man-women/two-spirits (was berdache)

catherine lavender (lavender@ucsub.colorado.edu)
Wed, 5 Apr 1995 21:09:32 -0600


For those interested in information about man-women or two-spirits (I
avoid the term "berdache" as it comes from the Spanish perception of
man-women as prostitutes):

Overviews and Bibliographies:
Will Roscoe, "Bibliography of Berdache and Alternative Gender
Roles Among North American Indians," _Journal of Homosexuality_, Vol. 14,
Nos. 3/4 (1987): 81-171.
Sue-Ellen Jacobs, "Berdache: A Brief Review of the Literature,"
_Colorado Anthropologist_ Vol. 1 (1968): 25-40.
Charles Callender and Lee M. Kochems, "The North American
Berdache," _Current Anthropology_ Vol. 24, No. 4 (1983): 443-70.

General Stuff of Interest:
Will Roscoe, _The Zuni Man-Woman_ (Albuquerque: University of
New Mexico Press, 1991).
Ramon Gutierrez, "Must We Deracinate Indians to Find Gay Roots?"
_Out/Look_ Vol. 1, No. 4 (1989): 61-67.
Walter L. Williams, _The Spirit and the Flesh: Sexual Diversity
in American Indian Culture_ (Boston: Beacon Press, 1986).
Harriet Whitehead, "The Bow and the Burden Strap: A New Look at
Institutionalized Homosexuality in Native North America," in _Sexual
Meanings: The Cultural Construction of Gender and Sexuality_, eds.
Sherry Ortner and Harriet Whitehead (Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 1981): 80-115.
Evelyn Blackwood, "Sexuality and Gender in Certain Native
American Tribes: The Case of Cross-Gender Females," _Signs: Journal of
Women in Culture and Society_ Vol 10. No. 1 (1984): 27-42.

Hope this helps.

Cathy Lavender
Department of History
University of Colorado-Boulder
<lavender@ucsub.colorado.edu>