LGBTQ (term)

This article is about the term LGBTQ as a word. For the group of people it represents, see LGBTQ people.

LGBTQ is an initialism for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer. LGBTQ and related initialisms are umbrella terms, originating in the United States, broadly referring to all sexual and gender minorities. Many variants of the initialism are used to encompass intersex, asexual, aromantic, agender and other identities.

In the 1970s, the expression commonly used by activists was “gay and lesbian,” in full. In the 1990s, the initialism GLBT (later LGBT) was gradually adopted, as bisexual and transgender people gained recognition. Around that time, some activists began to reclaim the term queer, seeing it as a more radical and inclusive umbrella term, though others reject it, due to its history as a pejorative. In recognition of this, the 2010s saw the adoption of LGBTQ, and other more inclusive variants.

LGBTQ people collectively form the LGBTQ community, though not all LGBTQ people participate in or consider themselves part of a broader community. These labels are not universally agreed upon by everyone that they are intended to include. For example, some intersex people prefer to be included in this grouping, while others do not. Various alternative umbrella terms exist across various cultures, including queer; same-gender loving (SGL); and gender, sexual and romantic minorities (GSRM).

Some versions of the term add a plus sign (+) to represent additional identities not captured by the letters within the initialism. Many further variants exist which add additional identities, such as 2SLGBTQ (for two-spirit), LGBTQQ (for queer and questioning), or, rarely, the letters ordered differently, as in GLBT and GLBTQ.


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