• utopianfiat@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    13
    arrow-down
    2
    ·
    1 year ago

    What’s wild about “two-spirit” is that it’s not a really definite concept (that is, it is a neologism from 1990 that does not have a universal understanding among tribal traditions) but what it does accomplish is replacing the perjorative European anthropological term

    slur

    berdache, from Arabic burdaj “slave” meaning basically a young male submissive gay partner

    • poweruser@lemmy.sdf.org
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      7
      ·
      1 year ago

      TIL that term is considered a slur. I remember learning about them in anthropology class ~15 years ago and that was the term used.

      So is the respectful terminology today to use whichever modern LGBTQ label is accurate, or should I use two-spirit in historical context?

      • utopianfiat@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        5
        ·
        1 year ago

        When speaking of first nations and amerindians who are queer and self-identify as two-spirit, use two-spirit. Historically, I don’t know.