Femboy
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Femboy (
The term originated in the 1990s. It has since been popularised through internet forums and social media like TikTok, where trends such as "#femboyfriday" have received attention in the media. In gender studies, the term has been used as an identifier for transgender individuals; in porn studies, the term has been seen as an identifier for a submissive role in intercourse, and as exhibiting elements of sexual fantasy.
Usage
Etymology
The term femboy originated in the 1990s and is a compound from the words fem (an abbreviation of feminine and femme) and boy.[1][2] The variant femboi uses the LGBT term boi.[1] The term boi had come to denote "a young, attractive gay man" by 2000.[3]
Definitions
Femboy refers to a
Along with terms like
Attributes
A 2022 analysis of the most followed male creators on
A femboy may engage in cross-dressing
Femboy is similar to the term shemale in that they both refer to individuals exhibiting masculinity and femininity simultaneously; they express femininity in a dainty manner without the presence of elements of the sexualised female body, such as large breasts. Emerald Vaught sees femboys as encompassing both effeminate cisgender men, but also, despite this lack of corporeal femininity, bottoming transgender women. In pornography, she sees the femboy as sharing the idea of a "youthful appearance" with twinks and as "represent[ing] an element of sexual fantasy" of transgender femininity.[7]
Presence
Femboy culture began to take shape in the United States in the 1990s. After the term was appropriated on the Internet, femboy communities began to form. Around 2018, the term femboy was found almost exclusively on 4chan, especially on the /lgbt/ forum. It later became popular on platforms such as Reddit and TikTok.[12][4] Reddit has hosted both sexual and non-sexual femboy content: r/feminineboys was started in 2012 and had 258,000 members by April 2024; the site also contains the pornographic community r/FemBoys.[9][13] TikTok has been said to be a safe space in allowing freedom of gender expression.[14] The femboy aesthetic has been compared with figures in popular culture such as Harry Styles;[10] viral trends such as "#FemboyFriday" and memes such as "Femboy Hooters" have helped to popularise the aesthetic.[4][13] An unofficial femboy pride flag exists, which uses seven horizontal stripes, with the colours pink, light pink, white, and light blue: these represent the feminine aesthetic, feminine behaviour, non-binary identities, and masculinity respectively.[15]
According to Aye Lei Tun, femboy culture was present in Myanmar's Spring Revolution, protesting against the ruling military junta imposed after the 2021 coup d'état. In the protests, femboy outfits were used to gain exposure, with gender-nonconforming outfits being worn by non-femboy protestors; Tun sees the introduction of femboy culture, which was previously unfamiliar to Myanmar, as being a tactic to lead towards a "social and cultural ideological revolution".[16] A 2021 publication by the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute described femboy activity against the junta as causing "subversion of its assertion of rule", drawing comparison to opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War and the anti-war "make love, not war" slogan.[17]
Reception
The femboy aesthetic has been praised for "breaking traditional norms of masculinity" and seen as demonstrating that "oppressive gender norms are slowly breaking down"[4][14]—on TikTok, the aesthetic has enjoyed popularity, although creators of femboy-style posts may receive homophobic comments and violent threats.[14]
Critics have seen femboys as perpetuating male dominance and disregarding existing discourse on gender identity.[10][18] An article by Marissa Lee in Mission criticised straight femboys for "claim[ing] responsibility for breaking such boundaries": "do[ing] next to nothing for the conversation surrounding gender fluidity. If anything, it [the existence of femboys] emphasises the all-encompassing maleness."[18] The "femboy aesthetic" of the most popular content creators on TikTok has been called "reenforc[ing] extant patterns of gender inequality" due to its masculine 'boundary breaks' relying on the sexualisation of women:[10]
When and if men cross gender boundaries, they do so while alluding to masculinities' hegemonic qualities, paring their behaviours with lyrics and physical gestures that sexualise women and re-assert men's virility, bravado, and strength as a form of heterosexual recuperation.
The
See also
- Bishōnen – a term for men embodying androgyny
- Otokonoko – a term for men with a culturally female gender expression
- Soy boy – Pejorative term for non-masculine men
- Tomboy – Females with masculine traits
References
- ^ a b c "What Is A "Femboy"?". Dictionary.com. 2021-01-26. Retrieved 2023-12-18.
- ^ "Fem". Collins English Dictionary. Retrieved 2023-12-19.
- ISSN 1091-2339. Retrieved 2023-12-18.
- ^ a b c d e f Patston, Manning (2022-07-29). "Femboy is the TikTok trend shaking up gender norms". Happy Mag. Retrieved 2023-12-18.
- ^ a b Cristalli, Beatrice (2021-01-07). "Parlare della fluidità di genere" [Talking about gender fluidity]. Treccani (in Italian). Retrieved 2023-12-18.
- ^ "Femboy". Collins English Dictionary. Retrieved 2023-12-18.
- ^ S2CID 266298941.
- PMID 35285776.
- ^ ISSN 1755-9944.
- ^ ISSN 2056-3051.
- ^ Cidral, Mariáh (2020-09-15). "Femboys: o Movimento Que Vai das Semanas de Moda ao TikTok" [Femboys: the Movement That Goes From Fashion Weeks to TikTok]. FFW (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2023-12-19.
- ^ a b Gleeson, Jules Joannne (2018-02-03). "An Anatomy of the Soy Boy". New Socialist. Retrieved 2023-12-19.
- ^ a b Hills, Megan C. (2020-09-14). "Why #FemboyFriday is more than just a trend". Evening Standard. Retrieved 2023-12-19.
- ^ a b c Ran, Dani (2020-08-13). "Introducing the 'Femboys' Taking TikTok By Storm". Vice. Retrieved 2023-06-02.
- ^ (anonymous) (2022-06-25). "All about the Femboy Pride Flag". Queerty. Retrieved 2023-12-19.
- S2CID 258307859.
- ^ Jordt, Ingrid; Than, Tharaphi; Ye Lin, Sue (2021). How Generation Z Galvanized a Revolutionary Movement Against Myanmar's 2021 Military Coup (PDF). Trends in Southeast Asia. ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute. pp. 14–15.
- ^ a b Lee, Marissa. "The Gender-Fluid Femboy Phenomenon: What it All Means". Mission. Retrieved 2023-12-18.
- ISSN 0896-9205.
External links
- Femboy entry at Know Your Meme