As our understanding of sexuality evolves and develops, it’s important to take stock when it comes to different sexualities. For example, what does it mean to be pansexual?
GLAMOUR took a deep dive into this question, an important one seeing as more and more individuals are identifying themselves within pansexuality. According to the 2021 ONS census, there are as many bisexual and pansexual people as there are gay and lesbian people in England and Wales.
Here’s everything you need to know about being pansexual, including the biggest myths about the sexual orientation.
What is pansexuality?
It’s defined by LGBT rights organisation Stonewall as “an attraction to all gender identities or attraction regardless of gender identity”, so gender doesn’t play a role in whether or not a pansexual person is attracted to someone.
Dan Levy’s character David from TV show Schitt’s Creek also came up with an excellent analogy: a pansexual person is into “the wine, not the label” – it might be red, white or rosé, but it’s the wine, they enjoy, not a particular variation.
What’s the difference between bisexuality and pansexuality?
The best way to remember it is the differing prefixes that begin the two words – “bi” means two or more, so a bisexual person identifies as being attracted to two (or more) genders, whereas “pan” means all, so a pansexual person is attracted to all genders, regardless of what gender a person may identify as.
How do I know if I’m pansexual?
The bisexual label just might not feel right to you. If you’re able to develop attractions to people without first knowing what gender they identify with, then you may want to consider if you’re pansexual.
It may be that your attraction to people feels “gender blind”, and/or that you develop these feelings towards not just men, women and non-binary identifiers, but people across the entire gender spectrum.
It’s important to point out that this doesn’t mean you’re going to fancy everyone – this is an incorrect and dangerous assumption to make.
What are the biggest misconceptions when it comes to pansexuality?
According to Stonewall, these are some of the key assumptions about pansexuality that need to be debunked:
- Pansexual people are not transphobic
Just because pansexuality is defined by attraction beyond gender, this does not mean those who are pan don’t recognise gender. As Stonewall states: “Pansexuality is attraction regardless of gender, so a pansexual person’s attraction to someone has nothing to do with whether they are trans or cis.” - Pansexuality does not mean being attracted to literally everyone
The focus needs to be on the potential here, not the guarantee of a pansexual person fancying an individual. There is potential for them to fancy a person of any gender, there is not a guarantee that they will fancy any one person. - If someone identifies as pansexual, they’re not confused or greedy
These are both queerphobic assumptions, and are completely unhelpful in defining anyone’s sexuality. - It is not a fad
The phrase has been frequently used since the 1960s, and has been featured in the Oxford English Dictionary since the early 1900s. So it may only feel like a newer term to some because it’s being discussed more as a valid – and increasingly common – sexuality, as our understanding and openness around the subject evolves.