Queers In History: The Encyclopaedia of Historical LGBTQ+

2025 is the 32nd anniversary of Queers in History, which was first released in 1993 on diskettes and later on CD-ROMs, becoming the first widely available “new media” title in bookstores.

Queers in History was continually updated and republished 16 years later in 2009 as a trade paperback, during a period when many public figures began coming out, making it difficult to keep track of new entries.

Another sixteen years later, this revised edition expands even further, featuring new figures, corrections, and a continued emphasis on a historical timeline that spans 5,000 years. Trans individuals have been included since the beginning, although earlier editions contained omissions that this update seeks to rectify.

The hardcover is now too large for a single volume and has been divided into two parts (A–K and L–Z) based on last names. This format will be easier for readers to manage.

Initially, one of the goals for Queers in History was to eventually make its existence unnecessary. The hope was that the contributions of queer individuals to society would become widely recognised and accepted.

That was happening in the years following the publication of the paperback.

In 2025, we observe governments erasing terms like “trans,” “non-binary,” “gender,” and “pronoun” from publications, websites, libraries, archives, scientific studies, schools, and even from the signage of national monuments such as The Stonewall Inn.

In the United States, executive orders mandate the removal of the “T” from LGBT+, as if trans individuals do not exist. These orders promote the easily debunked fiction that people are born and remain as one of only two pure genders.

Soon, the “B” will also be targeted for removal, followed by the “L” and the “G.” History clearly shows us that.

It looks like there may be as much need for this book now as ever, and for more like it.

Queers In History is out now and available from your favourite bookseller.