The Third Gender Existed Since the Dawn of Time

Many ancient civilisations recognised an intermediate state between man and woman

Detail of Sleeping Hermaphrodite, first half of 2nd century AD, restored by Gian Lorenzo Bernini and David Larique, Louvre Museum Collection

Most of us probably grew up learning that gender comes in two distinct flavors: men and women. And you know who’s who based on their biological sex.

For a long time, this gender binary was well anchored within our society and social norms. Much of the world around us today is based upon this understanding of sex and gender, from the clothes we buy to public bathrooms.

In recent decades, our understanding of gender has slowly started to change. Since the 1970s, sociology researchers began using “gender” and “sex” as two separate terms, with “gender” referring to one’s self-identity and “sex” referring to one’s chromosomal makeup and sex organs.

Gender is now considered a social construct in the sense that it is a product of society. And people can identify with more than just two gender identities.

However, there is actually a long history of gender not being viewed in such black and white terms. Different cultures throughout time recognised members who buck the biological binary, commonly referring to them as the third gender.