Danaa (Japanese gender and sex term)
Dana (Japanese: ダナー; romanized: danaa) is a Japanese term used in lesbian and transgender communities.[1][2][3]
The term generally refers to a person who was assigned female at birth (AFAB) and is perceived as masculine in appearance, behavior, gender expression, or gender identity. [4]Depending on the context, the term may include masculine lesbians, butch individuals[4], trans men[2], transmasculine people, FTX people[5], and others with masculine gender expressions.
Etymology
The term is believed to derive from the Japanese word ‘‘danna’’ (旦那), meaning “husband.” [5]It originated within Japanese lesbian communities and was used to describe people who occupied a masculine social or gender role.
History
In Japanese lesbian and transgender communities of the early 2000s, the boundaries between lesbian, trans men, and other gender-diverse identities were often less clearly defined than they are today.[6]
During this period, ‘‘dana’’ was sometimes used as an umbrella term for people assigned female at birth who expressed masculinity or identified in masculine ways.[1][3][4]
The term appears to be less commonly used in contemporary Japanese LGBTQ communities than it was in the early 2000s.[2][6]
