Terminology of homosexuality
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Etymology
The word homosexual translates literally as "of the same sex," being a hybrid of the Greek prefix homo- meaning "same" (as distinguished from the Latin root homo meaning human) and the Latin root sex meaning "sex."
First appearance
The first known appearance of the term homosexual in print is found in an anonymous 1869 German pamphlet 143 des Preussischen Strafgesetzbuchs und seine Aufrechterhaltung als 152 des Entwurfs eines Strafgesetzbuchs für den Norddeutschen Bund ("Paragraph 143 of the Prussian Penal Code and Its Maintenance as Paragraph 152 of the Draft of a Penal Code for the North German Confederation") written by Karl-Maria Kertbeny. This pamphlet advocated the repeal of Prussia's sodomy laws (Bullough et al. ed. (1996)). Kertbeny had previously used the word in a private letter written in 1868 to Karl Heinrich Ulrichs. Kertbeny used Homosexualität in place of Ulrichs's Urningtum; Homosexualisten instead of Urninge, and Homosexualistinnen instead of Urninden.
Poststructuralist theorist Michel Foucault (1976) cites "Westphal's famous article of 1870 on 'contrary sexual sensations'" as the "date of birth" of the categorization of gay men and lesbians. The term's first known use in English is in Charles Gilbert Chaddock's translation of Richard von Krafft-Ebing's Psychopathia Sexualis, a study on sexual practices. The term was popularized by the 1906 Harden-Eulenburg affair.
Earlier the ancient Greek philosopher Plato had described what we now use the term homosexual to signify. In his Symposium he defined three sexual orientations and provided Greco-Roman religious explanations for their existence using myths. [1]
Usage
Although some early writers used the adjective homosexual to refer to any single-gender context (such as an all-girls' school), today the term implies a sexual aspect. The term homosocial is now used to describe single-sex contexts that are not specifically sexual. The term homosensual is used in both the homosexual and heterosexual arenas to describe a sensitive person.
Derogatory terms include fag or faggot, which generally refer to gay men; poofter, used mostly in the United Kingdom since the 1950s when it first appeared in an Ian Fleming novel; queer, generally inclusive of anyone who is not exclusively heterosexual, but also reclaimed and validated by many gays and academics; homo; and dyke, which refer to lesbians.
Another pejorative term, which has fallen out of use since the 1930s, is 'Turner'. There are two theories as to the origins of this slang word for homosexual: 1. Late 19th century east London slang in homosexual circles, signifying an ostensibly heterosexual young man who may be induced to experiment with homoeroticism and ultimately to ‘turn’ (i.e. to become a fully-fledged practising homosexual). This usage appears in Dickens’s ‘Pickwick Papers’, when Tupman explains to Snodgrass, ‘It is said he will not bend, though you may find, sir, that he may yet be a turner’. 2. A more discreet version of the slang pejorative ‘bender’, signifying a homosexual male. ‘Turn’ here signifies ‘turning around’, or ‘turning one’s back’ in order to receive phallic penetration. See Homophobia
Recommended forms
Main articles: Homosexual, Lesbian
The term homosexual can be used as a noun or adjective to describe same-sex oriented persons as well as their sexual attractions and behaviors. However, some recommend that the terms homosexual and homosexuality be avoided lest their use cause confusion or arouse controversy. In particular the description of individuals as homosexual may be offensive, partially because of the negative clinical association of the word stemming from its use in describing same-sex attraction as a pathological state before homosexuality was removed from the American Psychiatric Association's list of mental disorders in 1973. Even as late as the 1990s, the "Read code" system, used by the National Health Service in Great Britain, classed male homosexuality and lesbianism under mental disorders, as conditions E2200 and E2201 respectively, although this system has since been replaced. The use of the word homosexual in describing individuals and same-sex relationships may also be inaccurate.
Same-sex oriented people seldom apply these terms to themselves, and public officials and agencies often avoid them. For instance, the Safe Schools Coalition of Washington's Glossary for School Employees advises that gay is not the "preferred synonym for homosexual," and goes on to advise avoiding the term homosexual as it is "clinical, distancing and archaic":
- Sometimes appropriate in referring to behaviour (although same-sex is the preferred adjective). When referring to people, as opposed to behaviour, 'homosexual' is considered derogatory and the terms 'gay' and 'lesbian' are preferred. Homosexual places emphasis on sexuality and is to be avoided when describing a person. 'Gay' man or lesbian are the preferred nouns with stress cultural and social matters over sex.
The Guardian Style Guide, Newswatch Diversity Style Guide, American Heritage Dictionary, and the Committee on Lesbian and 'Gay' Concern of the American Psychological Association's Avoiding Heterosexual Bias in Language all agree that "gay" is not the preferred term.
Likewise, the use of homosexuality to describe sexual behaviours between people of the same sex may be inaccurate, although it is not perceived as being as offensive as homosexual.
Western people who regard themselves as having a same-gender sexual orientation tend to prefer the terms gay and lesbian. The latter term (noun or adjective) refers specifically to women; the vague term gay can apply incorrectly to both men and women - although unqualified usage would more often be referring to effeminate and fey men. Other terms include same-gender-loving, and same-sex-oriented.
Which terms are acceptable and which are offensive varies widely with the connotations of the words homosexual and lesbian are also culturally dependent. For instance, among some sectors of black homsexual sub-culture, same-gender sexual behaviour is sometimes viewed as solely for physical pleasure. Men on the down-low (or DL) may engage in regular (although often covert) sex acts with other men while pursuing sexual and romantic relationships with women. These men often regard the term gay as an inaccurate reference to stereotypically flamboyant and effeminate men of European ancestry, a group with which some feel no affinity. Some experts have suggested that this DL subculture may have come about because of stronger stigmas against same-sex behaviour in black communities, as well as greater dependence on family networks (who may be prejudiced) for support. This DL behaviour may also serve as a cover of secrecy for gay men who would find it difficult to come out. As a result of stigma present in many black communities attached to homosexuality many gay men avoid seeking health information regarding AIDS. Homosexual men of African ancestry in the United States are at the highest risk for contracting HIV with the heterosexual black community at the second highest.
