Lesbian is an unnecessary word

[122345]

I can't help thinking that the word lesbian is completely unnecessary. It just means the same as gay so what is the point of it. I hate when they say gay/lesbian cos they are the SAME.Also lesbian actually means someone from the island of Lesbos.

[bellasasha]

but svet you are a gay/lesbian/inhabitant of lesbos/dyke etc....so why is it a problem to you? you should be proud of what you are....and as you keep saying you are sooooooo pretty so why should you care? all that matters to you is that you are sooooo pretty!

[kempie]

Lesbian = female homosexual
Gay = male homosexual and/or non gender specific homosexual.

Since male homosexuals did not have the forsight to (mis)appropriate a word to exclusively cater for male only homosexuality, it has come to pass that the only way to ensure people understand that when you say "gay" and you are speaking of male homosexuals only, it has to be immediately followed by "& lesbian".

[waimarie]

I just knew you had an identity crisis. I'm not too keen on people calling me a geriatric honkey either but I get by and, do you know what? after a while you get to kinda like it. You don't come from Hackney, do you?

[heathfield]

But in ancient times the island of Lesbos had a reputation for its homosexual females, and the derived word 'lesbian' is applied specifically to females. Only since the mid-20th century has 'gay' been commonly used in reference to homosexual males. (Before that it generally had a much more innocent connotation - The Gay Cavalier simply meant he was lighthearted and uninhibited in his conduct).

kempie - Male homosexuals didn't have to appropriate an exclusive word for themselves - it was done for them, centuries ago. The word is 'bug**r', derived from Bulgaria, where, the rest of Europe believed, that sort of thing went on.

[spudqueen]

When I was young gay meant happy not homosexual or lesbian. The word lesbian was used to mean a female homosexual when gay meant something else.

[Azimov]

I totally agree!
I don't see the need for a separate word to differentiate between gay females and gay males and I therefore tend not to use the word "Lesbian"!
I work with several gay people (of both genders) and haven't so far experienced any adverse feedback from them regarding my terminology.
As far as I'm concerned if you're gay, you're gay!
If you're a lesbian then you're as gay as the doe-eyed, limp wristed doughnut-puncher next to you :)
I'd never call a gay man a "poof" though!

That might be construed as offensive!

[shammydodger]

Lesbian does NOT mean someone from the island of Lesbos. The inhabitants of Lesbos are called Lesvonians. Another urban myth shot down in flames.

[shammydodger]

If you don't like the word lesbian, why not try using "woman in comfortable shoes"?

[heathfield]

shammydodger - for the origin of 'lesbian', check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lesbian

Incidentally, did you all see in today's paper where judges have been instructed not to use the word 'homosexual' in court in future, as it may upset such people. Well! There's another definitive word down the drain for the sake of PC.

[shammydodger]

Heathfield

I haven't checked out that site. I don't need to. Lesbos was not the origin of Lesbian.

[shammydodger]

For some inane reason, people still think that because you can read it on the web, it must be true. It aint!

[kempie]

Lesvos and lesvonian are relatively recent names for the island and its inhabitants, probably to escape the stigma/confusion of calling themselves Lesbian, the ancient term applied to someone/something originating from Lesbos.

So-called "urban myth" airborne once more.

[Azimov]

Next you'll be telling us that a Dike (or Dyke) is:

An embankment of earth and rock built to prevent floods, or a low wall, often of sod, dividing or enclosing lands.
Or...
A barrier blocking a passage, especially for protection.
Or...
A raised causeway.
Or...
A ditch; a channel.
Or... in Geology.
A long mass of igneous rock that cuts across the structure of adjacent rock.

[rojash]

kempie, Lesvos has not changed its name. There is no letter B in modern Greek. The second letter of the alphabet is veta, (beta in classical Greek). For historical reasons, most Greek words are transilterated to English using classical Greek instead of modern Greek. So, to a Greek, it is Lesvos (Lamtha epsilon, sigma, veta, omicron, sigma), but it is generally rendered into English as Lesbos. There are hundreds of places in Greece which are similarly misrendered into English, and the same problem arises with the fourth letter of the alphabet, "Thelta" which is usually rendered as "delta". Words which actually require a "B" sound in Greek are spelt using "MP" (mi pi) and those requiring a "D" sound are pelt using "NT"

[kempie]

rojash - I didn't mean that the island had changed its name, only that the terms Lesvos and Lesvonian were new to the English language.

As you say, transliteration of Λέσβος using Classical Greek results in Lesbos in English (and Lesbus in Latin - from which we get the adjective Lesbian) which has been part of the language for centuries and as such cannot in any way be called an "urban myth".

[rojash]

kempie, sorry I misunderstood - BTW how do you get to type Greek in AB? I've tried every which way, and although it looks fine before I submit it, it always displays as gibberish after its been posted.

[kempie]

roj� - I predominantly use Character Map whenever I require Greek/Cyrillic/Other characters for inclusion in a post since this method seems not to produce the gibberish sometimes encountered when copying 'foreign' characters from another webpage. However, in this instance I must confess to copying Λέσβος directly from a webpage, to no ill effect.