Therians: when human identity blurs
This month, social media was filled with a new word: therians. It is not a game or a passing fad. We are talking about young people in various countries who say they identify deeply as animals. Dogs, cats, snakes. And that statement is raising more than just eyebrows.
What does it mean to be ‘therian’?
Imagine feeling that your essence is not human. That’s what the therians describe. People, mainly young people, who with masks, tails or suits adopt the appearance and behavior of an animal. They explain it with a “premonition” or a spiritual connection with another species.
“A deep connection with that species, a ‘premonition’ that in another life they were that animal,” they describe.
But there are no scientific bases here. Just personal conviction. And that conviction is colliding with everyday reality.
The phenomenon has already left the internet. There are worrying viral stories: a mother reported an alleged attack on her daughter by members of this community. Veterinarians say that people come to their offices seeking medical attention… for themselves.
The spark that ignited the global debate was a video from Japan. It shows a person, dressed in a scaly two-piece suit that imitates a snake’s tail, crawling down a street to a crosswalk. Wait for cars to pass, like any other pedestrian… but crawling.
The reactions were immediate and divided. One part applauds the “bravery” and celebrates the visibility. The other frontally rejects what it sees as a disturbing break with the established.
As a journalist and mother, I wonder: is this an expression of identity or a symptom of something deeper? In an era of constant search for belonging, the boundaries between human and other are being tested. And society still doesn’t know how to react.
