π¬π· Welcome to Lesbos, Greece.
π©ββ€οΈβπ© The Greek island is inhabited by 115,000 Lesbians, but has also given its name to women loving women worldwide.
π For #InternationalLesbianDay, let's take a look at the history of the word "lesbian". π§΅
π©ββ€οΈβπ© The Greek island is inhabited by 115,000 Lesbians, but has also given its name to women loving women worldwide.
π For #InternationalLesbianDay, let's take a look at the history of the word "lesbian". π§΅
ποΈ From the Iliad to the Odyssey, Lesbos has had a central part in Ancient Greek history.
βοΈ One of its most famous inhabitants was the 6th century B.C. poet Sappho, whose lyrical poems explored her love of women and their beauty β sometimes even venturing into the erotic.
βοΈ One of its most famous inhabitants was the 6th century B.C. poet Sappho, whose lyrical poems explored her love of women and their beauty β sometimes even venturing into the erotic.
π© Sappho was regarded as one of the greatest poets of her time.
π Today, not much is known about her life, and much of her work has been lost over the centuries.
π©ββ€οΈβπβπ© But Sappho's homoerotic writing β and possible personal life β has been discussed since Hellenistic times.
π Today, not much is known about her life, and much of her work has been lost over the centuries.
π©ββ€οΈβπβπ© But Sappho's homoerotic writing β and possible personal life β has been discussed since Hellenistic times.
π Sappho wrote about loving women, but it's debated if these descriptions were romantic β and if she was attracted to women.
π¬ While homosexual behaviour between men was accepted and documented in Ancient Greece, accounts of lesbian relationships are much rarer to come across.
π¬ While homosexual behaviour between men was accepted and documented in Ancient Greece, accounts of lesbian relationships are much rarer to come across.
π Irrespective of Sappho's sexuality, her name has ever since been tied to love between women.
βοΈ It was in the 18th century her birthplace came into the equation, with William King defining "Lesbians" as women who "loved Women in the same Manner as Men love them".
βοΈ It was in the 18th century her birthplace came into the equation, with William King defining "Lesbians" as women who "loved Women in the same Manner as Men love them".
π₯Ό In 1890, the term lesbian appeared in a medical dictionary describing sex between women.
π While lesbian was used interchangeably with 'sapphist' and 'homosexual' at the turn of the 20th century, it was recorded as a noun in 1925, as the female equivalent of a sodomite.
π While lesbian was used interchangeably with 'sapphist' and 'homosexual' at the turn of the 20th century, it was recorded as a noun in 1925, as the female equivalent of a sodomite.
π€« Gay β a 12th-century word meaning carefree β became an underground word for being homosexual in the early 20th century.
β But with the rise of second-wave feminism in 1960s and β70s, gay women wanted their own identification and the use of lesbian became mainstream.
β But with the rise of second-wave feminism in 1960s and β70s, gay women wanted their own identification and the use of lesbian became mainstream.
βοΈ Today, thousands of lesbians travel to Sappho's birthplace yearly.
π§ββοΈ Even if some of the locals unsuccessfully went to court to ban the word being used to describe gay women.
πΈ Eros, the village of Sappho's birth, has three lesbian bars β that's two more than London. π
π§ββοΈ Even if some of the locals unsuccessfully went to court to ban the word being used to describe gay women.
πΈ Eros, the village of Sappho's birth, has three lesbian bars β that's two more than London. π
π³οΈβπ As time has moved on, more young queer women are rejecting traditional labels and have stopped using the word lesbian to describe their sexual identity.
β If you are a #WLW, how do you prefer calling yourself?
π Share with us below!
β If you are a #WLW, how do you prefer calling yourself?
π Share with us below!
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