The Story of TA: An exercise of collectively inventing a new queer identity in Chinese

Language shapes how we can imagine and express ourselves. If we can only rely on English, or borrowed concepts, histories, and terms of others, can our identity truly be our own? Is there space within our own writing system to contain queer identities?

“x也” (TA) is a new word, a groundbreaking identity experiment rooted in Asia, specifically for queer communities using Chinese characters. Created in 2016, “x也” (TA) has undergone numerous transformations in form and meaning, used in various ways by different communities over the years. Finally, as of this September, it can officially be input using Unicode, marking its recognition as a “real” character in a certain sense.

In celebration of International Non-Binary People’s Day, we’re honored to welcome the creator of “x也” (TA,) xxx; Kaspar Wan, founder of Gender Empowerment, who helped spread the awareness and usage of it; Michael Bauer, the driving force behind its Unicode inclusion; and Kary Kwok, founder of x也 (TA) magazine, who popularized its usage. Together, they’ll discuss the origin and evolution of “x也” (TA) and share reflections on language, identity, and queer experimentation.