Identifies as having two distinct gender identities - simultaneously present or alternating.
Definition
Identifies as having two distinct gender identities - simultaneously present or alternating. The two genders may be male and female, or may include non-binary identities. Distinct from genderfluid (which implies a continuous range) in having two defined, discrete gender states.
Etymology
Latin bi- (two) + gender.
History
In documented use since at least the 1990s within trans and genderqueer communities. A 1999 San Francisco Department of Public Health survey was among the first official studies to document bigender identification. The flag was designed in 2011.
Common myths
"Bigender is the same as genderfluid." Genderfluid implies movement along a continuous range; bigender describes two defined, discrete gender identities that may be simultaneous or alternating.
"Bigender people are just undecided." Bigender is a stable identity; the two genders are both fully experienced, not a stage on the way to choosing one.