LGBT History Outside the Western World

Sophie Hunka, Year 13, Gellhorn

Most sources seem to agree that Generation Z (born between 1996 and 2010) is the “gayest” generation, with about 50% supporting gay marriage in comparison to the 27% support rate of earlier generations, such as the Boomers. Some sources also claim that only about two-thirds of Generation Z (Gen Z) identify as strictly straight. This is probably due to the decreased importance of religion in society and the increase in knowledge and acceptance of the LGBT community, which is often aided by the internet. Some still insist that being LGBT is unnatural, arguing that there are a lack of non-heterosexual precedents in Western history. So in this article, I will explore LGBT history in cultures not considered “Western”, specifically Chinese and Native American culture, in order to demonstrate that the LGBTQ community has been consistent in ancient cultures.

The gay emperors and kings of China

It may be surprising, but the very conservative China has a long history of same-sex attraction. However, China has greater documentation of MLM (men loving men) relationships compared to WLW (women loving women) relationships because it is a very patriarchal society. Prior to the Qing rule, homosexual and heterosexual love were both accepted, with same-sex attraction even being considered “trendy” amongst the Qin dynasty elite. Emperor Ai from the Han dynasty, who ruled between 1 BCE and 7 BCE, is a famous example of a “non-straight” ruler of China. Although Emperor Ai had a wife and female concubines, he also had a male partner named Dong Xian who slept in his bed. The story of Dong falling asleep on top of the Emperor’s sleeve and the Emperor cutting off his sleeve to avoid waking him inspired the idiom “the passion of the cut sleeve” (斷袖 之癖), which subsequently inspired the term “cut-sleeves” being used to refer to gay relationships in the modern day. Another famous example of a same-sex relationship is the one between King An Xi and Lord Long Yang. King An Xi of Wei, who ruled from 276 BC to 243 BC, had a courtier named Long Yang with whom he often went fishing. Once, while fishing, Long Yang began to cry and said, “I was happy when I just caught one fish, but after I caught those bigger fish, I wanted to throw away the small fish. I am lucky to sleep on the same bed with the king today. However, within the four seas, there are many pretty girls. If they know I am spoiled by the king, they will use different ways to seduce Your Majesty, and I will be abandoned just like those tiny fish. How could I not cry?” The King responded by saying, “Within these four seas, whoever dares to introduce me to a pretty girl, I will exterminate their clan. Thus, the idiom “Longyang’s affection” (龍陽 之癖), which represents homosexuality, was born. While same-sex attraction was commonplace in ancient China, it was eventually criminalised during the Qing dynasty (17th century) and labelled as a mental disorder in the 1950s. And although it was decriminalised in 1997, seeing public opinion becoming increasingly tolerant of the community, same-sex couples are still unable to get married or adopt children in Mainland China.

Two-Spirit

The term “two-spirit” is an umbrella term in the indigenous American and Canadian community for those who fulfil a third gender or gender variant role in their culture. Often, each community has its own name for the phenomenon, examples being Ihamana (male-bodied people who take on a feminine ceremonial role) in the Zuni tribe, and cree or iskwêhkân (one who acts or lives as a woman) and sipiniq (an infant whose sex changes at birth) in the Inuit community. The terms “two-spirited”and “transgender” are not meant to be used interchangeably; the former is rooted in indigenous culture and evokes beliefs unique to the community. In some Native American cultures, it is believed that the spirit of a child has to choose between a bow (male) or a basket (female), and those who pick the tool that doesn’t match their biological sex or picks both tools are a part of this third gender and fall under this two-spirit label. Another belief is that the third gender is just part of the balance of nature. In some tribes, such as the Mojave tribe, being two-spirited allowed individuals to fulfil specific roles such as healers or ceremonial leaders. This was not the case for all tribes, but it can be generally remembered that two-spirited people were widely accepted. Sadly, the beginning of the pervasive mistreatment of two-spirited people began when the Europeans arrived and began colonising the Native Americans. Some colonisers, such as the Spanish missionaries, would force two-spirited people who were biologically females to wear feminine clothing and two-spirited people who were biologically men were forced to cut their hair short. Children of indigenous communities would also be sent to government schools to be “re-educated” and forced to denounce their own culture. is not a lot of information on the topic today.

Some two-spirited people would be thrown into pits with dogs to be torn apart while others committed suicide to avoid this fate. Currently, being two-spirited is an identity that indigenous people are attempting to reclaim. During colonisation, there was an attempt to eradicate the culture and history of Native Americans, especially those who identified as two-spirited, which partly explains why there is not a lot of information on the topic today.

What happened?

The existence of those who do not conform to heterosexuality or their assigned sex (in other words, being LGBT) has been documented and accepted in most ancient communities, so what happened?

Truth be told, it is difficult to pinpoint a single reason to explain why the LGBT community has been associated with negative ideologies. It may have been the rise of multiple religions, which condemned it over history and its influence on other cultures; all three major religions (Christianity, Judaism and Islam) all condemned homosexuality. However, the core values of each of these religions are love and peace, so it is difficult to directly link LGBT discrimination to their fundamental principles. Another possible reason for this widespread discrimination towards LGBT people among the spiritual is that they view reproduction as an essential component of life, a belief that automatically shuns the acceptance of non-conformists. Ancient cultures had accepted and even celebrated LGBT identities to a large extent, which demonstrates that the LGBT community can be an integrated part of society, coexisting with religious interpretations. It has taken generations for acceptance of the community to be lost within society, but with each generation, and greater access to the information and awareness, acceptance and integration of the LGBT community is already more prevalent than it was before.