[Mystic Mock]

Originally Posted by Glenn.

Ancient history
• 2000 BCE, Mesopotamia: Gala priests of the goddess Inanna lived in feminine roles despite being male-assigned at birth.
• 1500 BCE, India: Early references to Hijras, a recognized third gender in Hindu texts.

Classical era
• 5th century BCE, Greece: The poet Phrynichus mentions people living as women after being male-assigned.
• Roman Empire: Accounts of people adopting different gender roles, often mocked in literature but clearly present.

Medieval period
• 9th–15th centuries: Records across Europe show individuals living as a gender different from their assigned one, sometimes revealed only at death or through court cases.
• Middle East: Poetic and medical texts describe gender diversity, often linked to intersex and trans experiences.

Early modern era
• 1700s: Chevalier d’Éon, a French diplomat, lived much of their life publicly as a woman and was accepted at the royal court.
• 1800s: Dr. James Barry, a British army surgeon, lived his life as a man and was only revealed to be assigned female at death.

20th century
• 1930: Dora Richter in Germany underwent some of the first recorded gender-affirming surgeries.
• 1950s: Christine Jorgensen became internationally known after her transition, bringing the word “transsexual” into public awareness.
• 1969: Trans women of colour like Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera were central to the Stonewall uprising in New York.

21st century
• 2000s onwards: Legal recognition of third genders in South Asia, Two-Spirit revival among Native American communities, wider access to medical transition, and broader visibility of trans people globally.

Trans people have existed for at least 4,000 years across cultures. What’s new isn’t trans identity—it’s the visibility, rights, and language to talk about it openly.

I was thinking of Mesopotamia.