What do you think of the term 'Lesbian?'

I've never liked the term lesbian, however I don't really identify as a lesbian. Any gender specific words of always rub me the wrong way so I do think it's weird that there's a different word for homosexual men and women. But those are probably just my own insecurities talking. >.<

---------- Post added 15th May 2016 at 09:04 PM ----------

Even disregarding my own personal opinions, I feel like the word lesbian has some weird connotations.

 

I like the term lesbian. I feel it is more sensual than gay, which is short and abrupt.

As an umbrella term, I'm a fan of queer. I think it wrap ups the LGBTQQIA (etc) acronym quite nicely.

 

I like the term lesbian because gay in my language is used as a noun and means a gay man. So if I'm to choose between a lesbian (also used exclusively as a noun) or "a homosexual woman", it's quite obvious which one is better.

Although when I speak English, I like saying "gay" because it sounds like a more universal term.

 

Most people don't know this but there's an adjective too, it's just not used much. Sapphic. It's a fun word to throw around since nobody knows what you're talking about. "Oh yeah, I'm always sapphic this time of night." for example, and everyone gives a weird look. :lol:

 

Lol yeah, again comes from the Sappho story I told.

 

I don't see it that way, except when people use it as a noun. Otherwise it doesn't at all strike me as clinical or cold-sounding.

I've only ever heard it pronounced with three syllables, but I imagine it sometimes gets reduced to two in rapid speech. Two or three syllables is more than one, but then again syllables aren't a unit of time. For example, 'dead' and 'debt' are both a single syllable, but they have different vowel lengths (which is because in English, vowels are lengthened when preceding voiced consonants). In other words, 'dead' takes longer to say than 'debt', even though they're both monosyllabic words.

I don't know if I consciously favor shorter words or not. If you have that preference, do whatever.

Bilabial plosives are everywhere. Do you dislike them in any other words? To me, the voiced alveolar fricative is the most prominent sound, but the alveolar (or dental) lateral is also very prominent in my perception of the word.

This might have to do with me loving the word 'lesbian', but I really like those consonants as they wrap around that open-mid front unrounded vowel. /lɛz/ or [lɛːz]. That might be my favorite syllable in English.

I agree when it's used as a noun.

I only use it as an adjective myself, and I much more often see other people use it as an adjective. As you alluded to, using it as a noun is problematic because that gives people the idea that it's a person's single defining characteristic, making them seem like a flat stereotype and not a complex person. I find it dehumanizing, just like calling someone 'a black' or 'a transgender' etc.

However, there is a history of people using it as a noun to describe themselves, which I won't criticize. Describing someone else in a way that could be dehumanizing is disrespectful unless they want it. Some people want to define themselves by calling themselves lesbians (with a noun) rather than lesbian (with an adjective).

If you don't want to call yourself lesbian, that's fine- you don't have to, but I think your dislike the word is probably influenced by societal homophobia. This doesn't mean you should call yourself lesbian just to try to overcome your dislike of the word, though. Identify however you like.

Personally, I love the word 'lesbian'. It's strongly tied to my identity as a woman. This word helped me hold onto my female identity when I only had the world tearing it down. I'm not straight, I'm lesbian. My attraction to women is a lesbian/queer thing. I also love that the word is strongly associated with women (although I've seen non-binary people identify as lesbian). With this word I embrace my womanhood and my attraction to women.

 

That's awesome! XD

 

In Swedish (my mother tongue), it's almost always used as an adjective - lesbisk. The translation would be 'lesbianistic' or so. It can also be used as a noun though - lebb - but that's colloquial slang, and can also be used as an insult.

 

LOL. I guess so. Though I don't know too many bikes....

 

I find the origins of it weird.
Technically anyone on the Greek island of lesbos should be able to call them self a lesbian.
So it seems dated to me.
I prefer gay.

 

I don't particularly like that term either. It's off-putting. It just seems so unnecessary. Like, I've noticed this divisiveness in the gay community. What's the point? Male or female, you're still both gay. 'Lesbian' is like a doctor putting on latex gloves before examining his patient. If they want a different name they might as well go back to all the way back to the Grecian, Sapphos, from whence the term 'Sapphic' came from. Better than going by a term that came from Sappho's getaway island of Lesbos.

 

I kind of like the word lesbian, but I know some queer women who prefer the term gay or queer because queer & gay are adjectives and lesbian is a noun, and they just want to be seen as people. I'm not sure if that makes sense

 

The term kind of rubs me the wrong way.

Before I knew I was trans, people assumed I was a lesbian and it made my skin crawl. Like, I don't know. It sounds weird. I prefer the term gay for males and females. Lesbian sounds like a sickness or a really weird dish to me. :/

 

The word lesbian has definitely always had a negative assosication in my mind, but as I get more comfortable with myself and my sexuality I'm finding that I'm starting to appreciate it just as much as other terms, such as gay or queer.

Like other people have said, it's really nice for girls to have their own term ahah. But at the end of the day, it is just a word. Stick with whatever you are most comfortable with unapologetically, you do you and all that ahaha.