Changing Ones: Third and Fourth Genders in Native North America

Changing Ones examines gender diversity among Indigenous peoples across North America, documenting historical evidence of individuals who lived outside the male-female binary. The book presents accounts from early European explorers, anthropologists, and Native American sources about people who took on mixed-gender or alternative gender roles in their communities. Roscoe analyzes specific cases from various tribes and regions, including the Navajo nádleeh and Lakota winkte. The text includes primary source materials, photographs, and oral histories that establish the widespread presence of third and fourth gender categories throughout Native North American societies. The research reconstructs the social positions, spiritual roles, and daily lives of alternative gender people before and after European contact. Historic accounts are paired with more recent ethnographic studies to show changes over time. This work challenges Western assumptions about gender while demonstrating the sophisticated ways Native American cultures understood and accepted gender diversity. The book raises questions about how societies construct gender categories and what happens when those constructs meet different cultural systems.

Readers appreciate the book's extensive research and documentation of gender variance across multiple indigenous cultures. Many note its accessibility for non-academic readers while maintaining scholarly rigor. Reviewers highlight the inclusion of first-hand historical accounts and photographs. Multiple readers point to the chapter on We'wha as particularly compelling. Common criticisms include: - Over-reliance on European/colonial sources - Some interpretations seen as imposing modern LGBTQ+ frameworks onto historical contexts - Limited coverage of certain regions and tribes Ratings: Goodreads: 4.2/5 (156 ratings) Amazon: 4.6/5 (32 ratings) Sample review quotes: "Documents gender diversity without forcing modern labels" - Goodreads reviewer "Could have included more indigenous voices" - Amazon reviewer "Strong anthropological research but occasionally makes assumptions" - LibraryThing user Several academic reviewers note its value as a reference text while cautioning against oversimplified conclusions about complex cultural practices.

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🏹 Author Will Roscoe received the Margaret Mead Award from the American Anthropological Association for his groundbreaking work on Native American gender diversity. 🌟 The term "berdache," historically used by Europeans to describe gender-variant Native Americans, is now considered offensive, with many tribes preferring their own specific terms like "nádleehí" (Navajo) or "winkte" (Lakota). 🎨 The book features detailed accounts of We'wha, a famous Zuni two-spirit person who met with President Grover Cleveland in 1886 and helped bridge understanding between Native and European-American cultures. 🗺️ The research covers over 150 documented tribal nations that historically recognized multiple gender categories beyond the male-female binary. 📚 The book challenges the common assumption that gender variance was rare or isolated in Native societies, demonstrating instead that alternative gender roles were widespread and often highly respected positions in many tribes.