Non-binary: Difference between revisions
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{{ | {{Short description|Gender identities outside of the gender binary}} | ||
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{{about|non-binary genders|other senses of not being binary|Binary (disambiguation)}} | |||
{{Redirect|Genderqueer|the book|Gender Queer: A Memoir{{!}}''Gender Queer: A Memoir''}} | {{Redirect|Genderqueer|the book|Gender Queer: A Memoir{{!}}''Gender Queer: A Memoir''}} | ||
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{{Infobox gender and sexual identity | {{Infobox gender and sexual identity | ||
| title = Non-binary | | title = Non-binary | ||
| image = Nonbinary_flag.svg | | image = Nonbinary_flag.svg | ||
| alt = | | alt = A flag consisting of four equal-spaced horizontal stripes, from top to bottom: yellow, white, purple, and black. | ||
| caption = [[Non-binary pride flag]] | | caption = [[Non-binary pride flag]] | ||
| definition = | | definition = | ||
| classification = [[Gender identity]] | | classification = [[Gender identity]] | ||
| abbreviations = {{hlist|NB|Enby{{efn|name="abbreviation"|The abbreviation "enby" is based on the phonetic pronunciation of the initialism "NB", standing for "Non-Binary".}}}} | | abbreviations = {{hlist|NB|Enby{{efn|name="abbreviation"|The abbreviation "enby" is based on the [[English phonetic]] pronunciation of the initialism "NB", standing for "Non-Binary".}}}} | ||
| symbol = Asteroid symbol (fixed width).svg | | symbol = Asteroid symbol (fixed width).svg | ||
| symbol_class = skin-invert-image | |||
| synonyms = Genderqueer | | synonyms = Genderqueer | ||
| associated_terms = {{hlist | | associated_terms = {{hlist|[[Third gender]]||[[genderfluid]]|[[two-spirit]]|[[gender nonconforming]]}} | ||
}} | }} | ||
{{LGBTQ sidebar}} | {{LGBTQ sidebar}} | ||
{{Transgender sidebar|identities}} | {{Transgender sidebar|identities}} | ||
'''Non-binary'''{{efn|name="spelling"|Also spelled '''nonbinary'''. The term '''enby''', derived from the abbreviation '''NB''', is also used.<ref name="BergmanBarker">{{cite book |last1=Bergman |first1=S. Bear |last2=Barker |first2=Meg-John |editor1-last=Richards |editor1-first=Christina |editor2-last=Bouman |editor2-first=Walter Pierre |editor3-last=Barker |editor3-first=Meg-John |title=Genderqueer and Non-Binary Genders |date=2017 |publisher=[[Palgrave Macmillan]] |isbn=978-1-137-51052-5 |page=43 |chapter=Non-binary Activism |series=Critical and Applied Approaches in Sexuality, Gender and Identity}}</ref>}} or '''genderqueer''' | '''Non-binary'''{{efn|name="spelling"|Also spelled '''nonbinary'''. The term '''enby''', derived from the abbreviation '''NB''', is also used.<ref name="BergmanBarker">{{cite book |last1=Bergman |first1=S. Bear |last2=Barker |first2=Meg-John |editor1-last=Richards |editor1-first=Christina |editor2-last=Bouman |editor2-first=Walter Pierre |editor3-last=Barker |editor3-first=Meg-John |title=Genderqueer and Non-Binary Genders |date=2017 |publisher=[[Palgrave Macmillan]] |isbn=978-1-137-51052-5 |page=43 |chapter=Non-binary Activism |series=Critical and Applied Approaches in Sexuality, Gender and Identity}}</ref>}} or '''genderqueer''' [[Gender identity|gender identities]] are those that are outside the male/female [[gender binary]].<ref name=richardsetal/><ref>{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1080/15532739.2018.1538841| issn = 1553-2739| volume = 20| issue = 2–3| pages = 126–131| last = Monro| first = Surya| title = Non-binary and genderqueer: An overview of the field| journal = The International Journal of Transgenderism| date = 2019-01-21| pmid = 32999600| pmc = 6830997}}</ref> Non-binary identities often fall under the [[transgender]] umbrella since non-binary people typically identify with a [[gender]] that is different from the [[Sex assignment|sex assigned to them at birth]],<ref name=aap>{{cite web |title=Supporting & Caring for Transgender Children |url=https://www.aap.org/en-us/Documents/solgbt_resource_transgenderchildren.pdf |publisher=[[Human Rights Campaign]] |access-date=April 8, 2021 |archive-date=July 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210724123917/https://www.aap.org/en-us/Documents/solgbt_resource_transgenderchildren.pdf |url-status=dead}}</ref> although some non-binary people do not consider themselves transgender.<ref name="Ennis2021">{{cite news |last1=Ennis |first1=Dawn |title=New Research Reveals Insights Into America's Nonbinary Youth |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/dawnstaceyennis/2021/07/13/new-research-reveals-insights-into-americas-nonbinary-youth |access-date=January 6, 2022 |work=[[Forbes]] |date=July 13, 2021 |archive-date=January 6, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220106234315/https://www.forbes.com/sites/dawnstaceyennis/2021/07/13/new-research-reveals-insights-into-americas-nonbinary-youth |url-status=live}}</ref> | ||
Non-binary people may identify as an intermediate or separate [[third gender]],<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.glbtq.com/social-sciences/genderqueer.html |title=Genderqueer |last=Beemyn |first=Brett Genny |year=2008 |encyclopedia=glbtq: An Encyclopedia of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Culture |location=Chicago, Illinois |publisher=glbtq, Inc. |access-date=May 3, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120425081046/http://www.glbtq.com/social-sciences/genderqueer.html |archive-date=April 25, 2012}}{{page needed|date=January 2024}}</ref> identify with more than one gender<ref name="Bosson-2018"/><ref name=Whyte/> or no gender, or have a [[Genderfluid|fluctuating gender identity]].<ref | Non-binary people may identify as an intermediate or separate [[third gender]],<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.glbtq.com/social-sciences/genderqueer.html |title=Genderqueer |last=Beemyn |first=Brett Genny |year=2008 |encyclopedia=glbtq: An Encyclopedia of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Culture |location=Chicago, Illinois |publisher=glbtq, Inc. |access-date=May 3, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120425081046/http://www.glbtq.com/social-sciences/genderqueer.html |archive-date=April 25, 2012}}{{page needed|date=January 2024}}</ref> identify with more than one gender<ref name="Bosson-2018"/><ref name=Whyte/> or no gender, or have a [[Genderfluid|fluctuating gender identity]].<ref name=":13" /> Gender identity is separate from [[sexual orientation|sexual]] or [[romantic orientation]];<ref name="glaad_transgender">{{cite web |url=http://www.glaad.org/reference/transgender |title=Transgender Glossary of Terms |work=GLAAD Media Reference Guide |publisher=[[Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation]] |access-date=May 25, 2011 |archive-date=May 30, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120530061657/http://www.glaad.org/reference/transgender |url-status=live}}</ref> non-binary people have various sexual orientations.<ref name=":4">{{Cite book |last=Stryker |first=Susan |title=Transgender History |publisher=Seal Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-58005-224-5 |pages=20}}</ref> | ||
Non-binary people as a group vary in their [[gender expression]]s, and some may reject gender identity altogether.<ref name=Schorn/> Some non-binary people receive [[gender-affirming care]] to reduce the mental distress caused by [[gender dysphoria]], such as [[gender-affirming surgery]] or [[Transgender hormone therapy|hormone replacement therapy]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hastings |first=Jennifer |date=June 17, 2016 |title=Approach to genderqueer, gender non-conforming, and gender nonbinary people |url=https://transcare.ucsf.edu/guidelines/gender-nonconforming |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211006101614/https://transcare.ucsf.edu/guidelines/gender-nonconforming |archive-date=October 6, 2021 |access-date=October 10, 2021 |website=UCSF Transgender Care}}</ref> | Non-binary people as a group vary in their [[gender expression]]s, and some may reject gender identity altogether.<ref name="Schorn">{{cite web |last=Schorn |first=Johanna |title=Taking the 'Sex' out of Transsexual: Representations of Trans Identities in Popular Media |url=http://www.inter-disciplinary.net/critical-issues/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/schornglpaper.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141025012342/http://www.inter-disciplinary.net/critical-issues/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/schornglpaper.pdf |archive-date=October 25, 2014 |access-date=October 23, 2014 |publisher=[[University of Cologne]] |page=1 |quote=The term transgender is an umbrella term 'and generally refers to any and all kinds of variation from gender norms and expectations' (Stryker 19). Most often, the term transgender is used for someone who feels that the sex assigned to them at birth does not reflect their own gender identity. They may identify as the gender "opposite" to their assigned gender, or they may feel that their gender identity is fluid, or they may reject all gender categorizations and identify as agender or genderqueer. |department=Inter-Disciplinary.Net |location=Cologne, Germany}}</ref> Some non-binary people receive [[gender-affirming care]] to reduce the mental distress caused by [[gender dysphoria]], such as [[gender-affirming surgery]] or [[Transgender hormone therapy|hormone replacement therapy]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hastings |first=Jennifer |date=June 17, 2016 |title=Approach to genderqueer, gender non-conforming, and gender nonbinary people |url=https://transcare.ucsf.edu/guidelines/gender-nonconforming |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211006101614/https://transcare.ucsf.edu/guidelines/gender-nonconforming |archive-date=October 6, 2021 |access-date=October 10, 2021 |website=UCSF Transgender Care}}</ref> | ||
== Terms and definitions == | == Terms and definitions == | ||
{{anchor|Subcategories|subcategories}} | {{redirect|Gender-expansive|the similar related phrase gender-diverse|Gender nonconformity}} | ||
{{redirect|Intergender|the professional wrestling format|Intergender wrestling}} | |||
{{anchor|Subcategories|subcategories|Terms, definitions, and identities|Terms and definitions}} | |||
<!-- "Agender" redirects here. If this section is renamed, please update the redirects as well. | <!-- "Agender" redirects here. If this section is renamed, please update the redirects as well. | ||
"Bigender" "Bi-gender" and "Bigendered" redirect here. | "Bigender" "Bi-gender" and "Bigendered" redirect here. | ||
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The term | The term ''genderqueer'' first appeared in [[queer]] [[zine]]s of the 1980s and early 1990s''.''<ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Hendrie |editor1-first=Theo |title=X Marks the Spot: An Anthology of Nonbinary Experiences |date=2019 |isbn=978-1-0809-6803-9 |page=238|publisher=Independently Published }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Genderqueer: A Brief History |url=https://digitalexhibitions.arquives.ca/exhibits/show/genderqueer-in-canada/language-evolves-terms-identit |access-date=October 3, 2025 |website=The Arquives: Canada's LGBTQ2+ Archives}}</ref> It gained prominence in the mid-1990s through activists,<ref name="Tobia">{{cite web |last1=Tobia |first1=Jacob |author-link=Jacob Tobia |date=November 7, 2018 |title=InQueery: The History of the Word 'Genderqueer' As We Know It |url=https://www.them.us/story/inqueery-genderqueer |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200404231430/https://www.them.us/story/inqueery-genderqueer |archive-date=April 4, 2020 |access-date=February 18, 2020 |website=them |publisher=Condé Nast}}</ref> such as [[Riki Wilchins|Riki Anne Wilchins]],<ref>{{cite web |last1=Wilchins |first1=Riki |title=Get to Know the New Pronouns: They, Theirs, and Them |url=https://www.pride.com/identities/2017/3/14/get-know-new-pronouns-they-theirs-and-them |website=Pride |date=March 14, 2017 |access-date=February 18, 2020 |archive-date=February 18, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200218052059/https://www.pride.com/identities/2017/3/14/get-know-new-pronouns-they-theirs-and-them |url-status=live}}</ref> who used it to describe individuals deviating from traditional gender norms.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":11">{{cite journal |last1=Wilchins |first1=Riki |date=Spring 1995 |title=A Note from your Editrix |url=http://www.gendertalk.com/pubs/InYourFace1.pdf |url-status=live |journal=In Your Face: Political Activism Against Gender Oppression |issue=1 |page=4 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201005123140/http://www.gendertalk.com/pubs/InYourFace1.pdf |archive-date=October 5, 2020 |access-date=February 18, 2020}}</ref> In a 1995 newsletter published by [[The Transexual Menace]], Wilchins wrote that the new fight against gender oppression was political and:<blockquote>It's about <u>all</u> of us who are genderqueer: diesel dykes and stone butches, leatherqueens and radical fairies, nelly fags, crossdressers, intersexed, transexuals, transvestites, transgendered, transgressively gendered, and those of us whose gender expressions are so complex they haven't even been named yet.<ref name=":11" /></blockquote>Similar terms that preceded ''genderqueer'' included ''genderfuck'' and ''genderbender.''<ref name=":5">{{Cite journal |last=Honkasalo |first=Julian |date=2020 |title=Genderqueer |url=http://www.lambdanordica.org/index.php/lambdanordica/article/view/614 |journal=Lambda Nordica |language=en |volume=25 |issue=1 |pages=57–63 |doi=10.34041/ln.v25.614 |issn=2001-7286}}</ref><ref name=":10" /> In the context of 1990s early queer activism, ''genderqueer'' began as a political stance for resisting the gender binary; the term carried the non-normative and anti-assimilationist connotations of the recently reclaimed word ''[[Queer#Reclamation|queer]]''.<ref name=":4" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Knauer |first=Nancy |date=2007 |title=Gender Matters: Making the Case for Trans Inclusion |url=https://scholars.unh.edu/unh_lr/vol6/iss1/3 |journal=The University of New Hampshire Law Review |volume=6 |issue=1 |issn=2325-7318}}</ref> In 2002, the term had further dissemination through the anthology ''GenderQueer: Voices From Beyond the Sexual Binary''.<ref name=":12">{{cite encyclopedia |year=2002 |title=GenderQueer: Voices From Beyond the Sexual Binary |publisher=[[Alyson Books]] |location=New York City |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781555837303 |editor1-last=Nestle |editor1-first=Joan |edition=1st |isbn=978-1-55583-730-3 |oclc=50389309 |editor2-last=Howell |editor2-first=Clare |editor3-last=Wilchins |editor3-first=Riki Anne}}</ref> | ||
''Genderqueer'' evolved into both an umbrella term for identities outside the gender binary and an adjective or self-identity term for those who challenge or diverge from conventional gender norms, or who "queer" gender.<ref>{{Cite web |title=FAQ |url=http://genderqueers.com:80/faq.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021017092126/http://genderqueers.com:80/faq.html |archive-date=October 17, 2002 |access-date=October 3, 2025 |website=Genderqueers.com}}</ref><ref name=":9">{{Cite web |last=Retta |first=Mary |date=September 13, 2019 |title=What's the Difference Between Non-Binary, Genderqueer, and Gender-Nonconforming? |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/whats-the-difference-between-non-binary-genderqueer-and-gender-nonconforming/ |access-date=October 3, 2025 |website=VICE |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":7">{{Cite book |last=McNabb |first=Charlie |title=Nonbinary Gender Identities: History, Culture, Resources |publisher=Roman & Littlefield |year=2018}}</ref><ref name=":8">{{Cite journal |last1=Thorne |first1=Nat |last2=Yip |first2=Andrew Kam-Tuck |last3=Bouman |first3=Walter Pierre |last4=Marshall |first4=Ellen |last5=Arcelus |first5=Jon |date=2019 |title=The Terminology of Identities Between, Outside and Beyond the Gender Binary - A Systematic Review |journal=The International Journal of Transgenderism |volume=20 |issue=2–3 |pages=138–154 |doi=10.1080/15532739.2019.1640654 |issn=1434-4599 |pmc=6830980 |pmid=32999602}}</ref> The rise of the internet and public identification by celebrities brought the term ''genderqueer'' into mainstream awareness during the late 2000s and early 2010s.<ref name="Tobia" /><ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last= |title=Genderqueer History |url=https://genderqueerid.com/gqhistory |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160201200911/https://genderqueerid.com/gqhistory |archive-date=February 1, 2016 |access-date=October 3, 2025 |website=Genderqueer Identities |language=en}}</ref> | |||
The term ''non-binary'' was not in widespread use until the early 2010s, when it quickly increased in popularity and surpassed ''genderqueer'' as the most-used umbrella term for all people who don't exclusively identify as women/girls or men/boys.<ref name=":7" /><ref name=":5" /> The popularity of ''non-binary'' is sometimes credited to the fact that it has a more neutral and less political connotation than ''genderqueer'' to many people.<ref name=":8" /><ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Eda9Vbypgc |title=Genderqueer vs. Nonbinary! What's the Difference? |date=September 20, 2019 |last=DR Z PHD |access-date=2025-10-03 |via=YouTube}}</ref> Some critics of ''non-binary'' dislike it because the term itself reinforces the concept of a binary.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Language Evolves: Other Terms and Identities |url=https://digitalexhibitions.arquives.ca/exhibits/show/genderqueer-in-canada/language-evolves-terms-identit |access-date=October 3, 2025 |website=The Arquives: Canada's LGBTQ2+ Archives}}</ref><ref name=":8" /> | |||
Today, there is broad overlap in the meaning and usages of ''genderqueer'' and ''non-binary'', although they still carry different connotations for many people.<ref name="McGuire2015" /> As umbrella terms, both are used to encompass a wide range of identities and expressions that transcend the binary gender categories of man and woman.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Shaw |first1=Susan |title=Women's Voices Feminist Visions: Classic and Contemporary Readings |last2=Lee |first2=Janet |date=April 23, 2014 |publisher=McGraw-Hill Education |isbn=978-0-07-802700-0 |edition=Sixth |location=New York |pages=130; 135 |oclc=862041473}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last=Dahir |first=Mubarak |date=May 25, 1999 |title=Whose Movement Is It? |magazine=[[The Advocate (LGBT magazine)|The Advocate]] |publisher=[[Here Media]] |location=San Francisco, California |page=52}}</ref><ref name=":8" /> | |||
The term [[transgender|''transgender'']] often includes those who are genderqueer or non-binary, reflecting a broad spectrum of gender diversity.<ref name="Schorn" /><ref>{{cite journal |last=Vargo |first=Marc E. |date=November 30, 2011 |title=A Review of ''Please select your gender: From the invention of hysteria to the democratizing of transgenderism'' |journal=Journal of GLBT Family Studies |volume=7 |issue=5 |page=2 (493) |doi=10.1080/1550428X.2011.623982 |issn=1550-4298 |s2cid=142815065 |quote=up to three million U. S. citizens regard themselves as transgender, a term referring to those whose gender identities are at odds with their biological sex. The term is an expansive one, however, and may apply to other individuals as well, from the person whose behavior purposely and dramatically diverges from society's traditional male/female roles to the "agender," "bigender" or "third gender" person whose self-definition lies outside of the male/female binary altogether. In short, those counted under this term constitute a wide array of people who do not conform to, and may actively challenge conventional gender norms.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Cronn-Mills |first=Kirstin |title=Transgender Lives: Complex Stories, Complex Voices |date=2014 |publisher=Twenty-First Century Books |isbn=978-1-4677-4796-7 |location=Minneapolis, Minnesota |page=24 |chapter=IV. Trans*spectrum. Identities |quote=Many different individuals fall under what experts call the trans* spectrum, or the trans* umbrella."I'm trans*" and "I'm transgender" are ways these individuals might refer to themselves. But there are distinctions among different trans* identities. [...] Androgynous individuals may not identify with either side of the gender binary. Other individuals consider themselves agender, and they may feel they have no gender at all. |access-date=October 23, 2014 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dOUSBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190408181300/https://books.google.com/books?id=dOUSBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA24 |archive-date=April 8, 2019 |url-status=live |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref> This inclusive usage dates back to at least 1992, with significant contributions from figures such as [[Leslie Feinberg]]<ref name="Tobia" /> and [[Kate Bornstein]], who emphasized the shared experiences of "gender outlaws."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bornstein |first=Kate |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_VsCl7Ek4N8C&q=All+the+categories+of+transgender+find+a+common+ground+in+that+they+each+break+one+or+more+of+the+rules+of+gender%3A+what+we+have+in+common+is+that+we+are+gender+outlaws%2C+every+one+of+us&pg=PT79 |title=Gender Outlaw: On Men, Women and the Rest of Us |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2013 |isbn=978-1-136-60373-0 |location=Abingdon, England |access-date=October 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210310121616/https://books.google.com/books?id=_VsCl7Ek4N8C&q=All%2Bthe%2Bcategories%2Bof%2Btransgender%2Bfind%2Ba%2Bcommon%2Bground%2Bin%2Bthat%2Bthey%2Beach%2Bbreak%2Bone%2Bor%2Bmore%2Bof%2Bthe%2Brules%2Bof%2Bgender%3A%2Bwhat%2Bwe%2Bhave%2Bin%2Bcommon%2Bis%2Bthat%2Bwe%2Bare%2Bgender%2Boutlaws%2C%2Bevery%2Bone%2Bof%2Bus&pg=PT79 |archive-date=March 10, 2021 |url-status=live |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref> | |||
Other related umbrella terms include ''[[Gender nonconformity|gender nonconforming]]'', ''gender expansive'', and ''gender diverse''. ''Gender nonconforming'' usually refers to those whose [[gender expression]] does not match masculine or feminine gender norms, but it has been alternately used in some contexts (particularly prior to the widespread use of ''non-binary'') to refer to people whose gender identities do not match binary gender norms.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Serano |first=Julia |date=August 27, 2015 |title=Regarding Trans* and Transgenderism |url=https://juliaserano.blogspot.com/2015/08/regarding-trans-and-transgenderism.html |access-date=October 3, 2025 |website=Whipping Girl}}</ref><ref name=":9" /> Some US organizations such as the [[Human Rights Campaign]] and Gender Spectrum use ''gender expansive'' to denote a broader range of gender identities and expressions than those typically associated with the binary gender system.<ref name="aap" /> Many organizations in Australia and the UK use ''gender diverse'' to refer to people who "[do] not conform to their society's norms or values when it comes to their gendered physicality, gendered identity, gender expression or combination of those factors."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hines |first=Sally |title=Is Gender Fluid? A Primer for the 21st Century |publisher=Thames & Hudson |year=2018 |isbn=978-0500293683}}</ref><ref name=":8" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Zwickl |first=Sav |date=November 7, 2024 |title=Transgender? Trans and Gender Diverse? Trans and Non-Binary? What Terminology Should We Be Using? |url=https://www.transresearch.org.au/post/community-level-terminology |access-date=October 3, 2025 |website=Trans Health Research |language=en}}</ref> | |||
The term ''enby'', derived from the [[English pronunciation]] of the acronym ''NB'' for non-binary, is also sometimes used.<ref>{{cite book |last=Sheridan |first=Vanessa |title=Transgender in the Workplace: The Complete Guide |date=2018 |publisher=Bloomsbury Academic |isbn=978-1440858062 |page=11}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Hope |first=Sam |title=Person-Centred Counselling for Trans and Gender Diverse People |date=2019 |publisher=[[Jessica Kingsley Publishers]] |isbn=978-1784509378 |location=London, England |page=218}}</ref> | |||
Additionally, being non-binary is associated with [[gender ambiguity]].<ref name=":10">{{cite book |last=Girshick |first=Lori B. |title=Transgender Voices: Beyond Women and Men |publisher=[[University Press of New England]] |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-58465-645-6 |location=[[Hanover, New Hampshire]] |pages=31 |oclc=183162406}}</ref><ref name=":7" /> [[Androgyny]] (also ''androgyne'') is often used to describe a blend of socially defined masculine and feminine traits.<ref name=":7" /> However, not all non-binary individuals are androgynous; some identify with traditionally masculine or feminine traits, use alternative descriptors such as ''masculine woman'' or ''feminine man'',<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Walsh |first1=Reuben |date=December 2010 |title=More T, vicar? My experiences as a genderqueer person of faith |magazine=All God's Children |publisher=[[Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement]] |volume=2 |issue=3}}</ref> or experience or express themselves in ways that fluidly change from feminine to masculine at different times.<ref name=":13">{{Cite book |last=Cronn-Mills |first=Kirstin |title=Transgender Lives: Complex Stories, Complex Voices |publisher=Twenty-First Century Books |year=2015 |isbn=978-0-7613-9022-0 |pages=24}}</ref><ref name="McGuire2015" /> | |||
Being non-binary is also not the same as being [[intersex]]. Most intersex people identify as either men or women,<ref name="intersex-2016">{{Cite web |date=July 9, 2016 |title=Understanding Non-Binary People: How to Be Respectful and Supportive |url=https://transequality.org/issues/resources/understanding-non-binary-people-how-to-be-respectful-and-supportive |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200406081742/https://transequality.org/issues/resources/understanding-non-binary-people-how-to-be-respectful-and-supportive |archive-date=April 6, 2020 |access-date=June 17, 2020 |website=National Center for Transgender Equality}}</ref> although some identify as only non-binary, some identify as non-binary and genderfluid, while others identify as non-binary men or non-binary women. A national UK survey conducted in 2017 found that, of 1,980 intersex respondents, 38% identified as women, 32% as men, and 25% as non-binary.<ref>Government Equalities Office (2018). [https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-lgbt-survey-summary-report National LGBT survey] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210810030216/https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-lgbt-survey-summary-report |date=August 10, 2021 }}. Annex 10.</ref> | |||
== Identities == | == Identities == | ||
=== Agender === | === Agender === | ||
{{main|Agender}} | |||
{{hatnote group|{{Dist|Asexuality}}{{See also|Postgenderism}}}} | {{hatnote group|{{Dist|Asexuality}}{{See also|Postgenderism}}}} | ||
'''{{visanc|Agender}}''' individuals, also known as genderless, gender-free, non-gendered, or ungendered,<ref>{{cite web |date=April 2013 |title=LGBTQ Needs Assessment|url=http://encompassnetwork.org.uk/uploads/LGBTQ-Needs-Assesmentabsolutelyfinal.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141024234412/http://encompassnetwork.org.uk/uploads/LGBTQ-Needs-Assesmentabsolutelyfinal.pdf |archive-date=October 24, 2014 |access-date=October 18, 2014 |website=Encompass Network |pages=52–53}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Gender alphabet |url=http://www.safehomesma.org/gender_alphabet.pdf |access-date=October 18, 2014 |website=Safe Homes |page=1 |archive-date=April 15, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150415040555/http://www.safehomesma.org/gender_alphabet.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> have no gender at all.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Vargo |first=Marc E. |year=2011 |title=A Review of "Please select your gender: From the invention of hysteria to the democratizing of transgenderism" |journal=Journal of GLBT Family Studies |volume=7 |issue=5 |pages=493–494 |doi=10.1080/1550428x.2011.623982 |s2cid=142815065}}</ref><ref name=": | '''{{visanc|Agender}}''' individuals, also known as genderless, gender-free, non-gendered, or ungendered,<ref>{{cite web |date=April 2013 |title=LGBTQ Needs Assessment|url=http://encompassnetwork.org.uk/uploads/LGBTQ-Needs-Assesmentabsolutelyfinal.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141024234412/http://encompassnetwork.org.uk/uploads/LGBTQ-Needs-Assesmentabsolutelyfinal.pdf |archive-date=October 24, 2014 |access-date=October 18, 2014 |website=Encompass Network |pages=52–53}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Gender alphabet |url=http://www.safehomesma.org/gender_alphabet.pdf |access-date=October 18, 2014 |website=Safe Homes |page=1 |archive-date=April 15, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150415040555/http://www.safehomesma.org/gender_alphabet.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> have no gender at all.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Vargo |first=Marc E. |year=2011 |title=A Review of "Please select your gender: From the invention of hysteria to the democratizing of transgenderism" |journal=Journal of GLBT Family Studies |volume=7 |issue=5 |pages=493–494 |doi=10.1080/1550428x.2011.623982 |s2cid=142815065}}</ref><ref name=":13" /><ref name="Schorn" /> This group represents a spectrum of identities that diverge from conventional [[gender norms]]. A 2017 analysis of surveys of gender identity found that, of the transgender participants, 14% identified as agender.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Morrison |first1=Tessalyn |last2=Dinno |first2=Alexis |last3=Salmon |first3=Taurica |date=2021-12-01 |title=The Erasure of Intersex, Transgender, Nonbinary, and Agender Experiences Through Misuse of Sex and Gender in Health Research |url=https://academic.oup.com/aje/article/190/12/2712/6354680?login=false |journal=American Journal of Epidemiology |volume=190 |issue=12 |pages=2712–2717 |doi=10.1093/aje/kwab221 |issn=0002-9262 |pmid=34409983|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Gender Census, an international survey of non-binary people, found in 2025 that 25% of participants identified as agender.<ref name=":02" /> | ||
According to the [[Oxford English Dictionary]], which added an entry for ''agender'' in 2016,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lukin |first=Annabelle |date=July 13, 2016 |title=The Oxford dictionary's new words are a testament to the fluid beauty of English |url=http://theconversation.com/the-oxford-dictionarys-new-words-are-a-testament-to-the-fluid-beauty-of-english-62356 |access-date=October 21, 2025 |website=The Conversation |language=en-US}}</ref> the first recorded use of the word was in 1996, as "A-gender", in an article in the ''Independent''.<ref>{{Citation |title=agender, adj. |date=2023-03-02 |work=Oxford English Dictionary |url=https://oed.com/dictionary/agender_adj |access-date=2025-03-21 |edition=3 |publisher=Oxford University Press |language=en |doi=10.1093/oed/1111057139|url-access=subscription }}</ref> In 2014, the agender flag was created by Salom X,<ref name=":15">{{Cite web |date=2023-07-27 |title=Resources for the agender community |url=https://www.akt.org.uk/resources/resources-for-the-agender-community/ |access-date=2024-12-29 |website=akt |language=en}}</ref> and "agender" and "neutrois" were among the custom gender options added to Facebook and to OkCupid.<ref name="Telegraph20142">{{cite news |last=Sparkes |first=Matthew |date=February 14, 2014 |title=Facebook sex changes: which one of 50 genders are you? |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/facebook/10637968/Facebook-sex-changes-which-one-of-50-genders-are-you.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180521104128/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/facebook/10637968/Facebook-sex-changes-which-one-of-50-genders-are-you.html |archive-date=May 21, 2018 |access-date=April 5, 2018 |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=November 17, 2014 |title=OkCupid expands gender and sexuality options |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/okcupid-expands-gender-sexuality-options |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141119184104/http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/okcupid-expands-gender-sexuality-options |archive-date=November 19, 2014 |access-date=November 18, 2014 |publisher=[[PBS NewsHour]]}}</ref> In 2017, Judge Amy Holmes Hehn ruled that Patch, an agender resident of Portland, could be legally identified as agender.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-03-23 |title=Judge grants Oregon resident the right to be genderless |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/judge-grants-oregon-resident-right-be-genderless-n736971 |access-date=2025-03-21 |website=NBC News |language=en}}</ref> | |||
=== Bigender === | === Bigender === | ||
{{Anchor|Trigender}}{{redirect|Bigender|the sexual attraction to more than one gender|Bisexual}} | {{Anchor|Trigender}}{{redirect|Bigender|the sexual attraction to more than one gender|Bisexual}} | ||
'''Bigender''' individuals possess two distinct gender identities that can manifest simultaneously or fluctuate between masculine and feminine expressions.<ref>{{Cite news|first=Ruth Dudley|last=Edwards|url=https://www.independent.ie/opinion/columnists/ruth-dudley-edwards/asexual-bigender-transexual-or-cis-cant-we-all-just-be-kind-to-each-other-30513083.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218121523/https://www.independent.ie/opinion/columnists/ruth-dudley-edwards/asexual-bigender-transexual-or-cis-cant-we-all-just-be-kind-to-each-other-30513083.html|title=Asexual, bigender, transexual or cis, can't we all just be kind to each other?|newspaper=[[The Independent]]|date=August 17, 2014 |access-date=December 18, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.newsweek.com/what-third-gender-x-oregon-and-california-are-breaking-mf-binary-626551|title=Oregon becomes first state to allow option "X" to end gender binary|first=Sofia Lotto|last=Persio|date=June 16, 2017|magazine=[[Newsweek]]|access-date=December 18, 2019|archive-date=December 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218161158/https://www.newsweek.com/what-third-gender-x-oregon-and-california-are-breaking-mf-binary-626551|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dailydot.com/irl/nonbinary-definition-pronouns|title=Everything you ever wanted to know about being nonbinary|date=September 28, 2017|website=The Daily Dot|access-date=December 18, 2019|archive-date=September 28, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190928222022/https://www.dailydot.com/irl/nonbinary-definition-pronouns|url-status=live}}</ref> This differs from [[genderfluid]] identities, which may not involve fixed gender states but rather a fluid range across the gender spectrum.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.monstersandcritics.com/people/billy-dee-williams-what-is-gender-fluid|title=Billy Dee Williams: What is gender fluid?|date=December 2, 2019|website=Monsters and Critics|access-date=December 18, 2019|archive-date=December 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218123528/https://www.monstersandcritics.com/people/billy-dee-williams-what-is-gender-fluid|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2018/04/26/non-binary|title=This is the term for people who aren't exclusively male or female|date=April 26, 2018|website=PinkNews|access-date=December 18, 2019|archive-date=December 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218124825/https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2018/04/26/non-binary|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[American Psychological Association]] recognizes bigender identity as part of the broader transgender category.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.apa.org/helpcenter/sexual-orientation|title=Sexual orientation and gender identity|access-date=December 18, 2019|archive-date=January 2, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200102055739/https://www.apa.org/helpcenter/sexual-orientation|url-status=live}}</ref> Surveys and studies, including a 1999 San Francisco Department of Public Health survey and a 2016 Harris poll, have documented the prevalence of bigender identification, particularly within younger generations.<ref>Clements, K. [http://hivinsite.ucsf.edu/InSite?page=cftg-02-02 San Francisco Department of Public Health] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060915140217/http://hivinsite.ucsf.edu/InSite?page=cftg-02-02 |date=September 15, 2006}}, 1999</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://thinkprogress.org/eeoc-now-gives-nonbinary-people-a-way-to-be-counted-in-workplace-6cd48e1cc804|title=EEOC now gives nonbinary people a way to be counted in workplace|website=[[ThinkProgress]]|date=August 20, 2019 |access-date=December 18, 2019|archive-date=December 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218123520/https://thinkprogress.org/eeoc-now-gives-nonbinary-people-a-way-to-be-counted-in-workplace-6cd48e1cc804|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.glaad.org/files/aa/2017_GLAAD_Accelerating_Acceptance.pdf|title=Accelerating Acceptance 2017|publisher=[[GLAAD]]|access-date=December 27, 2019|archive-date=January 6, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200106041601/https://www.glaad.org/files/aa/2017_GLAAD_Accelerating_Acceptance.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> '''Trigender''' people shift among | '''Bigender''' individuals possess two distinct gender identities that can manifest simultaneously or fluctuate between masculine and feminine expressions.<ref>{{Cite news|first=Ruth Dudley|last=Edwards|url=https://www.independent.ie/opinion/columnists/ruth-dudley-edwards/asexual-bigender-transexual-or-cis-cant-we-all-just-be-kind-to-each-other-30513083.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218121523/https://www.independent.ie/opinion/columnists/ruth-dudley-edwards/asexual-bigender-transexual-or-cis-cant-we-all-just-be-kind-to-each-other-30513083.html|title=Asexual, bigender, transexual or cis, can't we all just be kind to each other?|newspaper=[[The Independent]]|date=August 17, 2014 |access-date=December 18, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.newsweek.com/what-third-gender-x-oregon-and-california-are-breaking-mf-binary-626551|title=Oregon becomes first state to allow option "X" to end gender binary|first=Sofia Lotto|last=Persio|date=June 16, 2017|magazine=[[Newsweek]]|access-date=December 18, 2019|archive-date=December 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218161158/https://www.newsweek.com/what-third-gender-x-oregon-and-california-are-breaking-mf-binary-626551|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dailydot.com/irl/nonbinary-definition-pronouns|title=Everything you ever wanted to know about being nonbinary|date=September 28, 2017|website=The Daily Dot|access-date=December 18, 2019|archive-date=September 28, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190928222022/https://www.dailydot.com/irl/nonbinary-definition-pronouns|url-status=live}}</ref> This differs from [[genderfluid]] identities, which may not involve fixed gender states but rather a fluid range across the gender spectrum.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.monstersandcritics.com/people/billy-dee-williams-what-is-gender-fluid|title=Billy Dee Williams: What is gender fluid?|date=December 2, 2019|website=Monsters and Critics|access-date=December 18, 2019|archive-date=December 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218123528/https://www.monstersandcritics.com/people/billy-dee-williams-what-is-gender-fluid|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2018/04/26/non-binary|title=This is the term for people who aren't exclusively male or female|date=April 26, 2018|website=PinkNews|access-date=December 18, 2019|archive-date=December 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218124825/https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2018/04/26/non-binary|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[American Psychological Association]] recognizes bigender identity as part of the broader transgender category.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.apa.org/helpcenter/sexual-orientation|title=Sexual orientation and gender identity|access-date=December 18, 2019|archive-date=January 2, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200102055739/https://www.apa.org/helpcenter/sexual-orientation|url-status=live}}</ref> Surveys and studies, including a 1999 San Francisco Department of Public Health survey and a 2016 Harris poll, have documented the prevalence of bigender identification, particularly within younger generations.<ref>Clements, K. [http://hivinsite.ucsf.edu/InSite?page=cftg-02-02 San Francisco Department of Public Health] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060915140217/http://hivinsite.ucsf.edu/InSite?page=cftg-02-02 |date=September 15, 2006}}, 1999</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://thinkprogress.org/eeoc-now-gives-nonbinary-people-a-way-to-be-counted-in-workplace-6cd48e1cc804|title=EEOC now gives nonbinary people a way to be counted in workplace|website=[[ThinkProgress]]|date=August 20, 2019 |access-date=December 18, 2019|archive-date=December 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218123520/https://thinkprogress.org/eeoc-now-gives-nonbinary-people-a-way-to-be-counted-in-workplace-6cd48e1cc804|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.glaad.org/files/aa/2017_GLAAD_Accelerating_Acceptance.pdf|title=Accelerating Acceptance 2017|publisher=[[GLAAD]]|access-date=December 27, 2019|archive-date=January 6, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200106041601/https://www.glaad.org/files/aa/2017_GLAAD_Accelerating_Acceptance.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> '''Trigender''' people can shift among any three genders, but usually male, female, and a [[third gender]].<ref name="Bosson-2018" /> | ||
=== Demigender === | === Demigender === | ||
| Line 69: | Line 85: | ||
{{main|Gender fluidity}} | {{main|Gender fluidity}} | ||
[[Genderfluid]] individuals do not adhere to a fixed gender identity; their genders change depending on time, place and situation, combining elements from one or more genders at different times.<ref name=" | [[Genderfluid]] individuals do not adhere to a fixed gender identity; their genders change depending on time, place and situation, combining elements from one or more genders at different times.<ref name=":13" /><ref name="McGuire2015">{{cite news |last1=McGuire |first1=Peter |date=November 9, 2015 |title=Beyond the Binary: What Does It Mean to Be Genderfluid? |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/people/beyond-the-binary-what-does-it-mean-to-be-genderfluid-1.2418434 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151122121336/http://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/people/beyond-the-binary-what-does-it-mean-to-be-genderfluid-1.2418434 |archive-date=November 22, 2015 |access-date=December 1, 2015 |newspaper=[[The Irish Times]]}}</ref> This identity can overlap with bigender, trigender, polygender or pangender expressions.<ref name="Bosson-2018">{{cite book |last1=Bosson |first1=Jennifer K. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XStGDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT54 |title=The Psychology of Sex and Gender |last2=Vandello |first2=Joseph A. |last3=Buckner |first3=Camille E. |publisher=Sage Publications |year=2018 |isbn=978-1-5063-3134-8 |location=Thousand Oaks, California |page=36 |oclc=1038755742 |access-date=August 4, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200528040645/https://books.google.com/books?id=XStGDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT54 |archive-date=May 28, 2020 |url-status=live |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref><ref name="Whyte">{{cite journal |last1=Whyte |first1=Stephen |last2=Brooks |first2=Robert C. |last3=Torgler |first3=Benno |title=Man, Woman, "Other": Factors Associated with Nonbinary Gender Identification |journal=[[Archives of Sexual Behavior]] |publisher=[[Springer Science+Business Media]]|location=Heidelberg, Germany|date=September 25, 2018 |volume=47 |issue=8 |pages=2397–2406 |doi=10.1007/s10508-018-1307-3 |pmid=30255409 |s2cid=52823167 |quote=2 out of 7479 (0.03 percent) of respondents to the Australian Sex Survey, a 2016 online research survey, self-identified as trigender.}}</ref> | ||
=== Pangender === | === Pangender === | ||
| Line 77: | Line 93: | ||
=== Polygender === | === Polygender === | ||
{{Dist|Polysexuality|Plurisexuality}} | {{Dist|Polysexuality|Plurisexuality}} | ||
''Polygender'', ''plurigender'' or ''multigender'' is a non-binary identity in which the person experiences multiple genders.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Moreno|first=Nik|date=2016-03-15|title=Polygender: Many Genders in One|url=https://wearyourvoicemag.com/polygender-many-genders-one/|access-date=2020-12-04|website=Wear Your Voice|language=en-US|archive-date=2020-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201114000439/https://wearyourvoicemag.com/polygender-many-genders-one/|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Pangender]], [[bigender]], and [[trigender]] are examples of multi-gender identities,<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=McKinney|first1=Rob|last2=Desposito|first2=Michael|last3=Yoon|first3=Eunhui|date=2020-08-03|title=Promoting Identity Wellness in LGBTGEQIAP+ Adolescents Through Affirmative Therapy|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/15538605.2020.1790464|journal=Journal of LGBTQ Issues in Counseling|volume=14|issue=3|pages=176–190|doi=10.1080/15538605.2020.1790464|s2cid=221142691|issn=1553-8605}}</ref> sometimes along with [[androgyne]], associated with [[demigender]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Harrison|first1=Jack|last2=Grant|first2=Jaime|last3=Herman|first3=Jody L.|date=2012 | ''Polygender'', ''plurigender'' or ''multigender'' is a non-binary identity in which the person experiences multiple genders.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Moreno|first=Nik|date=2016-03-15|title=Polygender: Many Genders in One|url=https://wearyourvoicemag.com/polygender-many-genders-one/|access-date=2020-12-04|website=Wear Your Voice|language=en-US|archive-date=2020-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201114000439/https://wearyourvoicemag.com/polygender-many-genders-one/|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Pangender]], [[bigender]], and [[trigender]] are examples of multi-gender identities,<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=McKinney|first1=Rob|last2=Desposito|first2=Michael|last3=Yoon|first3=Eunhui|date=2020-08-03|title=Promoting Identity Wellness in LGBTGEQIAP+ Adolescents Through Affirmative Therapy|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/15538605.2020.1790464|journal=Journal of LGBTQ Issues in Counseling|volume=14|issue=3|pages=176–190|doi=10.1080/15538605.2020.1790464|s2cid=221142691|issn=1553-8605|url-access=subscription}}</ref> sometimes along with [[androgyne]], associated with [[demigender]].<ref name=":14">{{Cite journal |last1=Harrison |first1=Jack |last2=Grant |first2=Jaime |last3=Herman |first3=Jody L. |date=2012 |title=A Gender Not Listed Here: Genderqueers, Gender Rebels, and OtherWise in the National Transgender Discrimination Survey |url=https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2zj46213 |url-status=live |journal=LGBTQ Public Policy Journal at the Harvard Kennedy School |language=en |volume=2 |issue=1 |pages= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230421175117/https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2zj46213 |archive-date=April 21, 2023 |access-date=June 24, 2023}}</ref> | ||
=== Two-spirit === | === Two-spirit === | ||
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=== Xenogender === | === Xenogender === | ||
'''Xenogender''' encompasses a variety of gender identities that are defined using | '''Xenogender''' encompasses a variety of gender identities that are defined using concepts not based on traditional male or female categories, often drawn from natural, inanimate, or abstract sources, representing a departure from the typical human gender binary.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Beattie |first1=Michael |author2=Penny Lenihan |author3=Robin Dundas |author4=Christiane Sanderson |date=2018 |title=Counselling skills for working with gender diversity and identity |location=London |publisher=Jessica Kingsley Publishers |isbn=978-1-78450-481-6 |oclc=1028945173}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Morin |first=Florentin Félix |date=April 3, 2017 |title=EGO HIPPO: the subject as metaphor |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0969725X.2017.1322822 |journal=[[Angelaki]] |volume=22 |issue=2 |pages=87–96 |doi=10.1080/0969725X.2017.1322822 |s2cid=149400086 |issn=0969-725X |access-date=March 6, 2022 |archive-date=March 4, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220304131420/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0969725X.2017.1322822 |url-status=live|url-access=subscription }}</ref> People who identify with a xenogender may not have the words to describe their gender, so instead they compare it to something else.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nation |first=LGBTQ |date=2022-03-02 |title=What you need to know about xenogender |url=https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2022/03/need-know-xenogender/ |access-date=2024-08-22 |website=LGBTQ Nation |language=en |archive-date=August 1, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240801004706/https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2022/03/need-know-xenogender/ |url-status=live }}</ref> | ||
==History== | ==History== | ||
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[[Judith Butler]]'s ''Gender Trouble'', published in 1990, challenged the fixed male/female binary and advocated for a broader understanding of gender as a spectrum, a view Butler has expanded upon since coming out as non-binary in 2019.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Butler |first=Judith |title="Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity" |publisher=Routledge |year=1990 |isbn=0415900433 |edition=1st |location=New York |pages=149}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Interviews by Kian |date=December 27, 2019 |title=Judith Butler on her Philosophy and Current Events |url=https://interviewsbykian.wordpress.com/2019/12/27/judith-butler-on-her-philosophy-and-current-events |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200726182552/https://interviewsbykian.wordpress.com/2019/12/27/judith-butler-on-her-philosophy-and-current-events |archive-date=July 26, 2020 |access-date=July 26, 2020 |website=Interviews by Kian}}</ref><ref name="McManus" /><ref name="DerTagesspiegel2020-05-13a2">{{cite news |first=Kathryn |last=Fischer |author-link= |date=July 13, 2020 |trans-title=The Pronoun is free from the Body – but it is not free from Gender |title=Das Pronomen ist frei vom Körper – aber es ist nicht frei vom Geschlecht |url=https://www.tagesspiegel.de/gesellschaft/queerspiegel/gender-und-grammatik-das-pronomen-ist-frei-vom-koerper-aber-es-ist-nicht-frei-vom-geschlecht/25826376.html |access-date=December 24, 2021 |work=[[Der Tagesspiegel]] |language=de |quote=Welches Pronomen bevorzuge ich? Butler lacht{{nbsp}}... 'Es ist they', sagt Butler{{nbsp}}... Wir haben das Jahr 2020 und Butler outet sich als 'they' – ein wahrhaft historischer Moment. |trans-quote=Which pronoun do I prefer? Butler laughs{{nbsp}}... 'It is they', Butler says{{nbsp}}... It is the year 2020, and Butler outs theirself as 'they' – a truly historic moment. |archive-date=March 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230327084943/https://www.tagesspiegel.de/gesellschaft/queerspiegel/gender-und-grammatik-das-pronomen-ist-frei-vom-koerper-aber-es-ist-nicht-frei-vom-geschlecht/25826376.html |url-status=live }}</ref> | [[Judith Butler]]'s ''Gender Trouble'', published in 1990, challenged the fixed male/female binary and advocated for a broader understanding of gender as a spectrum, a view Butler has expanded upon since coming out as non-binary in 2019.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Butler |first=Judith |title="Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity" |publisher=Routledge |year=1990 |isbn=0415900433 |edition=1st |location=New York |pages=149}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Interviews by Kian |date=December 27, 2019 |title=Judith Butler on her Philosophy and Current Events |url=https://interviewsbykian.wordpress.com/2019/12/27/judith-butler-on-her-philosophy-and-current-events |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200726182552/https://interviewsbykian.wordpress.com/2019/12/27/judith-butler-on-her-philosophy-and-current-events |archive-date=July 26, 2020 |access-date=July 26, 2020 |website=Interviews by Kian}}</ref><ref name="McManus" /><ref name="DerTagesspiegel2020-05-13a2">{{cite news |first=Kathryn |last=Fischer |author-link= |date=July 13, 2020 |trans-title=The Pronoun is free from the Body – but it is not free from Gender |title=Das Pronomen ist frei vom Körper – aber es ist nicht frei vom Geschlecht |url=https://www.tagesspiegel.de/gesellschaft/queerspiegel/gender-und-grammatik-das-pronomen-ist-frei-vom-koerper-aber-es-ist-nicht-frei-vom-geschlecht/25826376.html |access-date=December 24, 2021 |work=[[Der Tagesspiegel]] |language=de |quote=Welches Pronomen bevorzuge ich? Butler lacht{{nbsp}}... 'Es ist they', sagt Butler{{nbsp}}... Wir haben das Jahr 2020 und Butler outet sich als 'they' – ein wahrhaft historischer Moment. |trans-quote=Which pronoun do I prefer? Butler laughs{{nbsp}}... 'It is they', Butler says{{nbsp}}... It is the year 2020, and Butler outs theirself as 'they' – a truly historic moment. |archive-date=March 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230327084943/https://www.tagesspiegel.de/gesellschaft/queerspiegel/gender-und-grammatik-das-pronomen-ist-frei-vom-koerper-aber-es-ist-nicht-frei-vom-geschlecht/25826376.html |url-status=live }}</ref> | ||
The term "genderqueer" surfaced in the mid-1990s, notably used by activist [[Riki Wilchins]] in the newsletter ''In Your Face'' in 1995, and later in their 1997 autobiography. Wilchins contributed significantly to the discourse, particularly with the 2002 anthology ''GenderQueer: Voices from beyond the Sexual Binary''.<ref | The term "genderqueer" surfaced in the mid-1990s, notably used by activist [[Riki Wilchins]] in the newsletter ''In Your Face'' in 1995, and later in their 1997 autobiography. Wilchins contributed significantly to the discourse, particularly with the 2002 anthology ''GenderQueer: Voices from beyond the Sexual Binary''.<ref name=":12" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Wilchins |first=Riki Anne |date=Spring 1995 |title=In Your Face No. 1 (Spring 1995) |url=https://www.digitaltransgenderarchive.net/downloads/1831ck00f |website=Digital Transgender Archive |access-date=November 22, 2022 |archive-date=February 17, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220217105236/https://www.digitaltransgenderarchive.net/downloads/1831ck00f |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Wilchins |first=Riki |year=2017 |title=Burn the Binary! Selected Writings on the Politics of Trans, Genderqueer and Nonbinary |location=Riverdale, NY |publisher=Riverdale Avenue Books |isbn=978-1626014077}}</ref> | ||
[[Jim Sinclair (activist)|Jim Sinclair]], an autism-rights activist and a founder of Autism Network International, publicly embraced a gender-neutral identity in 1997, declaring a physical and social neuter status in an introduction to the [[Intersex Society of North America]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 7, 2009 |title=Brief Biography |url=http://web.syr.edu/~jisincla/brief_bio.htm |access-date=November 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207013228/http://web.syr.edu/~jisincla/brief_bio.htm |archive-date=February 7, 2009}}</ref> | [[Jim Sinclair (activist)|Jim Sinclair]], an autism-rights activist and a founder of Autism Network International, publicly embraced a gender-neutral identity in 1997, declaring a physical and social neuter status in an introduction to the [[Intersex Society of North America]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 7, 2009 |title=Brief Biography |url=http://web.syr.edu/~jisincla/brief_bio.htm |access-date=November 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207013228/http://web.syr.edu/~jisincla/brief_bio.htm |archive-date=February 7, 2009}}</ref> | ||
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[[File:Gender recognition pins cropped.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|Pronoun pin badges from a 2016 art and tech festival]] | [[File:Gender recognition pins cropped.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|Pronoun pin badges from a 2016 art and tech festival]] | ||
Many non-binary people use [[Gender-neutral pronoun|gender-neutral pronouns]] with the [[Singular they|singular "they", "their" and "them"]] being used most commonly in English. Some non-binary individuals opt for [[neopronouns]] such as {{wt|en|xe|i=-}}, {{wt|en|ze|i=-}}, {{wt|en|sie|i=-}}, {{wt|en|co|i=-}}, and [[Elverson pronoun|ey]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-07-30 |title=Beyond 'he' and 'she': 1 in 4 LGBTQ youths use nonbinary pronouns, survey finds |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/beyond-he-she-1-4-lgbtq-youths-use-nonbinary-pronouns-n1235204 |access-date=2024-05-20 |website=NBC News |language=en |archive-date=August 17, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200817214710/https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/beyond-he-she-1-4-lgbtq-youths-use-nonbinary-pronouns-n1235204 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Hekanaho2020">{{cite thesis |last=Hekanaho |first=Laura |date=December 8, 2020 |title=Generic and Nonbinary Pronouns: Usage, Acceptability and Attitudes |type=PhD |publisher=[[University of Helsinki]] |isbn=978-9515168313 |url=https://helda.helsinki.fi/bitstream/handle/10138/321581/hekanaho_laura_dissertation_2020.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |access-date=March 7, 2021 |page=221 |archive-date=March 7, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210307171934/https://helda.helsinki.fi/bitstream/handle/10138/321581/hekanaho_laura_dissertation_2020.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="gendercensus2021">{{cite web |title=Gender Census 2021: Worldwide Report |url=https://gendercensus.com/results/2021-worldwide/#pronouns |website=Gender Census |access-date=April 16, 2021 |date=April 1, 2021 |archive-date=April 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417031047/https://gendercensus.com/results/2021-worldwide/#pronouns |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Marcus |first=Ezra |date=April 8, 2021 |title=A Guide to Neopronouns |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/08/style/neopronouns-nonbinary-explainer.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/08/style/neopronouns-nonbinary-explainer.html |archive-date=December 28, 2021 |url-access=limited |access-date=April 30, 2021 |issn=0362-4331}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Others may use traditional [[gender-specific pronouns]] such as "he" or "she", switch between them, or prefer to use their name without pronouns.<ref>{{cite book |last=Feinberg |first=Leslie |author-link=Leslie Feinberg |title=Transgender Warriors: Making History from Joan of Arc to Dennis Rodman |url=https://archive.org/details/transgenderwarri0000fein |url-access=registration |publisher=[[Beacon Press]] |location=[[Boston, Massachusetts]] |date=1996 |isbn=978-0-8070-7940-9 |oclc=33014093}}</ref> | Many non-binary people use [[Gender-neutral pronoun|gender-neutral pronouns]] with the [[Singular they|singular "they", "their" and "them"]] being used most commonly in English. Some non-binary individuals opt for [[neopronouns]] such as {{wt|en|xe|i=-}}, {{wt|en|ze|i=-}}, {{wt|en|sie|i=-}}, {{wt|en|co|i=-}}, and [[Elverson pronoun|ey]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-07-30 |title=Beyond 'he' and 'she': 1 in 4 LGBTQ youths use nonbinary pronouns, survey finds |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/beyond-he-she-1-4-lgbtq-youths-use-nonbinary-pronouns-n1235204 |access-date=2024-05-20 |website=NBC News |language=en |archive-date=August 17, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200817214710/https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/beyond-he-she-1-4-lgbtq-youths-use-nonbinary-pronouns-n1235204 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Hekanaho2020">{{cite thesis |last=Hekanaho |first=Laura |date=December 8, 2020 |title=Generic and Nonbinary Pronouns: Usage, Acceptability and Attitudes |type=PhD |publisher=[[University of Helsinki]] |isbn=978-9515168313 |url=https://helda.helsinki.fi/bitstream/handle/10138/321581/hekanaho_laura_dissertation_2020.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |access-date=March 7, 2021 |page=221 |archive-date=March 7, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210307171934/https://helda.helsinki.fi/bitstream/handle/10138/321581/hekanaho_laura_dissertation_2020.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="gendercensus2021">{{cite web |title=Gender Census 2021: Worldwide Report |url=https://gendercensus.com/results/2021-worldwide/#pronouns |website=Gender Census |access-date=April 16, 2021 |date=April 1, 2021 |archive-date=April 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417031047/https://gendercensus.com/results/2021-worldwide/#pronouns |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Marcus |first=Ezra |date=April 8, 2021 |title=A Guide to Neopronouns |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/08/style/neopronouns-nonbinary-explainer.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/08/style/neopronouns-nonbinary-explainer.html |archive-date=December 28, 2021 |url-access=limited |access-date=April 30, 2021 |issn=0362-4331}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Others may use traditional [[gender-specific pronouns]] such as "he" or "she", switch between them, or prefer to use their name without pronouns.<ref>{{cite book |last=Feinberg |first=Leslie |author-link=Leslie Feinberg |title=Transgender Warriors: Making History from Joan of Arc to Dennis Rodman |url=https://archive.org/details/transgenderwarri0000fein |url-access=registration |publisher=[[Beacon Press]] |location=[[Boston, Massachusetts]] |date=1996 |isbn=978-0-8070-7940-9 |oclc=33014093}}</ref> Gender Census, which since 2013 has run a worldwide annual survey of English-speaking non-binary people, surveyed 43,000 people in 2025 and found that the most common pronouns respondents use for themselves were "they/them" (75%), "he/him" (41%), "she/her" (34%), "it/its" (23%), no personal pronouns at all (14%), and any pronouns (14%).<ref name=":02" /> Thirty-three percent of respondents reported using a neopronoun such as xe, ze, fae, or ey at least some of the time.<ref name=":02">{{Cite web |date=September 14, 2025 |title=Gender Census 2025: Worldwide Report |url=https://www.gendercensus.com/results/2025-worldwide/ |access-date=October 13, 2025 |website=Gender Census |language=en-GB}}</ref> | ||
The title [[Mx (title)|Mx.]] is sometimes used as a gender-neutral honorific. Invented in the 1970s, it began being used by non-binary people in online discussion spaces in the late 1990s and early 2000s and became increasingly popular in the 2010s.<ref>{{cite web |last=Pearce |first=Ruth |date=July 21, 2011 |title=Non-gendered titles see increased recognition |url=http://www.lesbilicious.co.uk/non-gendered-titles-see-increased-recognition |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190918104612/http://www.lesbilicious.co.uk/non-gendered-titles-see-increased-recognition |archive-date=September 18, 2019 |access-date=August 29, 2012 |work=Lesbilicious}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Titman |first=Nat |date=August 28, 2014 |title=When Was the Mx Gender-Inclusive Title Created? |url=https://practicalandrogyny.com/2014/08/28/when-was-the-mx-gender-inclusive-title-created/ |access-date=October 14, 2025 |website=Practical Androgyny |language=en}}</ref> According to Gender Census, Mx. has been decreasing in popularity over the last decade; in 2025 only 15% of respondents reported using Mx., while 43% preferred no honorific at all.<ref name=":02" /> Smaller numbers of non-binary people use Mr. (11%), Ms. or Miss (9%), or a non-gendered professional, academic, religious, military, or nobility title (9%).<ref name=":02" /> | |||
[[File:Marche_des_Fiertés_Paris_02_07_2016_06.jpg|thumb|A non-binary pride flag at a parade in Paris reading {{lang|fr|Mon genre est non-binaire}} ('My gender is non-binary')]] | |||
The 2025 Gender Census also found that the five most commonly selected identity labels among people who aren't exclusively women/girls or men/boys were non-binary (62%), queer (56%), trans (47%), transgender (41%), and a category described as a person/human/[my name]/"I'm just me" (40%).<ref name=":02" /> | |||
==Legal recognition== | ==Legal recognition== | ||
{{main|Legal recognition of non-binary gender}} | {{Globalize|date=June 2023|2=US|section}}{{Update section|date=August 2025|reason=Increased legal recognition of non-binary people}}{{main|Legal recognition of non-binary gender}}{{see also|List of non-binary political office-holders}} | ||
[[File:Third-gender-recognition-equaldex-2024-map.svg|thumb|Third gender recognition world map (2024)|263x263px]] | [[File:Third-gender-recognition-equaldex-2024-map.svg|thumb|Third gender recognition world map (2024)|263x263px]] | ||
Many non-binary/genderqueer people use the gender they were given at birth to conduct everyday business, as many institutions and forms of identification—such as passports and driver's | Many non-binary/genderqueer people use the gender they were given at birth to conduct everyday business, as many institutions and forms of identification—such as passports and driver's licenses — accept, in the sense of recorded recognition, only binary gender identities. But with the increasing acceptance of non-binary gender identities and the rise in wider societal recognition, this is slowly changing, as more governments and institutions recognize and allow non-binary identities.<ref name=richardsetal>{{Cite journal |last1=Richards |first1=Christina |last2=Bouman |first2=Walter Pierre |last3=Seal |first3=Leighton |last4=Barker |first4=Meg John |last5=Nieder |first5=Timo O. |last6=T'Sjoen |first6=Guy |date=2016 |title=Non-binary or genderqueer genders |journal=International Review of Psychiatry |volume=28 |issue=1 |pages=95–102 |pmid=26753630 |doi=10.3109/09540261.2015.1106446 |s2cid=29985722 |url=https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/7279758 |access-date=June 9, 2019 |archive-date=June 26, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190626224658/https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/7279758|url-status=live|hdl=1854/LU-7279758 |hdl-access=free}}</ref> | ||
Multiple countries legally recognize non-binary or [[third gender]] classifications. Some non-Western societies have long recognized transgender people as a third gender, although this may not (or may only recently)<ref name=BBC-20091223>{{cite news |title=Pakistani eunuchs to have distinct gender |url= | Multiple countries legally recognize non-binary or [[third gender]] classifications. Some non-Western societies have long recognized transgender people as a third gender, although this may not (or may only recently)<ref name=BBC-20091223>{{cite news |title=Pakistani eunuchs to have distinct gender |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8428819.stm |date=December 23, 2009 |work=[[BBC News]] |access-date=December 23, 2009 |archive-date=May 18, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200518094705/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8428819.stm |url-status=live}}</ref> include formal legal recognition. In Western societies, Australia may have been the first country to legally recognize a classification of sex outside of "male" and "female" on legal documentation, with the recognition of [[Alex MacFarlane]]'s intersex status in 2003.<ref name="asa">{{cite journal |url=http://www.asanet.org/sectionsex/documents/SUMMER03sexnews.pdf |title=Newsletter of the Sociology of Sexualities Section of the American Sociological Association |journal=American Sociological Association Sexualities News |volume=6 |issue=1 |date=Summer 2003 |access-date=December 9, 2013 |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304054219/http://www.asanet.org/sectionsex/documents/SUMMER03sexnews.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> The wider legal recognition of non-binary people—following the recognition of intersex people in 2003—in Australian law followed between 2010 and 2014, with legal action taken against the [[New South Wales Government]] Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages by transgender activist [[Norrie May-Welby]] to recognize Norrie's legal gender identity as "non-specific". [[Supreme Court of India|India's Supreme Court]] formally recognized transgender and non-binary people as a distinct third gender in 2014, following legal action taken by transgender activist [[Laxmi Narayan Tripathi]].<ref>{{Cite news |title=In India, Landmark Ruling Recognizes Transgender Citizens |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2014/04/15/303408581/in-india-landmark-ruling-recognizes-transgender-citizens |access-date=April 30, 2021 |newspaper=[[NPR]] |date=April 15, 2014 |last1=McCarthy |first1=Julie |archive-date=April 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210430203253/https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2014/04/15/303408581/in-india-landmark-ruling-recognizes-transgender-citizens |url-status=live}}</ref> In July 2021, Argentina incorporated non-binary gender in its national ID card, becoming the first country in South America to legally recognize non-binary gender on all official documentation; non-binary people in the country will have the option to renew their ID with the letter "X" under gender.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Alberto Fernández pone en marcha el DNI para personas no binarias en un paso más por la igualdad de género |trans-title=Alberto Fernández launches the DNI for non-binary people in one more step for gender equality |url=https://www.clarin.com/politica/gobierno-pone-marcha-dni-personas-binarias-paso-igualdad-genero_0_wHMaz8YnA.html |access-date=July 26, 2021 |website=www.clarin.com |date=July 21, 2021 |language=es |archive-date=July 27, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210727011740/https://www.clarin.com/politica/gobierno-pone-marcha-dni-personas-binarias-paso-igualdad-genero_0_wHMaz8YnA.html |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/07/22/argentina-nonbinary-id |title=Argentina rolls out gender-neutral ID |last=Westfall |first=Sammy |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=July 22, 2021 |access-date=July 27, 2021 |archive-date=October 3, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211003012209/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/07/22/argentina-nonbinary-id |url-status=live}}</ref> | ||
===United States=== | ===United States=== | ||
Legal recognition of non-binary gender identities in the United States has varied significantly across time and jurisdictions. In June 2016, a court in Oregon issued the first known ruling in the U.S. recognizing a non-binary gender.<ref name="ohara2016">{{Cite web |last=O'Hara |first=Mary Emily |date=June 10, 2016 |title='Nonbinary' is now a legal gender, Oregon court rules |url=http://www.dailydot.com/lifestyle/oregon-court-rules-non-binary-gender-legal |access-date=June 10, 2016 |website=[[The Daily Dot]]}}</ref> In subsequent years, several states, beginning with California in 2017, enacted legislation or adopted policies allowing residents to select a non-binary or | Legal recognition of non-binary gender identities in the United States has varied significantly across time and jurisdictions. In June 2016, a court in Oregon issued the first known ruling in the U.S. recognizing a non-binary gender.<ref name="ohara2016">{{Cite web |last=O'Hara |first=Mary Emily |date=June 10, 2016 |title='Nonbinary' is now a legal gender, Oregon court rules |url=http://www.dailydot.com/lifestyle/oregon-court-rules-non-binary-gender-legal |access-date=June 10, 2016 |website=[[The Daily Dot]]}}</ref> In subsequent years, several states, beginning with California in 2017, enacted legislation or adopted policies allowing residents to select a non-binary or "X" gender marker on official documents such as driver's licenses and birth certificates.<ref>{{Cite web |last=O'Hara |first=Mary Emily |date=September 26, 2016 |title=Californian Becomes Second US Citizen Granted 'Non-Binary' Gender Status |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/californian-becomes-second-us-citizen-granted-non-binary-gender-status-n654611 |access-date=September 26, 2016 |website=[[NBC News]] |archive-date=September 26, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160926204210/https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/californian-becomes-second-us-citizen-granted-non-binary-gender-status-n654611 |url-status=live }}</ref> As of early 2025, [[ Legal recognition of non-binary gender|over 20 states and the District of Columbia]] continue to offer non-binary gender markers on some state-issued documents. | ||
At the federal level, non-binary recognition advanced during the early 2020s. In 2021, the U.S. Department of State issued the first passport bearing an | At the federal level, non-binary recognition advanced during the early 2020s. In 2021, the U.S. Department of State issued the first passport bearing an "X" gender marker,<ref name="Lambda Legal">{{Cite web |date=October 27, 2021 |title=Lambda Legal Client Dana Zzyym Receives First 'X' U.S. Passport |url=https://www.lambdalegal.org/blog/co_20211027_dana-zzyym-receives-first-us-passport-with-x-gender-marker |access-date=November 7, 2021 |website=Lambda Legal |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103213152/https://www.lambdalegal.org/blog/co_20211027_dana-zzyym-receives-first-us-passport-with-x-gender-marker |url-status=live }}</ref> and beginning in April 2022, this option became available to all applicants without medical documentation.<ref>{{Cite web |title=X Gender Marker Available on U.S. Passports Starting April 11 |url=https://www.state.gov/x-gender-marker-available-on-u-s-passports-starting-april-11/ |access-date=2022-04-17 |website=United States Department of State |language=en |archive-date=February 3, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240203061845/https://www.state.gov/x-gender-marker-available-on-u-s-passports-starting-april-11/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Passports {{!}} National Center for Transgender Equality |url=https://transequality.org/know-your-rights/passports |access-date=2024-06-11 |website=transequality.org |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Selecting your Gender Marker |url=https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/need-passport/selecting-your-gender-marker.html |access-date=2024-06-11 |website=travel.state.gov |archive-date=March 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230307133536/https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/need-passport/selecting-your-gender-marker.html |url-status=live }}</ref> However, this policy was reversed in January 2025 when President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing federal agencies to recognize only male and female categories.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Luhby |first=Tami |date=20 January 2025 |title=Trump two-gender edict would upend 'X' identity on passports |language=en |work=CNN |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/20/politics/two-genders-us-passports-federal-government-trump/index.html |access-date=20 January 2025 |archive-date=January 21, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250121035755/https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/20/politics/two-genders-us-passports-federal-government-trump/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Watson |first1=Kathryn |last2=Linton |first2=Caroline |title=Trump executive order says federal government only recognizes "two sexes" |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-executive-order-says-federal-government-only-recognizes-two-sexes/ |access-date=22 January 2025 |work=CBS News |date=January 21, 2025}}</ref> The U.S. Department of State subsequently suspended all new passport applications requesting an "X" marker,<ref name="guard-23jan2025">{{cite news |last1=Gedeon |first1=Joseph |title=Rubio instructs staff to freeze passport applications with 'X' sex markers |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jan/23/trump-rubio-x-gender-passport |access-date=January 23, 2025 |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=January 23, 2025 |archive-date=January 23, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250123184342/https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jan/23/trump-rubio-x-gender-passport |url-status=live }}</ref> though previously issued passports with an "X" designation remain valid until expiration.<ref>{{cite news |title=Passports with 'X' sex markers will be valid until they expire or are renewed, State Department says |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-politics-and-policy/passports-x-sex-marker-guidance-valid-expire-state-department-rcna191539 |agency=NBC News}}</ref> | ||
Legal protections for non-binary individuals under U.S. federal law remain limited. While [[Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964]] has been interpreted to prohibit employment discrimination based on gender nonconformity and transgender status, there are no explicit nationwide protections that specifically name non-binary individuals or ensure their rights across areas such as identification, healthcare, housing, or public services. As a result, access to recognition and protection continues to depend heavily on state and local laws and policies.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Cecka |first1=Dale Margolin |author2-link=Martha Chamallas |last2=Chamallas |first2=Martha |date=2016 |chapter=Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins, 490 U.S. 228 (1989) |title=Feminist Judgments: Rewritten Opinions of the United States Supreme Court |pages=341–360 |doi=10.1017/cbo9781316411254.020 |isbn=978-1-107-12662-6 |quote=See ''[[Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins]]'', 490 U.S. 228, 250 (1989 (holding that an employer who punishes employees who fail to conform to stereotypical expectations of members of his or her sex discriminates on the basis of sex).}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Liptak |first=Adam |date=June 15, 2020 |title=Civil Rights Law Protects Gay and Transgender Workers, Supreme Court Rules |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/15/us/gay-transgender-workers-supreme-court.html |access-date=March 7, 2022 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200617162445/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/15/us/gay-transgender-workers-supreme-court.html |url-status=live}}</ref> | Legal protections for non-binary individuals under U.S. federal law remain limited. While [[Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964]] has been interpreted to prohibit employment discrimination based on gender nonconformity and transgender status, there are no explicit nationwide protections that specifically name non-binary individuals or ensure their rights across areas such as identification, healthcare, housing, or public services. As a result, access to recognition and protection continues to depend heavily on state and local laws and policies.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Cecka |first1=Dale Margolin |author2-link=Martha Chamallas |last2=Chamallas |first2=Martha |date=2016 |chapter=Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins, 490 U.S. 228 (1989) |title=Feminist Judgments: Rewritten Opinions of the United States Supreme Court |pages=341–360 |doi=10.1017/cbo9781316411254.020 |isbn=978-1-107-12662-6 |quote=See ''[[Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins]]'', 490 U.S. 228, 250 (1989 (holding that an employer who punishes employees who fail to conform to stereotypical expectations of members of his or her sex discriminates on the basis of sex).}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Liptak |first=Adam |date=June 15, 2020 |title=Civil Rights Law Protects Gay and Transgender Workers, Supreme Court Rules |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/15/us/gay-transgender-workers-supreme-court.html |access-date=March 7, 2022 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200617162445/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/15/us/gay-transgender-workers-supreme-court.html |url-status=live}}</ref> | ||
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Various countries throughout history have criminalized transgender and non-binary gender identities.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wareham |first=Jamie |title=New Report Shows Where It's Illegal To Be Transgender In 2020 |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiewareham/2020/09/30/this-is-where-its-illegal-to-be-transgender-in-2020 |access-date=April 30, 2021 |website=[[Forbes]] |archive-date=April 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210430203254/https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiewareham/2020/09/30/this-is-where-its-illegal-to-be-transgender-in-2020 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=September 28, 2017 |title=Trans Legal Mapping Report |url=https://ilga.org/trans-legal-mapping-report |access-date=July 14, 2022 |website=[[ILGA]] |archive-date=November 27, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221127223133/https://ilga.org/trans-legal-mapping-report |url-status=live }}</ref> | Various countries throughout history have criminalized transgender and non-binary gender identities.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wareham |first=Jamie |title=New Report Shows Where It's Illegal To Be Transgender In 2020 |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiewareham/2020/09/30/this-is-where-its-illegal-to-be-transgender-in-2020 |access-date=April 30, 2021 |website=[[Forbes]] |archive-date=April 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210430203254/https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiewareham/2020/09/30/this-is-where-its-illegal-to-be-transgender-in-2020 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=September 28, 2017 |title=Trans Legal Mapping Report |url=https://ilga.org/trans-legal-mapping-report |access-date=July 14, 2022 |website=[[ILGA]] |archive-date=November 27, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221127223133/https://ilga.org/trans-legal-mapping-report |url-status=live }}</ref> | ||
In the U.S., 13% of respondents to the 2008 [[National Transgender Discrimination Survey]] chose "a gender not listed here".{{Efn|Q3 asked "What is your primary gender identity today?". Possible answers were male, female, "part time as one gender, part time as another", and "a gender not listed here, please specify".}} The "not listed here" respondents were more likely than the general sample (36% compared to 27%) to report forgoing healthcare due to fear of discrimination. 90 percent reported experiencing anti-trans bias at work, and 43 percent reported having attempted suicide.<ref | In the U.S., 13% of respondents to the 2008 [[National Transgender Discrimination Survey]] chose "a gender not listed here".{{Efn|Q3 asked "What is your primary gender identity today?". Possible answers were male, female, "part time as one gender, part time as another", and "a gender not listed here, please specify".}} The "not listed here" respondents were more likely than the general sample (36% compared to 27%) to report forgoing healthcare due to fear of discrimination. 90 percent reported experiencing anti-trans bias at work, and 43 percent reported having attempted suicide.<ref name=":14" /> | ||
The reported discrimination non-binary people face includes disregard, disbelief, condescending interactions, and disrespect.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |url=https://harvardlawreview.org/2019/01/they-them-and-theirs |title=They, Them, and Theirs |website=harvardlawreview.org |date=January 10, 2019 |access-date=December 9, 2019 |archive-date=December 5, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191205005233/https://harvardlawreview.org/2019/01/they-them-and-theirs |url-status=live}}</ref> Non-binary people are also often viewed as partaking in a trend and thus | The reported discrimination non-binary people face includes disregard, disbelief, condescending interactions, and disrespect.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |url=https://harvardlawreview.org/2019/01/they-them-and-theirs |title=They, Them, and Theirs |website=harvardlawreview.org |date=January 10, 2019 |access-date=December 9, 2019 |archive-date=December 5, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191205005233/https://harvardlawreview.org/2019/01/they-them-and-theirs |url-status=live}}</ref> Non-binary people are also often viewed as partaking in a trend and thus dismissed as insincere or attention-seeking. As an accumulation, erasure is often a significant form of discrimination non-binary people face.<ref name=":6" /> | ||
[[Misgendering]], intentional or not, is also a problem that many face. In the case of intentional misgendering, [[transphobia]] is a driving force. Additionally, the use of [[Singular they|they/them pronouns]] is lumped into{{Clarify|date=July 2023}} the larger, controversial, subject of [[safe space]]s and [[political correctness]],<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qFJDDwAAQBAJ&q=Cf.+S.+Bear+Bergman+&pg=PR5 |title=Genderqueer and Non-Binary Genders |last1=Richards |first1=Christina |last2=Bouman |first2=Walter Pierre |last3=Barker |first3=Meg-John |year=2017 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-1-137-51053-2 |access-date=October 19, 2020 |archive-date=March 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302223320/https://books.google.com/books?id=qFJDDwAAQBAJ&q=Cf.+S.+Bear+Bergman+&pg=PR5 |url-status=live}}</ref> causing pushback and intentional misgendering by some people.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Misgendering |url=https://www.californialawreview.org/print/misgendering |access-date=November 11, 2022 |website=California Law Review |archive-date=December 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221222162826/https://californialawreview.org/print/misgendering |url-status=dead }}</ref> | [[Misgendering]], intentional or not, is also a problem that many face. In the case of intentional misgendering, [[transphobia]] is a driving force. Additionally, the use of [[Singular they|they/them pronouns]] is lumped into{{Clarify|date=July 2023}} the larger, controversial, subject of [[safe space]]s and [[political correctness]],<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qFJDDwAAQBAJ&q=Cf.+S.+Bear+Bergman+&pg=PR5 |title=Genderqueer and Non-Binary Genders |last1=Richards |first1=Christina |last2=Bouman |first2=Walter Pierre |last3=Barker |first3=Meg-John |year=2017 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-1-137-51053-2 |access-date=October 19, 2020 |archive-date=March 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302223320/https://books.google.com/books?id=qFJDDwAAQBAJ&q=Cf.+S.+Bear+Bergman+&pg=PR5 |url-status=live}}</ref> causing pushback and intentional misgendering by some people.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Misgendering |url=https://www.californialawreview.org/print/misgendering |access-date=November 11, 2022 |website=California Law Review |archive-date=December 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221222162826/https://californialawreview.org/print/misgendering |url-status=dead }}</ref> | ||
Non-binary and transgender | Non-binary and transgender people also face discrimination in sports participation. Non-binary athletes have an immediate barrier as most sports competitions are divided into men's and women's categories.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Erikainen |first1=Sonja |last2=Vincent |first2=Ben |last3=Hopkins |first3=Al |date=October 9, 2020 |title=Specific Detriment: Barriers and Opportunities for Non-Binary Inclusive Sports in Scotland |journal=[[Journal of Sport & Social Issues]] |volume=46 |issue=1 |pages=75–102 |doi=10.1177/0193723520962937 |s2cid=225167557 |doi-access=free|hdl=2164/18985 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> Harassment when using public bathrooms is also frequent. According to the Trevor Project, 58% of non-binary and transgender youth have been discouraged from using the bathroom corresponding to their gender identity.<ref name=":16" /> | ||
==Healthcare== | ==Healthcare== | ||
Non-binary people may report significantly worse health and general well being than binary transgender people, although current research demonstrates conflicting perspectives on this topic.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Price-Feeney |first1=Myeshia |last2=Green |first2=Amy E. |last3=Dorison |first3=Samuel |date=June 2020 |title=Understanding the Mental Health of Transgender and Nonbinary Youth |journal=Journal of Adolescent Health |volume=66 |issue=6 |pages=684–690 |doi=10.1016/j.jadohealth.2019.11.314 |pmid=31992489 |s2cid=210947113 |issn=1054-139X|doi-access=free }}</ref> These health disparities may be exacerbated by [[minority stress]] by breaking gender and social norms.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Burgwal |first1=Aisa |last2=Gvianishvili |first2=Natia |last3=Hård |first3=Vierge |last4=Kata |first4=Julia |last5=García Nieto |first5=Isidro |last6=Orre |first6=Cal |last7=Smiley |first7=Adam |last8=Vidić |first8=Jelena |last9=Motmans |first9=Joz |date=July 3, 2019 |title=Health disparities between binary and non binary trans people: A community-driven survey |journal=International Journal of Transgenderism |volume=20 |issue=2–3 |pages=218–229 |doi=10.1080/15532739.2019.1629370 |issn=1553-2739 |pmc=6831016 |pmid=32999608}}</ref><ref name=":14" /> | |||
Healthcare professionals are often uninformed about | Healthcare professionals are often uninformed about non-binary people's specific health needs, sometimes requiring non-binary patients to educate them.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Kcomt |first1=Luisa |last2=Gorey |first2=Kevin M. |last3=Barrett |first3=Betty Jo |last4=McCabe |first4=Sean Esteban |date=August 1, 2020 |title=Healthcare avoidance due to anticipated discrimination among transgender people: A call to create trans-affirmative environments |journal=SSM – Population Health |volume=11 |article-number=100608 |doi=10.1016/j.ssmph.2020.100608 |issn=2352-8273 |pmc=7276492 |pmid=32529022}}</ref> Some providers may believe that non-binary people do not require transition-related treatment,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Vincent |first=Ben |title=Non-Binary Genders: Navigating Communities, Identities, and Healthcare |publisher=[[Policy Press]] |year=2020 |doi=10.56687/9781447351931|isbn=9781447351931 }}</ref> while others may not understand the difference between their identity and the identities of binary transgender patients.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Taylor |first1=Jessica |last2=Zalewska |first2=Agnieszka |last3=Gates |first3=Jennifer Joan |last4=Millon |first4=Guy |date=July 3, 2019 |title=An exploration of the lived experiences of non-binary individuals who have presented at a gender identity clinic in the United Kingdom |journal=International Journal of Transgenderism |volume=20 |issue=2–3 |pages=195–204 |doi=10.1080/15532739.2018.1445056 |issn=1553-2739 |pmc=6831017 |pmid=32999606}}</ref> Non-binary patients report lower rates of respect from healthcare providers than binary transgender people.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Kattari |first1=Shanna K. |last2=Bakko |first2=Matthew |last3=Hecht |first3=Hillary K. |last4=Kattari |first4=Leonardo |date=April 1, 2020 |title=Correlations between healthcare provider interactions and mental health among transgender and nonbinary adults |journal=SSM – Population Health |volume=10 |article-number=100525 |doi=10.1016/j.ssmph.2019.100525 |issn=2352-8273 |pmc=6909214 |pmid=31872041}}</ref> | ||
Beliefs that affirm the existence of gender/sex diversity are associated negatively with prejudices toward non-binary people.<ref>{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1016/j.copsyc.2022.101499| issn = 2352-250X| volume = 48| | Beliefs that affirm the existence of gender/sex diversity are associated negatively with prejudices toward non-binary people.<ref>{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1016/j.copsyc.2022.101499| issn = 2352-250X| volume = 48| article-number = 101499| last1 = Schudson| first1 = Zach C.| last2 = Morgenroth| first2 = Thekla| title = Non-binary gender/sex identities| journal = Current Opinion in Psychology| date = 2022-12-01| pmid = 36401906| quote = Research on gender/sex diversity affirming ontological beliefs has found that they are negatively associated with both implicit and explicit prejudice toward people with androgynous gender expressions, suggesting important links to positive attitudes toward non-binary and gender/sex diverse people.| doi-access = free}}</ref> | ||
===Transgender health care=== | ===Transgender health care=== | ||
Some | Some non-binary people desire [[Transgender health care|gender-affirming health care]], including [[Transgender hormone therapy|hormone replacement therapy]] or [[Gender-affirming surgery|surgery]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Beek |first1=Titia F. |last2=Kreukels |first2=Baudewijntje P.C. |last3=Cohen-Kettenis |first3=Peggy T. |last4=Steensma |first4=Thomas D. |date=November 1, 2015 |title=Partial Treatment Requests and Underlying Motives of Applicants for Gender Affirming Interventions |url=https://doi.org/10.1111/jsm.13033 |journal=The Journal of Sexual Medicine |volume=12 |issue=11 |pages=2201–2205 |doi=10.1111/jsm.13033 |pmid=26553507 |issn=1743-6109 |access-date=June 24, 2023 |archive-date=October 1, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241001010219/https://academic.oup.com/jsm/article-abstract/12/11/2201/6980102?redirectedFrom=fulltext |url-status=live |url-access=subscription }}</ref> Others do not,<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Burgwal |first1=Aisa |last2=Motmans |first2=Joz |date=November 2021 |title=Trans and gender diverse people's experiences and evaluations with general and trans-specific healthcare services: a cross-sectional survey |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/s41443-021-00432-9 |journal=International Journal of Impotence Research |volume=33 |issue=7 |pages=679–686 |doi=10.1038/s41443-021-00432-9 |pmid=33854204 |s2cid=233225133 |issn=1476-5489 |hdl=1854/LU-8704468 |hdl-access=free |access-date=June 24, 2023 |archive-date=June 24, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230624054919/https://www.nature.com/articles/s41443-021-00432-9 |url-status=live }}</ref> and the ratio of those who desire care to those who do not is unclear. The factors that lead to this decision are complex and unique to each person.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Vincent |first=Ben |date=July 3, 2019 |title=Breaking down barriers and binaries in trans healthcare: the validation of non-binary people |journal=International Journal of Transgenderism |volume=20 |issue=2–3 |pages=132–137 |doi=10.1080/15532739.2018.1534075 |issn=1553-2739 |pmc=6831034 |pmid=32999601}}</ref> | ||
Non-binary patients seeking gender-affirming care typically begin treatment earlier than binary transgender patients.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Kattari |first1=Shanna K. |last2=Atteberry-Ash |first2=Brittanie |last3=Kinney |first3=M. Killian |last4=Walls |first4=N. Eugene |last5=Kattari |first5=Leonardo |date=October 21, 2019 |title=One size does not fit all: differential transgender health experiences |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00981389.2019.1677279 |journal=Social Work in Health Care |volume=58 |issue=9 |pages=899–917 |doi=10.1080/00981389.2019.1677279 |pmid=31618117 |s2cid=204757090 |issn=0098-1389 |access-date=June 25, 2023 |archive-date=June 25, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230625040500/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00981389.2019.1677279 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription }}</ref> | |||
===Mental health care=== | ===Mental health care=== | ||
Due to the discrimination and harassment they face, non-binary and transgender people are more likely to have worse mental health outcomes than cisgender people.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book |last1=James |first1=S.E. |url=https://transequality.org/sites/default/files/docs/usts/USTS%20Full%20Report%20-%20FINAL%201.6.17.pdf |title=The Report of the 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey |last2=Herman |first2=J.L. |last3=Rankin |first3=S. |last4=Keisling |first4=M. |last5=Mottet |first5=L. |last6=Anafi |first6=M. |publisher=National Center for Transgender Equality |access-date=November 25, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221125120058/https://transequality.org/sites/default/files/docs/usts/USTS%20Full%20Report%20-%20FINAL%201.6.17.pdf |archive-date=November 25, 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Advocates for Trans Equality |title=The Report of the 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey: Executive Summary |url=http://www.transequality.org/sites/default/files/docs/USTS-Executive-Summary-FINAL.PDF |access-date=11 November 2025 |website=Advocates for Trans Equality}}</ref> According to the Trevor Project, 54% of non-binary and transgender youth have considered suicide.<ref name=":16">{{Cite web |last=Paley |first=Amit |date=2019 |title=The National Survey on LGBTQ Mental Health |url=https://www.thetrevorproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/The-Trevor-Project-National-Survey-Results-2019.pdf |website=The Trevor Project |access-date=August 22, 2024 |archive-date=August 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240828162116/https://www.thetrevorproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/The-Trevor-Project-National-Survey-Results-2019.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> However, the presence of protective factors, such as acceptance of one's gender diversity, support from family and community, and connection with the broader non-binary community, result in markedly better mental health outcomes for non-binary and transgender people.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Tebbe |first1=Elliot A |last2=Budge |first2=Stephanie L |date=26 September 2022 |title=Factors that drive mental health disparities and promote well-being in transgender and nonbinary people |journal=Nature Reviews Psychology |volume=1 |issue=12 |pages=694–707 |doi=10.1038/s44159-022-00109-0 |pmid=36187743 |pmc=9513020 }}</ref> | |||
==Symbols and observances== | ==Symbols and observances== | ||
{{Main|LGBTQ symbols}} | {{Main|LGBTQ symbols}} | ||
[[File:Anjali gopalan.jpg|thumb|[[Anjali Gopalan]] and [[Gopi Shankar Madurai]] inaugurating Asia's first Genderqueer Pride Parade at [[Madurai]] with a rainbow and genderqueer flag<ref name="One Who Fights For an Other">{{cite web |url=http://www.newindianexpress.com/education/edex/One-Who-Fights-For-an-Other/2015/04/13/article2756559.ece |title=One Who Fights For an Other |work=The New Indian Express |access-date=May 11, 2015 |archive-date=September 24, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160924062152/http://www.newindianexpress.com/education/edex/One-Who-Fights-For-an-Other/2015/04/13/article2756559.ece |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="merinews">{{cite web |url=http://www.merinews.com/article/worldwide-gay-rights-as-a-social-movement-picks-up/15914647.shtml |publisher=merinews.com |title=Worldwide gay rights as a social movement picks up |access-date=May 12, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170802091818/http://www.merinews.com/article/worldwide-gay-rights-as-a-social-movement-picks-up/15914647.shtml |archive-date=August 2, 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref>]] | [[File:Anjali gopalan.jpg|thumb|[[Anjali Gopalan]] and [[Gopi Shankar Madurai]] inaugurating Asia's first Genderqueer Pride Parade at [[Madurai]] with a rainbow and genderqueer flag<ref name="One Who Fights For an Other">{{cite web |url=http://www.newindianexpress.com/education/edex/One-Who-Fights-For-an-Other/2015/04/13/article2756559.ece |title=One Who Fights For an Other |work=The New Indian Express |access-date=May 11, 2015 |archive-date=September 24, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160924062152/http://www.newindianexpress.com/education/edex/One-Who-Fights-For-an-Other/2015/04/13/article2756559.ece |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="merinews">{{cite web |url=http://www.merinews.com/article/worldwide-gay-rights-as-a-social-movement-picks-up/15914647.shtml |publisher=merinews.com |title=Worldwide gay rights as a social movement picks up |access-date=May 12, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170802091818/http://www.merinews.com/article/worldwide-gay-rights-as-a-social-movement-picks-up/15914647.shtml |archive-date=August 2, 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref>]] | ||
Many flags have been used in non-binary and genderqueer communities to represent various identities. There are distinct non-binary and genderqueer pride flags. The genderqueer pride flag was designed in 2011 by Marilyn Roxie. Lavender represents androgyny or queerness, white represents agender identity, and green represents those whose identities which are defined outside the binary.<ref name=":1">{{cite web |first=Lynn |last=Deater |url=http://ncccommuter.org/he-she-or-they |title=He, She or They? » The Commuter |website=ncccommuter.org |access-date=December 20, 2016 |date=April 29, 2015 |archive-date=December 21, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221090439/http://ncccommuter.org/he-she-or-they |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{cite web |url=https://www.amherst.edu/system/files/Flags%2520and%2520Symbols.pdf |title=Flags and Symbols |publisher=[[Amherst College]] |location=Amherst, Massachusetts |access-date=December 20, 2016 |archive-date=May 10, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170510154054/https://www.amherst.edu/system/files/Flags%2520and%2520Symbols.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.davidmariner.com/flags |title=Gender and Sexuality Awareness Flags |date=October 26, 2015 |newspaper=David Mariner |access-date=December 20, 2016 |archive-date=February 3, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203153557/http://www.davidmariner.com/flags |url-status=live}}</ref> The non-binary pride flag was created in 2014 by [[Kye Rowan]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://letsqueerthingsup.com/2015/03/15/8-things-non-binary-people-need-to-know |title=8 Things Non-Binary People Need to Know |date=March 15, 2015 |website=Let's Queer Things Up! |access-date=December 20, 2016 |archive-date=December 22, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161222123705/https://letsqueerthingsup.com/2015/03/15/8-things-non-binary-people-need-to-know |url-status=live}}</ref> Yellow represents people whose gender exists outside the binary, purple represents those whose gender is a mixture of—or between—male and female, black represents people who have no gender, and white represents those who embrace many or all genders.<ref name="nbflagtumblr">{{cite web |title=After counting up all the 'votes' for each variation of my nonbinary flag (to be separate from the genderqueer flag), it seems this is the most loved! Yay! |url=http://thejasmineelf.tumblr.com/post/77007286542/after-counting-up-all-the-votes-for-each |website=genderweird |publisher=[[Tumblr]] |access-date=June 24, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180624214236/http://thejasmineelf.tumblr.com/post/77007286542/after-counting-up-all-the-votes-for-each |archive-date=June 24, 2018}}</ref> | Many flags have been used in non-binary and genderqueer communities to represent various identities. There are distinct non-binary and genderqueer pride flags. The genderqueer pride flag was designed in 2011 by Marilyn Roxie. Lavender represents androgyny or queerness, white represents [[agender]] identity, and green represents those whose identities which are defined outside the binary.<ref name=":1">{{cite web |first=Lynn |last=Deater |url=http://ncccommuter.org/he-she-or-they |title=He, She or They? » The Commuter |website=ncccommuter.org |access-date=December 20, 2016 |date=April 29, 2015 |archive-date=December 21, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221090439/http://ncccommuter.org/he-she-or-they |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{cite web |url=https://www.amherst.edu/system/files/Flags%2520and%2520Symbols.pdf |title=Flags and Symbols |publisher=[[Amherst College]] |location=Amherst, Massachusetts |access-date=December 20, 2016 |archive-date=May 10, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170510154054/https://www.amherst.edu/system/files/Flags%2520and%2520Symbols.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.davidmariner.com/flags |title=Gender and Sexuality Awareness Flags |date=October 26, 2015 |newspaper=David Mariner |access-date=December 20, 2016 |archive-date=February 3, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203153557/http://www.davidmariner.com/flags |url-status=live}}</ref> The non-binary pride flag was created in 2014 by [[Kye Rowan]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://letsqueerthingsup.com/2015/03/15/8-things-non-binary-people-need-to-know |title=8 Things Non-Binary People Need to Know |date=March 15, 2015 |website=Let's Queer Things Up! |access-date=December 20, 2016 |archive-date=December 22, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161222123705/https://letsqueerthingsup.com/2015/03/15/8-things-non-binary-people-need-to-know |url-status=live}}</ref> Yellow represents people whose gender exists outside the binary, purple represents those whose gender is a mixture of—or between—male and female, black represents people who have no gender, and white represents those who embrace many or all genders.<ref name="nbflagtumblr">{{cite web |title=After counting up all the 'votes' for each variation of my nonbinary flag (to be separate from the genderqueer flag), it seems this is the most loved! Yay! |url=http://thejasmineelf.tumblr.com/post/77007286542/after-counting-up-all-the-votes-for-each |website=genderweird |publisher=[[Tumblr]] |access-date=June 24, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180624214236/http://thejasmineelf.tumblr.com/post/77007286542/after-counting-up-all-the-votes-for-each |archive-date=June 24, 2018}}</ref> | ||
Several symbols have been proposed for | Several symbols have been proposed for non-binary people, to complement the [[Mars symbol]] for men and [[Venus symbol]] for women. One popular symbol is a circle with a stem above it, crossed by an X, in reference to [[Legal recognition of non-binary gender|the use of Xs]] as a gender marker for non-binary people.<ref>{{cite news |last1=<!--staff--> |title=All about the nonbinary symbol |url=https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2022/07/all-about-the-nonbinary-symbol/ |access-date=3 June 2025 |work=[[LGBTQ Nation]] |date=2022-07-30 |language=en |archive-date=April 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240418062235/https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2022/07/all-about-the-nonbinary-symbol/ |url-status=live }}</ref> | ||
Genderfluid people, who fall under the genderqueer umbrella, also have their own flag. Pink represents femininity, white represents lack of gender, purple represents mixed gender or androgyny, black represents all other genders, and blue represents masculinity.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.lgbtqnation.com/2016/09/gender-fluid-added-oxford-english-dictionary |title=Gender-fluid added to the Oxford English Dictionary |newspaper=[[LGBTQ Nation]] |access-date=December 20, 2016 |archive-date=October 25, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161025023342/http://www.lgbtqnation.com/2016/09/gender-fluid-added-oxford-english-dictionary |url-status=live}}</ref> | Genderfluid people, who fall under the genderqueer umbrella, also have their own flag. Pink represents femininity, white represents lack of gender, purple represents mixed gender or androgyny, black represents all other genders, and blue represents masculinity.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.lgbtqnation.com/2016/09/gender-fluid-added-oxford-english-dictionary |title=Gender-fluid added to the Oxford English Dictionary |newspaper=[[LGBTQ Nation]] |access-date=December 20, 2016 |archive-date=October 25, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161025023342/http://www.lgbtqnation.com/2016/09/gender-fluid-added-oxford-english-dictionary |url-status=live}}</ref> | ||
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=== Argentina === | === Argentina === | ||
According to provisional results from | According to provisional results from Argentina's 2022 national census, 8,293 people (about 0.018% of the total population) identified as non-binary.<ref>{{cite web|title=Census data in Argentina officially include non-binary people for the first time|publisher=NewsEndIP|date=February 1, 2023|url=https://www.newsendip.com/census-data-in-argentina-for-the-first-time-officially-reports-non-binary-people-in-the-country/|access-date=2025-05-17}}</ref> | ||
=== Brazil === | === Brazil === | ||
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=== Canada === | === Canada === | ||
Statistics Canada reported that in the 2021 Census, 41,355 Canadians aged 15 or older (about 0.14% of that age group) identified as non-binary.<ref>{{cite web|title=Canada is the first country to provide census data on transgender and non-binary people|publisher=Statistics Canada|date=April 27, 2022|url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/220427/dq220427b-eng.htm|access-date=2025-05-17}}</ref> | Statistics Canada reported that in the 2021 Census, 41,355 Canadians aged 15 or older (about 0.14% of that age group) identified as non-binary.<ref>{{cite web|title=Canada is the first country to provide census data on transgender and non-binary people|publisher=Statistics Canada|date=April 27, 2022|url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/220427/dq220427b-eng.htm|access-date=2025-05-17|archive-date=June 20, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220620215331/https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/220427/dq220427b-eng.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> | ||
=== Switzerland === | === Switzerland === | ||
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=== United Kingdom === | === United Kingdom === | ||
According to the 2021 census (England and Wales), 30,000 people identified as non-binary, about 0.06% of the population.<ref>{{cite web|title=First census estimates on gender identity and sexual orientation|publisher=Office for National Statistics|date=January 6, 2023|url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/news/news/firstcensusestimatesongenderidentityandsexualorientation|access-date=2025-05-17}}</ref> | According to the 2021 census (England and Wales), 30,000 people identified as non-binary, about 0.06% of the population.<ref>{{cite web|title=First census estimates on gender identity and sexual orientation|publisher=Office for National Statistics|date=January 6, 2023|url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/news/news/firstcensusestimatesongenderidentityandsexualorientation|access-date=2025-05-17|archive-date=March 28, 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250328092105/https://www.ons.gov.uk/news/news/firstcensusestimatesongenderidentityandsexualorientation|url-status=live}}</ref> | ||
=== United States === | === United States === | ||
Recent U.S. surveys suggest roughly 1–2% of American adults identify as non-binary. For example, a 2024 Gallup poll found between 1% and 2% of U.S. adults reported a non-binary gender identity.<ref>{{cite web|last=Jones|first=Jeffrey M.|title=LGBTQ+ Identification in U.S. Rises to 9.3%|publisher=Gallup|date=February 20, 2025|url=https://news.gallup.com/poll/656708/lgbtq-identification-rises.aspx|access-date=2025-05-17}}</ref> | Recent U.S. surveys suggest roughly 1–2% of American adults identify as non-binary. For example, a 2024 Gallup poll found between 1% and 2% of U.S. adults reported a non-binary gender identity.<ref>{{cite web|last=Jones|first=Jeffrey M.|title=LGBTQ+ Identification in U.S. Rises to 9.3%|publisher=Gallup|date=February 20, 2025|url=https://news.gallup.com/poll/656708/lgbtq-identification-rises.aspx|access-date=2025-05-17|archive-date=May 13, 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250513023355/https://news.gallup.com/poll/656708/lgbtq-identification-rises.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref> | ||
==See also== | ==See also== | ||
Latest revision as of 06:59, 19 November 2025
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Non-binaryTemplate:Efn or genderqueer gender identities are those that are outside the male/female gender binary.[1][2] Non-binary identities often fall under the transgender umbrella since non-binary people typically identify with a gender that is different from the sex assigned to them at birth,[3] although some non-binary people do not consider themselves transgender.[4]
Non-binary people may identify as an intermediate or separate third gender,[5] identify with more than one gender[6][7] or no gender, or have a fluctuating gender identity.[8] Gender identity is separate from sexual or romantic orientation;[9] non-binary people have various sexual orientations.[10]
Non-binary people as a group vary in their gender expressions, and some may reject gender identity altogether.[11] Some non-binary people receive gender-affirming care to reduce the mental distress caused by gender dysphoria, such as gender-affirming surgery or hormone replacement therapy.[12]
Terms and definitions
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The term genderqueer first appeared in queer zines of the 1980s and early 1990s.[13][14] It gained prominence in the mid-1990s through activists,[15] such as Riki Anne Wilchins,[16] who used it to describe individuals deviating from traditional gender norms.[17][18] In a 1995 newsletter published by The Transexual Menace, Wilchins wrote that the new fight against gender oppression was political and:
It's about all of us who are genderqueer: diesel dykes and stone butches, leatherqueens and radical fairies, nelly fags, crossdressers, intersexed, transexuals, transvestites, transgendered, transgressively gendered, and those of us whose gender expressions are so complex they haven't even been named yet.[18]
Similar terms that preceded genderqueer included genderfuck and genderbender.[19][20] In the context of 1990s early queer activism, genderqueer began as a political stance for resisting the gender binary; the term carried the non-normative and anti-assimilationist connotations of the recently reclaimed word queer.[10][21] In 2002, the term had further dissemination through the anthology GenderQueer: Voices From Beyond the Sexual Binary.[22]
Genderqueer evolved into both an umbrella term for identities outside the gender binary and an adjective or self-identity term for those who challenge or diverge from conventional gender norms, or who "queer" gender.[23][24][25][26] The rise of the internet and public identification by celebrities brought the term genderqueer into mainstream awareness during the late 2000s and early 2010s.[15][17]
The term non-binary was not in widespread use until the early 2010s, when it quickly increased in popularity and surpassed genderqueer as the most-used umbrella term for all people who don't exclusively identify as women/girls or men/boys.[25][19] The popularity of non-binary is sometimes credited to the fact that it has a more neutral and less political connotation than genderqueer to many people.[26][27] Some critics of non-binary dislike it because the term itself reinforces the concept of a binary.[28][26]
Today, there is broad overlap in the meaning and usages of genderqueer and non-binary, although they still carry different connotations for many people.[29] As umbrella terms, both are used to encompass a wide range of identities and expressions that transcend the binary gender categories of man and woman.[30][31][26]
The term transgender often includes those who are genderqueer or non-binary, reflecting a broad spectrum of gender diversity.[11][32][33] This inclusive usage dates back to at least 1992, with significant contributions from figures such as Leslie Feinberg[15] and Kate Bornstein, who emphasized the shared experiences of "gender outlaws."[34]
Other related umbrella terms include gender nonconforming, gender expansive, and gender diverse. Gender nonconforming usually refers to those whose gender expression does not match masculine or feminine gender norms, but it has been alternately used in some contexts (particularly prior to the widespread use of non-binary) to refer to people whose gender identities do not match binary gender norms.[35][24] Some US organizations such as the Human Rights Campaign and Gender Spectrum use gender expansive to denote a broader range of gender identities and expressions than those typically associated with the binary gender system.[3] Many organizations in Australia and the UK use gender diverse to refer to people who "[do] not conform to their society's norms or values when it comes to their gendered physicality, gendered identity, gender expression or combination of those factors."[36][26][37]
The term enby, derived from the English pronunciation of the acronym NB for non-binary, is also sometimes used.[38][39]
Additionally, being non-binary is associated with gender ambiguity.[20][25] Androgyny (also androgyne) is often used to describe a blend of socially defined masculine and feminine traits.[25] However, not all non-binary individuals are androgynous; some identify with traditionally masculine or feminine traits, use alternative descriptors such as masculine woman or feminine man,[40] or experience or express themselves in ways that fluidly change from feminine to masculine at different times.[8][29]
Being non-binary is also not the same as being intersex. Most intersex people identify as either men or women,[41] although some identify as only non-binary, some identify as non-binary and genderfluid, while others identify as non-binary men or non-binary women. A national UK survey conducted in 2017 found that, of 1,980 intersex respondents, 38% identified as women, 32% as men, and 25% as non-binary.[42]
Identities
Agender
Script error: No such module "Labelled list hatnote". Template:Hatnote group <templatestyles src="Template:Visible anchor/styles.css" />Agender individuals, also known as genderless, gender-free, non-gendered, or ungendered,[43][44] have no gender at all.[45][8][11] This group represents a spectrum of identities that diverge from conventional gender norms. A 2017 analysis of surveys of gender identity found that, of the transgender participants, 14% identified as agender.[46] Gender Census, an international survey of non-binary people, found in 2025 that 25% of participants identified as agender.[47]
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, which added an entry for agender in 2016,[48] the first recorded use of the word was in 1996, as "A-gender", in an article in the Independent.[49] In 2014, the agender flag was created by Salom X,[50] and "agender" and "neutrois" were among the custom gender options added to Facebook and to OkCupid.[51][52] In 2017, Judge Amy Holmes Hehn ruled that Patch, an agender resident of Portland, could be legally identified as agender.[53]
Bigender
Script error: No such module "anchor".Script error: No such module "redirect hatnote". Bigender individuals possess two distinct gender identities that can manifest simultaneously or fluctuate between masculine and feminine expressions.[54][55][56] This differs from genderfluid identities, which may not involve fixed gender states but rather a fluid range across the gender spectrum.[57][58] The American Psychological Association recognizes bigender identity as part of the broader transgender category.[59] Surveys and studies, including a 1999 San Francisco Department of Public Health survey and a 2016 Harris poll, have documented the prevalence of bigender identification, particularly within younger generations.[60][61][62] Trigender people can shift among any three genders, but usually male, female, and a third gender.[6]
Demigender
Template:Dist Individuals identifying as demigender feel a partial connection to one gender while also identifying with another gender or none at all (agender).[63][64] Subcategories include demi-boy or demi-man, who partially identify as male, and demi-girl, who are partly female and partly non-binary. Demiflux people experience a stable non-binary identity with varying intensities of other gender identities.[64]
Genderfluid
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Genderfluid individuals do not adhere to a fixed gender identity; their genders change depending on time, place and situation, combining elements from one or more genders at different times.[8][29] This identity can overlap with bigender, trigender, polygender or pangender expressions.[6][7]
Pangender
Template:Dist <templatestyles src="Template:Visible anchor/styles.css" />Pangender individuals identify with multiple or all genders, sometimes experiencing all these identities simultaneously.[65][66]
Polygender
Template:Dist Polygender, plurigender or multigender is a non-binary identity in which the person experiences multiple genders.[67] Pangender, bigender, and trigender are examples of multi-gender identities,[68] sometimes along with androgyne, associated with demigender.[69]
Two-spirit
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Originating from a 1990 Indigenous LGBTQ gathering in Winnipeg, the term two-spirit refers to individuals within Indigenous North American communities who embody qualities or fulfill roles across traditional gender distinctions.[70]
Xenogender
Xenogender encompasses a variety of gender identities that are defined using concepts not based on traditional male or female categories, often drawn from natural, inanimate, or abstract sources, representing a departure from the typical human gender binary.[71][72] People who identify with a xenogender may not have the words to describe their gender, so instead they compare it to something else.[73]
History
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Non-binary gender, often included within the concept of third gender, has historical roots that extend well before the modern term was established.[77] For instance, the Public Universal Friend, who emerged in 1776, was a genderless evangelist who renounced their birth name and gendered pronouns, representing an early instance of non-binary gender expression in America.[78][79][80]
In 1781, Jens Andersson from Norway, assigned female at birth but identifying as male, faced imprisonment and a trial after marrying a woman. When questioned, Andersson stated, "Hand troer at kunde henhøre til begge Deele" ('He believes he belongs to both parts'), indicating a recognition of his dual gender identity.[81]
Judith Butler's Gender Trouble, published in 1990, challenged the fixed male/female binary and advocated for a broader understanding of gender as a spectrum, a view Butler has expanded upon since coming out as non-binary in 2019.[82][83][76][84]
The term "genderqueer" surfaced in the mid-1990s, notably used by activist Riki Wilchins in the newsletter In Your Face in 1995, and later in their 1997 autobiography. Wilchins contributed significantly to the discourse, particularly with the 2002 anthology GenderQueer: Voices from beyond the Sexual Binary.[22][85][17][86]
Jim Sinclair, an autism-rights activist and a founder of Autism Network International, publicly embraced a gender-neutral identity in 1997, declaring a physical and social neuter status in an introduction to the Intersex Society of North America.[87]
In Japan, the expression "X-gender" (Script error: No such module "lang".) has been recognized since the late 1990s, describing a non-binary identity, with notable individuals such as manga artists Yūki Kamatani and Yuu Watase identifying as such.[88][89]
In 2012, the Intersex & Genderqueer Recognition Project began advocating for more inclusive gender options on official documents, a milestone realized when Elisa Rae Shupe became the first person in the U.S. to obtain official documents with a non-binary gender marker.[90][91]
Alberta legislator Estefan Cortes-Vargas openly identified as non-binary during a 2015 legislative session, marking a significant moment in political recognition of non-binary identities.[92]
On January 20, 2025, immediately after being sworn in for his second term, President Donald Trump signed an executive order titled "Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government". This order established that the U.S. federal government would recognize only two sexes—male and female—defined strictly by biological characteristics assigned at birth. It explicitly rejected the concept of gender identity as a basis for legal recognition for non-binary people.
Pronouns and titles
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Many non-binary people use gender-neutral pronouns with the singular "they", "their" and "them" being used most commonly in English. Some non-binary individuals opt for neopronouns such as
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Template:Redirect template, and ey.[93][94][95][96] Others may use traditional gender-specific pronouns such as "he" or "she", switch between them, or prefer to use their name without pronouns.[97] Gender Census, which since 2013 has run a worldwide annual survey of English-speaking non-binary people, surveyed 43,000 people in 2025 and found that the most common pronouns respondents use for themselves were "they/them" (75%), "he/him" (41%), "she/her" (34%), "it/its" (23%), no personal pronouns at all (14%), and any pronouns (14%).[47] Thirty-three percent of respondents reported using a neopronoun such as xe, ze, fae, or ey at least some of the time.[47]
The title Mx. is sometimes used as a gender-neutral honorific. Invented in the 1970s, it began being used by non-binary people in online discussion spaces in the late 1990s and early 2000s and became increasingly popular in the 2010s.[98][99] According to Gender Census, Mx. has been decreasing in popularity over the last decade; in 2025 only 15% of respondents reported using Mx., while 43% preferred no honorific at all.[47] Smaller numbers of non-binary people use Mr. (11%), Ms. or Miss (9%), or a non-gendered professional, academic, religious, military, or nobility title (9%).[47]
The 2025 Gender Census also found that the five most commonly selected identity labels among people who aren't exclusively women/girls or men/boys were non-binary (62%), queer (56%), trans (47%), transgender (41%), and a category described as a person/human/[my name]/"I'm just me" (40%).[47]
Legal recognition
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Many non-binary/genderqueer people use the gender they were given at birth to conduct everyday business, as many institutions and forms of identification—such as passports and driver's licenses — accept, in the sense of recorded recognition, only binary gender identities. But with the increasing acceptance of non-binary gender identities and the rise in wider societal recognition, this is slowly changing, as more governments and institutions recognize and allow non-binary identities.[1]
Multiple countries legally recognize non-binary or third gender classifications. Some non-Western societies have long recognized transgender people as a third gender, although this may not (or may only recently)[100] include formal legal recognition. In Western societies, Australia may have been the first country to legally recognize a classification of sex outside of "male" and "female" on legal documentation, with the recognition of Alex MacFarlane's intersex status in 2003.[101] The wider legal recognition of non-binary people—following the recognition of intersex people in 2003—in Australian law followed between 2010 and 2014, with legal action taken against the New South Wales Government Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages by transgender activist Norrie May-Welby to recognize Norrie's legal gender identity as "non-specific". India's Supreme Court formally recognized transgender and non-binary people as a distinct third gender in 2014, following legal action taken by transgender activist Laxmi Narayan Tripathi.[102] In July 2021, Argentina incorporated non-binary gender in its national ID card, becoming the first country in South America to legally recognize non-binary gender on all official documentation; non-binary people in the country will have the option to renew their ID with the letter "X" under gender.[103][104]
United States
Legal recognition of non-binary gender identities in the United States has varied significantly across time and jurisdictions. In June 2016, a court in Oregon issued the first known ruling in the U.S. recognizing a non-binary gender.[105] In subsequent years, several states, beginning with California in 2017, enacted legislation or adopted policies allowing residents to select a non-binary or "X" gender marker on official documents such as driver's licenses and birth certificates.[106] As of early 2025, over 20 states and the District of Columbia continue to offer non-binary gender markers on some state-issued documents.
At the federal level, non-binary recognition advanced during the early 2020s. In 2021, the U.S. Department of State issued the first passport bearing an "X" gender marker,[107] and beginning in April 2022, this option became available to all applicants without medical documentation.[108][109][110] However, this policy was reversed in January 2025 when President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing federal agencies to recognize only male and female categories.[111][112] The U.S. Department of State subsequently suspended all new passport applications requesting an "X" marker,[113] though previously issued passports with an "X" designation remain valid until expiration.[114]
Legal protections for non-binary individuals under U.S. federal law remain limited. While Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 has been interpreted to prohibit employment discrimination based on gender nonconformity and transgender status, there are no explicit nationwide protections that specifically name non-binary individuals or ensure their rights across areas such as identification, healthcare, housing, or public services. As a result, access to recognition and protection continues to depend heavily on state and local laws and policies.[115][116]
Discrimination
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In the U.S., 13% of respondents to the 2008 National Transgender Discrimination Survey chose "a gender not listed here".Template:Efn The "not listed here" respondents were more likely than the general sample (36% compared to 27%) to report forgoing healthcare due to fear of discrimination. 90 percent reported experiencing anti-trans bias at work, and 43 percent reported having attempted suicide.[69]
The reported discrimination non-binary people face includes disregard, disbelief, condescending interactions, and disrespect.[119] Non-binary people are also often viewed as partaking in a trend and thus dismissed as insincere or attention-seeking. As an accumulation, erasure is often a significant form of discrimination non-binary people face.[119]
Misgendering, intentional or not, is also a problem that many face. In the case of intentional misgendering, transphobia is a driving force. Additionally, the use of they/them pronouns is lumped intoScript error: No such module "Unsubst". the larger, controversial, subject of safe spaces and political correctness,[120] causing pushback and intentional misgendering by some people.[121]
Non-binary and transgender people also face discrimination in sports participation. Non-binary athletes have an immediate barrier as most sports competitions are divided into men's and women's categories.[122] Harassment when using public bathrooms is also frequent. According to the Trevor Project, 58% of non-binary and transgender youth have been discouraged from using the bathroom corresponding to their gender identity.[123]
Healthcare
Non-binary people may report significantly worse health and general well being than binary transgender people, although current research demonstrates conflicting perspectives on this topic.[124] These health disparities may be exacerbated by minority stress by breaking gender and social norms.[125][69]
Healthcare professionals are often uninformed about non-binary people's specific health needs, sometimes requiring non-binary patients to educate them.[126] Some providers may believe that non-binary people do not require transition-related treatment,[127] while others may not understand the difference between their identity and the identities of binary transgender patients.[128] Non-binary patients report lower rates of respect from healthcare providers than binary transgender people.[129]
Beliefs that affirm the existence of gender/sex diversity are associated negatively with prejudices toward non-binary people.[130]
Transgender health care
Some non-binary people desire gender-affirming health care, including hormone replacement therapy or surgery.[131] Others do not,[132] and the ratio of those who desire care to those who do not is unclear. The factors that lead to this decision are complex and unique to each person.[133]
Non-binary patients seeking gender-affirming care typically begin treatment earlier than binary transgender patients.[134]
Mental health care
Due to the discrimination and harassment they face, non-binary and transgender people are more likely to have worse mental health outcomes than cisgender people.[135][136] According to the Trevor Project, 54% of non-binary and transgender youth have considered suicide.[123] However, the presence of protective factors, such as acceptance of one's gender diversity, support from family and community, and connection with the broader non-binary community, result in markedly better mental health outcomes for non-binary and transgender people.[137]
Symbols and observances
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Many flags have been used in non-binary and genderqueer communities to represent various identities. There are distinct non-binary and genderqueer pride flags. The genderqueer pride flag was designed in 2011 by Marilyn Roxie. Lavender represents androgyny or queerness, white represents agender identity, and green represents those whose identities which are defined outside the binary.[140][141][142] The non-binary pride flag was created in 2014 by Kye Rowan.[143] Yellow represents people whose gender exists outside the binary, purple represents those whose gender is a mixture of—or between—male and female, black represents people who have no gender, and white represents those who embrace many or all genders.[144]
Several symbols have been proposed for non-binary people, to complement the Mars symbol for men and Venus symbol for women. One popular symbol is a circle with a stem above it, crossed by an X, in reference to the use of Xs as a gender marker for non-binary people.[145]
Genderfluid people, who fall under the genderqueer umbrella, also have their own flag. Pink represents femininity, white represents lack of gender, purple represents mixed gender or androgyny, black represents all other genders, and blue represents masculinity.[141][146]
Agender people, who also sometimes identify as genderqueer, have their own flag. This flag uses black and white stripes to represent an absence of gender, and a green stripe to represent non-binary genders.[147]
International Non-Binary People's Day is celebrated on July 14.[148][149][150][151] Other observances with non-binary participation include International Transgender Day of Visibility, observed on March 31,[152][153] and International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia, observed on May 17.[154]Script error: No such module "Gallery".
Population figures
Argentina
According to provisional results from Argentina's 2022 national census, 8,293 people (about 0.018% of the total population) identified as non-binary.[155]
Brazil
A 2021 representative survey estimated that about 1.19% of Brazilian adults identify as non-binary.[156] This corresponds to roughly 1.9 million adults at the time of the survey.
Canada
Statistics Canada reported that in the 2021 Census, 41,355 Canadians aged 15 or older (about 0.14% of that age group) identified as non-binary.[157]
Switzerland
A nationwide survey conducted in late 2021 found that roughly 0.4% of Swiss adults described themselves as non-binary.[158]
United Kingdom
According to the 2021 census (England and Wales), 30,000 people identified as non-binary, about 0.06% of the population.[159]
United States
Recent U.S. surveys suggest roughly 1–2% of American adults identify as non-binary. For example, a 2024 Gallup poll found between 1% and 2% of U.S. adults reported a non-binary gender identity.[160]
See also
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Explanatory notes
References
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- ↑ Government Equalities Office (2018). National LGBT survey Template:Webarchive. Annex 10.
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- ↑ Samantha Schmidt, A genderless prophet drew hundreds of followers long before the age of nonbinary pronouns Template:Webarchive, January 5, 2020, The Washington Post
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Further reading
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- Barker, Meg-John; Scheele, Julia (2016). Queer: A Graphic History. London: Icon Books. Template:ISBN. Template:Catalog lookup link.
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- Richards, C., Bouman, W. P., & Barker, M.-J. (2017). Genderqueer and non-binary genders. London: Palgrave Macmillan. Template:ISBN. Template:Catalog lookup link.
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External links
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- The Trevor Project a suicide prevention and crisis intervention nonprofit organization for LGBTQ+ young people
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