Therianthropy Day is an un-offical day celebrating Modern Therianthropy. It is celebrated on the first full moon of November, in remembrance of the first howl
organized in 1994 by the members of the Alt.horror.werewolves USENET group. Therianthropy Day is not to be confused with the "Wolfenoot" Internet holiday, see Controversies below. Therianthropy Day is also separate from the Otherkin Day, which falls on the 9th of July. This year, Therianthropy Day will be celebrated on Friday, November 15th.
History[]
The first full moon of November has been suggested a sort of de facto "Therianthropy Day" since the mid 1990s. It was on the weekend of November 19 & 20, 1994, that the first official Alt.horror.werewolves howl (a therian meetup) was held.
"International Werewolf Day" was proposed as a sort of holiday on March 18, 1996. Ultimately, the Alt.horror.werewolves community decided to use it, and it stuck. It went through a few iterations of names, "International Werewolf Day", and then the less species-specific "Awareness Day" (since were is the older term for therian), and after the term therianthropy caught on, "Therianthropy Day".
November 7, 1993 is the day that a bat-identified person began to talk about his dreams of being a bat and feeling like a bat on Alt.horror.werewolves. That discussion is considered a starting point for Modern Therianthropy and the online community. The group Alt.horror.werewolves was created a year earlier on November 16, 1992. So, November is a significant month to us historically.
Customs and traditions[]
Therianthropy Day is celebrated on the first full moon of November. In 2018 it falls on the 23rd of November. In 2019, it falls on Tuesday, November 12th. In 2023 it falls on Monday, November 27. In 2024, it falls on Friday, November 15th.
As the therian community is not centralized there is no officially correct way to celebrate Therianthropy Day, however the day can serve many purposes.
Therianthropy Day is meant to encourage the acknowledgement of our history and the spread of accurate information. This is a day to recognize the Greymuzzles from AHWW who founded and built up the online community.
Along with the emphasis on history, the day is meant to be fun and lighthearted. Building connections and relationships with other Therianthropes is a large part of Therianthropy Day since it commemorates the first Howl. This can be done through chatting, playing games, and meeting up with others in real life if possible. Therianthropes are also encouraged to take part of this day for self-care.
Many support this day in the hopes that it can synchronize the online community and bring it together despite it being spread out across various social media platforms. Therianthropy Day is also supported by many who feel that Therianthropes need to form some solid traditions to strengthen our culture.
Controversies[]
Unfortunately, there is some opposition to Therianthropy Day. Some feel that it too closely resembles "Pride" celebrated by LGTBQ+ peoples. In response to that, an effort has been made in the online community to educate the younger Therians who want "Therian Pride" and explain to them that calling for "Therian Pride" is inappropriate. Others oppose Therianthropy Day because they think it only encourages "fluff" and roleplay.
The 2018 Therianthropy Day falls on the same day also claimed by the Wolfenoot Internet meme, leading to ample confusion among the less informed members of the community. "Wolfenoot" is a made up word coined by a 7-year-old, that has since gone viral over social media.
References[]
- ↑ http://frameacloud.tumblr.com/post/147145533459/otherkin-day
- ↑ https://groups.google.com/d/msg/alt.horror.werewolves/eOvzhlG3IaI/z0IeXMG2_ZkJ
- ↑ International Werewolf Day, March 18, 1996. https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgroups=#!msg/alt.horror.werewolves/eOvzhlG3IaI/NqmIpx9-JN4J;context-place=forum/alt.horror.werewolves
- ↑ https://forums.therian-guide.com/Thread-Therianthropy-Day-2018-November-23
- ↑ "Stop howling, we heard you already" November 7, 1993. https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgroups=#!topic/alt.horror.werewolves/cnaZs0KC9Bk
- ↑ https://wolfenoot.com/