LGBTQ history

LGBTQ history goes back a very long time. People have shown same-sex love and had many different gender identities in many places around the world. These stories were often hidden because of unfair treatment, but we are learning more about the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer communities.

In 1994, people in the United States started celebrating LGBTQ History Month every October. This helps everyone learn about the past struggles and successes of LGBTQ people and their fight for equal LGBTQ rights and civil rights. October also includes National Coming Out Day on October 11.

One big moment in LGBTQ history happened in 2001 when Queen Beatrix signed a law. The Netherlands became the first country to allow same-sex marriage. Many countries have since followed this important step toward fairness and equality.

East Asia

China and Taiwan

For a long time, stories about people loving others of the same sex have been part of China's history. Ancient Chinese books talk about men who loved other men, though stories about women loving women are less common. One famous story is about a man named Mizi Xia sharing a special peach with his lover. Another story tells of an emperor who carefully cut off his own sleeve so as not to wake his sleeping lover. Over time, attitudes changed, and by the time of the Qing dynasty, laws were made against men loving men.

In 2019, Taiwan made a big change by allowing people of the same sex to marry, becoming the first place in its area to do so.

Japan and Korea

In Japan, ancient stories and art show that people sometimes loved others of the same sex. During a time called the Edo period, there were many relationships between older men and younger boys, which was a common practice then. Japanese books like The Tale of Genji include scenes where characters fall in love with or are attracted to boys. As Japan began to change and look more toward Western ways during the Meiji era, attitudes began to shift and laws were created that made such relationships illegal.

In Korea, too, there are records of noble people and Buddhist monks expressing love for others of the same sex, including some emperors from long ago who had male lovers.

North Asia

Early Russian researchers found that Chukchi shamans in Siberia had special spiritual practices. These shamans had a ceremony that let them change their gender roles. After the ceremony, they dressed and acted like women, doing work such as healing and caring for people. They sometimes had close partnerships with other men, similar to marriage, taking on roles like a partner or spouse. They felt driven by spirits to follow these traditions.

Southeast Asia and the Pacific

In Thailand, people showing love and having relationships of the same sex have been known since the 1300s. Art in old temples shows men and women in loving relationships. In nearby Vietnam, records of people loving others of the same sex go back to at least the 1300s too.

In Indonesia, old stories talk about people who felt they were both boys and girls. Many places in Southeast Asia had rules against such relationships after European countries took control, but some areas like Cambodia now support equal marriage. In places like Samoa and Hawaii, people who didn’t fit typical boy or girl roles were accepted and respected long before outside influences arrived.

South Asia

The earliest rules against same-sex relationships in South Asia come from very old Zoroastrian writings around 250 BC during the Parthian Empire, which included parts of modern-day Pakistan. These writings later influenced laws in the area.

In India, ancient Hindu and Vedic texts sometimes described people and gods who did not follow typical gender roles and showed love between people of the same sex. For example, the Kamasutra, an old Indian guide about love, mentioned feelings for the same sex. There were artworks in temples, like those in Khajuraho, that showed same-sex relationships. The Hijra are a community of people who live in a feminine way, and they may have been born male, female, or with natural differences in their bodies.

Middle East and North Africa

Abbasid Caliphate

During the Abbasid Caliphate, some stories and poems talked about love between people of the same gender. Poets wrote about their feelings for other men, including young boys who worked in homes or shops.

Egypt

Ancient Egypt

In very old Egypt, around 2400 BCE, two men named Khnumhotep and Niankhkhnum worked in a palace. Some think they might have loved each other because they are shown very close together in art, but others think they were just brothers.

Coptic Egypt

In the sixth or seventh century, a piece of paper with magic words shows a man named Apapolo wanting another man named Phello to love him back.

Medieval Egypt

After Islam became the main religion in Egypt, many people still accepted relationships between men, but religious leaders were not happy about it.

Early modern Egypt

In a place called Siwa Oasis, men often had relationships with other men, including boys. This was normal there for many years.

Contemporary Egypt

Today in Egypt, laws and society do not accept relationships between people of the same gender. Some people have been arrested just for being part of these communities. Still, some brave individuals work to help improve rights and acceptance for everyone, no matter who they love.

Assyria

In very old Assyria around 1075 BCE, there were rules about relationships between men.

Babylonia

In Babylonia, old prayers showed that love between men was seen as equal to love between men and women.

Israel

Very old rules in Israel, written in books called the Torah, did not accept relationships between men.

Lebanon

In Lebanon, laws have long said some relationships between people of the same gender are not allowed. But in recent years, some groups have worked to change these laws and help protect everyone’s rights.

Persia

In ancient Persia, many poets wrote poems about their love for young boys who served in homes.

Turkey

Ottoman Empire

In the past, in what is now Turkey, people did not think of relationships between people of the same gender as wrong. They did not see men and women as exact opposites.

Pre-Columbian Americas

Among Indigenous peoples of the Americas, before European colonization, many nations had special roles for people who expressed their gender in different ways. These roles were respected and seen as important in some cultures. These individuals had unique duties to help their community.

Some Indigenous groups today use the term "Two-Spirit" to describe these roles, though not everyone uses this term. It is a newer way to talk about these traditions, which have their own names in each culture.

Sub-Saharan Africa

Further information: History of homosexuality § Africa, and LGBT rights in Africa § History of male homosexuality in Africa

Different cultures in Sub-Saharan Africa had their own ideas about relationships between people of the same gender.

Among the Zande people of Congo, there were traditions where older men would take younger boys as close friends. These relationships were about support and friendship, but they changed when new ideas came to the area.

In Lesotho, some women had strong, long friendships called motsoalle. These friendships were celebrated with special meals. As new cultural ideas arrived, these traditions changed and happened less often.

Europe

Classical antiquity

Ancient Celts

Aristotle wrote that the Celts were different because some men chose to love other men. Other writers from long ago noticed this too.

Ancient Greece

Main article: Homosexuality in ancient Greece

In ancient Greece, it was common for older men and younger men to have relationships. These relationships were seen as a way to share knowledge and were supported by many leaders, though not all.

Sappho, who lived on the island of Lesbos, wrote poems about love for both men and women. The word "Lesbian" comes from her home island.

Ancient Rome

Main article: Homosexuality in ancient Rome

In ancient Rome, many men had relationships with other men, often with younger men or those of lower social status. The emperor Hadrian was close to a young man named Antinous.

Middle Ages

Main article: Homosexuality in medieval Europe

During the Middle Ages, many religious leaders spoke against same-sex relationships. Their views were shaped by the religious teachings of that time.

Renaissance

During the Renaissance, some cities like Florence and Venice had communities where same-sex relationships were more accepted. But the Roman Catholic Church did not agree with these relationships and made strict laws.

Modern Europe

Psychology and terminology shifts

As science grew, researchers began to study same-sex relationships more. This led to new ways of understanding these relationships.

Homosexuality in Modern Great Britain

Main article: Timeline of LGBTQ history in the British Isles

In Great Britain, same-sex relationships were against the law for many years. Over time, laws changed, leading to more acceptance and rights.

Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde, a famous writer, helped bring attention to same-sex relationships in the late 1800s through his life and work.

Alan Turing

Alan Turing, a brilliant mathematician who helped solve hard problems during World War II, faced hard times because of his same-sex relationships. His story shows the difficulties people faced in the mid-1900s.

Decriminalization of homosexuality in France

See also: LGBTQ history in France, LGBT rights in France, and LGBT culture in Paris

In 1791, Revolutionary France became one of the first countries to remove laws against same-sex relationships between adults.

Soviet Union

The Soviet government removed laws against same-sex relationships in 1917, soon after the revolution. This change was part of efforts to update laws.

Modern Germany

Emancipation movement (1890s–1934)

See also: Friedrich Radszuweit, Adolf Brand, Selli Engler, Lotte Hahm, Anna Rüling, Mädchen in Uniform (1931 film), Die Freundin, Die Freundschaft, and Institut für Sexualwissenschaft

Before the 1930s, Berlin had active communities and support for people with diverse gender identities and sexualities. Many groups worked to promote understanding and acceptance.

Nazi Germany

Main article: Persecution of homosexuals in Nazi Germany

During the time of Nazi Germany, many people were treated unfairly because of their relationships or identity. This was a very hard time for many.

Decriminalization of homosexuality in Germany

After World War II, laws in Germany changed, leading to more acceptance of same-sex relationships. By 1993, these relationships were fully legal and equal under the law.

United States

See also: History of bisexuals in the United States, History of gay men in the United States, History of lesbianism in the United States, and History of transgender people in the United States

People who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender have lived in the United States for a very long time, even before the country was formed. At first, laws were often not kind to these identities, but over time, people's attitudes and the laws began to change.

In recent years, especially starting in the 1990s, people in the United States started to recognize and celebrate the achievements of LGBTQ individuals more openly. This led to the creation of LGBTQ History Month, an annual celebration that began in the United States in 1994 and has since spread to other countries. It is a special time to learn about and honor the history and accomplishments of LGBTQ people.

Same-sex marriage

Main article: Same-sex marriage

In recent years, many countries have started to allow people of the same sex to get married. This means that couples who love each other can have the same rights as other married couples.

The first country to allow same-sex marriage was the Netherlands in 2001. Since then, many other countries have followed, including Belgium, Spain, Canada, and the United States, among others. This change has helped many families feel more equal and supported.

Student groups

Main article: Gay–straight alliance

Since the 1970s, students at schools and colleges have created groups to support people who feel differently about love and identity. These groups are often called Gay–Straight Alliances (GSAs). They help everyone feel welcome and teach others about these topics.

Sometimes, these groups have faced challenges and were not allowed to meet like other student groups. In 2006, a university tried to stop their GSA from meeting. But after students spoke up and many people showed their support, the university changed its mind and allowed the group to continue.

In 2016, the GSA Network changed its name to Genders & Sexualities Alliance Network to better include all the young people who are part of the organization.

Historical study of homosexuality

See also: Queer studies

In the late 1800s, people like Heinrich Hössli and K. H. Ulrichs began to study love and identities that were different from the usual way. They found only a little information, mostly from places like ancient Greece and parts of Islam. Scholars in England, such as Richard Burton and Havelock Ellis, added more details. In Germany, Albert Moll made lists of famous people who felt this way. But serious research slowed down because of hard times in the 1930s.

Later, as fairness movements grew in places like California, more stories began to be told. Scholars after important events in the 1960s and 1970s, like John D'Emilio and Jonathan Ned Katz, helped share more of this history. Even today, much of the story from around the world is still being found out.

School curricula

In 2011, California became the first U.S. state to require schools to teach about diverse love and identities. The first books for this were published in 2017, after some people disagreed. Other states like Colorado, New Jersey, and Illinois later made similar rules. Some southern states have laws that stop this history from being taught in schools.