Trans woman

"MTF" redirects here. For other uses, see MTF (disambiguation).

File:Transgender at NYC Gay Pride Parade by David Shankbone.jpg

A transwoman in New York City's Gay Pride Parade

A transwoman (also spelled trans woman, trans-woman) or t-girl is a transsexual or transgender person who was naturally born or physically assigned as male at birth but feels that this is not an accurate or complete description of themselves and identifies as a woman.

Overview

A transwoman with XY written on her hand, at a protest in Paris, October 1, 2005.

"Transition" refers to the process of adopting a social and personal identity that corresponds to one's own sense of their gendered self, and may or may not include medical intervention (hormone treatment, surgery, etc.), changes in legal documents (name and/or sex indicated on identification, birth certificate, etc.), and personal expression (clothing, accessories, voice, body language).

Transwomen who feel that their gender transition is complete often prefer to be called simply "women", considering "transwoman" or "male-to-female transsexual" to be terms that should only used for people who are still transitioning. However, even after transitioning, transwomen have biological differences from cisgender women. For example, most have XY chromosomes. However, women does not necessarily refer to biological sex, it can also refer to cultural gender role distinctions. Some who still identify as transwomen after transitioning may describe themselves as "post-op" (post-operative; as distinguished from "pre-op") transwomen. Many transgender people consider that the shape of their genitalia are not relevant to how they interact with most people. Transwomen who do not want, cannot afford, or have medical reasons for not having sex reassignment surgery are sometimes described as "non-op". Many transwomen consider genital surgery as only a small part of a complete transition and some argue that transwomen should not be defined by their surgical status. Others dislike the term "transsexual" and prefer to call themselves transgender women, but further more some women with this condition prefer to use the word intersexed.

Sexual orientation

Further information: Sexual orientation of transwomen

Most recent scientific studies and reports by support groups, help lines, etc. indicate that, amongst transwomen, the percentage of those who consider themselves lesbian, bisexual or asexual is higher than that in the general female population. The details, however, differ; scientific papers usually report a higher number of heterosexual-identified transwomen than support groups report, perhaps influenced by demographic factors: what kind of people have access to support groups, as well as methodologies used for individual studies.

See also

• Transman

Transition-related

• Facial Feminization Surgery
• Genital reassignment surgery for transwomen
• Hair removal
• Hormone replacement therapy for transwomen
• Voice feminization

General transgendered topics

• List of transgender-related topics
• Transgendered

External links

• Australian WOMAN Network - The Australian WOMAN Network, a group which lobbies for the rights of Australian women living with transsexualism or of transsexual background.
• Harry Benjamin Syndrome (HBS). This site is dedicated to enlightening people to the indicative research that suggests transsexualism may be an intersex condition. It also shows a suggested Standards of Care document.
• Lynn Conway - Her goal is to "illuminate and normalize the issues of gender identity and the process of transitioning."
• Mom, I Need to Be a Girl - a book by the mother of a young transwoman.
• Transsexual Women's Resources - run by Anne Lawrence, a controversial figure due to her support for the autogynephilia theory.
• Transsexual Women's Successes
• TS Roadmap - resource guide for transsexual women and those aspiring to transition.