m
{{Copied|original=LGBTA Wiki, add discrimination section + conflation of aromanticism with asexuality and how it affected aphobia and erases non-ace aros}}
{{Orientation|image1=[[File:Aromantic.png|The Aromantic Flag]]|type=Amative, Aspec, Arospec|exclusivity=|coined_by=|coining_date=}}
'''Aromantic''' (often shortened to '''Aroaro''') is a romantic orientation defined by a lack of [[Romantic Attraction|romantic attraction]], or a lack of desire for romantic relationships. Romantic attraction is often defined as the desire to be in a romantic relationship and/or do romantic acts with a specific personindividual. For non-Aromantic peoplearomantic ([[Alloromanticalloromantic]]s) individuals, romantic attraction is involuntary and even occurs when someone doesn't know the other personindividual (though one might not act on it). Aromantic peopleindividuals do not have an innate desire to be in a romantic relationship with specific individuals. They might also feel disconnected from the idea of romance.
WhileA therecommon misconception is somethat misconceptionall ofaromantics Aromanticslack beingemotions, "loveless"lack the ability to form social connections, and are "heartlessloveless",. In reality many aros are capable of feeling love- platonic love such as that between a personmother beingand Aromanticchild doesor notbest necessarilyfriends. sayAromantics ifcan thealso personmeet istheir capableemotional needs through [[Queerplatonic Relationship|queerplatonic relationships]], or incapable,other of[[Tertiary loveAttraction|non-romantic relationships]]. Some Arosaromantics mayget widenplatonic thecrushes meaningor of"squishes", lovealso andknown embraceas it[[Platonic inAttraction|platonic attraction]]. On the other wayshand, likesome aromantics may not experience platonic friendships,love familialor relationshipsattraction, and etcmay identify as [[aplatonic]]. Others may embracenot thedesire identitypartners of lovelessany tokind, declareand thatmay loveidentify isas not[[nonamorous]]. necessarySome foraromantics oneembrace tothe beloveless happy,label rejectingand reject the notionidea that love is needednecessary for one to be humanhappiness.<ref>https://aroworlds.wordpress.com/2019/07/16/i-am-not-voldemort-an-essay-on-love-and-amatonormativity/</ref>
Because Aromanticism revolves around romance specifically, Aros may still feel other non-romantic attraction. Aros who experience [[Platonic Attraction|platonic attraction]] may describe their "platonic crushes" as a "squish". While those who do not experience platonic attraction may call themself [[Aplatonic]].
Aside from platonic attraction, some Aromantic people may also experience other [[Tertiary Attraction|tertiary attractions]], which are attractions outside of sexual and romantic, and may use specific labels to describe this attraction. Examples of tertiary attractions include [[Aesthetic Attraction|aesthetic]], [[Platonic Attraction|platonic]], and [[Sensual Attraction|sensual]] attraction.
Some Aromantics desire romantic relationships, while others dont. For those who don't, they may find intimate companionship in their non-romantic relationships, like [[Queerplatonic|queerplatonic relationships]], platonic life partners, and [[Tertiary Attraction|others]]. They may also be content with themself, and don't need, or don't want, an intimate relationship at all, in which case they may call themself [[Nonamy|Nonamorous]].
An Aromantic person can have any [[Sexual Orientation|sexual orientation]], including [[Allosexual]] (in which case they also may identify with [[Alloaro]]) and [[Asexual]] (in which case they may also identify as [[Aroace]]). Aros may identify with a sexual orientation in addition to the label of Aromantic to specify who they're interested in sexually, if anyone. For example, a [[Heterosexual]] Aromantic person is sexually attracted to people of a different gender, but is not romantically attracted to them. Not all Aromantics identify with a sexual orientation, some may identify primarily or only as Aromantic ([[Non-SAM Aro]]/[[Aro Neu]]).
The term "Aromantic" may also be used as an umbrella term, referring to anyone on the [[Arospec|Aro Spectrum]].
==Pronunciation==
[[File:Aromantic.ogg]]
Due to the ambiguous nature of romantic attraction it can sometimes be difficult to identify when one is aromantic. Romantic attraction is sometimes defined by the actions that one takes during a relationship, such as holding hands, kissing, or cuddling. However, none of these activities alone necessarily indicate romantic attraction. These actively are only considered romantic if one personally considers them romantic in nature and does them with romantic intent. An aromantic personindividual might enjoy some or all of these activities in non-romantic contexts, but does not like them in romantic context. Because of this some queerplatonic relationships or close friendships can sometimes resemble or be mistaken for a romantic relationship; with the difference being that in a queerplatonic relationship the participants agree that it is non-romantic, and in a romantic relationship the participants agree that it is romantic in nature. Therefore, the nature of a relationship is best defined by the intentions of the participants. If one or any partners feels romantic attraction and all partners agree to a romantic context, then the relationship is considered romantic.
The term aromantic was first coined in an AVEN thread titled 'Relationship Definitions' in June 2005<ref>https://www.asexuality.org/en/topic/9433-relationship-definitions/</ref>. While this is not the first use of the [[Split Attraction Model (SAM)|split attraction model]] it is one of the first mentions of the term aromantic. After this there is very little mention of aromanticism until 2010, when aromanticism begin to gain a community on AVEN.
[[File:Aromantic (2)Aromanticflag2.png|thumb|The first proposed aromantic flag.|alt=]]
[[File:Aromantic (3)Aromanticflag1.png|thumb|The second proposed aromantic flag.|alt=]]
The first proposed aromantic flag had four stripes. Green, because it's the opposite of red, the most commonly associated romance color. Yellow, representing platonic love, because yellow roses represent friendship. Orange, for [[Greyromantic|greyromantics]], because it's in between red and yellow. And black, representing [[Allosexual|alloromantics]] that "reject traditional ideas of romance". This flag was later changed because it closely resembled the Rastafarian flag, and because it had a stripe representing alloromantics.
<references />
[[Category:NeedsAro-spec Workidentity]]
[[Category:Romantic Orientation]]
[[Category:AspecA-spec Identity]]
[[Category:Arospec]]
no edit summary
[[File:Aroflag.jpg|thumb|220x220px|The aromantic flag.]]
[[File:Aromantic alternate .png|thumb|Cryotocrew's aromantic flag.]]
[[File:Aromantic Symbol.png|thumb|Aromantic Symbol]]
[[File:Aromantic green redesign.png|thumb|Green Redesign by tumblr user nonbiarrow]]
Being aromantic does not mean that one is unable to experience [[Sexual Attraction|sexual attraction]]. An aromantic individual can have any [[Sexual Orientation|sexual orientation]]. They may identify with a sexual orientation in addition to the label of aromantic to specify who they're interested in sexually, if anyone. For example, a [[Straight|heterosexual]] aromantic individual is sexually attracted to individuals of a different gender, but is not romantically attracted to them. Some aromantics are also [[asexual]] ([[aroace]]), meaning they do not feel sexual attraction as well. Not all aromantics identify with a sexual orientation, some identify primarily or only as aromantic ([[Non-SAM Aro|non-SAM aro]]/[[Aro Neu|aro neu]]). Some aromantic individuals may additionally experience [[Tertiary Attraction|tertiary attractions]], which are attractions outside of sexual and romantic, and may use specific labels to describe this attraction. Examples of tertiary attractions include [[Aesthetic Attraction|aesthetic]], [[Platonic Attraction|platonic]], and [[Sensual Attraction|sensual]] attraction.
Romantic dispositions among Aromanticaromantic peopleindividuals can vary. Some Aromanticsaromantics enjoymay andstill mayhave or seek outor a romantic relationship despite not feeling the romantic attraction to anyone ([[Cupioromanticcupioromantic]]),. whileOther thersaromantics may be repulsed by the concept of romance, either as a concept applicable to themselves or in general. Terms like [[Romanceromance-Repulsedrepulsed]], [[Romance-Averse]], [[RomanceIndifferent|romance-Indifferentindifferent]], [[Romance- Favorable|romance-favorable]], or [[Romance- Ambivalent|romance-ambivalent]] are commonly used to describe these feelings. ▼
▲Romantic dispositions among Aromantic people can vary. Some Aromantics enjoy and may seek out a romantic relationship despite not feeling the romantic attraction ([[Cupioromantic]]), while thers may be repulsed by the concept of romance, either as a concept applicable to themselves or in general. Terms like [[Romance-Repulsed]], [[Romance-Averse]], [[Romance-Indifferent]], [[Romance-Favorable]], or [[Romance-Ambivalent]] are commonly used to describe these feelings.
== Etymology ==▼
The term aromantic uses the Latin prefix a- which means 'a lack of'. ▼
== Romantic Attraction ==
This can make it difficult to identify when one is aromantic, especially when one has trouble distinguishing between romantic feelings and platonic feelings. If this is the case one might identify as [[platoniromantic]], [[idemromantic]], [[nebularomantic]], [[sensualarian]] or [[quoiromantic]].
== History ==
== Aromantic Flag and Symbols ==
The second proposed aromantic flag was a five striped flag. With dark green and light green representing the spectrum of aromantic identities. A yellow stripe representing friendship, and a grey and black stripe representing the spectrum of sexual identities in the aromantic community. The design was later altered; changing the yellow stripe to white; due to it causing sensory problems for certain individuals. The meaning of the stripes was kept the same during the redesign.
[[File:Shortened Aro Flag.jpg|thumb|A shortened aromantic flag was created by RavenFire803 on June 30, 2021]]
Another aromantic flag was coined by [[User:Cryptocrew|Cryptocrew]] at [[User:Hayden000|Hayden000s]] request on January 16th of 2021 and was first published on a post one day later. The yellow flower represents platonic love or [[Alterous Attraction|alterous]]/queerplatonic and desires, dark green represents lack of romantic attraction, light green represents the greyromantic spectrum, the black represents a disconnect or disinterest in romantic acts, the upside-down white hearts represent community and how aromantic peopleindividuals can love, just not how peopleothers may expect them to. ▼
Another redesign was made by tumblr user nonbiarrow and was first posted on July 23 2021. The dark green stripe represents romance negative/repulsed aromantics, the light green stripe represents romance indifferent/neutral aromantics, the white stripe represents aromantics of all genders, sexualities and relationship types, the light teal stripe represents romance positive/favourable aromantics and the dark teal stripe stands for absence of (romantic) attraction.<ref>[https://nonbiarrow.tumblr.com/post/657531484242132992/green-aromantic-flag-redesign-i-made-this]</ref>
▲Another aromantic flag was coined by [[User:Cryptocrew|Cryptocrew]] at [[User:Hayden000|Hayden000s]] request on January 16th of 2021 and was first published on a post one day later. The yellow flower represents platonic love or [[Alterous Attraction|alterous]]/queerplatonic and desires, dark green represents lack of romantic attraction, light green represents the greyromantic spectrum, the black represents a disconnect or disinterest in romantic acts, the upside-down white hearts represent community and how aromantic people can love, just not how people expect them to.
There are several other symbols used to represent aromantics and aromantic love. One is an arrow, due to aromantic often being shortened to aro, which is pronounced the same way. Like asexuals, aromantics also use the symbol of the spades to represent themselves, and [[aroace]] peopleindividuals especially use the ace of spades. Also similar to asexuals, some aromantic peopleindividuals wear a white ring on the middle finger of their left hand (the opposite hand of the black asexual ring). Aromantics have also started using the symbol of a green heart, representing non-romantic love. An older, lesser used, symbol is an aardvark which seems to have originated from a meme.
▲== Etymology ==
== Resources ==