Hi, I was wondering if you could explain all the kintype, heart type, soul bond, head mate jazz. I don’t know anything about otherkin stuff and I would like to

ranthimi:

Hey! Yeah, you bet, thanks for coming in here and asking! The first thing that comes to mind, right off the bat, is that all of what you’ve listed is considered “alterhuman” but not necessarily “otherkin(d)”. You can also be any one of those things but not the others, but there can be overlap.

To start, otherkin(d) is what most people think of when they enter these communities, and it’s defined as identifying AS a nonhuman creature on a nonphysical level. Fictionkin(d) is the same thing, just replace “nonhuman creature” with “someone or something shown in pop culture or modern media.” For example, someone who is an elf is otherkin(d) but not fictionkin(d), but if you identify as an elf from LotR, for example, you would be otherkin(d) AND fictionkin(d). Otherkin and otherkind mean the same thing, but otherkind is an older variation people have started using in response to this website’s gross misuse of terminology.

If you are otherkin(d), you have kintypes, because otherkin(d) is something you are, not something you do. People who identify as earthly animals (deer, birds of prey, sharks, frogs, and also extinct animals like dinosaurs or something like a woolly mammoth, for example) are known as therianthropes, or therians for short, and “kintype” is replaced with “theriotype”. Some therians consider themselves otherkin(d), others don’t, and polykin (people with more than one kintype, often in more than one category, such as me being Just A Dragon as well as fictionkind) exist as well.

Essentially, if you’re otherkind/fictionkind/a therian, you ARE that thing on a nonphysical level. It takes a lot of time and effort to work out your kintypes, and you will make mistakes more than once. Don’t feel too bad if you run into this! Just avoid thinking that everything you feel a connection to is automatically a kintype.

This is where otherheartedness comes in. There’s a bit more debate as to what this means, especially since the term “synpath” is often used synonymously by some but not by others. Otherhearted folks, as well as synpaths, are people who connect very strongly to a thing, often beyond the sense of “this is my favorite animal” or “I relate very heavily to this character”. It’s been described as “I’m not this thing, but I should be this thing” or feeling like said thing is a relative of yours but not you. Some people do use it to refer to an animal they’ve had a lifelong fascination and connection with, but essentially if you identify very strongly WITH, but not AS, it’s otherhearted. You can, however, be ‘hearted and ‘kin in regards to the same thing, but that’s a tricky area that can get pretty confusing.

“Headmate” is often a catch-all term for people in a multiple system, and can refer to endogenic (traumagenic or non) systems or externally-based systems. Basically, if it’s an independent being sharing your body with you, it’s a headmate. I personally choose NOT to use this term since everyone who shares my body is externally-based or was created by me (I have a tulpa or two here, tulpas are often considered to be headmates but it depends on who you ask. Many tulpas are capable of fronting, as well, but the tulpamancy community is largely its own thing.)

Soulbonds are more or less a type of headmate in most scenarios. “Soulbond” is technically what refers to the specific type of link that connects you, otherwise it’d just be called spirit work. Soulbonds, as people, are external entities who are connected to you mentally and physically and can typically interact very clearly as a result, whether they’re living in their world and have a constant “open phone line”, living in this world (either in or out of headspace) temporarily, living here full-time, or some combination, depending. Soulbonds can be things other than fictional characters, but it’s often used to refer to beings who are considered to be such.

Basically:

• Kintypes ARE you (or theriotypes)
• Otherhearted/synpath is something you identify WITH
• Headmates share a body and headspace with you
• Soulbonds CAN be headmates, but they can also exist elsewhere.
• All of these things are typically considered to be under the alterhuman umbrella.

If there’s anything else that needs to be cleared up or expanded on, feel free to leave another ask! Thanks for stopping my, I hope this helped!