Fakaleiti
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A fakaleiti is a Tongan man who dresses and lives as a woman. In many Tongan families, if several children have been born and they are all boys, one of them will be dressed as a girl and do girls' chores, such as housecleaning. As the fakaleiti grows up, s/he may decide to continue to live the rest of his or her life as a woman.
An adult fakaleiti will usually wear western, rather than traditional Tongan, women's clothes. If one sees a young Tongan woman in a miniskirt or revealing dress, chances are that, rather than being a native who has been influenced by the ways of American or European fashion, the young woman is really a fakaleiti.
External links
- Transgender Zone - Transgender Culture in the South Pacific (http://www.transgenderzone.com/features/Samoa.htm)
- The Guide - Fingering Machismo (http://www.guidemag.com/magcontent/invokemagcontent.cfm?ID=4CFE923C-4559-4468-B8017560C17A353B)
See also: List of transgender-related topics