Polyamorous

Polyamory is the capability, or desire to be in a relationship with more than one person at once. Polyamorous relationships can be romantic, sexual, or both, there can also be polyamorous queerplatonic relationships. Polyamory is not cheating because all parties are aware of all other parties involved and consent to it. Polyamory can be as simple as an open relationship or it can be three or more people who are all in a relationship with each other. Polyamorous is not a sexuality on it's own, but more of a description on how one can experience attraction. Polyamorous people can have any sexuality.

Polyamory can involve marriage but should not be confused with polygamy, the act of marrying many people, which is illegal in the U.S. and many other western countries.

Ideally, polyamory/polyamorous is shortened to polyam, not poly (to avoid confusion with a shortening for Polynesian or polysexual). Polyamory should also not be confused with polysexuality.

Types of Polyamorous Relationships

 * Triad- Also known as a triangle or a delta. A polyamorous relationship involving three people where each person is in a relationship with all the other people.
 * V Polyamory- A relationship involving three people, in which one person is in a relationship with two partners who are not in a relationship with each other. (Ex: A is dating B and C, but B and C are not dating each other.)
 * T Polyamory- A relationship involving three people where the third person's involvement causes the other two to be involved with each other. (Ex: B and C are both dating A. A's involvement requires B and C to also date each other. Without A's involvement, B and C would no longer date.)
 * Quad Polyamory- Any polyamorous relationship involving four people.
 * N Polyamory- A relationship involving four people, generally two couples where one member of one couple is also involved with one member of the other couple. (Ex. A and B are dating. C and D are dating. B and C are also dating, however A and D are not dating.)
 * Full Quad- A relationship with four people, all of whom as involved with all of the other members.
 * Polycule- A very complex polyamorous relationship, usually with five or more people involved. The term is a combination of "poly" and "molecule", referencing the complex shapes of molecules.

Approaches to Polyamory

 * Solo Polyamory- An approach to polyamory that emphasizes agency and does not seek to engage in relationships that are tightly couple-centric. People who identify as solo polyam emphasize autonomy, the freedom to choose their own relationships without seeking permission from others, and flexibility in the form their relationships take. Such people generally don’t want or need relationships that look like traditional couples, and may not, for example, seek to live with a partner (or partners) or combine finances with a partner (or partners). Consent and communication is still vital.
 * Polyfidelity- Also sometimes called polyexclusivity, is a form of polyamory where all members are considered equal partners and agree to be sexually/romantically/sensually active only with other members of the group.
 * Hierarchical Polyamory- A polyamorous relationship structure in which a person has multiple partners who are not equal to one another in terms of interconnection, emotional intensity, or power within the relationship. Hierarchical relationships tend to use the terms primary, secondary, and sometimes tertiary, to describe the levels of importance and commitment. As with all relationships, consent is important, and all parties involved must agree to engage in this type of relationship for it to be healthy and acceptable.
 * Egalitarian Polyamory- A polyamorous relationship structure in which all partners are considered equal to one another in regards to emotional commitment.

Flag
The original polyamorous flag was designed by Jim Evans in 1995. The blue stripe stands for openness and honesty among all partners. The red stripe stands for love and passion. The black stripe represents solidarity with those who must hide their polyamorous relationships from the outside world. In the center is the pi symbol. It was initially chosen because pi is a never-ending decimal, and a largely nerdy community, that seemed like a clever play on polyamorous people having infinite love. The other idea of using pi was that it wouldn't be automatically interpreted as being a polyamorous symbol, so that people who were not out about being polyamorous could use it without anyone knowing what it meant, so they wouldn't be exposed for their non-traditional lifestyle.

Over time, and coming to a head in summer 2020, the original flag came to be seen as undesirable by many in the polyam community. Their reasons included discordant colors, controversy surrounding Jim Evans, and the pi symbol and black stripe's symbolism. Jim Evans believed that polyamorous people should and will hide their relationships, which many in the polyam community argued makes it the opposite of a "pride" flag. Due to this dissatisfaction with the original flag, several alternatives were proposed. In many of these alternatives, the infinity heart has been a reoccuring symbol, much preferred over pi.

One prime example of such is the pride flag made by Molly W. on August 11, 2020. The flag is comprised of four stripes, all of equal height. The colors of this flag include lime green for growth, kelly green for balance, sky blue representing freedom, and royal blue for trust. The infinity heart represents the concept of infinite love. This flag is intended to be inclusive of all polyamorous people, including those who may have identities that intersect with polyamory. It includes those who are aro-spec, ace-spec, or allosexual. It includes relationship anarchists, single polyamorous folks, polyamorous people who are situationally monogamous, and those who practice solo polyamory.

Etymology
Polyamorous is made up of the Greek prefix poly-, meaning 'many', and the Latin word amor, meaning 'love'.