Aromantic asexual
Romantic and sexual orientation
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Aromantic asexual, colloquially shortened to aroace or aro-ace, is a romantic and sexual orientation characterized by experiencing little to no romantic and sexual attraction. The name comes from combining the two attraction minorities, aromanticism and asexuality, specifically the shortened versions of their names: "aro" for aromantic and "ace" for asexual, and forming a combined term using the split attraction model.[3][4][5]
- aroace
- aro-ace
| Etymology | The combination of aromantic (aro) and asexual (ace) using the split attraction model |
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| Definition | The lack of both romantic and sexual attraction to others |
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| Flag name | "The sunset aroace flag" |
| Creation | December 11, 2018 |
| Designer | Tumblr user "aroaesflags"[2] |
A 2020 study found that 26% of asexual people also identify as aromantic.[6]
The aro-ace flag consists of five horizontal bars, including two shades of blue, white, yellow, and orange. Tumblr user aroaesflags designed the flag,[2] stating that the two shades of blue represent "the aroace identity as well as the spectrum of aroace identities and experiences." White represents wholeness, yellow represents love and relationships that exist outside of more conventional ideas of romantic and sexual relationships, and orange represents community.[7]
Several aro-ace people report struggling with social invisibility, even among the LGBTQIA+ community. While this often contributes to feelings of loneliness, some also use it as a means of camouflaging at work or school.[8] Just like asexuality and aromanticism, aro-ace identities exist on a spectrum.[9]
