Before We Were Trans: A New History of Gender

Interview with author, Kit Heyam

Kit Heyam is a university lecturer, queer history activist, and a trans awareness trainer who has worked with organizations across the United Kingdom. They live in Leeds, UK with their partner, Alex, and their toddler.

The book we discuss, Before We Were Trans, was published by Seal Press, part of the Hachette Book Group, in 2022. It provides an accessible and informative window into gender as it has been constructed over time and across the globe. The New York Times Book Review calls it an “astute, self-aware and riveting study” of the history of gender non-conformity.

We are very grateful to Dr. Heyam for taking the time to talk with Pamela Katz about this book and hope that our conversation will provide WWG readers with more ways to engage with our topic.

Dr. Heyam welcomes questions from and comments for continued conversation with readers. Email to worldwithoutgender@gmail.com or include in comments section below.

“Before We Were Trans” is a book that moves far beyond mere representation by managing to be both intellectually rigorous and exciting to read. It makes for a vital contribution to our understanding of gender variance and its place in social and political history, all around the world. ———-M. Talusan, NYT, Sept. 10, 2022

Resources referenced in the interview:

CN Lester, Semantics, semiotics and the use of the term ‘nonbinary,’ in A Gentleman and a Scholar, Nov. 4, 2011, https://cnlester.wordpress.com/2011/11/04/semantics-semiotics-and-the-use-of-the-term-nonbinary/

A. Palmer, Terra Ignota series (4 volumes), Tor Books, 2016-2021, https://www.adapalmer.com/writing-type/fiction/