LGBTQ2S: Two-Spirit Gender Meaning—5 Things To Know!

The world is a diverse and beautiful place. It is full of people with varying sexual orientations, ranging from straight and bisexual to gays and lesbians to queer and questioning. Sexual orientations and the spectrum they fall into are generally known by the acronym LGBTQ+ or LGBTTQQIAAPP. Okay! So who are LGBTQ2S and LGBTQ2S+? How are they different from LGBTQ+? To start with, let us know the full form of LGBTQ2S+.

LGBTQ2S+ stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Questioning, and Two-Spirit. The plus (+) sign denotes other sexual orientations and gender identities. Such a spectrum of sexual orientations is also known by another acronym LGBTQ+. In fact, the word two-spirit in the acronym LGBTQ2S+ predates the acronym LGBTQ+.

Let us now decode the meaning of LGBTQ2S or LGBTQ2S+ and understand the two-spirited gender meaning. Meanwhile, to learn more about what LGBTQ+ or LGBTTQQIAAPP stands for, click here: LGBTQ+ or LGBTTQQIAAPP!

What does LGBTQ2S stand for? The Two-Spirit Gender Meaning

Let us understand the meaning of 2S first. The term “2S” stands for “two-spirit” or “2 spirit”. But what does “2 spirit” mean? The term “two-spirit” is used for someone who identifies himself as having both a masculine and a feminine spirit living inside his body. In short, a two-spirited character embodies a person in which both genders reside.

Two-spirit is an umbrella term many people now use for same-sex attraction and a wide array of gender diversity. People now use the term “two-spirit” to include all who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, transexual, queer, intersex, questioning or those with multiple gender identities. Therefore, the definition of two-spirit gender meaning also includes all sexual orientations, gender identities, and spiritual identities. If we compare two-spirit to the most appropriate gender identity in the modern world, it will be queer. Queer is also a generic umbrella term to define varying sexualities. 

Origin of the Two-Spirit (2S)-Two-Spirit Gender Meaning!

So how did the two-spirit term originate? LGBTQ2S+, or a two-spirit term, specifically, is a term used by indigenous people to describe their sexual identities. Later on, the 2-S term was extended to include all same-sex attractions and gender identities. 

If you are not native, then you are not two-spirited. If you are not native, you do not get to claim a two-spirit identity. The term “two-spirit” is not an umbrella term for LGBTQ identities.

The term got its name from the indigenous tribes of North America and Canada to describe their sexual, gender, and/or spiritual identities. This term was originally used for people who identified themselves as having the spirits of both males and females. Also, since these indigenous communities did not have any other term to describe gender identities or sexual orientations, they used the term “two-spirit.” Currently, some cultures or indigenous languages do not have any terms to describe same-sex attraction or other gender identities. Therefore, they use the term “two-spirited.”

Two-Spirit is a term created by native people for native people.

The term was coined in 1990.

Native North Americans and associated communities use two-spirited gender identities to denote traditional third-gender roles in their communities. These two-spirited people are held in high regard and are considered divine beings as they believe that “all lives are sacred.” Social activist Albert McLeod coined the term in 1990 to include all the indigenous people in the LGBTQ+ community. Although different indigenous communities or cultures have their own nomenclature for the LGBTQ2S+ term, all the terms refer to the same traits embodied by two-spirited people.

In some cultures, like India, the two-spirit people maintain a distinguished gender status and are considered neither men nor women.

For generations, the two-spirit people from the indigenous culture went undercover to avoid detection and killing.

So what does “2 Spirit” mean now?

Now, the two-Spirit is regarded as a modern umbrella term specific to the indigenous LGBTTQQIAAPP community. Although the term denotes genders and orientations, it simply means a person who is both indigenous and queer.

5 things you should know about two-spirit people, denoted by 2S in the acronym LGBTQ2S+

1. Two-spirit is not a modern movement

The term was coined in 1990 by social activist Albert McLeod to include all the indigenous people in the LGBTQ+ community. But this thought existed way before that. 

The term “two-spirit” does not refer to a specific gender and is instead a universal term that expresses a wide variety of people who don’t fit into the traditional gender binary roles. Two-spirit people have characteristics of both males and females and are seen as people blessed by God to see life from the lens of both genders. 

Two-spirit is not a contemporary movement and originates in indigenous cultures. This indigenous gender identity goes back centuries.

2. Being gay is not the same as being two-spirited.

People often confuse gay people with being two-spirited. But they are not the same. Being gay is about being attracted to a person of the same sex. Two-spirit is about the materialization of both genders within one person. It means that a person who is two-spirited can be gay, but not all gay people are two-spirited.

3. Not all “two-spirit” people express themselves in the same way

Like other gender orientations and identities, there is no universal way in which all people who identify as two-spirited look or behave. For example, a two-spirit person assigned as female at birth could dress like a male to express her masculine side. But at the same time, she can dress like a female and retain her feminine side. And this could also work the opposite way. Not all two-spirit people express themselves in the same way.

4. Two-Spirit is a term mainly used for native people

As already discussed above, two-spirit is a character that originates in the indigenous tribes of North America/Canada and encompasses tribal people who are gender fluid, queer, or gender non-conforming. That means someone who does not belong to a tribe cannot claim the term two-spirit to describe their sexual orientation or gender identity.

5. Two-spirit people had a significant role in the tribe

Native North Americans and associated communities use two-spirited gender identities to denote traditional third-gender roles in their communities. These two-spirited people are held in high regard and considered divine beings as they believe that “all lives are sacred.” The two-spirit people held a sacred role in the tribe. They were seen as having special qualities and were often ascribed important societal roles.

We hope we were able to give you clarity on who two-spirited people are and what the terms “two-spirited” or “2S” mean. We also believe that now you know how two-spirited people are different from the LGBTQ community.

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