What Is The Otherkin Community Really And Why Is The Therian Community A Huge Part Of It

What is the Otherkin Community Really and Why Is the Therian Community A Huge Part of It

[The following is based on what sources can be found on both the Otherkin Timeline and those found on the various History of the Otherkin Communities project our system is working on.]

What we today call the “otherkin community” is more or less the blending between several communities for people who identify as nonhuman to create a middle-ground between them. An umbrella community if you will. The therian community was one of several communities that had a major hand in creating what we now know of the otherkin community today .

The term “otherkin” was coined in 1990 on the Elfkinkind Digest which was part of the growing Elfinkind community. It was originally meant to mean people who identified as nonhuman who did not identify as elves. So in its original meaning, there were “elfinkin” (Those who identified as elves) and “otherkin” (everyone else who identified as other than elves).   Then in the midish 1990s the definition of otherkin meaning anyone who identifies as “other than human” took off. This shift in definition appears to be because of the other communities that were appearing separately and independently from one another at the time. There was the therian community that began in 1993 on Alt.horror.Werewolves which started out being a community for people who identifies as wereanimals but included several weredragons among other mythical creatures. Also in 1993 on alt.fan.dragons the draconic community began to grow with members coming forward about identifying as dragons. In the mid 1990s, two websites also appeared independently for those who identified as unicorns. I’ve also seen reference to there being communities that also appeared independently for those who identifies as angelic and another for mermaid as well but haven’t found as much success on more information on them. (The latter may or may not have been mingled into the mermaiding community though.)

In the late 1990s websites like the Otherkin Resource Center and Shadow’s Den began to pop up. These websites mostly acted as hubs connecting these communities together. Otherkin Resource Center, for example, offering basic information about weres (the still used term for therians at the time) and links to various therian websites (such as WereWeb, Shifters.org, Were.net, and the Shapeshifter and Werewolf Handbook which were all very popular at the time). The website had similar pages and links for the elvenkind community, draconic community, and others. Shadow’s Den, had similar cross-community intentions as it acted like a hub for information and links about the therian community, vampire community, draconic community, fae/elvenkind community, and for those who identified as angelic entities.  

This trend of otherkin websites being meddling pots between these communities continued to grow into the early 2000s. Websites website (complete with forum) such as Enchanted Realms appeared which defined otherkin as anyone who felt “other than human” and the forum itself gave different otherkin communities their own subforum, including the therian community.  Another website called Realmsscape.org had a webpage on otherkin and refered that the three largest otherkin communities were the elven community, draconic community, and were community.

However, with the rise in activity from the middle-ground that is the otherkin community, several of the smaller otherkin communities suffered. We have found reference to there once being a separate community of people who identified as angelic that existed in the 90s, but no trace of the community seems to exist on today. The unicorn community is more or less inactive anymore. The therian community, due to it being the largest otherkin community, has not only thrived on its own without being more or less assimilated into the otherkin community, its directly influenced it.    

In truth, the therian community has had the MOST influence of the otherkin community compared to any other otherkin community. Many concepts and ways of looking at identity originated from the therian community - shifting and all of its labels came from the therian community for example. Almost all of the terms used to day in the otherkin community came directly from the therian community - kintype came from theriotype, polykin came from polytherian, shifting and all subsequent terms, polymorph, and so on.  

So rather than there being an “otherkin community” and a “therian community,” the therian community has always not only been a part of the otherkin community but has hand a major influence in the otherkin community. The otherkin community was created as a sort of middle-ground between various otherkin communities and the therian community isn’t the only community that arose for those who identified as nonhuman.  (Our multiple system, might work on this, clean it up, flesh it out, cite it out, and make this into an article or something down the road. Might be useful? Not sure.) - Miushra

🌸💜🌸💜

Well I’m going to go out in a limb here and take a risk. I don’t really like to proclaim myself “as a therian” a whole lot, I prefer the term trans-species better. But I really don’t need a label to know who and what I am. But that’s not the point of what I’m getting at here. Just first saying I don’t make a habit of reaching out to the therian community so this will be a first. But, to my fellow wolf trans-species/therian out there I have a question. From my lurking along the edges of the community just observing others… I’ve noticed that not all, but a lot of wolf therians enjoy wearing collars to get more in touch with their true self. First I would like to say, if this really helps you feel in touch with yourself, I support this. That is the most important thing is for each of us to feel closest to our true selves and be the best version of ourselves we can be. So long as this does not cause harm or danger to others, I fully support whatever it takes to get you to that place. Do what makes you feel your best! :) I just am a bit confused because it could just be my personal taste and experience…but I struggle to understand how a collar helps a wolf therian feel connected to themselves? I’m not hating or trying to cause trouble, I just wish to understand. It’s just in my opinion (which I may not hold out over anyone else) that a collar is the symbol of a dog, either their loyalty to humans, or in a more derogatory sense, their enslavement to humans. A wolf can not be tamed, freedom is the birthright of a wolf. As trans species we are already trapped in this pathetic human shell. I’m just curious to understand where a collar helps one feel connected to their wild predatory nature as a wolf. It could be something I’ve not experienced so I would very much like to know why others feel so strongly about this, and understand my fellows. So if anyone had anything to say or a story to share I really would like to understand this. It could be my strong aversion to being bound or restrained (also ropes and chains and stuff just freak me out) but I am sure there must be some good reason behind it for others. I would like to understand. -Sibera

Fun toys ain’t I right daddy?

Those who keep company with wolves will be taught how to howl.

a Howler, 2016 (via alister-wolf)

when you’re just mindin your own business eating dinner and your family starts saying homophobic/transphobic shit