Otherkin

Otherkin are a subculture of people who identify as not entirely human. Some otherkin believe their identity derives from reincarnation, a non-human soul, ancestry,[2] symbolism, or metaphor.[1] Others attribute it to unusual psychology and do not hold spiritual beliefs on the subject. Categories of otherkin include Fictionkin, those who identify as fictional characters; Conceptkin, who identify as abstract concepts; Weatherkin, who identify as weather systems; as well as a number of other more obscure categories.[3] Joseph P. Laycock, assistant professor of religious studies at Texas State University, considers otherkin beliefs to have a religious dimension, but asserts that "the argument that Otherkin identity claims conform to a substantive definition of religion is problematic".[4] Many otherkin themselves reject the notion that being otherkin is a religious belief.[4] A controversial but frequently made analogy is to gender dysphoria, leading to the terms trans-species or trans-speciesism and species dysphoria.

This article is about the subculture. For the band, see Otherkin (band).
A regular {7/3} heptagram known as the Elven Star or Fairy Star is used by some members of the otherkin subculture as an identifier.[1]

Description

Otherkin may identify as mythical creatures,[5] with others identifying as creatures from the natural world or from popular culture. Examples include: angels, demons, dragons, elves, fairies, sprites, wolves, foxes, horses, aliens,[6][7][8] and fictional characters.[9] Many otherkin believe in the existence of a multitude of parallel universes, and their belief in the existence of supernatural or sapient non-human beings is grounded in that idea.[10]

With regard to their online communities, otherkin largely function without formal authority structures and mostly focus on support and information gathering, often dividing into more specific groups based on kintype.[10] There are occasional offline gatherings, but the otherkin network is mostly an online phenomenon.[10]

Some otherkin claim to be especially empathic and attuned to nature.[7] Some claim to be able to shapeshift mentally or astrally, meaning that they experience the sense of being in their particular form while not actually changing physically.[1][11]

The therian and vampire subcultures are related to the otherkin community, and are considered part of it by most otherkin but are culturally and historically distinct movements of their own, despite some overlap in membership.[1] The word “alterhuman” exists as an umbrella term which intends to encompass all of these subcultures, as well as others such as plurality.[12]

Etymology

"Otherkin,” as an adjective, was defined in the Middle English Dictionary (1981) as "a different or an additional kind of, other kinds of".[13]

The earliest recorded use of the term otherkin, in the context of a subculture, appeared in July 1990 and the variant otherkind was reported as early as April 1990.[1] The word "otherkind" was initially coined from the word "elfinkind", to refer to non-elf others who joined the communities.[14]

History

The otherkin subculture grew out of the elven online communities of the early-to-mid-1990s.[15]

The oldest Internet resource for otherkin is the Elfinkind Digest, a mailing list started in 1990 by a student at the University of Kentucky for "elves and interested observers".[14] Also in the early 1990s, newsgroups such as alt.horror.werewolves[16] and alt.fan.dragons on Usenet, which were initially created for fans of these creatures in the context of fantasy and horror literature and films, also developed followings of individuals who identified as mythological beings.[1][17]

On 6 February 1995, a document titled the "Elven Nation Manifesto" was posted to Usenet, including the groups alt.pagan and alt.magick.[18] Enough people contacted the original author of the Elven Nation post in good faith for a planned mailing list to spin off from it.[15]

Rich Dansky, who worked on the development of Changeling: The Dreaming, said that after the game's release the darkfae-l listserv had "a rampaging debate... over how the folks at White Wolf had gotten so much of their existence right", adding, "Finally, one of the list members came to the obvious conclusion that we'd gotten it right because we ourselves were in fact changelings." Dansky denied being non-human.[7]

Reaction

Outside viewers may have varying opinions about people who identify as otherkin, ranging from considering them animal–human relationship pioneers to being psychologically dysfunctional.[6] Reactions often range from disbelief to aggressive antagonism, especially online.[19]

Otherkin have been called one of the world's most bizarre subcultures,[20] and a religious movement (and a "quasi-religion"[9]) that "in some of its forms, largely only exists on the [Internet]".[21] Although otherkin beliefs deviate from the definition of "religion", they share the primary interest in the paranormal.[9] Religion scholar Joseph P. Laycock argues that the otherkin community serves existential and social functions commonly associated with religion, and regards it as an alternative nomos that sustains alternate ontologies. He feels that the negative public reaction to the subculture may be because of how these beliefs challenge the predominant social worldview.[4]

According to Nick Mamatas, they represent a dissatisfaction with the modern world, and they have taken fairy lore out of its original context.[7]

See also

References
  1. Lupa (2007). A Field Guide to Otherkin. Immanion Press. pp. 25–26, 50, 52. ISBN 978-1-905713-07-3.
  2. Michelle Belanger; Father Sebastiaan (2004). The Psychic Vampire Codex: A Manual of Magick and Energy Work. Weiser Books. p. 274. ISBN 1-57863-321-4. /--/ Some feel that their difference is purely spiritual, while others believe there is a genetic difference between themselves and humanity. /--/
  3. Beusman, Callie (August 3, 2016). "'I Look at a Cloud and I See It as Me': The People Who Identify As Objects". Vice Media. Archived from the original on December 22, 2020. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
  4. Joseph P. Laycock. “We Are Spirits of Another Sort”: Ontological Rebellion and Religious Dimensions of the Otherkin Community Archived 2020-06-13 at the Wayback Machine. Nova Religio: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions. Vol. 15, No. 3 (February 2012), pp. 65–90. University of California Press
  5. Michelle Belanger (2007). Vampires in Their Own Words: An Anthology of Vampire Voices. Llewellyn Worldwide. p. 25. ISBN 978-0-7387-1220-8.
  6. Isaac Bonewits; Phaedra Bonewits (2007). Real Energy: Systems, Spirits, And Substances to Heal, Change, And Grow. Career Press. pp. 196–197. ISBN 978-1-56414-904-6.
  7. Mamatas, Nick (February 20, 2001). "Elven Like Me: Otherkin Come Out of the Closet". The Village Voice. New York. Archived from the original on 2015-05-16. Retrieved 2021-06-27.
  8. Penczak, Christopher (2007). Ascension Magick: Ritual, Myth & Healing for the New Aeon. Llewellyn Worldwide. pp. 416–417, 441. ISBN 978-0-7387-1047-1.
  9. Kirby, Danielle (2009). "From Pulp Fiction to Revealed Text: A Study of the Role of the Text in the Otherkin Community". In Christopher Deacy; Elisabeth Arweck (eds.). Exploring Religion And The Sacred in A Media Age. Ashgate Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7546-6527-4.
  10. Kirby, Danielle (2006). "Alternative Worlds: Metaphysical questing and virtual community amongst the Otherkin". In Frances Di Lauro (ed.). Through a Glass Darkly: Collected Research. Sydney University Press. ISBN 1920898549. Archived from the original on 2014-01-02. Retrieved 2012-07-09.
  11. Raven Digitalis (2008). Shadow Magick Compendium: Exploring Darker Aspects of Magickal Spirituality. Llewellyn Worldwide. p. 178. ISBN 978-0-7387-1318-2.
  12. "Otherkin are the internet's punchline. They're also our future". The Daily Dot. 2020-09-25. Archived from the original on 2020-11-20. Retrieved 2020-11-15.
  13. Sherman M. Kuhn (1981). Middle English Dictionary: O.3, Volume 0. University of Michigan Press. p. 344. ISBN 0-472-01153-7.
  14. Scribner, Orion (2013-02-27). "Otherkin Timeline: The Recent History of Elfin, Fae, and Animal People, Abridged Edition". Orion Scribner. Archived from the original on 2020-07-10. Retrieved 2020-07-10. [In] 1990-07-09 or 10: The earliest use of the word "otherkin," (as a variant of "otherkind") referring to real people who identify as other than human. It's in Elfinkind Digest, #71.
  15. Polson, Willow (2003). The Veil's Edge: Exploring the Boundaries of Magic. Citadel Press. p. 95. ISBN 0-8065-2352-2.
  16. Chantal Bourgault Du Coudray (2006). The Curse of the Werewolf: Fantasy, Horror and the Beast Within. I.B. Tauris. ISBN 1-84511-158-3.
  17. Cohen, D. (1996). Werewolves. New York: Penguin Books. p. 104. ISBN 0-525-65207-8.
  18. "The Elven Nation Manifesto.....everyone must read this!!!!". alt.magick. 1995-02-06. Archived from the original on 2021-03-31. Retrieved 2011-12-24.
  19. Th'Elf (2006). "Otherkin". In Sebastiaan van Houten (ed.). The Vampyre Almanac 2006. Lulu. ISBN 1-4116-6084-6.
  20. Geoffrey Lancaster; Lester Massingham (2010). Essentials of Marketing Management. Taylor & Francis. p. 48. ISBN 978-0-415-55346-9.
  21. Dawson, Lorne L.; Hennebry, Jenna. "New Religions and The Internet: Recruiting in A New Public Space". Essay published in several books:
    • Lori G. Beaman. Religion and Canadian Society: Traditions, Transitions, and Innovations. Canadian Scholars' Press, 2006. ISBN 1-55130-306-X
    • Lorne L. Dawson; Douglas E. Cowan. Religion Online: Finding Faith on the Internet. Routledge, 2004. ISBN 0-415-97021-0
    • Lorne L. Dawson. Cults and New Religious Movements: A Reader. John Wiley & Sons, 2003. ISBN 1-4051-0181-4

Further reading
Look up otherkin in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
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