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Two-spirit

'Two-spirit' (also spelled two spirit or 2S) is an English umbrella term used by some indigenous peoples of North America for individuals with a particular ceremonial, social or spiritual role in their community. The term is rooted in specific cultural traditions and is emphatically not a universal label for gender diversity.

Origin and cultural context

The term two-spirit was coined in 1990 in Winnipeg (Canada) by indigenous activists as an umbrella English designation for divergent native concepts that differed from people to people. Examples are 'winkte' (Lakota), 'hemaneh' (Cheyenne) and 'nadleeh' (Navajo). Each of these concepts has its own cultural content – often tied to rituals, crafts, healing power or mediating roles – that does not fully coincide with what 'two-spirit' generally suggests.

Two-spirit and Western gender thinking

In Western LGBTQ+ contexts, two-spirit is sometimes invoked as 'historical proof' that gender diversity is universal and centuries-old. Many indigenous academics and activists oppose that framing. Their objections come down in essence to this: two-spirit is not an identity label like the Western term 'non-binary', but a role within a specific community.

At the same time, two-spirit is sometimes incorrectly used to suggest that traditional societies recognised 'more than two sexes'. Anthropologically that is inaccurate: in these cultures too a distinction was made between men and women, and the roles corresponding to two-spirit usually concerned function within the community, not a separate biological category.

Comparable cultural roles elsewhere

Two-spirit does not stand alone. In other parts of the world there are also culture-specific roles that fall outside the Western identity framework: hijra in South Asia, kathoey in Thailand, fa'afafine in Samoa, muxe in Mexico, X-gender in Japan and travesti in Latin America. Each of these roles has its own origin and social function; they are not interchangeable and cannot be merged into a universal category.

Respectful use

Many indigenous two-spirit organisations expressly advise non-indigenous people against applying the term to themselves. The label is culturally specific; using it outside that context is often experienced by those involved as appropriation. Anyone looking for Western gender terms to describe their own experience would do better to fall back on those Western terms than to borrow an indigenous one.