Lifestyle

What do the alphabets in LGBTQ+ really mean?

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The LGBTQ+ sometimes called LGBTQIA folks are known as the alphabet people because the community includes so many sexual orientations.


According to The New York Times, the symbol “+” means all non-cisgender and non-straight identities that are not included in the acronym. I stands for Intersex and A for Asexual.

Here’s a quick explanation of some gender identities;

Lesbian: A female homosexual. A biological woman attracted to the same sex.

Gay: A male homosexual. A biological man attracted to the same sex.

Bisexual: Bisexual is a person attracted to both males and females.

Transgender: A person who transitions to a gender apart from the one assigned at birth.

Queer: A blanket term for people with sexual orientation different from straight or heterosexual people.

Two Spirits: The term two spirits came from an indigenous tribe in Turtle Island North America and it means a person with female and male spirits in them.

Pansexual: A person who is attracted to anyone regardless of sex or sexual orientation. They can love anyone within or outside the LGBTQ community.

Asexual: A lack of sexual attraction to anyone or low sexual energy.

Intersex: A person born with chromosomes, gonads, or genitals that can make it difficult for them to identify as either male or female.

Agender : These are genderless people. They do not ascribe any gender to themselves

Bigender: A bigender person moves between the two genders depending on their mood or context. They are both male and female.

Pangender: A Pangender person identifies as all genders.

Demisexual: Someone who only feels sexual attraction after developing an emotional connection.