Femme

Femme (/fɛm/;^[1] French: [fam], literally meaning "woman") is a term traditionally used to describe a lesbian woman who exhibits a feminine identity or gender presentation.^[2]^[3] While commonly viewed as a lesbian term, alternate meanings of the word also exist with some non-lesbian individuals using the word,^[4] notably some gay men and bisexuals.^[1] Some non-binary and transgender individuals also identify as lesbians using this term.^[5]

Heavily associated with lesbian history and culture,^[3] femme has been used among lesbians to distinguish traditionally feminine lesbians from their butch (i.e. masculine) lesbian counterparts and partners.^[a] Derived from American lesbian communities following World War II when women joined the work force,^[6] the identity became a characteristic of the working class lesbian bar culture of the 1940s–1950s.^[8] By the 1990s, the term femme had additionally been adopted by bisexual women.^[6]

^ ^a ^b "femme (n.)". Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
^ "Femme definition and meaning". Collins English Dictionary. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
^ ^a ^b Miller, Meredith (2006). Historical Dictionary of Lesbian Literature. The Scarecrow Press, Inc. p. 65.
^ Herbitter, Cara; Levitt, Heidi M. (2016). "Butch–Femme". In Goldberg, Abbie E. (ed.). The SAGE Encyclopedia of LGBTQ Studies (1st ed.). SAGE Publishers. p. 177. ISBN 978-1483371306.
^ Cite error: The named reference :7 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ ^a ^b ^c Firestein, Beth A., ed. (2007). "16. Gender Expression in Bisexual Women: Therapeutic Issues and Considerations". Becoming Visible: Counseling Bisexuals Across the Lifespan. Columbia University Press. pp. 301–310. ISBN 978-0231137249.
^ Ukockis, Gail (2016). "5. Lesbians and Bisexual Women: Concerns of Lesbian and Bisexual Women: Butch/Femme Stereotypes". Women's Issues for a New Generation: A Social Work Perspective. Oxford University Press. p. 136. ISBN 978-0190239411.
^ Theophano, Teresa (2004). "Butch-Femme" (PDF). glbtq.com. Retrieved 14 March 2020.

Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

[etymonline-1] "femme (n.)". Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved 9 September 2021.

[Collins-2] "Femme definition and meaning". Collins English Dictionary. Retrieved 29 August 2019.

[Miller-3] Miller, Meredith (2006). Historical Dictionary of Lesbian Literature. The Scarecrow Press, Inc. p. 65.

[Goldberg2016-4] Herbitter, Cara; Levitt, Heidi M. (2016). "Butch–Femme". In Goldberg, Abbie E. (ed.). The SAGE Encyclopedia of LGBTQ Studies (1st ed.). SAGE Publishers. p. 177. ISBN 978-1483371306.

[:7-5] Cite error: The named reference :7 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[Firestein-6] Firestein, Beth A., ed. (2007). "16. Gender Expression in Bisexual Women: Therapeutic Issues and Considerations". Becoming Visible: Counseling Bisexuals Across the Lifespan. Columbia University Press. pp. 301–310. ISBN 978-0231137249.

[Ukockis-7] Ukockis, Gail (2016). "5. Lesbians and Bisexual Women: Concerns of Lesbian and Bisexual Women: Butch/Femme Stereotypes". Women's Issues for a New Generation: A Social Work Perspective. Oxford University Press. p. 136. ISBN 978-0190239411.

[Theophano-9] Theophano, Teresa (2004). "Butch-Femme" (PDF). glbtq.com. Retrieved 14 March 2020.

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