Two-SpiritorBerdacheare people of the so called “third sex” in the culture of various tribes of the Indians of North America, that is, representatives of one biological sex, adopting the gender identity of the other. This art is my tribute to the part of amazing culture of Native American cultures ♡
“Historically, eunuchs have been employed as guards and servants in harems across the Middle East and Asia. The Imperial court of the Korean Chosun Dynasty (1392-1910) also had eunuchs. Eunuchs of the Chosun Dynasty lived with privileges: Korean eunuchs were conferred with official ranks and were legally allowed to marry, a practice that was officially banned in the Chinese Empire. In addition, married couples were also entitled to have children by adopting castrated boys or normal girls. The boys lost their reproductive organs in accidents, or they underwent deliberate castration to gain access to the palace before becoming a teenager.” (The lifespan of Korean eunuchs. Kyung-Jin Min, Cheol-Koo Lee, Han-Nam Park)
“Joseon palace consisted of 400 eunuchs. The only ‘male’ staff allowed to live inside the palaces, eunuchs (내시; naesi) were privy to all the secrets of the state and had considerable influence because they waited upon the king and were around the royal family 24 hours a day. All access to the king was through them, as they were the royal bodyguards and responsible for the safety of their master. This was an easy way to earn money and they usually exploited it to the full. These bodyguard eunuchs, toughened by a harsh training regime of martial arts, were also personal servants to the king and even nursemaids to the royal children. Eunuchs were in charge of the king’s health, and were supposed to serve the king with total devotion, like monks serving the Buddha, never thinking about mundane matters like money or status.” (Source: lonelyplanet. com Asia>South Korea>History)
Another interesting fact that during the rule of Ming dynasty in China (1368-1644), many eunuchs at the court were Korean.
“Other Korean-born eunuchs were entrusted with such important assignments as managing fiscal and monetary affairs for the emperor’s inner court. Between 1370 and 1634, the Ming government sent a total of twenty-eight eunuch-led missions to Seoul, primarily for the purpose of installing new Korean kings. More than half of the eunuch-ambassadors were Korean-born.” (The Eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty. Shih-shan Henry Tsai)
Eunuchs were usually young and handsome boys, often very feminine in appearance, this was one of the reason why they were favored by the kings. I translated some information from Korean source: Korean Cultural History. Volume 23 Countries and Kings Seen in Various Culture. Chapter 3: 4. Eunuchs (한국문화사. 23권 다양한 문화로 본 국가와 국왕. 제3장 궁궐과 그곳에 사는 사람들. 4. 내시. 내시들은 어떻게 살았 을까).
“Eunuchs were favored by the king, it is no exaggeration to say that they spent 24 hours a day with the king. They enjoyed wealth, rose to the high ranking officials and played important roles in government. Most of eunuchs lived lived collectively in the towns”.
“Naesi were castrated officials during Joseon Dynasty, responsible for different tasks in the Great Palace: the supervision of food and beverages, guarding gates and cleaning. They were an elite group close to the king’s secretary”. (Also translated from Korean article: 환관과 내시)
I found a really small mention of late Korean eunuchs in 19 century from the correspondence of John Mahelm Berry Sill’s the American Minister to Korea (1894-1897):
“At one end of the room were several eunuchs, dressed in long black gowns, these were all large and stout and rather good looking” (“Letters from Joseon”, Robert Neff)
Also eunuchs were closely connected to Buddhism, thus during the times of “Goryeo”/“Koryŏ” kingdom (918-1392) korean eunuchs founded Buddhist temples (Empire’s Twilight: Northeast Asia Under the Mongols. David M. Robinson)
“Originally, naesi officials came from prominent families with outstanding appearance and artistic talent. These emasculated civil officials, who were well versed in letters and classics, served as guards and waited on royalty in the Koryo Dynasty (918-1392). After King Uijong’s reign (11461170), however, they were replaced by court eunuchs”. (Korea News review, Volume 18, Issues 26-52)
During the Mongol invasion of North East Asia, Korean eunuchs became spies fluent in different languages:
“The Koryo eunuch Yi (Lee) and men of the Mongols, Turkestani, and various other groups come on the pretext of trade [but actually] to spy. Eunuch Yi has come two or three times. When he meets Mongols, he speaks the Mongol language. When he meets ordinary eunuchs, he speaks the Koryo language. When he meets men of Han, he speaks the language of the men of Han”. (Rulers from the steppe: state formation on the Eurasian periphery. Gary Seaman, Daniel Marks)
I collected neutral and positive information on eunuchs and of course I cannot ignore the “dark” side:
“Tradition in Korean jokes, naesi, which is generally understood to mean “eunuch,” is used to describe impotency or lethargy in a man. On the other hand, the naesi or “inside attendance” rank is often portrayed by Koreans as the villain of court intrigues. Like their counterparts in ancient Assyria, China, Achaemenid Persia, Rome and Byzantium, the naesiofficials had convenient access to the men in power” (Korea News review, Volume 18, Issues 26-52)
So, eventually getting to the part of my depiction of a Korean eunuch… I think it’s really unfair and sad that most people show and describe eunuchs as ugly repulsive creatures, while in fact, eunuchs deserve to be seen as human beings - and they are human. Lacking genitals doesn’t make them less human in any way. Unfortunately in a society where sex plays the most important role, anyone with different gender or sexless will be judged or ignored. Some people are disgusted by eunuchs, some fetishize them, but they, as everyone else have feelings, emotions, attachments and dreams. In the eyes of most people reviewing history, eunuchs appear only in caricatures and comedy, they looked upon as pitiful, miserable, obnoxious old men with problems. I wonder is it actually true? We must remember that LGBT people were and still are seen the same way, in Asia and most parts of the World. Just remember all the exaggerated and ridiculed characters and you’ll understand what I mean. For the majority it’s hard to understand anything beyond bipolar standards of male and female sex. But the diversity of gender identity was defined in the ancient times, the notion of “third gender"or "two gender” almost in any human civilization can fall to the category of Transgender/Transsexual, Queer and Intersex in the LGBTQIA community.
I don’t mind eunuchs depicted as “not so handsome” or old, because outward appearance is not something that defines a persons heart, yet, should be there a problem depicting them beautifully and gracefully? Of course not.
Thenaesiin my drawing is a handsome young man, gracious and fragile like ice, his eyes are thoughtful and kind. He is standing behind a branch of pine - the symbol of longevity on the East, and the winter landscape around him, like a reflection of his cold beauty; a reminder that every season is beautiful and necessary even if does not give flowers and fruits.
Since there’s a lot of Altersex terms, and not many are readily available to find, AND we’re manic, here’s a massive Altersex post with definitions and flags (though not every term has a flag)!
If I missed anything, or a flag, just shoot a DM and I’ll fix it.
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Altersex: A person who is not intersex, but for some other reason does not fit the male/female sex binary. Also covers fantasy “intersex” in media.
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Angenital: A desire to be without sex characteristics. Does not correspond to any particular gender, and does not require any corresponding feeling of genderlessness.
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Apagenital: When one feels apathetic to the genital set they have or don’t care what they would have. (aka Inersgenital, or Anvisgenital)
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Aphrodisian: People who wish to have a mixed genital set (such as a penis and a vagina, or something in between), regardless of gender. Explicitly includes secondary sex characteristics. (An alternative for Salmacian, since that one is named after a r/pist in Greek Mythology. Also known as Bigenital.)
Salmacian Flag:
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Apothigenital: Describing repulsion by having any genitalia.
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Bissex: Having two or more sexes, or conceptualizing yourself with a mixture of two or more sexes. These don’t have to be penile vulvarian- they can also be xeno, fauna, etc. They also don’t have to be super distinct, and can be similar.
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Cassgenital: Where one feels that their genital arrangement is unimportant or is indifferent to the idea of having genitalia.
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Faunagenital: An identity in which you feel less dysphoric by conceptualizing your genitalia as non-human, but terrestrial and animalistic. (aka Animagenital)
Faunasex: Similar to faunagenital, but the entirety of your sex and not just your genitalia.
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Genitalfluid: When your ideal genitals vary at different times. (aka Pergenital/fluigenital/abrogenita)
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Genitalflux: Fluctuating between angenital and non-angenital. (aka Flexgenital/fluxgenital/flexigenital)
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Genitally Dysphoric : Discomfort, confliction or distress with one’s genital sex. Not always external, and secondary sex characteristics also count.
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M-Altguina : An AMAB man with either dysphoria about not having a vagina, or simply wants one due to the idea of having one being euphoric. Coined with Cisgender Transsex people in mind, but AMAB nonbinary men can use this too.
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M-Altpect : An AMAB man with either dysphoria about not having breasts, or simply wants them due to the idea of having them being euphoric. Coined with Cisgender Transsex people in mind, but AMAB nonbinary men can use this too.
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M-Altsex: An AMAB man with either dysphoria about not looking AFAB, or simply wants to look AFAB due to the idea being euphoric. This can be both pect and guina, one and then the rest of your body, or any mixture of AFAB sex characteristics. Coined with Cisgender Transsex people in mind, but AMAB nonbinary men can use this too.
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Parsex: An umbrella term for every intersex and altersex condition (being non perisex).
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Protosex: The opposite of altersex.
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Sex Questioning : A process of exploration by people who may be unsure, still exploring, and concerned about applying a sex label to themselves for various reasons. Applies to more than just genital.
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Sexlessness: Absent/null sex identity; an umbrella term for lacking sexed characteristics or qualities (planned/desired or not).
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Systemsex: An umbrella term for members of a system with atypical sex characteristics (intersex in a perisex/altersex body, xenogenitalia, etc). All sex characteristics count under this umbrella.
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Thirdsex: Commonly used to denote an “other” sex category beyond “m” or “f” (of male or female) in documents for example. In some passports they don’t categorize “third-gender” but instead “sex”. Denoting someone who is not dyadic, while not essentially intersex, hence may be classified as altersex.
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TM-Altguina : An AFAB man with either dysphoria about not having a vagina, or simply wants to keep it out of euphoria. A trans male whose ideal and wanted body includes having a vagina. Unlike M-Altguina, instead of transsex, they simply don’t change anything, but with the same end result of a man with a vagina.
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TM-Altpect : An AFAB man with either dysphoria about not having breasts, or simply wants to keep them out of euphoria. A trans male whose ideal and wanted body includes having breasts. Unlike M-Altpect, instead of transsex, they simply don’t change anything, but with the same end result of a man with breasts.
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TM-Altsex : An AFAB man with either dysphoria about not looking AFAB, or simply wants to look AFAB due to the idea being euphoric. This can be both pect and guina, one and then the rest of your body, or any mixture of AFAB sex characteristics. Unlike M-Altsex, instead of transsex, they simply don’t change anything, but with the same end result of a man who is altsex (feminine).
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Transgenital: Anyone whose genitals are of another sex or a mixed genitalia set, not matching their assigned sex at birth (ASAB), regardless of gender.
Alternate flag:
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Transsex: A term referring to a sex labels, equivalent to transexual/transsexual and transgender, but not all transex people identify as transexuals or transgender. People whose biosex doesn’t match their sex identity, transgender or not.
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TW-Altguina : An AMAB woman with either dysphoria about not having a penis, or simply wants to keep it out of euphoria. A trans woman whose ideal and wanted body includes having a penis. Unlike W-Altguina, instead of transsex, they simply don’t change anything, but with the same end result of a woman with a penis.
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TW-Altpect : An AMAB woman with either dysphoria about having breasts, or simply wants to keep their flat chest out of euphoria. A trans woman whose ideal and wanted body includes having a flat chest. Unlike W-Altpect, instead of transsex, they simply don’t change anything, but with the same end result of a woman without breasts.
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TW-Altsex : An AMAB woman with either dysphoria about not looking AMAB, or simply wants to look AMAB due to the idea being euphoric. This can be both pect and guina, one and then the rest of your body, or any mixture of AMAB sex characteristics. Unlike W-Altsex, instead of transsex, they simply don’t change anything, but with the same end result of a woman who is altsex (masculine).
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Vaguesex: Being unable to determine your sex identity due to neurodivergence, eg. dysphoria and dissociation making it difficult to think about your body and/or sex.
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Varsex: Not completely conforming to the societal and cultural ideals or roles of sex (or sex conformancy/conformance, conformity/conformism). Includes psycholgical, skeletal, phenotypic, etc sex.
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W-Altguina : An AFAB woman with either dysphoria about not having a penis, or simply wants one due to the idea of having one being euphoric. Coined with Cisgender Transsex people in mind, but AFAB nonbinary women can use this too.
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W-Altpect : An AFAB woman with either dysphoria about having breasts, or simply wants them gone due to the idea being euphoric. Coined with Cisgender Transsex people in mind, but AFAB nonbinary women can use this too.
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W-Altsex : An AFAB woman with either dysphoria about not looking AMAB, or simply wants to look AMAB due to the idea being euphoric. This can be both pect and guina, one and then the rest of your body, or any mixture of AMAB sex characteristics. Coined with Cisgender Transsex people in mind, but AFAB nonbinary women can use this too.
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Xenogenital: An identity in which you feel less dysphoric by conceptualizing your genitalia as alien.
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Words I was unsure about adding, but still thought might be important, under the cut:
I checked the waybackmachine, and it appears that the words below the cut were likely to be “Cuntboy” and “Dickgirl”, as the tags said “two reclaimed slurs under the cut”. Here’s the Cuntboyflag:
and the Dickgirlflag:
Reminder: these two terms are indeed slurs. While they have been reclaimed by numerous transgender/transsex people, they should not be used to describe someone without their explicit permission.
![내시 [naesi] - Korean Palace Eunuch.“Historically, eunuchs have been employed as guards and ser](https://64.media.tumblr.com/c04711e8d95eee91273ce0bed5bc4b01/800b058f2b90aba8-c5/s1280x1920/2b360885714c4a779796ef0e02929cdfa63971db.jpg "내시 [naesi] - Korean Palace Eunuch.“Historically, eunuchs have been employed as guards and ser")
