Changing Ones

This text explores the world of the "berdaches", Native American individuals who embodied both genders. Berdaches were known to combine male and female social roles with traits unique to their status as a third gender, defying and redefining traditional notions of gender-specific behaviour. The text reveals that rather than being ostracized or forced into obscurity, berdaches were embraced by some 150 tribes, serving as artists, medicine people, religious experts and tribal leaders. The author begins with case studies of male and female berdaches, blending biography and ethnohistory, and he builds toward theoretical insights into the nature of gender diversity in North America.