m'netokwe

Potawatomi

Etymology

A compound of m'neto (“supernatural being”) (from Proto-Algonquian *maneto·wa (“supernatural being”)) + kwe' (“woman”) (from Proto-Algonquian *eθkwe·wa (“(young) woman”)), because such people were considered to have supernatural spiritual power and wisdom.

Noun

m'netokwe

1. male-bodied person who lives as a woman and (for example) practices feminine activities such as beadwork

See also

• two-spirit

Further reading

• Sabine Lang, Men as Women, Women as Men →ISBN, 2010)