Maegender, formerly known as Maedic, is a gender in the Dionysian Gender System named after the Maenads, the female members of the Cult of Dionysos also known as the Bacchae. Refers to a feminine, female, neutral, or female-associated gender of experience. Specifically, women, all genders of lesbians and sapphics, AFAB non-women who feel their relation to femininity impacts their gender/experience, feminine non-binary people, and anyone of any gender with a tie to femininity. This gender is also associated with power, freedom, chaos, and appreciation of women (romantically, aesthetically, sexually, conceptually, etc.).
The Maenads, AKA Bacchae, were the female followers of Dionysus. They were known for reaching a state of ecstasy through wine, orgiastic rites, and dancing, believed to bring them closer to the god. There were many myths of them tearing men apart, and in the ritual frenzy "women became men and men became women." The maenads are, in modern times, associated with female empowerment, lesbianism, sexual freedom, and gender nonconformity.
Flag and History
The Dionysian Gender System, its symbols, and its flags were all created by Tumblr user koraki-pharmakis on June 18, 2021.[1]
The maegender flag meaning is as follows:
- Red for power, wine, and blood
- Shades of red-pink for power and the spectrum of femininity
- White for community and trans, nonbinary, and intersex people
- Orange-gold for leopard skins and wild nature
- Brown for wild nature, forests, and the thyrsos staff
- Black for nonconformity and chaos
Note
On October 24, 2021, the coiner koraki-pharmakis posted a statement to faer Tumblr blog stating that fae no longer wanted faer terms on the LGBTA+ wiki due to members disrespecting closed religious terms and the wiki’s lack of adequate moderation and respect for coiners. Fae allowed that the Dionysian Gender System, including maegender, thyrsoan, and satyrian, remain on the site with the requirement that this message be attached and that no flags or symbols created by individuals who were not Hellenist Dionysos worshippers be added to the page.[2]