Pansexuality

Pansexuality
Pronunciation/ˌpænsɛkʃuˈælɪti/ PAN-sek-shoo-AL-it-ee
EtymologyAncient Greek: πᾶν, romanizedpân, meaning 'all'
DefinitionSexual or romantic attraction to people regardless of gender
ClassificationSexual identity
Parent categoryPlurisexuality
Other terms
Associated terms
Flag
Pansexual pride flag
Pansexual pride flag
Flag namePansexual pride flag
MeaningPink, yellow and blue respectively representing attraction to women, non-binary people and men

Pansexuality is sexual, romantic, or emotional attraction towards people of all genders, or regardless of their sex or gender identity.[1][2] Pansexual people may refer to themselves as gender-blind, asserting that gender and sex are not determining factors in their romantic or sexual attraction to others.[3][4]

Pansexuality is sometimes considered a sexual orientation in its own right or, at other times, as a branch of bisexuality (since attraction to all genders falls under the category of attraction to people of the same gender and different genders[5]) to indicate a lack of gender preference.[2][6][7] While pansexual people are open to relationships with people who do not identify as strictly men or women, and pansexuality therefore explicitly rejects the gender binary in terms of the chosen etymology,[2][8] this is by no means a feature which is exclusive to pansexuality and can also be found in broad definitions of homosexuality, bisexuality and the asexual spectrum.

  1. ^ Hill, Marjorie J.; Jones, Billy E. (2002). Mental health issues in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities. Washington, D.C.: American Psychiatric Association. p. 95. ISBN 978-1-58562-069-2. Archived from the original on 23 January 2021. Retrieved 28 February 2011.
  2. ^ a b c Sex and Society. Vol. 2. Singapore: Marshall Cavendish. 2010. p. 593. ISBN 978-0-7614-7907-9. Archived from the original on 4 November 2020. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  3. ^ Diamond, Lisa M.; Butterworth, Molly (September 2008). "Questioning gender and sexual identity: dynamic links over time". Sex Roles. 59 (5–6). New York City: Springer: 365–376. doi:10.1007/s11199-008-9425-3. S2CID 143706723. Pdf. Archived 10 November 2017 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ The Oxford Dictionary of English defines pansexual as: "Not limited in sexual choice with regard to biological sex, gender, or gender identity"."definition of pansexual from Oxford Dictionaries Online". Oxford Dictionaries. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 10 February 2015. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Firestein, Beth A. (2007). Becoming Visible: Counseling Bisexuals Across the Lifespan. New York City: Columbia University Press. p. 9. ISBN 978-0-231-13724-9. Archived from the original on 4 February 2021. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  7. ^ Sherwood Thompson (2014). Encyclopedia of Diversity and Social Justice. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 98. ISBN 978-1442216068. Archived from the original on 14 October 2021. Retrieved 30 August 2020. There are many other identity labels that could fall under the wider umbrella of bisexuality, such as pansexual, omnisexual, biromantic, or fluid (Eisner, 2013).
  8. ^ Soble, Alan (2006). "Bisexuality". Sex from Plato to Paglia: a philosophical encyclopedia. Vol. 1. Santa Barbara, California: Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 115. ISBN 978-0-313-32686-8. Archived from the original on 20 September 2020. Retrieved 28 February 2011.