Trans 101

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Trans 101 is a term meant to contain a basic course of knowledge in transgender issues. It is meant to be a basic course for those who wish to learn about these issues without having to ask a trans person who most likely has answered these same questions hundreds, if not thousands, of times before. The information in this article is by no means complete or comprehensive. The reader is directed to the main page of this wiki if they wish to continue their education on this subject.

The transition from male to female (MTF) or from female to male (FTM) is complex, and it is not the same for everyone. There are general guidelines, and many people follow certain “steps,” but no two experiences are identical.

Regardless, there are a few important points to keep in mind:

  • A person’s gender identity is never a choice.
  • People cannot change their gender identity. It has repeatedly been tried over the past 100 years using various psychological treatments that have always failed.
  • Some people are born with a gender identity that does not match their physical body, and transition has been recognized by mental health and medical professionals as an appropriate, and often necessary, means to correct this.
  • For many — probably most — transsexual people, transition is a life-saving measure. It is not considered a choice, per se, because all too often the only other option is misery, depression and death from suicide or other risky behavior.

That said, people use various terms to refer to a transition from male to female or from female to male. The term that a person uses is probably that which best reflects his or her experience.

[edit] Terms & definitions

  • Cisgender is an adjective used in the context of gender issues and counselling to refer to a type of gender identity formed by a match between an individual's biological sex and the behavior or role considered appropriate for one's sex.
  • Cissexual is a term used to denote persons who are not transsexual. It is related to the term, cisgender but not equal to it. They are not synonyms.
  • FTM an acronym for Female To Male. It is an adjective, not a noun and as such should always be paired with a noun, as in "an FTM person," or "FTM people are those who transition from female to male."
  • Gender Social scientists use gender to refer to a particular social identity, status, and cluster of roles, that are often (but not exclusively) determined on the basis of sex. See gender identity, gender role, queer studies, list of transgender-related topics.
  • Gender Expression is the outward expression of a person’s gender identity, usually expressed (among other things) through clothing, behaviors, mannerisms, and chosen names. It is the external manifestation of a person’s inner gender identity.
  • Gender Identity (or core gender identity) is a person's own sense of identification as male or female. The term is intended to distinguish this psychological association, from physiological and sociological aspects of gender.
  • MTF an acronym for Male To Female. It is an adjective, not a noun and as such should always be paired with a noun, as in "an MTF person," or "MTF people are those who transition from male to female."
  • Sex The members of many species of living things are divided into two or more categories called sexes (or loosely speaking, genders). These refer to complementary groups that combine genetic material in order to reproduce. It is generally meant to describe the physical aspect of the physical characteristics that define sex rather than the psychological aspects defined under gender.
  • Sexual Orientation, sexual preference or sexual inclination describes the focus of a person's amorous or erotic desires, fantasies, and feelings. A person's sexual orientation is most often classified by the sex one is "oriented" towards.
  • Transgender, from (Latin) derivatives [trans <L, combination form meaning across, beyond, through] and [gender <ME <MF gendre, genre <L gener- meaning kind or sort]) is a general term applied to a variety of individuals, behaviors, and groups involving tendencies that diverge from the normative gender role (woman or man) commonly, but not always, assigned at birth, as well as the role traditionally held by society. An analogy may be used by comparing "transgender" to the word, "metal." Just as there are many materials classified as metals - gold, steel, copper, aluminum - all with different properties and appearance, so too are there many different kinds of transgender people.
  • Transition is a general term describing the process of changing one's social gender and physical sex from that which was assigned at birth to another. It is not a definite term and is highly subjective. Transition can mean different things to different people but most would define it as a change from being assigned male at birth and changing to a female social role and sexual phenotype, or vice versa.
  • Transsexual a person who identifies with a physical sex different from the one that they were born with or assigned in cases where ambiguity of the child's sex organs led to assigning them a physical sex. It is often incorrectly used as a noun rather than the correct usage as an adjective.

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