Sapphism
Pronunciation | /ˈsæfɪk/ ⓘ |
---|---|
Etymology | Sappho + -ism or -ic |
Abbreviations |
|
Subcategories |
|
Other terms | |
Derivatives | Sapphist[2] |
Flag | |
![]() | |
Flag name | Sapphic pride flag[3][4] |
Sexual orientation |
---|
![]() |
|
Part of a series on |
LGBTQ people |
---|
![]() |
Sapphism is an umbrella term for any woman attracted to women or in a relationship with another woman, regardless of their sexual orientations, and encompassing the romantic love between women.
There are also sapphic people who are non-binary.[5]
It is the female equivalent of Uranian.
Etymology

The term sapphism has been used since the 1890s,[6] and derives from Sappho, a Greek poet whose verses mainly focused on love between women and her own homosexual passions.[7] She was born on the Greek island Lesbos, which also inspired the term lesbianism.[8][9]
Sappho's work is one of the few ancient references to sapphic love. Her poetry, significant in quality, is a rare example of a woman speaking of her love for other women in ancient history.[10][11]
Use
The term sapphic encompasses the experiences of lesbians and bisexual women, for example, among other gynephilic, plurisexual, and multiromantic individuals, for example, those who decline a label, experience a fluid sexuality, or are questioning about their sexuality.[12][13] Asexual and aromantic women who are attracted to a woman are also sapphic.[14][15]
Using the term more broadly, some sapphic individuals may be non-binary.[16][17] There are also equivalent terms for relationships between men (Uranian, Achillean[18]), between a man and a woman (Dionian, duaric), and involving at least one non-binary person (diamoric or enbian).[19][20]
Sapphic is also used in Lesbian literature for works involving at least one relationship between women, regardless of whether they are lesbian or not.[21][22][23]
See also

References
- ^ Llewellyn, Anna (10 November 2022). "'A Space Where Queer Is Normalized': The Online World and Fanfictions as Heterotopias for WLW". Journal of Homosexuality. 69 (13): 2348–2369. doi:10.1080/00918369.2021.1940012. ISSN 0091-8369. PMID 34185633.
- ^ "Sapphist, n. Meanings, etymology and more | Oxford English Dictionary".
- ^ "Symbols". Queer Cafe. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
- ^ "Elástica explica: termos juvélicos". Elástica – Todos do mesmo lado (in Portuguese). Retrieved 28 April 2024.
- ^ Hord, Levi CR (September 2022). "Specificity without identity: Articulating post-gender sexuality through the "non-binary lesbian"". Sexualities. 25 (5–6): 615–637. doi:10.1177/1363460720981564. ISSN 1363-4607.
- ^ "Sapphic (adj.)". Etymonline.com. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
- ^ Torres, Bolívar (26 June 2021). "Identidade sáfica: como uma poeta nascida há 2 mil anos virou referência nos estudos de gênero" [Sapphic identity: How a poet born 2 thousand years ago became a reference in gender studies]. O Globo (in Portuguese). Retrieved 28 April 2024.
- ^ "sapphism". Oxford Reference. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
- ^ Doble, Flora (27 July 2020). "Sapphic Sexuality: Lesbian Myth and Reality in Art and Sculpture". Art UK. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
- ^ Reynolds, Margaret (15 December 2010). The Sappho Companion. Random House. ISBN 978-1-4464-1376-0.
- ^ "Cosas que debes saber sobre las mujeres sáficas" [Things you need to know about sapphic women]. Saficosmos (in Spanish). 14 August 2023. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
- ^ Janssen, Diederik F. (5 June 2023). "Monosexual/Plurisexual: A Concise History". Journal of Homosexuality. 71 (8): 1839–1862. doi:10.1080/00918369.2023.2218957. ISSN 0091-8369. PMID 37272900.
- ^ Breetveld, Robin Rose (2023). Bisexual (Un)belonging: Exploring the Socio-spatial Negotiation of Plurisexual Individuals in LGBT+ and Queer Spaces (doctoral thesis). University of Kent. doi:10.22024/UniKent/01.02.105513.
- ^ Winer, Canton; Carroll, Megan; Yang, Yuchen; Linder, Katherine; Miles, Brittney (February 2024). "'I Didn't Know Ace Was a Thing': Bisexuality and Pansexuality as Identity Pathways in Asexual Identity Formation". Sexualities. 27 (1–2): 267–289. doi:10.1177/13634607221085485. ISSN 1363-4607.
- ^ Klein, Ula Lukszo (2023). "Sapphic Relations". In Eron, Sarah; Aljoe, Nicole N.; Kaul, Suvir (eds.). The Routledge Companion to Eighteenth-Century Literatures in English. Routledge. pp. 287–298. doi:10.4324/9781003271208-30. ISBN 978-1-003-27120-8.
- ^ Dyer, Harriet (2021). The Little Book of LGBTQ+: An A–Z of Gender and Sexual Identities. Summersdale Publishers. ISBN 978-1-78783-974-8.
- ^ Hamou, Yasmine (27 April 2022). "What Does It Mean to Be Sapphic?". Them. Condé Nast. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
- ^ Barron, Victoria (21 February 2023). Perfectly Queer: An Illustrated Introduction. Jessica Kingsley Publishers. ISBN 978-1-83997-409-0.
- ^ Hardell, Ash (8 November 2016). The ABC's of LGBT+. Mango Media. ISBN 978-1-63353-408-7.
- ^ Lacsko, Madeleine [in Portuguese]. "Termos juvélicos: 100 novas orientações sexuais para você decorar ou ser cancelado". Gazeta do Povo (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 29 November 2023. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
- ^ Nygård, Ida Sofie Sverkeli (2021). Sapphic Representations in Contemporary Young Adult Literature (master's thesis). Western Norway University of Applied Sciences. hdl:11250/2992128.
- ^ Peyre, Henri (1979). "On the Sapphic Motif in Modern French Literature". Dalhousie French Studies. 1: 3–33. ISSN 0711-8813. JSTOR 40836208.
- ^ Hackett, Robin (2004). Sapphic Primitivism: Productions of Race, Class, and Sexuality in Key Works of Modern Fiction. Rutgers University Press. ISBN 978-0-8135-3347-6.