Modern Third-Gender Types and Terms
By Amara Das Wilhelm

Modern cultures no longer accommodate any notion of a third-gender category or nonreproductive class.  Nevertheless, various conditions of male and female impotence as well as natural variations in sex, sexual orientation and gender identity have all been recognized and well studied within the bounds of contemporary science.  Despite the gap in time, culture and terminology, the types listed below correspond well to their Vedic counterparts.  The only types of impotence not recognized by modern science are those caused by curses or divine beings (the supernatural types).

Neurological Types

Variations in sex and gender are not only anatomical.  In fact, a majority of cases are neurological in origin and affect people who are otherwise normal in terms of their male or female anatomy.  Since hormones can drastically alter a person’s physical sex in the womb there is no reason to doubt they can also alter one’s neurological sex and brain wiring.  Thus, homosexual attraction and transgender identity are not simply matters of psychological preference.  A left-handed person does not simply “prefer” using his left hand over his right; rather, the brain has been neurologically wired that way since birth.  Similarly, modern scientific studies suggest that a person’s sexual orientation and gender identity are likely predetermined during early fetal development.

Bisexuality (1 in 5 persons):  Significant bisexuality occurs in about fifteen to twenty percent of the population and is the most common type of gender variation—nearly one out of every five adults experience some degree of bisexual attraction.  A bisexual person responds to the sex signaling of both genders and is consequently attracted to men and women alike, whether simultaneously or at different times in life.  Bisexuality is likely caused when the area of the fetal brain governing sexual orientation is both masculinized and feminized.  It is also somewhat more common in women.  Bisexuals who marry the opposite sex and bear children comprise the majority and typically identify as heterosexual, whereas those primarily attracted to the same sex and identifying as homosexual are less common.

Homosexuality (1 in 20 persons):  Homosexuality occurs in about four to five percent of the population (nearly one out of every twenty adults) and is self-evident at puberty.  A complete homosexual responds only to the sex signaling of his or her same anatomical sex throughout life.  Homosexual orientation is likely caused when the area of the fetal brain governing sexual orientation is feminized in boys or masculinized in girls.  It is somewhat more common in men and approximately three-quarters of homosexuals also exhibit some degree of transgender behavior.  Thus there are two basic types of homosexual men and women—those that are more masculine and those that are more feminine.  Homosexuals can and sometimes do have children although it is typically against their nature.  It should also be noted that of all third-gender types, homosexuals and transgenders stand out in terms of how they socialize together and form distinct subcultures within society.  None of the other types do this to such an extent.

Transgender Identity (1 in 3,000 persons):  Transgender identity occurs in approximately one out of every three thousand persons and can usually be recognized during early childhood.  A complete transgender identifies only as the opposite sex and typically lives and dresses accordingly.  Many undergo hormone treatments and transsexual operations.  Transgender identity is likely caused when the area of the fetal brain governing gender identity is feminized in boys or masculinized in girls.  It is somewhat more common in anatomical males and approximately three-quarters of transgenders also have homosexual orientation.  People with transgender identity can and sometimes do have children, but only by means of their birth anatomy.  All transsexuals are sterile due to the sex-change operations they have undergone.

Psychological Types

Sexual impotence due to psychological factors has been well studied in recent years and is usually treatable.  It accounts for approximately ten to twenty percent of all male impotence cases (the remaining eighty percent are physical or medical) and is addressed with a combination of psychotherapy and medication.  Some of the more common psychological types—found in both men and women—are caused by stress, self or interpersonal anxieties, shyness, inexperience, feelings of inadequacy, depression, drug abuse, social alienation, fears caused by trauma, guilt associated with religious orthodoxy or parental expectations, uncertainty about one’s sexual orientation, unusual fetishes and so on.  Psychological conditions can and often do overlap with pre-existing physical or neurological ones.

Physical Types

Physical types of impotence and infertility involve men or women whose sex organs are damaged, diseased, dysfunctional or anatomically defective in some way.  Although many types are curable, others are not and approximately seven percent of all married couples are never able to have children.  The most common physical types are caused by reproductive disorders, organ diseases, spinal injuries, blood vessel problems, afflictions of the nervous system, tumors, surgical complications, sexually transmitted diseases and so on.  They are treated in terms of the specific disorder.  Congenital or inborn types typically have intersex causes and are not always apparent at birth.  In fact, many are not identified until puberty or after taking fertility tests as adults.

Minor Sex Anomalies (1 in 500 persons):  Approximately one in every five hundred persons is born with sex anatomy that varies from the standard male or female type.  This includes conditions such as undescended testicles (one or both), minor cases of Hypospadias (misplaced pee-hole), Chordee (curvature of the penis) and Phimosis (constricted foreskin) in boys, and slightly enlarged clitorises and mild cases of Late-Onset Adrenal Hyperplasia (LAH) in girls.  Roughly one in a thousand persons undergo minor surgery or medical treatment to normalize their genital appearance or functioning but otherwise go on to live ordinary lives.  Many but not all of these minor anomalies have intersex causes.

Hypospadias (1 in 600 persons):  Hypospadias is one of the most common types of genital anomalies in males.  The pee-hole is located not at the tip of the penis but on the top or anywhere along the underside of the shaft, down to the very bottom.  In more pronounced but rare conditions the hole forms a large opening extending halfway down the penis.  Hypospadias occurs in approximately one out of every three hundred men but is extremely rare in women, where it occurs in only about one in 500,000.  The exact cause in most cases is unclear but likely involves genetic, hormonal or even environmental factors.

Chromosomal Variations (1 in 1,000 persons):  Many intersex conditions involve chromosomal variations.  Klinefelter Syndrome is the most common and occurs in approximately one out of every one thousand men.  Men with Klinefelter are sterile due to an extra X chromosome (XXY) in their body’s cells.  Their genitals are generally smaller and the ejaculate contains no sperm.  Some men experience breast development.  Another chromosomal variation, known as Turner Syndrome, occurs in approximately one out of every one thousand women.  Females with Turner are smaller in size and sterile due to a missing X chromosome (XO).  Other variations include XYY Syndrome in boys, XXX Syndrome in girls and various mosaic chromosomal patterns that occur when a person has one type of chromosomes in some cells and a different type in others.  These rare variations all produce different kinds of intersex effects.

Vaginal Agenesis or Mullerian Syndrome (1 in 6,000 persons):  In this condition, the female organs do not finish their development in the womb for reasons yet unknown but which likely involve hormonal irregularities.  The woman’s uterus and vagina are absent, misshapen or small but her ovaries and fallopian tubes are normal and there is hormone production, breast development and so on.  The woman has no menstruation and cannot bear children; however, her eggs are viable and can often be fertilized in vitro and carried to term by another.

Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome (AIS; 1 in 20,000 persons):  AIS is typically an inherited genetic condition.  The XY male embryo is unable to respond to his own androgen hormones and thus develops along the female path.  Complete AIS infants appear externally as girls but have undescended testes and underdeveloped female organs inside.  They do not menstruate and are infertile.  Partial AIS cases also occur involving various mixed intersex conditions but these are more rare, occurring in approximately one out of every 130,000 persons.

Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia (CAH; 1 in 36,000 persons):  CAH is a genetic variation that causes XX female fetuses to manufacture androgen-related hormones and develop along the male path.  XY male fetuses can also have CAH but it does not noticeably affect their development.  Girls with classical CAH are masculinized to various degrees and may have larger than average clitorises or even partially developed penises and scrotums, extra body hair, deep voices, prominent muscles and so on.  They often identify as male and desire women for partners.  A similar yet milder condition known as Late-Onset Adrenal Hyperplasia (LAH) affects approximately one out of every one hundred girls after birth (usually around puberty and to various degrees) and is characterized by severe acne, facial hair, balding, menstrual disturbances and infertility.

Chronic Intersex Conditions (1 in 36,600 persons):  There are various chronic intersex conditions that are rare, idiopathic and result in absent or severely-deformed sex organs.  These include unusual cases of partial AIS or CAH, Aphallia (no penis), Clitoromegaly (severely enlarged clitoris), serious cases of Hypospadias, Micropenis (extremely small penis) and so on.  Most if not all of these conditions are caused by hormonal irregularities in the womb.    

Ovotestis (1 in 83,000 persons):  People born with this intersex condition, formerly known as “true hermaphroditism,” have gonads (sex glands) with both ovarian and testicular tissue.  This may be present in one or both of the gonads and the person may appear mostly normal or mixed in terms of gender and genital development.  Little is known about this rare form of intersex.

Gonadal Dysgenesis (1 in 150,000 persons):  In this condition, the gonads (as testes in males or ovaries in females) are completely undeveloped and dysfunctional, appearing as “streaks” in the abdominal cavity.  In XY males, Gonadal Dysgenesis is known as Swyer Syndrome.  All children born with this condition, whether XX or XY, appear as females and are sterile; they do not produce their own sex hormones or enter puberty.  Gonadal Dysgenesis can be partially corrected with hormone treatment but not in terms of bestowing fertility.

5-Alpha Reductase Deficiency (5-ARD; variable):  This genetic female-to-male intersex condition, formerly known as “pseudo-hermaphroditism,” is relatively common in certain isolated island and jungle regions of the world.  Infants born with this syndrome appear female at birth but mature into males at puberty, sometimes only partially.  Cultures familiar with this condition generally recognize it immediately upon birth.

Environmental and Pharmaceutical Causes (variable):  Certain environmental and pharmaceutical causes of intersex conditions have been observed and studied, particularly in regard to environmental estrogens and exogenous androgens such as progestin.  In these cases, fetal development is sufficiently altered so that XY infants appear female and XX infants appear male, to various degrees.

Modern Causes of Gender

According to modern science, the father’s chromosomes randomly determine the gender or sex of any offspring.  At the time of conception, twenty-three chromosomes from the father’s sperm combine with twenty-three chromosomes from the mother’s ovum to produce a zygote or fertilized egg cell, which thus has forty-six chromosomes.  Two of these forty-six chromosomes, one inherited from the father and one from the mother, are known to determine sex.  One X chromosome is always inherited from the mother (XX female) but the father (XY male) may give either an X or a Y.  If the father gives an X chromosome the child will be female and if he gives a Y chromosome, male.

This is the general dimorphic pattern for determining gender but modern science also recognizes variations from the standard male and female types.  Such variations involve differences in the embryo’s sex chromosomes, gonads or hormones and most are either proven or suspected to be genetic in origin.  Differentiation of the sex chromosomes involves the conditions mentioned above (under “Chromosomal Variations”) and differentiation of the sex gonads concerns testis or ovaries that are completely undeveloped (Gonadal Dysgenesis), partially developed or possessing both male and female tissue (Ovotestis).  In regard to the male and female sex hormones, variations in these are especially complex and can substantially alter or even completely reverse an embryo’s development in terms of sex anatomy and neurology.  Differentiation of the embryonic sex hormones and how they are processed in utero involves numerous intersex conditions such as AIS, CAH, etc. and, most likely, the neurological variations found in people with transgender identity, homosexual orientation and bisexuality.

Modern Testing For Impotence

Modern tests for impotence or infertility in both men and women are not generally administered prior to marriage but only when a specific problem arises.  In such cases, specialized physicians examine both the man and the woman and a cause is ascertained through various means of medical testing.  Fertility treatment, surgery and/or drugs are then applied.  Instances of male or female impotence due to psychological factors are examined and treated by professional psychiatrists.

Bisexuality and homosexuality are no longer misunderstood as psychological afflictions or considered types of impotence per se.  Problems related to these—usually caused by social prejudice, parental expectations or religious orthodoxy—are treated through psychotherapy and counseling.  Transgender identity and chronic intersex conditions are similarly treated through professional counseling, accompanied by hormone therapy and surgery when required.