Birth assignment

**Birth assignment**, also known as **gender assigned at birth (GAAB/GAB)**, **assigned gender at birth (AGAB)**, or **designated gender at birth (DGAB)**, is the gender marker assigned to a person when they are born, usually based on visible genitals alone. Typically, people are assigned male at birth (AMAB) or assigned female at birth (AFAB). However, some people are assigned X at birth (AXAB), either due to being intersex, or due to gender neutral parenting. Some people are not assigned a gender at all.

Terms such as AMAB and AFAB are commonly used when talking about issues and experiences relevant to birth assignment, without making statements or assumptions about gender identity. It is not synonymous with being male, a man, female, or a woman. It is also not synonymous with having specific gender presentations or biological functions. Transgender people have an identity which does not match their birth assignment, and many people do not experience the expected biological functions of the gender they were assigned.

Most intersex people are assigned female or male at birth, even when they are recognized as intersex when they are born. Some intersex people born with ambiguous genitalia are put through non-consensual surgeries, with the intent of making them appear dyadic. This is referred to as **coercive birth assignment**, or **coercively assigned gender at birth (CAGAB)**. One might be coercively assigned female at birth (CAFAB), or coercively assigned male at birth (CAMAB). These terms cannot be used by dyadic people.

## Distinction

### Sex

***Main article:*** *Sex*

Sex refers to the language ascribed to a person's physical sex characteristics, such as their chromosomes, genitalia, gonads, and hormone levels. Birth assignment often correlates with a person's sex, but is not the same. For example, this assignment doesn't take into account many aspects of a person's sex, and often results in intersex erasure or medical mistreatment. Most intersex people are assigned male or female at birth, sometimes coercively. There are also people who are not assigned a gender at all.

## Notes

1. ↑ Gender neutral parenting is a parenting style in which one allows their child to dress, play, and otherwise participate in life regardless of gender roles. Some parents who raise their children in this way opt not to assign a gender, instead waiting for the child to make their own conclusions about their identity.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Birth Assignment. The Trans Language Primer.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 AGAB / DGAB / IS. The Trans Language Primer.
3. ↑ Davis, Heath Fogg (2017-05-31). Let’s delete sex-identity from birth certificates.
4. ↑ Geschlechtseintrag Inter/Divers: Beschwerdebegründung beim BGH eingereicht (Gender entry Inter/Diverse: Grounds for appeal submitted to the Federal Court of Justice) (German). Dittre Option (2015-04-24).
5. ↑ Germany paves way for 'third gender' option at birth. SBS News (2018-08-15).
6. ↑ Tapp, Fiona (2023-03-14). What Happens When You Choose 'Gender Neutral' On Your Child's Legal Documents?. Parents.
7. ↑ Davis, Heath Fogg (2017-05-31). Let’s delete sex-identity from birth certificates.
8. ↑ Understanding Gender Identities. The Trevor Project (2021-08-23). Archived from the original on November 21, 2021.
9. ↑ Transgender People. GLAAD. Archived from the original on October 22, 2021.
10. ↑ Transgender (Trans). The Trans Language Primer. Archived from the original on February 10, 2022.
11. ↑ Frequently Asked Questions about Transgender People. National Center for Transgender Equality (2016-07-09).
12. ↑ CAGAB. The Trans Language Primer.
13. ↑ Primary sex character | Description & Characteristics. Britannica.
14. ↑ Stevenson A, Waite M. *Concise Oxford English Dictionary: Book & CD-ROM Set*. OUP Oxford, 2011. ISBN 978-0-19-960110-3.
15. ↑ CAGAB. The Trans Language Primer.
16. ↑ AGAB / DGAB / IS. The Trans Language Primer.
17. ↑ Birth Assignment. The Trans Language Primer.
18. ↑ Tapp, Fiona (2023-03-14). What Happens When You Choose 'Gender Neutral' On Your Child's Legal Documents?. Parents.
19. ↑ Davis, Heath Fogg (2017-05-31). Let’s delete sex-identity from birth certificates.