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{{Wikipedia}}[[File:Sappho and Erinna in a Garden at Mytilene.jpg|thumb|270px|''[[Sappho]] and [[Erinna]] in a Garden at [[Mytilene]]'' by [[Simeon Solomon]], 1864]]
[[Image:Lesbian married couple.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Lesbians protesting for same-sex marriage.]]
[[File:Double Venus.svg|thumb|165px|right|Symbol representing lesbian made from two interlocked [[astronomical symbols]] for the planet [[Venus]]. In biology, the singular symbol represents the female sex.<ref name="Zimmerman_symbols">{{cite book|editor1-last=Zimmerman|editor1-first=Bonnie|title=Lesbian Histories and Cultures: An Encyclopedia|date=2000|edition=1st|volume=1 (Encyclopedia of Lesbian and Gay Histories and Cultures)|publisher=[[Garland Publishing]]|isbn=0-8153-1920-7|page=[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofle00bzim/page/748 748]|chapter=Symbols (by Christy Stevens)|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofle00bzim|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofle00bzim/page/748}}</ref><ref name=Stearn1962>{{cite journal|author=Stearn, William T.|title=The Origin of the Male and Female Symbols of Biology|url=https://iapt-taxon.org/historic/Congress/IBC_1964/male_fem.pdf|journal=[[Taxon (journal)|Taxon]]|date=May 1962|volume=11|issue=4|pages=109–113|doi=10.2307/1217734|issn=0040-0262|accessdate=23 July 2019|jstor=1217734|author-link=William T. Stearn}}</ref>|alt=]]

A '''lesbian''' is a term indicating the exclusive [[Homosexuality|homosexual]] attraction to women.<ref name="Lesbian">{{cite web|title=Lesbian |publisher=[[Oxford Reference]]|accessdate=December 10, 2018|url=http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803100100998}}</ref><ref name="Zimmerman">Zimmerman, p. 453.</ref> The word ''lesbian'' is used for women in relation to their [[sexual identity]] or [[sexual behavior]], regardless of [[sexual orientation]], or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexuality or same-sex attraction.<ref name="Zimmerman"/><ref name="Solarz">{{cite book|author1=Committee on Lesbian Health Research Priorities|author2=Neuroscience and Behavioral Health Program |author3=Health Sciences Policy Program, Health - Sciences Section - Institute of Medicine|title=Lesbian Health: Current Assessment and Directions for the Future|publisher=[[National Academies Press]]|isbn =0309174066|year=1999|page=22|accessdate=October 16, 2013 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jVzGMF25uasC&pg=PA22}}</ref>

The concept of "lesbian" to differentiate women with a shared sexual orientation evolved in the 20th century. Throughout history, women have not had the same freedom or independence as men to pursue homosexual relationships, but neither have they met the same harsh punishment as homosexual men in some societies. Instead, lesbian relationships have often been regarded as harmless, unless a participant attempts to assert privileges traditionally enjoyed by men. As a result, little in history was documented to give an accurate description of how female homosexuality was expressed. When early [[sexologists]] in the late 19th century began to categorize and describe homosexual behavior, hampered by a lack of knowledge about homosexuality or women's sexuality, they distinguished lesbians as women who did not adhere to female [[gender]] roles and incorrectly designated them mentally ill—a designation which has been reversed in the global scientific community.

Women in homosexual relationships responded to this designation either by hiding their personal lives or accepting the label of outcast and creating a subculture and [[Identity (social science)|identity]] that developed in Europe and the United States. Following World War II, during a period of social repression when governments actively persecuted homosexuals, women developed networks to socialize with and educate each other. Greater economic and social freedom allowed them gradually to be able to determine how they could form relationships and families. With [[second wave feminism]] and the growth of scholarship in women's history and sexuality in the 20th century, the definition of ''lesbian'' broadened, sparking a debate about sexual desire as the major component to define what a lesbian is. Some women who engage in same-sex sexual activity may reject not only identifying as lesbians but as [[Bisexuality|bisexual]] as well, while other women's self-identification as lesbian may not align with their sexual orientation or sexual behavior. Sexual identity is not necessarily the same as one's sexual orientation or sexual behavior, due to various reasons, such as the fear of identifying their sexual orientation in a [[Homophobia|homophobic]] setting.

Portrayals of lesbians in the media suggest that society at large has been simultaneously intrigued and threatened by women who challenge feminine [[gender role]]s, as well as fascinated and appalled with women who are romantically involved with other women. Women who adopt a lesbian identity share experiences that form an outlook similar to an ethnic identity: as homosexuals, they are unified by the [[Heterosexism|heterosexist]] [[discrimination]] and potential rejection they face from their families, friends, and others as a result of homophobia. As women, they face concerns separate from men. Lesbians may encounter distinct physical or mental health concerns arising from discrimination, prejudice, and minority stress. Political conditions and social attitudes also affect the formation of lesbian relationships and families in open.


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