to abridge the rights of transgender people.
A precise history of the global occurrence of transgender people is difficult to compose because the modern concept of being transgender, and of gender in general as relevant to transgender identity, did not develop until the mid-20th century. Historical understandings are thus inherently filtered through modern principles, and were largely viewed through a medical lens until the late 20th century. LGBTQ+ scholar Genny Beemyn writes:
Can there be said to be a "transgender history," when "transgender" is a contemporary term and when individuals in past centuries who would perhaps appear to be transgender from our vantage point might not have conceptualized their lives in such a way? And what about individuals today who have the ability to describe themselves as transgender, but choose not to for a variety of reasons, including the perception that it is a White, middle-class Western term and the belief that it implies transitioning from one gender to another? Should they be left out of "transgender history" because they do not specifically identify as transgender?
Genny Beemyn argues that transgender history has also been filtered through gay history, identifying Billy Tipton as an example of a historical figure misrepresented by scholars as gay when a transgender reading of his life would be more appropriate.
Transgender history
Accounts of transgender people (including non-binary and third gender people) have been identified going back to ancient times in cultures worldwide as early as 1200 BCE Egypt. Opinions vary on how to categorize historical accounts of gender-variant people and identities.
The galli eunuch priests of classical antiquity have been interpreted by some scholars as transgender or third-gender. The trans-feminine kathoey and hijra gender roles have persisted for thousands of years in Thailand and the Indian subcontinent, respectively. In Arabia, khanith (like earlier mukhannathun) have occupied a third gender role attested since the 7th century CE. Traditional roles for transgender women and transgender men have existed in many African societies, with some persisting to the modern day. North American Indigenous fluid and third gender roles, including the Navajo nádleehi and the Zuni lhamana, have existed since pre-colonial times.
Some medieval European documents have been studied as possible accounts of transgender persons. Kalonymus ben Kalonymus's lament for being born a man instead of a woman has been seen as an early account of gender dysphoria. John/Eleanor Rykener, a male-bodied Briton arrested in 1394 while living and doing sex work dressed as a woman, has been interpreted by some contemporary scholars as transgender. In Japan, accounts of transgender people go back to the Edo period. In Indonesia, there are millions of trans-/third-gender waria, and the extant pre-Islamic Bugis society of Sulawesi recognizes five gender roles.
In the United States in 1776, the genderless Public Universal Friend refused both birth name and gendered pronouns. Transgender American men and women are documented in accounts from throughout the 19th century. The first known informal transgender advocacy organisation in the United States, Cercle Hermaphroditos, was founded in 1895.
Early modern gender-affirming surgeries, including an ovary and uterus transplant, were performed in the early 20th century at the Institut für Sexualwissenschaft in Germany, which was later raided and destroyed by Nazi Germany. The respective transitions of transgender women Christine Jorgensen and Coccinelle in the 1950s brought wider awareness of gender-affirming surgery to North America and Europe respectively. The grassroots political struggle for transgender rights in the United States produced several riots against police, including the 1959 Cooper Donuts Riot, 1966 Compton's Cafeteria Riot, and the multi-day Stonewall Riots of 1969. In the 1970s, Lou Sullivan became the first publicly self-identified gay trans man and founded the first organization for transgender men. At the same time, some radical feminists opposed construals of womanhood inclusive of transgender women, creating what would later be known as trans-exclusionary radical feminism (TERF). In the 1990s and 2000s, the Transgender Day of Remembrance was established in the United States, and transgender politicians were elected to various public offices. Legislative and court actions began recognizing transgender people's rights in some countries, while some countries and societies have continued to abridge the rights of transgender people.
A precise history of the global occurrence of transgender people is difficult to compose because the modern concept of being transgender, and of gender in general as relevant to transgender identity, did not develop until the mid-20th century. Historical understandings are thus inherently filtered through modern principles, and were largely viewed through a medical lens until the late 20th century. LGBTQ+ scholar Genny Beemyn writes:
Can there be said to be a "transgender history," when "transgender" is a contemporary term and when individuals in past centuries who would perhaps appear to be transgender from our vantage point might not have conceptualized their lives in such a way? And what about individuals today who have the ability to describe themselves as transgender, but choose not to for a variety of reasons, including the perception that it is a White, middle-class Western term and the belief that it implies transitioning from one gender to another? Should they be left out of "transgender history" because they do not specifically identify as transgender?
Genny Beemyn argues that transgender history has also been filtered through gay history, identifying Billy Tipton as an example of a historical figure misrepresented by scholars as gay when a transgender reading of his life would be more appropriate.