Meaning
What does Transfeminine mean?
A person who is “transfeminine” is generally assigned male at birth, but has a much stronger connection to the female gender.
The “transfeminine” person’s gender expression usually consists of more feminine traits; they will dress and behave in a way that is considered feminine by society.
Many end up feeling strong gender dysphoria, due to the lack of acceptance for trans identities, usage of wrong pronouns and restriction when attempting to express themselves.
A “transfeminine” person will generally prefer she/her pronouns, but always ask beforehand.
Origin
What's the origin of Transfeminine?
Made up of “trans-”, meaning “across” or “through”, and “feminine”.
It is unclear who first coined the term, but it arose during the early 2010’s.
Due to its popularity, Facebook made it one of the 50 options in their gender selection in 2014.
Spread & Usage
How did Transfeminine spread?
The term can easily be confused with “trans woman”, however, “trans woman” belongs under the umbrella term “transfeminine”, which also includes non-binary identities, such as “demigirls”, “genderfluids” with stronger association to female, and many more.
Along with its opposite, “transmasculine”, the term did not become very prominent until the mid 2010’s, and it was first defined on Urban Dictionary in 2017 by user TaiSeasmain.
It has since been defined on many LGBTQ platforms, such as the Gender Wiki, and the Non-Binary Wiki.
External resources
- Gender Wiki – Transfeminine