Third gender

The term "third gender" (or "third sex") describes people who are seen, either by themselves or their society, as being neither a man nor a woman. Across the world, many cultures recognize three or more genders, sometimes rooted in ancient traditions and sometimes emerging from modern LGBTQ communities, where third gender can be considered a non-binary identity. The word "third" generally means "other," and some societies extend the idea to include fourth or fifth genders.

Whether someone is identified as a man, woman, or something else depends on their personal gender identity and the gender roles of their culture. While most societies operate on a gender binary (male and female), those with a third or fourth gender define these categories in diverse ways. For Native Hawaiians and Tahitians, the māhū represent an intermediate state between man and woman, called "gender liminality," and are part of a broader MVPFAFF spectrum.

Many Indigenous North American cultures have traditions of third or fourth gender people who hold ceremonial roles, now often grouped under the umbrella term "Two-Spirit" to honor their spiritual and Indigenous roots. The term "third gender" has also been applied to South Asia's hijras, Polynesia's fa'afafine, and the sworn virgins of the Balkans. These traditions can arise to fulfill ritual or religious roles or to grant positive social status, but a culture's recognition of a third gender does not automatically mean it is valued; some practices developed as a direct response to the devaluation of women in that society.

Though common in many non-Western cultures, the concepts of third, fourth, and fifth genders are relatively new to mainstream Western thought. Western scholars—especially anthropologists studying hijras or Native American "gender variant" and Two-Spirit people—have often tried to understand these categories through the lens of the modern LGBT community. However, Indigenous scholars argue that this lack of cultural context leads to widespread misrepresentation of both the people placed in the third gender category and the cultures themselves, including whether the concept even applies.

Sex and gender

Since at least the 1970s, anthropologists have described gender categories that a two-gender framework could not explain. Around the same time, feminists began distinguishing between biological sex and social/psychological gender. Anthropologist Michael G. Peletz argues that our ideas about different genders, including attitudes toward the third gender, deeply shape our lives and reflect societal values.

Pre-Colonial Americas and Oceania

Gender is organized differently across cultures. In some non-Western societies, gender is not binary; people may move between male and female, exist in an in-between state, or be neither.

Transgender people and third gender

In some cultures, being third gender is seen as a gift, allowing mediation between the spirit world and humans, and is generally viewed positively—though some third gender people have been accused of witchcraft and persecuted. In most Western cultures, those who did not conform to heteronormative ideals were historically seen as sick or disordered. However, since 2013, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders no longer labels transgender people as disordered; instead, it uses the diagnosis "gender dysphoria," which focuses on the distress a transgender person may experience rather than pathologizing third gender identity.

The māhū of Hawaii are seen as embodying an intermediate state between man and woman. Some traditional Diné (Navajo) of the Southwestern US recognize four genders: feminine woman, masculine woman, feminine man, and masculine man. The term "third gender" also describes South Asia's hijras (who have gained legal recognition), Polynesia's fa'afafine, and Albania's sworn virgins. In some African indigenous communities, a woman can be recognized as a "female husband," enjoying all the privileges of men while her femaleness, though not openly acknowledged, is not forgotten.

The hijras of South Asia are among the most recognized third gender groups. Some Western commentators suggest this may stem from Hindu beliefs in reincarnation, where gender, sex, and even species can change across lifetimes, allowing for more fluid interpretations. In other cultures, the third gender is seen as an intermediate state rather than a transition from one conventional sex to another.

A study of people in the United States who identified as a third gender found that they typically felt different from around age five. Due to peer and parental pressure, those growing up with this identity often faced challenges.