Me from Chinese therian community:

(2026-03-20 0:08)Baumarius Wrote:  A lot of young people in China, for example, think that "therian" is a fandom they can join. Younger folks globally should know that becoming more aware of the happenings in their consciousness is the point - not joining a fandom or getting likes on TikTok.

(2026-03-20 8:26)Baumarius Wrote:  In countries like China, it's becoming a fandom.

Not exactly. In the early time when Chinese just started to get in touch with therianthropy in a large scale (in the early 2025), it is true that therianthropy is seen as cool quadrobics and masks, and seem like a fandom. However, as the community develops, most members now hold the correct definition, and gradually form a consensus.

(2026-03-20 19:28)Baumarius Wrote:  You can't translate therianthropy directly into Chinese - it means "orcification." Therian means "orcs." The closest version of it means "animalhuman," which is hilarious to them. As I continue to work on my translations, "therianthropy" feels more and more like what "pineapple" did to "ananas."

At first, the translation of therianthropy is indeed "lf animal half person"; however, we now have a more precise translation, and is being widely used. More and more members are using 兽自识 as therianthropy, 有兽识者 as therian. Actually, this translation works has been done in the last year's November.

(2026-03-21 9:18)KeweyTanuki Wrote:  BTW I've seen a proposed Chinese word for "therianthropy" which glosses back to English as "beast self-awareness", therian is "have beast-self person". I believe that's coming from Chinese speakers themselves too.

The words themselves.

Exactly like this.

(2026-03-21 1:23)Baumarius Wrote:  

(2026-03-20 20:44)Nachtfox Wrote:  @Baumarius A bit off topic, but I'm actually curious as to how therians in China view themselves/the community, and how they're defining it :0

1. They keep "therian" untranslated, avoiding using Chinese characters for it, and often use "poorly translated" (in their own words) definitions from sites like TG.
2. Many of them think it's a roleplay/quadrobics-based fandom, like furries but feral. There are actual therians there, but from what they have described to me, it is disproportionately skewed toward the former.

1.As I said, we already translated.
2.These misunderstanding are consistently and gradually being corrected. From my point, more members are using "actually" definition.

兽自识（therianthropy）is already a word refers to inner non-human experience, so as therianthropy itself, while 有兽识者（therian）is an identity. I can't tell the subtle differences between English words, so I don't have enough argument to say if I support this new word. However, from the Chinese characters perspective, I thinks a new word is not necessary, and will confuse members in return.

Also what I want to point out is, Chinese therian community have the ability to development by itself, and our communities might be much more similar than you thought. I understand you want to promote global therian community development, but no matter if you realized you are actually implying this, but we are not dependent on help to being "correct". I'm not criticizing, and I don't want to argue; it's just a reminder.

Firefly here!

We definitely agree this may be a cause for some being’s therianthrope or nonhumanity in general. We’re constantly stressed by the human world and wish we could just disappear into the forest and never come back. Everything is too bright but it feels better when your something other than human and to not be a part of all that annoying human stuff. Some of us in the system enjoy being in human society but I don’t.

But our body is still human and family and friends hold us back from doing this. We care just as much about them as our nonhumanity and we’d be in mental pain in both scenarios. Plus I know that some of our system members are perfectly fine in human society and I won’t take them away from that. :>

(2026-03-20 20:44)Nachtfox Wrote:  @Baumarius A bit off topic, but I'm actually curious as to how therians in China view themselves/the community, and how they're defining it :0

I have a lot to say about this topic. First of all, in China one of Chinese words for “therian” is “半兽人”, the literal meaning of “半兽人” is “half-animal human”. Personally this is the worst translation I’ve ever seen. It just sounds like insisting “you're human through and through” and denying therianthropy. The worst news is that this translation has spread extremely widely, further increasing the misunderstanding of therianthropy among other people.
（PS: I know Therianthropy is therion + anthropos, Chinese tends to place important, main content at the end of phrases and sentences,which, as far as I know, is the opposite of English. Secondly, “半兽人” actually is orc/ork , and “兽人” often means Furry. So, all in all, that's why I'm so dissatisfied with this translation — I can't think of a worse one.）

How we view ourselves, just like how therians here view themselves.

When information about therianthropy first began circulating on the Chinese internet, it attracted a large number of young students just like what happened on tiktok — many of them quite young. They would “join” therian and made up experiences for themselves. Later, after some therians pointed out that this kind of “joining” behavior was inappropriate, some of these individuals started identifying as otherlinks instead (I honestly find this utterly ridiculous). These people who “join” otherlink looks just playing RP... I see no genuine sense of identity.

Although the online environment for Chinese Therians is not good, many Therians are still working hard to improve it, trying to give us a more private space to discuss, exchange ideas and help new members. Some of us publish content so that the public can reduce discrimination, misunderstanding, and stigmatization of Therians.[/b]

I'm going to go against the grain and say I would not worry in detail if or if not you are truly a therian, if or if not you fall into an other label. I think therian groups fall into a bad habit of trying to break the vast, inexplicable, spectrum of experience into neat clear cut boxes.

Being both transgender and a therian, I find the concepts of choice, innate being, voluntary, and involuntary identity brought up often and difficult to grapple with. And I think at the end of the day if someone chooses an identity it doesn't make that identity less valid. If my husband, for example, tells me tomorrow he's choosing to be a cat, then who am I to tell him no? To tell him his choice is pointless? To tell him that he can't do it like that? I think a lot of therians want to call it involuntary and innate because it seems more legitimate that way, "I'm not playing pretend this is just who I am".

But another reason I don't like this rhetoric is because, well, as an autistic person prone to self doubt and feeling like an imposter, it is really hard to know how to distinguish between something I choose versus something I am. In regards to being trans, I don't think there is anything I could do differently to change how I feel, but I Can choose How I interpret those feelings, how I act upon them. Is that count as a choice? Does it matter to the transphobes if I chose it or not? They already think I do and I don't want the only reason someone treats me like a man to be because they think I had no choice, that I was afflicted with ungracious malignancy. Re therianthropy, where there is even less open discussion and set social paths for people to follow who feel like or want to be an animal, it can be even harder to discern those feelings.

My biggest advice is to not rush into figuring it out, don't try to force labels. Don't try to nail it down right now. I've felt like a deer for a lot longer than I even knew about but when I had been worrying over figuring out the label (as I had months ago and years before that) I felt too scared to embrace a part of myself because it felt like I was just choosing it when in actuality I was just choosing to act on those feelings. Months later, after I stopped trying to figure it out perfectly, after I stopped trying to see it exactly, what I was became so clear.

Good luck

(2026-05-18 16:37)LucySK Wrote:  I like reading different points of view on this topic. I believe in past lives too and I do think me having past life can overlap with my current one. As if I know im human, but sometimes the animal traits take over as if those memories or traits are still connected to me and are triggerred by things that have been part of that past life too. I am bad at explaining things but I tried to be very simple.

ya, that makes sense. :3 that is a cool belief!

I like reading different points of view on this topic. I believe in past lives too and I do think me having past life can overlap with my current one. As if I know im human, but sometimes the animal traits take over as if those memories or traits are still connected to me and are triggerred by things that have been part of that past life too. I am bad at explaining things but I tried to be very simple.

(2026-05-12 1:13)Song Wrote:  I definitely relate to how you connected psycological and spiritual theories here!

Personally, I believe in animism (so animals, plants, microorganisms, natural spiritually significant objects like rocks and natural phenomenon like lightning can all have souls), and I also believe souls can have limitless lives.

I think souls have their own preferred forms, so one soul might only reincarnate into one sole species, or another may only reincarnate into predatory mammals or creatures in the animal Kingdom, or maybe just plants, etc.

But aside from my spirituality, I think I have my specific theriotypes and connections because I was able to connect with them through my current life.
I was exposed to a very nature-loving family, I had cats around me since I was born, I watched media with a lot of specific animals, and this exposure made me imprint on certain animals! Then, this imprinting almost opened up the gate to my spiritual world, yknow?

But of course I still believe I was innately meant to be an animal because my souls preferance includes canines and felines, but my identity was certainly elevated by the world around me.
Sooo it's kind of like a mix of nature and nurture for me!

But anywho, I'm yapping- I really liked your thread :3
See ya around!

I also believe in animism. :3 I really like ur explanation about how ur therianthropy came from! ty!

I definitely relate to how you connected psycological and spiritual theories here!

Personally, I believe in animism (so animals, plants, microorganisms, natural spiritually significant objects like rocks and natural phenomenon like lightning can all have souls), and I also believe souls can have limitless lives.

I think souls have their own preferred forms, so one soul might only reincarnate into one sole species, or another may only reincarnate into predatory mammals or creatures in the animal Kingdom, or maybe just plants, etc.

But aside from my spirituality, I think I have my specific theriotypes and connections because I was able to connect with them through my current life.
I was exposed to a very nature-loving family, I had cats around me since I was born, I watched media with a lot of specific animals, and this exposure made me imprint on certain animals! Then, this imprinting almost opened up the gate to my spiritual world, yknow?

But of course I still believe I was innately meant to be an animal because my souls preferance includes canines and felines, but my identity was certainly elevated by the world around me.
Sooo it's kind of like a mix of nature and nurture for me!

But anywho, I'm yapping- I really liked your thread :3
See ya around!

NOTE: This is purley my personal belif and is not meant to offend anybody.

I belive in spirits/souls and past lives. I belive that you gain pieces to your soul once you have a past life of it. But why do I not feel human? I believe a variety of phycological factors including nerodivergence and trauma triggered something in me that led me to therianthropy. I basically believe that something in this life triggered my past lives, and that my soul may be trying to protect me. Whatever the cause I know I am a therian and have and will always feel this way. Remember: having a past life does not make you a therian, and therianthropy isn't about past lives. It's about the experiance in this present life.

Please correct me if any of my info isn't accurate. :3
This is not the explanation for all therians, it is just a theory for my therianthropy and anyone who feels this might be them. I believe everyone's explanation for their therianthropy is right for them.

(2026-05-09 13:20)Lupus Ferox Wrote:  It's not because therianthropy is an individualistic experience, everyone who claims they're therian are it. There should be open grounds to discuss these matters with one another, where each individual is heard and treated with respect. We don't know what ties us together, nor do we have any clue whatsoever what causes it. Ruling people out based on what we think of the person may hurt those people in the end. Neither of us have the right to dismiss anyone else's beliefs as superstition or false.
Another thing worth mentioning here is this: simply stating it's an individual experience so everybody's right can also harm communities. I'm afraid that in this scenario, we may have lost the ability to self-reflect and allow everybody in, even those who could cause possible harm (by spreading misinformation, for example). A community held together by difficult topics the likes of ours should welcome people with alternative, or better yet, as many a different views as possible.
BUT, we should also keep in mind that conducting proper discussion comes with introspection and sincerity from all members. Members should work on themselves and are to be encouraged to think for themselves in order to become the individual they're born to be, even if they're not a therian at all. Our duty is to spread the right information, which also encompasses having the courage to tell people they're wrong, misinformed or should look elsewhere for their troubles. I'm afraid that, if we allow everybody in based on this given (referring to OP), the community will become saturated with people from every corner of the internet, because it would sound like critical thinking is deemed of less importance.

This is the best approach to interacting with the community. I agree that a growing issue online is a lack of introspection and sort of rushing to conclusions. It takes lots and lots of time to find yourself, and social media often blocks off room for making mistakes and changing your identity as you grow. Once you fall into a category on large platforms the algorithms kinda glues that label onto you, like a brand. Self-reflection is an uphill battle on an app that wants the user to do everything butthink for themselves.
I strongly agree that we really shouldn’t be fearful of calling out misinformation, redirecting to other labels, etc., especially nowadays with the influx of younger therians posting online.