Therianthropy
From Therianthropy
Therianthropy is a phenomenon in which a human strongly identifies in a psychological and/or spiritual way with a certain animal (or creature) to the point of considering themselves to be that animal.
The word Therianthropy comes from the words 'Theri', meaning 'animal', and 'Anthropy', meaning 'human'.
Individuals who believe that they experience therianthropy are called therianthropes, or more commonly, therians. "Were" used to be a common term but has gradually phased out, though some pockets of the subculture continue to use it.
Many therianthropes have commented on the great variation in belief regarding the nature of the phenomena, but the majority agree that the experience is one where a person is an animal (alternatively both human and animal) on the inside and a human on the outside, with the details of this depending on the individual.
The beginning of the use of these terms in recent times has been traced to members of the famous Alt.Horror.Werewolf(AHWw) usenet group, where early modern therians identified as werewolves.
A few people have speculated that the fictional Were-Wolf legend might be traced back to the early Dark Ages, when some people, who were called "Were Wolves", were thought to have an animal soul, and that these early werewolves, were not thought of as monsters, but were actually respected members of the community, also that WereWolves even had a special position in the early church. This has not been verified though, and is still widely speculated upon. (citation needed)
[edit] Theriotypes
Template:Main The theriotype of a therian in the animal which they identify with. It is the animal within. A theriotype may be any non-human species, living or extinct, which is natural to earth. Other species (for example dragons, elves and other mythical creatures) are generally considered Otherkin, although this is sometimes disputed.
[edit] History
[edit] See Also
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