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Postag197v1 : The Lady Boys Of Thailand

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Kathoey: The Lady Boys of Thailand

The Kathoey are androphilic, frequently effeminate and transgendered males. They are perceived as neither men nor as women by the members of their communities. Rather, they are viewed as occupying an unmistakable ‘third’ gender classification (Vasey, 2008). (something about how they are dynamic or how they are viewed differently consisting of how the outside views them versus how they view themselves. Dynamic in the way they chose to manipulate their identities based on the situation at hand. or how it is hard to put a text book definition on the Kathoey).. According to the Royal Thai Academy, their dictionary defines that Kathoey means ‘a person with both male and female sexual organs and/or characteristics’ or ‘person who believes that they were born to the wrong sex’ (MG). Even this textbook definition covers a broad range of individuals. Under this definition, categories of people such as hermaphrodites, transgendered, cross-dressers, intersex and the alike could/can be included (MG). The Kathoey are often referred as the Lady Boys. This term is restrictive compared to the previous definition provided. It is restrictive in the sense that it suggests that the Kathoey only includes/refers to the biological males that self-identify as females. But in reality, this term can also refer to biological females that self-identify as males (Sinnott, 1999). **bio females that act like males are more commonly referred to as Tom’s.. find

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