acault

== English == === Etymology === A mistranslation of Burmese အခြောက် (a.hkrauk /⁠ăhcauʔ⁠/, “dry article; homosexual man”), from အ (a. /⁠ă⁠/, noun-forming prefix) + ခြောက် (hkrauk /⁠hcauʔ⁠/, “dry”). Apparently introduced before 1987 by Coleman et al. (see quotation below) who had an "inability to speak the local languages" and a "lack of training in anthropology". === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ət͡ʃaʊ/ === Noun === acault (plural acaults) A male who has special role in Myanmar folk religion and behaves in a way usually associated with women. ==== Usage notes ==== The proper term in Burmese is နတ်ကတော် (natka.tau). In Myanmar, these spirit mediums may be female or male, and may or may not be transgender or cross-dressing, although they do wear costumes during ceremonial rituals when channeling spirits called "nats" in Myanmar. Homosexuality is not necessarily implied with spirit mediumship. ==== See also ==== berdache, two-spirit, and the usage notes about those terms Thai กะเทย (gà-təəi) === References === === Anagrams === actual