#Qalonymos ben Qalonymos

[queerasfact]

Father in heaven, who did miracles for our ancestors with fire and water, You changed the fire of Chaldees so it would not burn hot, You changed Dina in the womb of her mother to a girl, You changed the staff to a snake before a million eyes, You changed [Moses’] hand to [leprous] white and the sea to dry land. In the desert you turned rock to water, hard flint to a fountain. Who would then turn me from a man to woman? Were I only to have merited this, being so graced by your goodness.

-Qalonymos ben Qalonymos, Even Bochan, c.1322, translation from Wrestling With God & Men: Homosexuality in the Jewish Tradition by Rabbi Steven Greenberg, p.118-120

In late 1322 or early 1323, French Jewish poet Qalonymos ben Qalonymos completed their book Even Bochan, which features this passage, describing the author's discontent with living as a man, and desire to live as a woman.

You can read a longer version of the passage here, and listen to our podcast on Qalonymos and their place in trans Jewish history here

[nedlittle]

on becoming a woman by qalonymos ben qalonymos from even bohan (1322), translated by peter cole

[materialisnt]

a gut vokh and shavua tov to trans jews and those who love us!

Today, SVARA's Trans Halakha Project released two incredible bodies of work: the first iteration of their Teshuvot and Tefillat Trans: Blessings and Rituals for Trans Lives. Read them, share them, save them for later, and know in your heart that you are not alone.

This is a HUGE moment in Jewish history where Trans-centered Torah is being actively cultivated by and for trans Jews. Ancestors of blessed memory like Rabbi Yochanan, Qalonymos ben Qalonymos, Berel-Beyle, Magnus Hirschfeld, and Leslie Feinberg have paved the way for us to be embracing our full selves as authorities in this tradition, not outsiders.

Trans lives are worth living. Trans wisdom is worth celebrating. Trans Jews are worth loving.

We are full members of our communities, and any Judaism that claims otherwise is incomplete.

[marxism-transgenderism]

Lord in heaven,

who brought forth wonders

by fire and water for our Fathers,

cooling Abraham’s Chaldean kiln,

so in its flames he’d not be burned;

who altered Dina’s fate in the womb,

and made a serpent of Moses’ wand;

who whited with illness Miriam’s hands

and turned the Sea of Reeds into land—

transforming the muddy bed of the Jordan

into passable sand,

and making from stone and shale

a pool whose springs would not fail

if only you would make me female!

If that alone might be done,

how wondrous then would be my fortune!

Spared the arduous labor of men,

I’d settle down and raise my children.

But why complain and bitterly whine?

If my Father in heaven is so inclined

as to fashion me with a lasting deformity,

how could I ask that He take it from me?

Worry about what just can’t be

is incurable pain and endless misery;

empty condolence is hardly an answer.

“I’ll just have to bear it, “ I said, “though I’ll suffer

until I wither away and die.”

And since long ago I learned from tradition

that both good and bad deserve benediction,

in the faintest of whispers I’ll mutter each morning;

Blessed art Thou, O Lord—who has not made me a woman.

— Qalonymos ben Qalonymos, "On Becoming a Woman" (1322). Qalonymos was a Jewish philosopher and translator born in 1286 in what is now southern France (link).

[oliviridian]

i wish i could be cisgender. sometimes i wonder how bad it would be to just be a cis man instead of living constantly wishing. 

Lord in heaven, who brought forth wonders by fire and water for our Fathers, cooling Abraham’s Chaldean kiln, so in its flames he’d not be burned; who altered Dina’s fate in the womb, and made a serpent of Moses’ wand; who whited with illness Miriam’s hands and turned the Sea of Reeds into land— transforming the muddy bed of the Jordan into passable sand, and making from stone and shale a pool whose springs would not fail if only you would make me female! If that alone might be done, how wondrous then would be my fortune! Spared the arduous labor of men, I’d settle down and raise my children. But why complain and bitterly whine? If my Father in heaven is so inclined as to fashion me with a lasting deformity, how could I ask that He take it from me? Worry about what just can’t be is incurable pain and endless misery; empty condolence is hardly an answer. “I’ll just have to bear it, “ I said, “though I’ll suffer until I wither away and die.” And since long ago I learned from tradition that both good and bad deserve benediction, in the faintest of whispers I’ll mutter each morning; Blessed art Thou, O Lord—who has not made me a woman

[ao3tagoftheday]

Why the fuck are you telling that anon that their gender "can be made more fun" holy shit. Genders are not accessories! You can't just fucking switch when it's no longer fun to you! Why are you taking a massive shit on dysphoria with the notion that you can "experiment" with something as serious as physical identity? Don't even come at me with that "gender is mental uwu" shit, that's fucking ableist. GNC isn't trans, stop misinforming potentially trans youth. You should be ashamed of yourself

I now present Mod EJ Nerds in Response to Anon Hate: Trans Edition.

In traditional Jewish liturgy, a series of short blessings called the Birkat Ha-Shahar is recited in the morning prayer service. Among these blessings is one which goes, “Blessed are you, G-d, Lord of the Universe, who did not make me a woman.” For obvious reasons, this blessing is often omitted or changed in modern Jewish liturgy, but it was standard in 1322, when a Jewish scholar named Qalonymos ben Qalonymos published a book of his writings. This book contained the following poem (translated by Peter Cole):

On Becoming A Woman

Lord in heaven,who brought forth wondersby fire and water for our Fathers,cooling Abraham’s Chaldean kiln,so in its flames he’d not be burned;who altered Dina’s fate in the womb,and made a serpent of Moses’ wand;who whited with illness Miriam’s handsand turned the Sea of Reeds into land—transforming the muddy bed of the Jordaninto passable sand,and making from stone and shalea pool whose springs would not failif only you would make me female!

If that alone might be done,how wondrous then would be my fortune!Spared the arduous labor of men,I’d settle down and raise my children.But why complain and bitterly whine?If my Father in heaven is so inclined as to fashion me with a lasting deformity,how could I ask that He take it from me?Worry about what just can’t beis incurable pain and endless misery;empty condolence is hardly an answer.“I’ll just have to bear it, “ I said, “though I’ll suffer until I wither away and die.”

And since long ago I learned from traditionthat both good and bad deserve benediction,in the faintest of whispers I’ll mutter each morning;Blessed art Thou, O Lord—who has not made me a woman

[Note: This ask gave me some trouble because I genuinely want to respond to the theoretical point it raises. I just don’t want to engage with anon hate, and I refuse to let some asshole bait me into doing so. If anyone wants to ask me about this issue in a constructive way, I’ll be delighted to respond.]

[tanadrin]

What an awful fate for my mother To have born a son. What a grievous misfortune! Cursed be the one who said to my father, Behold your boy.

Woe to him who has sons; On them a great yoke has been placed, Burdens and rules. Some private, some public, All to avoid even a hint of transgression, That follow him to the most secret of places. Strong statutes, awesome commandments, Six hundred and thirteen. Who is the man who can do all that is written, So that he might be spared?

Oh, but had the sculptor who formed me Made me instead a beautiful woman, Today I would be wise and discerning. Together we’d weave, my friends and I, And in the moonlight spin our yarn, Telling our stories to one another, From dusk till midnight. We’d talk of our days, the little things, Matters of no consequence And I would grow wise from the spinning. I’d say to myself, happy is she Who knows how to work with combed flax And weave it into fine white linen.

And at times, in the way of women, I would lie down on the floor of the kitchen Between the ovens, turn the coals, and taste the different dishes. On holidays I would put on my best jewelry. I would beat on the drum And my clapping hands would ring.

And when I was ready and the time was right, An excellent youth would be my fortune. He would love me, shower me with affection Dress me in jewels of gold, Earrings, bracelets, necklaces. And on the appointed day, In the joyful season when brides are wed, For seven days he would increase my delight and gladness.

Were I hungry, he would feed me well-kneaded bread. Were I thirsty, he would quench me with light and dark wine. He would not rebuke or upbraid me, Nor for a moment diminish my pleasure. Every Sabbath, and each new moon, His head he would rest upon my breast. The three husbandly duties he would fulfill, Of meat, raiment, and the marital bed. And three wifely duties would I also fulfill, Of blood, lights, and bread.

Father in heaven, who long ago did miracles with water and flame, You changed the fire of the Chaldees so it would do no harm, You changed Dinah in the womb of her mother to a girl, You changed the staff to a snake before a million eyes, You turned Moses’ hand leprous white, and the sea to dry land. The desert rock you turned rock to water, hard flint into a fountain. Who would then change me? If only I could merit this, be touched by your grace.

What shall I say? Why cry or be bitter? If my Father in heaven has commanded it, Has given me this immutable deformity Then I do not wish to remove it And the sorrow of the impossible Is a pain that nothing will cure, And for which no comfort can be found. So I will bear and suffer Until I die and wither in the ground. And since I have learned from the tradition That we bless both the good and the bitter, I will bless in a voice, hushed and weak, Blessed are you, O Lord, Who has not made me a woman.

--Qalonymos ben Qalonymos, Eben Bohan (1322 CE)

[nerdy30trans-blog]

To Be Trans* is Divine

One of the biggest obstacles to those within the trans* community is the objection of people of faith within their lives. Yet, as a theologian, I find the claims of those who reject LGBTQIA+ people, to put it bluntly, absurd.

Dating all the way back to the time the Old Testament, or Torah, was compiled there was a deep understanding within the Jewish community of multiple genders. Classical Jewish texts actually recognized within the community, within humanity there were six genders.

Zachar- That is derived from the Jewish word for sword, and obviously a phallic reference that is translated into English most easily as male.

Nekevah- A term that is derived from crevice, and references the vaginal opening, classically translated as female in English.

Androgynos-A person who has both “male” and “female” sexual characteristics. 149 references in Mishna and Talmud (1st-8th Centuries CE); 350 in classical midrash and Jewish law codes (2nd -16th Centuries CE).

Tumtum- A person whose sexual characteristics are indeterminate or obscured. 181 references in Mishna and Talmud; 335 in classical midrash and Jewish law codes.

Ay’lonit- A person who is identified as “female” at birth but develops “male” characteristics. 80 references in Mishna and Talmud; 40 in classical midrash and Jewish law codes.

Saris- A person who is identified as “male” at birth but develops “female” characteristics. A saris can be “naturally” a saris (saris hamah), or become one through human intervention (saris adam). 156 references in mishna and Talmud; 379 in classical midrash and Jewish law codes.

So why is this important?

Because, when we engage with the most prevalent religion we encounter a Christianity that is devoted to lobbying for legislation. We have elected officials, not to mention family members, that doggedly deny who we are, our given reality, and our right to transition, and live a fulfilled life. What is important is to direct them to their own history. To the books they consult, and to the faith they adhere too. If Judaism accepted and does accept us, the rejection of Christians is literally “Anti-Christ.”

Jesus was Jewish. Jesus was a trained Rabbi! He consulted the same literature, the same texts that taught the six genders. Therefore, if we take logically that Jesus knew of this, then what he does and says matters on the topic. Also, what Jesus doesn’t say, and doesn’t do matters. Jesus spoke of the Law and the Prophets over and again in the Gospels. He critiqued ritual cleaning, covered in rabbinical circles, he covered political allegiances, he covered divorce law, adultery law, Sabbath law and more. Jesus critiqued His world repeatedly on the very things he learned from other rabbis, and discussed with them. Yet in the entire span of the Gospel we encounter two stories of Jesus interacting with the LGBTQIA+ community. And we encounter him sending his disciple in Acts to a transgender person.

All threes of these encounters are not just “accepting” they are “affirming.” First, we have Jesus and the Roman Centurion. Here Jesus meets a man that has sacrificed his own money to build a Jewish Synagogue for the town, but says Jesus should not enter his house. Why? Because his pais is sick and he is unworthy. The Roman knows that one, Gentiles should not host Jews or they will be unclean, he is also concerned for what Jesus may judge. However what is the reaction of Jesus? He heals his lover, which is the direct translation, and says “I have not found such faith among my own people, Israel.” Jesus has an opportunity here to pronounce judgment on a gay couple, instead he pronounces wonder, amazement and joy.

Secondly in Matthew Jesus teaches on the “eunuchs” he says in Matthew 19:12 some are born this way, some have this done to them, and some choose it to be so. This is most clearly a teaching on gender variance by Jesus. In it, Jesus accepts it as something that one highlights God’s diversity in humanity and gender, two, shows that like the rabbincal text highlights there are multiple genders, and three, that some are born some way and transition. To deny that Jesus says this is to misunderstand the heart of the text, and the cultural setting in which He speaks. Jesus is saying all are welcomed to be near him, and experience acceptance, peace and love. Hence, Jesus says “Let anyone who can accept it, accept it.” Both the Jews and the Romans in the first century punished those who lived on the fringes of society, and Jesus welcomes us with open arms.

Lastly, in Acts 8 we have the most demonstrable story of radical acceptance in the entire New Testament. After the early Church begins to be persecuted many of the people flee Jerusalem. They are in new territories, areas and communities that do not keep to Jewish traditions, and so far there has been no mission to those of other nations. Yet Jesus sends Philip to meet a eunuch. As he meets this eunuch and engages in conversation the eunuch wants to join the church. He asks, “Why wouldn’t I be able to be a follower of Jesus?”, and Philip’s response, “If we can’t find water and you aren’t baptized.” As such this trans character is baptized and welcomed and the story ends.

So from ancient Jewish commentary, to the life and words of Jesus, to the actions of the early church to be trans is to be divine. It is to live in accordance with how God has made you, and to transition is simply part of the journey.

To close them I will end with a prayer and poem written by Qalonymos ben Qalonymos that recounts the wonders of God’s miracles and the prayer of transition of gender, a reflection on being born a Saris.

Lord in heaven, who brought forth wonders by fire and water for our Fathers, cooling Abraham’s Chaldean kiln, so in its flames he’d not be burned; who altered Dina’s fate in the womb, and made a serpent of Moses’ wand; who whited with illness Miriam’s hands and turned the Sea of Reeds into land — transforming the muddy bed of the Jordan into passable sand, and making from stone and shale a pool whose springs would not fail if only you would make me female!

We have always existed, and we have always been welcomed. Let no one shut the door on your faith. For if God has worked wonders, what a wonder you are.

[titleleaf]

Top 5 religious poems, you can’t just Donne me in the face

Damn it, dude, you know all I have to offer is Donne!

Is it George Herbert who has that one poem about feeling all spiritually deadened and like God’s not hearing or answering you? Who the fuck did that one? It’s good. 

That one by Qalonymos ben Qalonymos. YOU KNOW THE ONE. 

“Some keep the Sabbath going to Church”, Emily Dickinson (hey it counts) 

uhhh... fuck... batter my heart three person’d god by schmon schmonne 

the psalms, all of em

[queerasfact]

New podcast episode: Qalonymos ben Qalonymos

Today's episode is on a passage from the work of 14th century French Jewish writer and translator Qalonymos ben Qalonymos. Join us to learn about Qalonymos' life, explore their understandings of gender through a passage from their work the Even Bochan, and discuss its connections to historical and modern Jewish practice.

Listen here

Check out our website, where you can find our sources, as well as everything there is to know about Queer as Fact.

If you enjoy our content, consider supporting us on Patreon, checking out our merch, and following us on Instagram, Tumblr and Bluesky.

[gefiltetantrum]

-Tova Rosen, Unveiling Eve: Reading Gender in Medieval Hebrew Literature

[queerasfact]

Oh, but had the artisan who made me created me instead—a fair woman. Today I would be wise and insightful. We would weave, my friends and I, and in the moonlight spin our yarn, and tell our stories to one another, from dusk till midnight.

-Qalonymos ben Qalonymos, Even Bochan, c.1322, translation from Wrestling With God & Men: Homosexuality in the Jewish Tradition by Rabbi Steven Greenberg, p.118-120

In late 1322 or early 1323, French Jewish poet Qalonymos ben Qalonymos completed their book Even Bochan, which features this passage, describing the author's discontent with living as a man, and desire to live as a woman.

You can read a longer version of the passage here, and listen to our podcast on Qalonymos and their place in trans Jewish history here

[queerasfact]

Oh, but had the artisan who made me created me instead—a fair woman. Today I would be wise and insightful. We would weave, my friends and I, and in the moonlight spin our yarn, and tell our stories to one another, from dusk till midnight.

-Qalonymos ben Qalonymos, Even Bochan, c.1322, translation from Wrestling With God & Men: Homosexuality in the Jewish Tradition by Rabbi Steven Greenberg, p.118-120

It's National Poetry Day in the UK, so it's an excellent chance for us to share some of the queer poetry we've come across.

In late 1322 or early 1323, French Jewish poet Qalonymos ben Qalonymos completed their book Even Bochan, which features this passage, describing the author’s discontent with living as a man, and desire to live as a woman.

You can read a longer version of the passage here, and listen to our podcast on Qalonymos and their place in trans Jewish history here

[queerasfact]

Queer as Fact Episodes by Time Period

To go with our list of episodes by location, here’s a list of all our episodes by century. I will include a link on our main page to this one too. Note that people are listed chronologically in the century they were born, which may not be the century during which they lived most of their life.

This list doesn’t include our Queer as Fiction episodes on queer media, which can be found here.

19th Century BCE-2nd Century CE

Achilles and Patroclus (figures from Greek myth)

The Sacred Band of Thebes (military unit made up of male-male couples, 300s BCE)

Queer Love in Early Chinese History 

The Warren Cup (ancient Roman cup depicting male-male sex) 

Male Sexuality in Ancient Rome

Relationships between women in ancient Rome

Julius Caesar (c.100BCE-44BCE, Roman leader)

Nero (37CE-68CE, Roman emperor)

Sexuality in Pompeii (79CE)

Hadrian and Antinous (Roman emperor 76CE-138CE and his lover c.111CE-130CE)

2nd Century-9th Century

Moche sex pots (erotic ceramics from Peru)

St Brigid (c.450-525, Irish abbess)

Han Zigao (538-567 Chinese general)

Abu Nuwas (c.750-c.814 Arabic poet)

Pope Joan (purported 9th-century female pope)

10th Century-15th Century

Queer Women in Medieval Arab Literature

Hildegard of Bingen (c.1098-1179, German nun and polymath)

Edward II (1284-1327, king of England)

Qalonymos ben Qalonymos (1286-post 1328, French Jewish writer and translator)

Kapaemahu (monument to four Hawai’ian māhūhealers, erected c.1500s)

16th Century

Shah Hussayn (1538-1599, Punjabi poet)

Njinga of Ndongo (1582-1663, Mbundu monarch)

17th Century

Christina of Sweden (1626-1689, Swedish monarch)

Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz (c.1648-1695, Mexican nun, writer and polymath)

Queerness in the Golden Age of Piracy (c.1650s-c.1730s)

Julie D’Aubigny (c.1670-1707, French opera singer and duellist)

18th Century

The Agojie (1700s-1894, Dahomean (Beninese) regiments of soldiers assigned female at birth)

Frederick the Great (1712-1786, Prussian monarch and general)

Horace Walpole (1717-1797, English antiquarian and man of letters)

Chevalière d’Éon (1728-1810, French spy and diplomat)

Baron von Steuben (1730-1794, Prussian-born Inspector General of the US Army)

Jane Austen (1775-1817, English author)

Charity Bryant and Sylvia Drake (1777-1851, 1784-1868, lived as a married couple in the early USA)

Dr. James Barry (1789-1865, Irish surgeon)

Anne Lister and follow-up Christmas special (1791-1840, English landowner and diarist)

Mary Shelley (1797-1851, English author)

Wú Zǎo (c.1799-1862, Chinese poet and playwright)

19th Century

General

Queer as Fact meets History is Gay (a conversation about queer slang in Australia and the USA)

Golden Orchid Societies (19th-20th century communities of women rejecting traditional marriage in southern China)

1800s

Bíawacheeitchish aka Woman Chief (c.1806-1854, Crow warrior and leader)

1810s

1820s

Rosa Bonheur (1822-1899, French artist)

1830s

Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888, US author of Little Women and other works)

Okuhara Seiko (1837-1913, Japanese artist)

1840s

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893, Russian composer)

Albert Cashier (c.1844-1915, Irish-born trans US Civil War soldier)

Captain Moonlite parts one and two (1845-1880, Australian bushranger)

Fanny Park and Stella Boulton (1846-1881, 1847-1904, English transfeminine people tried for homosexuality)

John Lempriere Irvine (1847-unknown, Australian rower and banker)

We’wha (c.1849-1896, Zuni craftsperson, ambassador, and two-spirit lhamana)

1850s

Osh-Tisch (1854-1929, Crow warrior, craftsperson, and two-spirit batée)

Oscar Wilde (1854-1900, Irish poet and playwright)

1860s

1870s

Hijra is 19th-century India

Harry Crawford (1875-1938, Italian-Australian trans man tried for murder)

Franz Nopcsa (1877-1933, Hungarian palaeontologist, spy and ethnographer of Albania)

Isadora Duncan (1877-1927, American dancer)

1880s

Harry Allen (1882-1922, American trans man)

The Secret Sex Spreadsheets of John Maynard Keynes (1883-1946, English economist)

Did Queen Victoria believe in lesbians?

Sofya Parnok (1885-1933, Russian poet)

Ma Rainey (1886-1939, American blues singer)

Lucy Hicks Anderson (1886-1954, American cook, socialite and brothel-owner)

Sylvia Beach (1887-1962, American-French publisher and bookseller)

Vaslav Nijinsky (1889-1950, Russian ballet dancer and choreographer)

William Dobell (1889-1970, Australian artist)

1890s

Lesbia Harford (1891-1927, Australian poet and activist)

Willem Arondeus (1894-1943, Dutch artist and WWII resistance member)

Yoshiya Nobuko (1896-1973, Japanese author)

Alice Anderson (1897-1926, owner of Australia’s first all-female garage)

Federico García Lorca (1898-1936, Spanish playwright and poet)

Ruth Ellis (1899-2000, American lesbian centenarian)

20th Century

General

Queer as Fact meets History is Gay (a conversation about queer slang in Australia and the USA)

Golden Orchid Societies (19th-20th century communities of women rejecting traditional marriage in southern China)

1900s

Nellie Small (1900-1968, Australian singer and male impersonator)

Henrietta Bingham (1901-1968, American jazz-age socialite)

Frieda Belinfante (1904-1995, Dutch cellist, conductor and member of Dutch WWII resistance)

Josephine Baker (1906-1975, American-French singer, actress, civil rights activist and spy)

Frida Kahlo (1907-1954, Mexican artist) and Frida Kahlo’s lost archive

Gladys Bentley (1907-1960, American blues performer)

Yoshiko Kawashima (1907-1948 Chinese-Japanese public figure and spy)

Samuel Steward (1909-1993, American professor of English, tattoo artist and sex researcher)

1910s

Pauli Murray parts one and two (1910-1985, American lawyer, civil rights activist, priest and poet)

Elke Mackenzie (1911-1990, English lichenologist and polar explorer)

Ewan Forbes (1912-1991, Scottish doctor and farmer)

Tove Jansson (1914-2001, Finnish author and artist)

Billy Tipton (1914-1989, American jazz musician)

Rosetta Tharpe (1915-1973, American gospel singer)

Michael Dillon (1915-1962, British doctor, monk, and first trans man to undergo a phalloplasty)

Roberta Cowell (1918-2011, British WWII fighter pilot, race-car driver and trans pioneer)

Chavela Vargas (1919-2012, Costa Rican-born Mexican singer)

1920s

Stormé DeLarverie (1920-2014, American drag performer and bouncer)

Gad Beck (1923-2012, German-Jewish activist, WWII resistance member, and Holocaust survivor)

1930s

Harvey Milk (1930-1978, San Francisco politician)

Audre Lorde (1934-1992, American activist and writer)

1940s

Yona Wallach (1944-1985, Israeli poet) 

Marsha P. Johnson (1945-1992, American drag queen and activist)

Freddie Mercury (1946-1991, the frontman of British rock band, Queen)

1950s

Maryam Khatoon Molkara (1950-2012, Iranian trans activist)

Sally Ride (1951-2012, American astronaut) 

Simon Nkoli (1959-1998, South African activist)

1960s

Beki (Philippine queer language originating in the 1960s or 70s)

Qiu Miaojin (1969-1995, Taiwanese writer)

Stonewall (1969 New York riots)

1970s

Shelly’s Leg (1970s Seattle gay club)

Asexuals have problems too (1971 Village Voice article, USA)

The Asexual Manifesto (1972 American political document)

Gilbert Baker and the Rainbow Flag (first flown in San Francisco in 1975)

Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras (begun 1978)

Did Swedish people call in gay to work?

1980s

HIV/AIDS in Australia (1982 onwards)

Friends of Dorothy (gay men in the 1980s US Navy) 

Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners (1984-85, UK activist group)

2000s

The Gay and Lesbian Kingdom of the Coral Sea Islands (2004-2017, Australian micronation)

[queerasfact]

Queer as Fact episodes by location

Here’s a list of all our episodes by continent, and then by country. Hopefully this will help people find specific topics they’re interested in, and also help us try and increase the diversity of what we talk about. I will link this on our main page and try and keep it updated as we go along. Enjoy!

This list doesn’t include our Queer as Fiction episodes on queer media, which can be found here.

You can also find our episodes organised by time period.

Africa

Queer Women in Medieval Arab Literature

Angola

Njinga of Ndongo (1582-1663, monarch)

Benin

The Agojie (1700s-1894, regiments of soldiers assigned female at birth)

Tanzania

Freddie Mercury (1946-1991, the frontman of rock band, Queen. Freddie was born in Zanizbar to Indian parents and lived there as a young child and again briefly as a teenager)

South Africa

Simon Nkoli (1959-1998, activist)

Asia

Queer Women in Medieval Arab Literature

China

Queer Love in Early Chinese History

Han Zigao (538-567 general)

Wú Zǎo (c.1799-1862, poet and playwright)

Golden Orchid Societies (19th-20th century communities of women rejecting traditional marriage)

Yoshiko Kawashima (1907-1948 Chinese-Japanese public figure and spy)

India

Hijra in 19th-century India

Michael Dillon (1915-1962, first trans man to undergo a phalloplasty. Michael was born in the UK and spent the last years of his life studying Buddhist traditions in India)

Freddie Mercury (1946-1991, the frontman of rock band, Queen. Freddie was born in Zanzibar to Indian parents, and then spent much of his childhood in India.)

Iran

Abu Nuwas (c.750-c.814 poet)

Maryam Khatoon Molkara (1950-2012, trans activist)

Iraq

Abu Nuwas (c.750-c.814 poet)

Israel

Gad Beck (1923-2012, German activist, WWII resistance member, and Holocaust survivor)

Yona Wallach (1944-1985, poet)

Japan

Okuhara Seiko (1837-1913, artist)

Yoshiya Nobuko (1896-1973, author)

Yoshiko Kawashima (1907-1948 Chinese-Japanese public figure and spy)

Pakistan

Shah Hussayn (1538-1599, poet)

Philippines

Beki (queer language originating in the 1960s or 70s)

Taiwan

Qiu Miaojin (1969-1995, writer)

Australia and Oceania

Australia

Queer as Fact meets History is Gay (a conversation about queer slang in Australia and the USA)

Captain Moonlite parts one and two (1845-1880, bushranger)

John Lempriere Irvine (1847-unknown, rower and banker)

Harry Crawford (1875-1938, trans man tried for murder)

William Dobell (1889-1970, artist)

Lesbia Harford (1891-1927, poet and activist)

Alice Anderson (1897-1926, owner of Australia’s first all-female garage)

Nellie Small (1900-1968, singer and male impersonator)

The Birth of Queer Film in Australia

Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras (begun 1978)

HIV/AIDS in Australia (1982 onwards)

The Gay and Lesbian Kingdom of the Coral Sea Islands (2004-2017)

Hawai’i

Kapaemahu (monument to four māhū healers)

Europe

Albania

Albanian sworn virgins (a traditional custom that allowed someone assigned female at birth to assume a male gender role by taking a vow of chastity)

Franz Nopcsa (1877-1933, Hungarian palaeontologist, spy and ethnographer of Albania)

Finland

Tove Jansson (1914-2001, author and artist)

France

Qalonymos ben Qalonymos (1286-post 1328, Jewish writer and translator)

Julie D’Aubigny (c.1670-1707, opera singer and duellist)

Chevalière d’Éon (1728-1810, spy and diplomat)

Rosa Bonheur (1822-1899, artist)

Isadora Duncan (1877-1927, American dancer)

Sylvia Beach (1887-1962, publisher and bookseller)

Josephine Baker (1906-1975, singer, actress, civil rights activist and spy)

Germany (including Prussia)

Hildegard of Bingen (c.1098-1179, nun and polymath)

Frederick the Great (1712-1786, monarch and general)

Baron von Steuben (1730-1794, Inspector General of the US Army)

Gad Beck (1923-2012, activist, WWII resistance member, and Holocaust survivor)

Greece

Achilles and Patroclus (figures from Greek myth)

The Sacred Band of Thebes (military unit made up of male-male couples, 300s BCE)

Hungary

Franz Nopcsa (1877-1933, palaeontologist, spy and ethnographer)

Ireland

St Brigid (c.450-525, abbess)

Dr. James Barry (1789-1865, surgeon)

Albert Cashier (c.1844-1915, Irish-born trans US Civil War soldier)

Oscar Wilde (1854-1900, poet and playwright)

Italy (including Ancient Rome)

The Warren Cup (ancient Roman cup depicting male-male sex)

Male Sexuality in Ancient Rome

Relationships between women in ancient Rome

Julius Caesar (c.100BCE-44BCE)

Nero (37CE-68CE, Roman emperor)

Sexuality in Pompeii (79CE)

Hadrian and Antinous (Roman emperor 76CE-138CE and his lover c.111CE-130CE)

Harry Crawford (1875-1938, Italian-born trans man tried for murder in Australia)

Netherlands

Willem Arondeus (1894-1943, artist and WWII resistance member)

Frieda Belinfante (1904-1995, cellist, conductor and member of Dutch WWII resistance)

Poland

Vaslav Nijinsky (1889-1950, ballet dancer and choreographer)

Romania

Franz Nopcsa (1877-1933, palaeontologist, spy and ethnographer)

Russia

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky part 1 and part 2 (1840-1893, composer)

Sofya Parnok (1885-1933, poet)

Vaslav Nijinsky (1889-1950, ballet dancer and choreographer)

Spain

Federico García Lorca (1898-1936, playwright and poet)

Sweden

Christina of Sweden (1626-1689, monarch)

Did Swedish people call in gay to work?

UK

Edward II (1284-1327, king of England)

Horace Walpole (1717-1797, antiquarian and man of letters)

Jane Austen (1775-1817, author)

Anne Lister and follow-up Christmas special (1791-1840, landowner and diarist)

Mary Shelley (1797-1851, author)

Fanny Park and Stella Boulton (1846-1881, 1847-1904, English transfeminine people tried for homosexuality)

Oscar Wilde (1854-1900, poet and playwright)

The Warren Cup (ancient Roman cup depicting male-male sex, brought to Britain by collector Ned Warren in the early 20th century) 

The Secret Sex Spreadsheets of John Maynard Keynes (1883-1946, economist)

Did Queen Victoria believe in lesbians?

Elke Mackenzie (1911-1990, lichenologist and polar explorer)

Ewan Forbes (1912-1991, doctor and farmer)

Michael Dillon (1915-1962, first trans man to undergo a phalloplasty)

Roberta Cowell (1918-2011, WWII fighter pilot, race-car driver and trans pioneer)

Freddie Mercury (1946-1991, the frontman of rock band, Queen)

Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners (1984-85, activist group)

The Vatican

Pope Joan (c.9th century CE)

Christina of Sweden (1626-1689, monarch)

North America

Crow (Apsáalooke)

Bíawacheeitchish aka Woman Chief (c.1806-1854, warrior and leader)

Osh-Tisch (1854-1929, warrior, craftsperson, and two-spirit batée)

Zuni (A:shiwi)

We’wha (c.1849-1896, craftsperson, ambassador, and two-spirit lhamana)

USA

Queer as Fact meets History is Gay (a conversation about queer slang in Australia and the USA)

Kapaemahu (Hawai’ian monument to four māhū healers)

Baron von Steuben (1730-1794, Inspector General of the US Army)

Charity Bryant and Sylvia Drake (1777-1851, 1784-1868, lived as a married couple)

Bíawacheeitchish aka Woman Chief (c.1806-1854, Crow warrior and leader)

Albert Cashier (c.1844-1915, trans Civil War soldier)

Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888, author of Little Women and other works)

Osh-Tisch (1854-1929, Crow warrior, craftsperson, and two-spirit batée)

We’wha (c.1849-1896, Zuni craftsperson, ambassador, and two-spirit lhamana)

Isadora Duncan (1877-1927, dancer)

Harry Allen (1882-1922, trans man)

Ma Rainey (1886-1939, blues singer)

Lucy Hicks Anderson (1886-1954, cook, socialite and brothel-owner)

Sylvia Beach (1887-1962, publisher and bookseller)

Ruth Ellis (1899-2000, lesbian centenarian)

Henrietta Bingham (1901-1968, jazz-age socialite)

Frieda Belinfante (1904-1995, Dutch-born cellist, conductor and member of Dutch WWII resistance)

Josephine Baker (1906-1975, singer, actress, civil rights activist and spy)

Gladys Bentley (1907-1960, blues performer)

Samuel Steward (1909-1993, professor of English, tattoo artist and sex researcher)

Pauli Murray parts one and two (1910-1985, lawyer, civil rights activist, priest and poet)

Billy Tipton (1914-1989, jazz musician)

Rosetta Tharpe (1915-1973, gospel singer)

Stormé DeLarverie (1920-2014, drag performer and bouncer)

Harvey Milk (1930-1978, San Francisco politician)

Audre Lorde (1934-1992, activist and writer)

Marsha P. Johnson (1945-1992, drag queen and activist)

Sally Ride (1951-2012, astronaut)

Stonewall (1969 New York riots)

Shelly’s Leg (1970s Seattle gay club)

Asexuals have problems too (1971 Village Voice article)

The Asexual Manifesto (1972 political document)

Gilbert Baker and the Rainbow Flag (first flown 1975)

Friends of Dorothy (gay men in the 1980s US Navy)

Central and South America

Costa Rica

Chavela Vargas (1919-2012, Costa Rican-born Mexican singer)

Mexico

Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz (c.1648-1695, nun, writer and polymath)

Frida Kahlo (1907-1954, artist) and Frida Kahlo’s lost archive

Chavela Vargas (1919-2012, Costa Rican-born Mexican singer)

Peru

Moche sex pots (erotic ceramics from the 2nd to 8th centuries CE)

[homosexuality-and-civilization]

Lord in heaven, who brought forth wonders by fire and water for our Fathers, cooling Abraham's Chaldean kiln, so in its flames he'd not be burned; who altered Dina's fate in the womb, and made a serpent of Moses' wands; who whited with illness Miriam's hands and turned the Sea of Reeds into land- transforming the muddy bed of the Jordan into passable sand, and making from stone and shale a pool whose springs would not fail if only you would make me female! If that alone might be done, how wondrous then would be my fortune Spared the arduous labor of men, I'd settle down and raise my children. But why complain and so bitterly whine? If my Father in heaven is so inclined as to fashion me with a lasting deformity, how could I ask that He take it from me? Worry about what just can't be is incurable pain and endless misery; empty condolence is hardly an answer. "I'll just have to bear it," I said, "though I'll suffer until I wither away and die." And since long ago I learned from tradition that both good and bad deserve benediction, in the faintest whispers I'll mutter each morning; Blessed art Thou, O Lord - who has not made me a woman.

On Becoming A Woman by Qalonymos ben Qalonymos, c. 1322 CE.

Another translation from the original Hebrew is available here.