Sexual orientation, also known as sexuality,[1] refers to a person's sexual attractions (or lack thereof) toward other people.[1][2] It is not defined by sexual activity, which can be independent of a person's orientation.[2] It also is not equivalent to a person's gender, but the most common terms use the language of the gender binary (male or female).[1]
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Examples of sexual orientations
Abrosexual
- Main article: Abrosexual
An abrosexual pride flag
Abrosexual people experience their sexual orientation as fluid and/or changing over time. Although other kinds of fluidity may involve changes in the genders someone is attracted to, abrosexuality involves someone's entire orientation changing over time. The intensity of their attractions may change as well.[3] There is no set schedule experienced by all abrosexual people; it may fluctuate between hours, days, weeks, months, or even years for their orientations to change. Some abrosexual individuals do have their own fixed patterns or schedules, but not all. Some may be fluid between a few orientations, while others are fluid between several.[4]
Because abrosexual people can sometimes be asexual, abrosexuality can fall under the asexual spectrum. It also falls under the multisexuality umbrella, which includes people who are romantically or sexuality attracted to multiple genders.[4]
Achillean
- Main article: Achillean
An achillean pride flag
Achillean refers to a man or man-aligned individual who is attracted to other men and men-aligned people.[note 1] This describes all sexual orientations where someone male or man-aligned is attracted to others, serving as an umbrella term for men and non-binary people who are gay, pansexual, bisexual, queer, or other sexualities in which men are attracted to men. It is similar to and sometimes known as men loving men (MLM).[5]
Asexual
- Main article: Asexual
The asexual pride flag
Asexual refers to people who do not experience sexual attraction toward others.[6] They may experience other forms of attraction, such as romantic, sensual, or aesthetic attraction. Asexuality is a sexual orientation,[7] not a gender identity, behavior, or medical condition. Some asexual people choose to engage in sexual activities for various reasons despite not experiencing sexual feelings and desire toward any particular person.[8] Asexuality is part of the asexual spectrum (abbreviated "ace"), an umbrella term and a broad community of identities that are closely related to asexuality when placed on a spectrum ranging from asexual to sexual.[6]
Bisexual
- Main article: Bisexual
The bisexual pride flag
Bisexual is a label that describes an attraction to two or more genders on the gender spectrum.[9][10] Some bisexual people have a preference toward one or several genders and some do not.[11]An alternate definition is the sexual attraction to one's own gender and different gender(s).[12]
Ceterosexual
- Main article: Ceterosexual
A ceterosexual pride flag
Ceterosexual,[3] also known as skoliosexual,[3][13][14] refers to sexual attraction to non-binary[3][13][14] and/or potentially binary transgender people,[14][15] sometimes exclusively.[3] People who are ceterosexual may or may not be attracted to cisgender individuals, especially those which break gender roles, though this definition is disputed.[15][16]
Demisexual
- Main article: Demisexual
The demisexual pride flag
Demisexual is a term used to describe those who do not experience sexual attraction to others unless they form a strong emotional bond with someone first. Demisexual people may still experience romantic attraction, but until a deep connection is formed, there is no sexual attraction involved. They may have little to no interest in sex and may only experience sexual attraction rarely, but that is not the case with all demisexuals.[17] Demisexuality is included on the asexual spectrum, but demisexual people can be gay, straight, bisexual, or any other orientation in addition to being demisexual.[18]
Gay
- Main article: Gay
The modern version of the rainbow flag is commonly used as a gay pride flag
Gay is an adjective referring to those with an enduring physical, romantic, and/or emotional attraction to people of the same gender.[19] This is most commonly associated with men,[20] as a gay woman may prefer to use the term "lesbian" instead.[21][2] Queer and bisexual are also among the terms used for those who are attracted to members of the same gender.[22] In a broader sense of the word, gay can also be used as an umbrella term to identify any LGBTQIA+ individual,[23] though some note that doing so excludes other sexual orientations and gender identities and should thus be avoided.[2]
"Gay" as an identity is defined by the attraction and self-identification as such rather than having had any sexual experience with people of the same gender.[2] Thus, having had sexual intercourse with someone of the same gender does not make anyone gay by definition. There is not just one way to experience same-sex attraction, nor is there a set period in life to discover that you experience it. While some may know that they experience same-sex attraction from a young age, it can take others decades to figure it out or be comfortable enough with their identity to acknowledge it to themselves and others.[24]
Being gay is also referred to as "homosexuality" and thus forms the counterpart of "heterosexuality", the sexual attraction to individuals of the opposite gender.[22] However, controversy has arisen surrounding the use of the word "homosexuals" to refer to gay people, as it has been considered an outdated term that is derogatory and offensive to many lesbian and gay people due to its usage by anti-LGBTQIA+ individuals to imply that gay people are somehow diseased or psychologically/emotionally disordered.[21]
Heterosexual
Heterosexual, or straight, refers to an individual who feels sexual attraction to people of a gender different than their own,[2] or, someone who feels sexual attraction to the opposite gender when referring to cisgender individuals who are either male or female.[25] A person who is both cisgender and heterosexual is sometimes referred to as "cishet".[2] Within the Split Attraction Model, its romantic equivalent is heteroromantic.[26]
Lesbian
- Main article: Lesbian
The community lesbian pride flag
Lesbian, a term with multiple definitions, is most often defined as a woman who is attracted to other women romantically, sexually, or both.[27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36] The term is generally used as a self-identification of sexual or romantic orientation.[36] Although lesbians are frequently defined as women who are exclusively attracted to women,[28] another definition is women primarily attracted to other women.[35] Some prefer to use or additionally use "gay" or "gay woman" as an identifier.[37]
Definitions vary in whether or not they use expanded language, such as a person who self-describes as a woman,[35] or phrasing that explicitly includes people who do not identify only as women, such as woman-aligned[note 2][37] and some genderqueer and/or non-binary people who feel a connection to womanhood.[38] Lesbians may be cisgender or transgender;[28][39][40] since gender is a separate concept from sexual orientation, someone may be both trans and lesbian.[note 3][28][39] Based upon assigned gender at birth, and prior to realizing their gender identity and transitioning, some trans women identify as straight and some trans men identify as lesbians based on their attractions to women. Trans women sometimes subsequently understand and identify themselves as lesbian; trans men may or may not remain in or be accepted by lesbian communities after they transition as men. This does not mean that all butch or otherwise masculine lesbians are transgender.[41]
Certain lesbians have used the label to describe their gender in addition to their attractions.[42] In the 2021 Gender Census, an annual online international survey of people who do not strictly identify with the gender binary, participants indicated their personal identifiers; the item "lesbian (partially or completely in relation to gender)" was selected by 12.9% of the participants.[43]
For over a century, lesbians have debated who shares their identity and is part of the lesbian community.[44] They have variously been defined based on sexual behaviors, sexual attractions, or self-identifying with the label. For instance, women who self-identify as both bisexual and lesbian[note 4] would not be included in a definition that specifies lesbians are only oriented toward women, but would be in a broader definition that encompasses other labels.[46]
Omnisexual
- Main article: Omnisexual
The omnisexual pride flag
Omnisexuality is most often defined as the sexual attraction to people of all gender identities, wherein gender plays a role in one's attraction, and it can more broadly be described simply as the sexual attraction to all genders.[47] Some omnisexual people may be more attracted to certain genders, but that is not always the case.[48]
Pansexual
- Main article: Pansexual
The pansexual pride flag
Pansexuality is the sexual attraction toward people regardless of their sex or gender identity.[49] Since gender or sex are not determining factors in who a pansexual person is attracted to, some pansexuals might call themselves gender-blind, therefore rejecting the gender binary.[50]
Polysexual
- Main article: Polysexual
The polysexual pride flag
Polysexuality is the sexual attraction to various, but not necessarily all, genders.[51] A polysexual person may experience sexual attraction to any number of genders, varying between (at least) two and many. Polysexual individuals may have a preference when it comes to which gender they are attracted to, but this is not necessarily the case.[52]
Queer
- Main article: Queer
A common queer flag
Queer is an identifier for individuals and/or the community of people who are not cisgender heterosexual[21][2] It can be used instead of, or in addition to, other identifiers of sexual orientation, such as lesbian, bisexual, or gay. Queer can also refer to gender identity or gender expression,[21] whether as a standalone term or part of another like genderqueer.[53] The "Q" in LGBTQIA+ and similar acronyms commonly means Queer.[21] As a reclaimed word, it has been used in fights for LGBTQIA+ rights and liberation[54] as an inclusive and sometimes defiant term. PFLAG[2] and GLAAD[21] are two of the organizations that recommend only using it for people who self-identify as queer because it has varying meanings and is not universally accepted.[21][2] In addition, the term may be used in preference to other identifiers by members, for a variety of reasons.[55]
Sapphic
- Main article: Sapphic
A sapphic pride flag
Sapphic, sometimes known as woman loving woman (WLW),[56] or sapphist,[57] refers to a woman of any sexual orientation who is attracted to other women.[56][2] Another definition is specifically inclusive of non-binary people.[56] It is an umbrella term for many identities, including those who are lesbian, pansexual, bisexual, or queer.[2] It is used to promote solidarity among women of all identities who are attracted to other women. It may also be used as an identity, and may be found particularly useful for individuals who know they are attracted to women but may be uncertain if they are attracted to other genders.[58] It can also be used to describe a relationship between two women.[59][60]
See also
Notes
- ↑ Gender identity is a personal experience, so defining "man-aligned" may lead to different answers depending on whom you ask, but it generally refers to a non-binary person who is partially aligned or identifies with being male, with masculinity, and/or with manhood. They may or may not individually identify with this term, and their identity may be fluid between others. Its use here attempts to encapsulate multiple identities without listing each possibility.
- ↑ Gender identity is a personal experience, so defining "woman-aligned" may lead to different answers depending on whom you ask, but it generally refers to a non-binary person who is partially aligned or identifies with being female, with femininity, and/or with womanhood. They may or may not individually identify with this term, and their identity may be fluid between others. Its use here attempts to encapsulate multiple identities without listing each possibility.
- ↑ While transgender people are generally implied in definitions, trans lesbians are explicitly noted here to make clear that lesbian identity is not limited to cisgender women.
- ↑ Examples of labels used to self-identify as both lesbian and bisexual include bisexual lesbian, bi-lesbian, and lesbian-identified bisexual.[45]
References
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