Khanith

Khanith or Khaneeth (Arabic: خنيث‎, variant transcription Xanith) is a vernacular Arabic term for both standard written Arabic mukhannath and khuntha. The Arabic word Mukhannath مخنث (literally "effeminate") refers to individuals with a gender identity other than that of their legally assigned identity. They are characterized as "effeminate", "not clearly male," and as people who were "born as a male" and who nevertheless feel, behave, and (in most cases) dress like a female. The Arabic word khuntha خنثى (literally "hermaphrodite") refers to intersex people

John Money summarizes material presented by U. Wikan in an article entitled "Man becomes woman: Transsexualism in Oman as a key to gender roles."^[1] According to that account, the Mukhannath is a 'bottom' in a homosexual relationship.^{[lower-alpha 1]} These individuals may retain his public status as a man, despite his departure in dress and behavior from a cisvestite^{[lower-alpha 2]} role of a person expressing hegemonic-masculinity, providing that he also gives proof of a legal marriage to a woman and proof of having consummated that marriage. The clothing of these individuals must be intermediate between that of a male and a female.

The word is also widely used as an insult in the Middle East; it is roughly equivalent to the word "faggot" in the American English vocabulary.

Notes

References

Bibliography

• Money, John (1988). Lovemaps: Sexual/Erotic Health and Pathology, Paraphilia and Gender Transposition in Childhood, Adolescence and Maturity (reprint ed.). Irvington. ISBN 0-87975-456-7. Retrieved 5 March 2015. 
• Roscoe, Will; Murray, Stephan (1997). Islamic Homosexualities: Culture, History, and Literature (illustrated ed.). New York University Press. ISBN 9780814774687. Retrieved 5 March 2015. 

See also