# Inter-sentient-species sex, word **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 19, 2003, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029 "2003-02-19T01:46:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac8455/32.png) [@Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bippy_the_Beardless)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/1 "2003-02-19T01:46:22Z")
Is there a word for sexual relationships between different sentient species? Bestiallity doesn’t fit. I am thinking about the situations often portrayed in folklaw and sci-fi. Is the word different for human-demon trysts (souch as produced Merlin), human-nonhuman trysts (such as produced Spock), and nonhuman-nonhuman (but of differing species) trysts? Cheers, Bippy ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/2 "2003-02-19T01:55:42Z")
xenogamy? ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/3 "2003-02-19T02:00:13Z")
Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle coined the term _rishathra_ to describe this very thing in their “Ringworld” series. Great books, by the way. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/4 "2003-02-19T03:21:55Z")
I’d vote for this word: Impossible. Or at least Improbable. ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/5 "2003-02-19T03:29:45Z")
I don’t think there is one but… xenophilia? ---
**Author:** ![tanstaafl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba8739/32.png) [@tanstaafl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tanstaafl)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/6 "2003-02-19T03:37:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Q.E.D. \* > \*\*Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle coined the term _rishathra_ to describe this very thing in their “Ringworld” series. Great books, by the way. \*\* \ The Ringworld books were purely Niven’s, unless Pournelle was involved somehow in a later one. _Ringworld_ and _The Ringworld Engineers_ were only Niven and I’m pretty sure _Ringworld Throne_ was too, though I’ve attempted to blot most of that one from my memory so may be wrong there. \ ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/7 "2003-02-19T03:54:35Z")
Been years since I read the books. I’d swear they were a collaboration between the two. Or am I thinking of a different book or series? I know they worked together on a number of works, including one of my all-time favorites, “The Mote in God’s Eye”. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/8 "2003-02-19T03:57:12Z")
The other thing about _rishathra_ was that it was between members of the same genus, but different species. IIRC, on the ringworld, the genus Homo had speciated into hundreds of divisions besides the classic “sapiens”. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/9 "2003-02-19T04:18:09Z")
Aside from Niven’s term _rishathra_ (and, yes, it was only Niven and, yes, only between variously mutated human varieties), I don’t know of a general term for it. Certainly enough has been written about it (Philip Jose Farmer’s stories collected as **Strange Relations** , for example). On the whole, thogh, “impossible” seem to cover it. As Niven himself said in his essay “Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex”, sex between Superman and an Earth woman seems as likely as his mating with an ear of corn. ---
**Author:** ![Alan\_Smithee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2acd7d/32.png) [@Alan\_Smithee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alan_Smithee)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/10 "2003-02-19T04:30:55Z")
I’ve often seen it claimed that it is also as likely that I would be **attracted** to an ear of corn, as that an alien species would be attractive (or attracted) SF notwithstanding. I’m not sure about this, however. Not only is bestiality [disturbingly common](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/020412.html), but I can’t think of anything that looks much less like a sexy bitch (in the vetrinary sense) than my leg. Hasn’t always mattered, though. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/11 "2003-02-19T05:06:26Z")
> [@](#): > > On the whole, thogh, “impossible” seem to cover it. As Niven himself said in his essay “Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex”, sex between Superman and an Earth woman seems as likely as his mating with an ear of corn. \*\* Unconscious sexism: when it comes to _her_ mating with an ear of corn, I’m sure it’s happened many times indeed! Trinopus ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/12 "2003-02-19T13:02:55Z")
> [@](#): > > yes, only between variously mutated human varieties _Rishathra_ was used as a term to describe sex between hominid species in the _Ringworld_ series, but elsewhere, Niven has used it in a broader sense; in one of his anthologies, there is an article called “Shall we indulge in rishathra?” wherein he describes the possibilities and complications of alien sex generally. Part of the article is given over to a list of common responses to the question 'Shall we indulge in rishathra?", one such response is “No, you do not have sufficient openings” and is accompanied by a line drawing of an aroused, clearly non-hominid alien with multiple penes. ---
**Author:** ![Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac8455/32.png) [@Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bippy_the_Beardless)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/13 "2003-02-19T19:07:06Z")
Thanks for the Niven info, good word for inter demi-human sex (coining the rpg phrase) For the nay-sayers that said Impossible, do you therefore think bestiallity is impossible? And is there a word for demon-human coupleing, as has been discribed in several old myths. Btw Angel Human coupling produced the Nephilum, according to the Bible, does this have an esstablished name. Considering all these forms can be considered consenting sexual, rather than mental illness. Maybe terms simillar to homosexual,heterosexual would be appropriate. Does anyone have the languuage skill to give the correct forms for demonsexual, and angelsexual? Thanks, Bippy ---
**Author:** ![SC\_Wolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@SC\_Wolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SC_Wolf)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/14 "2003-02-19T19:41:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Nametag \* > \*\*I don’t think there is one but… xenophilia? \*\* I’m not sure that this would be the best “general use” terminology. The suffix “-philia” in sex has a strong asociation with fetishism disorders. If one were unable to reach sexual climax except by stimulus associated with the other sentient species, that would be a good example of a xeonphilia. ---
**Author:** ![Cliffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cliffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cliffy)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/15 "2003-02-19T20:38:13Z")
Well, I guess a xenophilic would be someone who was attracted (roughly) only to members of another species, while a xenophilic act would be a sex act between members of another species regardless of the preference (or exclusivity thereof) of any of the participants. Similar to the way we use homosexual vs. homosexual acts(/behavior/sex/whatever). I’m not a homosexual, but if I were to have sex with a man it would be undoubtedly homosexual sex, even if my orientation remained the same. Similarly, I’m not a xenosexual, as I am attracted to females of my own species, but were I to mate with a vulcan, it would be a xenophilic act. Xenosexual would work too, but it’s a clunky word. One more, although it suggests child-bearing and also has significant negative connotations: miscegnation. –Cliffy ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/16 "2003-02-19T20:40:54Z")
I have seen **miscegenation** used in a futuristic vampire novel to refer to human/vampire mating. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2003, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/17 "2003-02-19T23:04:51Z")
I feel compelled to add that there is an adult comic book by Phil Foglio called XXXenophile where “xenophile” and “xenophilia” are used exactly as described by the OP. [http://www.xxxenophile.com/](http://www.xxxenophile.com/) ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2003, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/18 "2003-02-20T00:18:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by tanstaafl \* > The Ringworld books were purely Niven’s, unless Pournelle was involved somehow in a later one. Could you be thinking of _Lucifers Hammer_ that was a collaboration of both IIRC. ---
**Author:** ![eburacum45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eburacum45/32/8690_2.png) [@eburacum45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eburacum45)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2003, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inter-sentient-species-sex-word/156029/19 "2003-02-20T00:42:04Z")
In the collaborative [Orion’s Arm Universe project,](http://www.orionsarm.com/), the human race has speciated into millions of different clades, some of whom are capable of having sex with each other, and produce [hybrids,](http://www.orionsarm.com/eg/h/Hy-Hz.html#hybrid) while others have recreational, [hedonistic](http://www.orionsarm.com/civ/hedonics.html) sex, similar to _rishathra_ in many ways… there is no reason for human derived species to avoid sex with robots or specially designed [Artificial lifeforms](http://www.orionsarm.com/races/Erotogini.html)and vice versa But does this mean that everything is wonderful and everyone is happy? er - - no…