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Palopa is a term used in Papua New Guinea and the diaspora as a non-heteronormative term for people who may identify in Western nomenclature as either gay, transsexual, or having a third gender role. LGBTQ+ activist Clint Woolly has described how Western terminology is stigmatised by many in Papua New Guinea and argued that indigenous descriptors, such as palopa, should be adopted and adapted. For the Sambian people, the phrase kwolu-aatmwol describes a third gender identity. Terminology is also borrowed from other Pacific communities, for example the term 'sister-girl' from Torres Strait Islanders.

Etymology

The phrase comes from Tok Pisin. It is reportedly a contraction of the name of the singer Jennifer Lopez.

References

1. Stewart, Christine (2014-12-02). Name, Shame and Blame: Criminalising Consensual Sex in Papua New Guinea. ANU Press. pp. xxi. ISBN 978-1-925021-22-6.
2. "Glossary of LGBTIQ+ Language". OutLine Aotearoa. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
3. Worth, Heather (2011-10-01). "Is the Myth of the Bisexual Infector Still a Myth? Reflections on HIV Risk and Men Who Have Sex with Men and Women". Journal of Bisexuality. 11 (4): 488–492. doi:10.1080/15299716.2011.620824. ISSN 1529-9716. S2CID 143515533.
4. Mayron, Sapeer (2022-02-14). "Landmark health survey of rainbow Pasifika launches". Stuff. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
5. ^ Woolly, Clint (2016-10-28). "Reclaiming our rainbow cultural identities". Rainbow Papua New Guinea. Retrieved 2023-02-04.
6. ^ Besnier, Niko; Alexeyeff, Kalissa (2014-12-31). Gender on the Edge: Transgender, Gay, and Other Pacific Islanders. University of Hawaii Press. p. 327. ISBN 978-0-8248-4019-8.

• Gender in Oceania
• Gender systems
• Third gender
• Culture of Papua New Guinea
• Transgender topics in Oceania
• Indigenous LGBTQ culture
• Society of Papua New Guinea
• LGBTQ in Papua New Guinea
• Jennifer Lopez