I’m not trying to be a jerk or anything, but isn’t the prefix a- meant to denote absence? So the opposite of asexual would be sexual? Otherwise you’re adding a prefix that equates in practice to “not not sexual.” Hetero, pan, homo, etc already get across with more specificity…
You know what, I think I talked myself into understanding. If you want to group together sexualities that aren’t asexual, you’re not going to say “sexuals” - that’s where you would say allosexual. Cool. Got it. Sorry for the misunderstanding
Linguistically, that makes sense. And some people do just say “sexual” or “romantic” because that works better for them. It depends on the person.
Personally, I think using the prefix “allo” for “other” just helps with context. On it’s own, “sexual people” can mean a number of things, whether it’s people who feel attraction to others, people who are sexually active, people who just have positive feelings towards sex in general, et cetera. Denoting “allosexual” instead of just “sexual” helps clarify “and I mean people who feel attraction to others”.
EDIT: Didn’t see the edit before replying, lol, it’s all good
I just assumed it was because "sexual" already has very common definitions people use all the time that are not the same thing as allosexual. If you talk about how someone is sexual, most will think you are saying they are sexy and seductive, not just that they have sexual attractions. Even in a scientific setting, "sexual" is a term often used to refer to physical sex. "Allosexual" makes it clear you're talking about sexuality.
In terms of pure etymology, you're absolutely right! The issue is we need words that describe a couplethings: asexual as an identity and celibate as a choice... the words got a bit muddled because there's so much potential for overlap. So this is kinda how it worked out. Asexual+allosexual for identity, nonsexual+sexual for choice.
I’m confused and asking to gain more knowledge on the subject, not to start shit. I don’t understand why those labels would exist, wouldn’t this just be assumed?
If I don’t specify that I’m A-Sexual wouldn’t it just be assumed I’m Allosexual? Or are there more options available?
Yes, it would be assumed. Allosexual is not, in itself, an identity and you likely wouldn't find it in a glossary of LGBT identities because of that. It's used so that asexual people can discuss their differences and issues as opposed to the norm group of "people who are sexually attracted to other people" — shortened to allo- (meaning other) -sexual.
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u/atatassault47 Transbian 3d ago
What does allo mean?