What ear piercing is gay

More Stories from MEL. Men of all sexual orientations now have pierced ears, and not everyone follows (or knows about) the history of the right ear as the "gay ear." That said, if you're gay, getting a right-ear piercing can be a kind of homage to the history of using a gay earring for signaling.

Read more for the truth behind the complicated history of the gay ear concept. You might recall hearing that if a man wore an earring on the right ear, that meant he was gay. In humans, the ear is described as having three parts: the outer ear, the. Earrings on guys have signified many things over the years, such as social stature or religious affiliation.

Which ear is the gay ear? Your outer ear and middle ear are separated by your eardrum, and your inner ear houses the cochlea, vestibular nerve and semicircular canals (fluid-filled spaces involved in balance and. Another guy got two piercings in his right ear in college, to which we all remarked that that he wanted everyone to know that he was a power bottom — which he is.

We accepted it as gospel and never questioned its validity. Which ear is the gay ear, left or right earring? Robbie (Normal) on X (Twitter) captures a contemporary view by asserting, “either ear is the gay ear if you're gay.” It’s significant because it emphasizes how ear piercings related to sexual orientation are outdated and irrelevant–a sign that societal norms are shifting away from traditional views.

It was a discreet way to come out as gay and talk to other members of the community. And in the 20th century, people got confused about which ear meant what: In the Western world, earrings, so long a purely female adornment, have recently been seen on increasing numbers of male ears.

A man in the U. If it were in my right ear, that would mean I was gay. Today, a left ear piercing represents uniqueness, creativity, and self-expression, and it’s commonly used to make a fashion statement or reject traditional gender roles. Some time after that, of course, I made peace with the fact that I am gay.

During the s, the right ear was known as the “gay ear” because members of the LGBTQ+ community used it to indicate their sexual preferences. In the s, straight men pierced their left ear to signal they were heterosexual, but most people do not associate this piercing with their sexuality anymore.

In the end the male earring lost its sexual significance altogether, and simply became a generalized way of annoying middle-aged, latter-day puritans. In vertebrates, an ear is the organ that enables hearing and (in mammals) body balance using the vestibular system. This led to some confusion and stories began to circulate that there was a secret code, that to wear an earring in a pierced left ear was homosexual, and in a pierced right ear was rebel heterosexual.

In his book The Naked Man: A Study of the Male BodyDesmond Morris explains that earrings have indicated wisdom and compassion in the stretched earlobes of the Buddha, while pirates wore them in the belief it would protect them from drowning. Find men's jewelry trends here!.

At the same time, the left ear is straight.

is the left ear the gay ear

But as I grew up, it seemed like everyone I met, no matter their place of origin, knew and understood the earring code, as arbitrary as it seems. Anatomically, the ear has three. At first it was assumed that the wearers were all effeminate homosexuals, but it soon became clear the the habit was spreading to the more avant-garde of the young heterosexuals.

In the s, some men pierced their left ear to signal they were straight. In the Western world, earrings, so long a purely female adornment, have recently been seen on increasing numbers of male ears. In the Elizabethan era, earrings were quite fashionable for men, he writes.

Quinn Myers is a staff writer at MEL. He reports on internet culture, technology, health, masculinity and the communities that flourish within. Human ear, organ of hearing and equilibrium that detects and analyzes sound by transduction and maintains the sense of balance. The problem was that nobody could remember which was supposed to be which.

Historically speaking, the truth is more complex. What does Generation Z think of the whole gay code?