Definition

"Ask ten therians the definition of 'therianthropy', and you will get eleven different answers..." ?nknown

Therianthropy is a difficult thing to define. Despite this, many wonderful definitions have been offered since the birth of the 'internet therianthropy subculture' in 1992. Since we believe many of those people have said it better than we ever could, we've compiled a few quotes that we believe apply well.

Therianthropy is a term used for people who believe that they have an intrinsic, personal, and integral connection to (a) nonhuman animal(s) in a spiritual, mental, or even physical way. -Paraphrased from Wikifur's definition (http://furry.wikia.com/wiki/Therian)

"Therianthropy is a constant state of being and way of experiencing/perceiving the world that leads a person to identify as an animal; thus a therianthrope (or therian for short) is a person who, while aknowledging their human body, feel and think they are a non-human animal identity-wise. The term comes from the Greek therion, meaning beast, and anthropos standing for human being, man; beast-man, human-beast, whichever works for you. While that word is constructed similarly than "lycanthrope", therianthropy is not a mental illness and does not refer to any sort of mythological creature either. To draw a parallel, just like transgender or transsexual people are individuals whose gender identity is different than their anatomical sex, therianthropes are people whose species identity does not match their biological body." -Akhila (http://akhila.feralscribes.org/essays/whatis.php)

"Therianthropy is a state of being in which the therianthrope exists, lives, thinks, has instincts, and often acts as a non-human animal. Not 'like,' but 'as.' For most people, the level of humanity or animality varies from day to day and situation to situation." -Quil (http://www.absurdism.org/therianthropy/defined.html)

Obviously, these definitions are not the only definitions, nor are they necessarily the right ones. The definitions we selected reflect our own personal biases. However, these definitions should encompass a large majority of therians.

But don't worry. We're moving on to the FAQ!

(Also, there may be some definitions to be found in previous issues of Spirit Tracks.)

FAQ

So if that's therianthropy, what is 'otherkin'?
So, is this some kind of religion or occult thing?
Are you werewolves?
Do you think you're better than people?

So if that's therianthropy, what is 'otherkin'?

Otherkin is a concept very similar to therianthropy, except that otherkin usually identify with mythological creatures, rather than earthly beasts. There are some therians who don't mind being placed under the 'otherkin' category, while others believe otherkin to be a bit too fantastical to be believed.

Otherkin, however, is believed to have originated, in its modern incarnation, a bit earlier than therianthropy, tracing its roots back to the 'hippy' movement of the sixties. (See A Field Guide to Otherkin by Lupa for more info.)
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So, is this some kind of religion or occult thing?

Not at all! Therianthropy has no dogma or tenets. There are therians of many different religions; everything from Christian to pagan. On the other hand, there is at least one religious group based around therianthropy, called the Therian Temple. It should not be taken though, that all therians must be part of the Temple, or that the Temple even represents the beliefs of every therian.

To quote someone else: "I can hear all you not-spiritual people and non-believers breathing a sigh of relief. Therianthropy is more than just a spiritual thing. It is deeper than that. Deeper than mental and more instinctual than anything else." -She Demon Wolf (http://www.freewebs.com/moonscape/therianthropy/therianv.2.html)
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Are you werewolves?

Absolutely not. Werewolves are physically transforming beasts of legend. A small amount of therians believe they can shapeshift, but no proof has been offered, and these people are generally taken with a grain of salt.

In addition, though wolves appear to be the most common type of therian, they are by no means the only type. There are many, many differnt types, ranging from rabbits to earwigs to sharks.

Also, some therians refer to themselves as 'were' creatures, but this is quickly falling out of practice due to the negative connotation of the word and the association with physically shapeshifting creatures.
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Do you think you're better than people?

Nope. At least, most of us don't. As we've said already, therians are an immensely diverse group, and nothing all-encompassing can really be said about them. But no, most of us realize that we are human, at least physically, and in some part mentally. We can't feel superior to ourselves.

"The term 'Therian' (when used in this context) is just a shortened term for 'Therianthrope'. 'Anthrope' in any word refers to Humans, as from the Greek: ἄνΘρωΠος, anthropos, 'human being'. 'Therian' comes from Therion, Greek for 'wild animal' or 'beast' (Θηρίον). Thus, any Therianthrope has both sides: Human and Beast, and you must count yourself as part of both, if you want to make sense. If you were just a beast, you'd be just that, and it would be unlikely that you could use a computer."- Fenrir (Werespace moderator, therian.ning.com)
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