#i switched over mostly to endosex bc it was really confusing trying to write sentences with both “dyadism” and “dyadic” in them and endosex

[trans-axolotl]

Perisex person here, asking purely out of curiosity: why are there so many different terms for not-intersex? Like dyadic, perisex, endosex, juxtasex. Are there differences in meaning or connotation? Is there some kind of complex history behind it or do people just not agree? It's interesting that there isn't a consensus for one word. Also, while I'm at it, is there one you personally feel would be best for me to use?

Hey! So they are slightly different in meaning and usage, even though they all basically mean the same thing. I'll share what i've learned, but other intersex people please feel free to add on your intepretations-a lot of this is going to depend on what intersex spaces you're in. There's not one right answer and I only have one perspective!

Dyadic: have seen this used online at least as early as 2011, most likely was being used earlier than that. some intersex people don't like it because they think that since it is based in the prefix "dyad" which means two, that it still reinforces the sex binary. I personally really like the term compulsory dyadism and think that's an incredibly useful concept, but don't use dyadic as much anymore because I don't think it is as popular a term and I want to avoid confusion.

Perisex: coined on tumblr around like....2014? Seems to be used mostly on tumblr. I don't think I've ever seen any in depth critiques of the term but I tend not to use it as much because it hasn't really caught on in any other intersex spaces. nothing wrong with using it, just my preference. Some people in the notes added on that it’s the preferred term in their country, which is awesome!

endosex: coined by Heike Bödeker, a German intersex activist in 2000. Endo means "inner" or "internal" and is used to signify that someone fits within the constructed sex binary. This is the term that seems to be most widely used in physical intersex spaces, and also is used more internationally. For that reason, this is definitely the term I prefer-although we aren't at a consensus in intersex spaces, this seems to be the most popular term in the region I'm in, and lots of resources, materials, language guides, etc, are starting to use it. Of course, that could always change and that's fine!

juxtasex: have never heard it before now. i never have problems with intersex people creating more language to describe our experiences, but am not familiar with it at all!

I would personally recommend sticking with endosex--I think that is the terms you are going to get the most recognition with. It hasn't really become popular on tumblr, because most of us who blog about intersex stuff use perisex or dyadic, but I think that endosex is a really good term to use irl if you want to talk about intersex topics.

as always other intersex people feel free to add on or disagree!

#actuallyintersex #i think the nuances of each of these terms are so intersting #i used to primarily use dyadic but after reading about the concept compulsory dyadism #i switched over mostly to endosex bc it was really confusing trying to write sentences with both “dyadism” and “dyadic” in them and endosex #made things clearer