Berdache
At a glance:
- Series: Magill’s Choice: American Indian Culture
- Categories: Social Science
- Subcategories: Native Americans, American Indians, Homosexuality, Homosexuals, Gay Men, Lesbians, Gender Issues, Sexism
- Curriculum: American Indian History
- Geographical Location: Canada, United States
Article abstract: An anthropological term denoting the third gender status, which many tribes attributed to individuals who behaved and dressed like members of the opposite sex
Although varying widely in their content and elaboration, rules prescribing the behavior and goals for each of the sexes were a sociocultural universal among native North American peoples. From early childhood, Indian boys and girls learned through observation, imitation, and formal training those statuses and roles that their communities deemed proper for the respective genders, so that...
[The entire page is 452 words long]
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