By . Sarah Griffiths . Following a successful trial in the . U.S., Facebook users in the UK can now choose from one of 70 gender . options, including 'asexual', 'two-spirit', 'intersex' and 'cisgender.' Before the changes, only male and female options were available on the gender tab in profiles. Facebook has also updated its settings so users can choose a neutral pronoun, meaning they are referred to as 'they, their or them'. Scroll down for video . This screen shot released by Facebook shows the new gender option screen. Facebook came up with its range of terms after consulting with leading gay and transgender activists, and the company plans to continue working with them . Facebook rolled out the changes to its more than 159 million monthly users in the U.S. in February. The changes are aimed at giving people more choices in how they describe themselves, such as androgynous, bi-gender, intersex, gender fluid or transsexual. 'There's going to be a lot of people for whom this is going to mean nothing, but for the few it does impact, it means the world,' said Facebook software engineer Brielle Harrison. Harrison worked on the project and is herself undergoing gender transformation, from male to female. 'All too often transgender people like myself and other gender nonconforming people are given this binary option, do you want to be male or female? What is your gender?,' said Harrison. 'And it's kind of disheartening because none of those let us tell others who we really are,' she said. 'This really changes that and for the . first time I get to go to the site and specify to all the people I know . what my gender is.' Agender (people who lack a gender) Androgyne/Androgynous (a 'non-binary' gender. They may possess traits that are simultaneously feminine and masculine, or neither) Asexual (without sexual feelings or associations) Bigender (a person who feels their gender is fully male and fully female, or any pair of genders, generally switching between the two) Cis (cisgender . and cissexual are a closely related class of gender identities where an . individual's gender matches the behaviour or role considered . appropriate for one's sex) Cis Female . Cis Male . Cis Man . Cis Woman . Cisgender . Cisgender Female . Cisgender Male . Cisgender Man . Cisgender Woman . Female to Male . FTM (FTM is 'female-to-male' transsexual) Gender Fluid (moving between genders) Gender Nonconforming (or 'gender variant' is behaviour or gender expression that does not conform to dominant gender norms) Gender Questioning . Gender Variant . Genderqueer (a term for gender identities other than man and woman) Hermaphrodite (a person how has reproductive organs typically associated with both male and female sexes) Intersex (a . person born with sexual anatomy, reproductive organs, and/or chromosome . patterns that do not fit the typical definition of male or female) Male to Female/MTF ('male-to-female') Neither . Neutrois (taken to mean 'non-gendered class.' It refers to a gender identity which is also called null-gendered on occasion) Non-binary (gender identities that don't fit within the accepted binary of male and female.) Other . Pangender (similar to Androgyne) Trans (transgender people are those born into a body not associated with their gender . Trans Female/Male/Man/ Person . Trans*Female (the asterisk creates an umbrella term that specially encompasses every single gender identity) Trans*Male . Trans*Man . Trans*Person . Trans*Woman . Transexual (a subset of transgender, and refers generally to people who identify as a sex other than that they were assigned at birth) Transexual Female . Transexual Male . Transexual Man . Transexual Person . Transexual Woman . Transgender Female . Transgender Person . Transmasculine (describes those assigned female at birth, but identify as more male) Two-spirit (describes . Indigenous North Americans who fulfill one of many mixed gender roles . found traditionally among many Native Americans and Canadian First . Nations indigenous groups) Definitions from gendercentre.org.au . Simon Milner, Policy Director, UK . Middle East and Africa at Facebook, added: 'When you come to Facebook to . connect with the people, causes, and organisations you care about, we . want you to feel comfortable being your true self. 'An . important part of this is the expression of gender especially when it . extends beyond the definitions of just "male" or "female". Today’s . announcement provides significantly more options for people in the UK.' Facebook, which has 1.23 billion active monthly users around the world, also allows them to keep their gender identity private, and will continue to do so. The Human Rights Campaign last year found that 10 percent of the 10,000 lesbian, gay, bisexual transgender youths it surveyed used 'other' or wrote in their own gender terms. When a Facebook user customises their gender, they can also choose a preferred pronoun so that third party apps and messages from Facebook will be addressed in the right way. There is currently no way for advertisers to target specific groups based on the 'custom' settings on Facebook. Facebook rolled out the changes to its more than 159 million monthly users in the U.S. in February. The changes are aimed at giving people more choices in how they describe themselves, such as androgynous, bi-gender, intersex, gender fluid or transsexual (pictured). Flags at Facebook's headquarters in February, celebrating the move to improve the site's gender selection. The changes were initially rolled out in the U.S, and will start appearing for UK users over the coming weeks . The . change to the gender selection option is seen as a major step toward . acceptance for people who don't self-identify as male or female, but the . high-profile development seemed senseless to those who believe in two . genders, no more. 'Of course Facebook is entitled to . manage its wildly popular site as it sees fit, but here is the bottom . line: It's impossible to deny the biological reality that humanity is . divided into two halves - male and female,' said Jeff Johnston, an . issues analyst for Focus on the Family, an influential national . religious organisation based in Denver. 'Those petitioning for the change insist that there are an infinite number of genders, but just saying it doesn't make it so. 'That said, we have a great deal of compassion for those who reject their biological sex and believe they are the opposite sex. Facebook software engineer Brielle Harrison demonstrates the expanded options for gender identification at her company's California headquarters. Harrison, who helped engineer the project, plans to switch her identifier to 'Transwoman' Masen . Davis, executive director of the San Francisco-based Transgender Law . Center, said it may be hard for some people to understand the importance . of having the ability to select from multiple genders online. But he . said many transgender people will be thrilled with the change. 'We applaud Facebook for making it possible for people to be their authentic selves online,' he said. In . the past decade, the transgender movement has become much more . organised and outspoken, demanding the kind of civil rights and respect . already sought by gay activists. 'During this time, the transgender . umbrella has been growing well beyond transsexuals to encompass a wide . variety of gender identities. The move by Facebook came after years . of lobbying from users, some who started Facebook pages to petition for . the change. Google+ offers male, female and 'other' as choices, but . transgender advocates said Facebook's many specific options puts the . platform well ahead of any other online community. About 1 per cent of . Google+ users identify as 'other'. Facebook has also updated its settings so users can choose a neutral pronoun (pictured). Unlike getting engaged or married, changing gender is not registered as a 'life event' and won't post on timelines. Facebook said advertisers cannot target ads to those who declare themselves transgender or recently changed gender . The . idea of expanding gender choices percolated at Facebook for about a . year and started to come to fruition during an in-house brainstorming . four months ago, project manager Lexi Ross said. Unlike getting engaged or married, changing gender is not registered as a 'life event' on the site and won't post on timelines. Therefore, . Facebook said advertisers cannot target ads to those who declare . themselves transgender or recently changed their gender. Users also can select 'neither' or 'other' and separately indicate whether they want to be referred to as he, she or they. Facebook came up with its range of terms after consulting with leading gay and transgender activists, and the company plans to continue working with them.
New options include 'asexual', 'cisgender,' 'transgender' and 'intersex'
Site has also updated its setting to let users select a neutral pronoun .
This means they can choose to be referred to as 'they, their or them'
Facebook chose terms after consulting with gay and transgender activists .
By . Sarah Griffiths . Following a successful trial in the . U.S., Facebook users in the UK can now choose from one of 70 gender . options, including 'asexual', 'two-spirit', 'intersex' and 'cisgender.' Before the changes, only male and female options were available on the gender tab in profiles. Facebook has also updated its settings so users can choose a neutral pronoun, meaning they are referred to as 'they, their or them'. Scroll down for video . This screen shot released by Facebook shows the new gender option screen. Facebook came up with its range of terms after consulting with leading gay and transgender activists, and the company plans to continue working with them . Facebook rolled out the changes to its more than 159 million monthly users in the U.S. in February. The changes are aimed at giving people more choices in how they describe themselves, such as androgynous, bi-gender, intersex, gender fluid or transsexual. 'There's going to be a lot of people for whom this is going to mean nothing, but for the few it does impact, it means the world,' said Facebook software engineer Brielle Harrison. Harrison worked on the project and is herself undergoing gender transformation, from male to female. 'All too often transgender people like myself and other gender nonconforming people are given this binary option, do you want to be male or female? What is your gender?,' said Harrison. 'And it's kind of disheartening because none of those let us tell others who we really are,' she said. 'This really changes that and for the . first time I get to go to the site and specify to all the people I know . what my gender is.' Agender (people who lack a gender) Androgyne/Androgynous (a 'non-binary' gender. They may possess traits that are simultaneously feminine and masculine, or neither) Asexual (without sexual feelings or associations) Bigender (a person who feels their gender is fully male and fully female, or any pair of genders, generally switching between the two) Cis (cisgender . and cissexual are a closely related class of gender identities where an . individual's gender matches the behaviour or role considered . appropriate for one's sex) Cis Female . Cis Male . Cis Man . Cis Woman . Cisgender . Cisgender Female . Cisgender Male . Cisgender Man . Cisgender Woman . Female to Male . FTM (FTM is 'female-to-male' transsexual) Gender Fluid (moving between genders) Gender Nonconforming (or 'gender variant' is behaviour or gender expression that does not conform to dominant gender norms) Gender Questioning . Gender Variant . Genderqueer (a term for gender identities other than man and woman) Hermaphrodite (a person how has reproductive organs typically associated with both male and female sexes) Intersex (a . person born with sexual anatomy, reproductive organs, and/or chromosome . patterns that do not fit the typical definition of male or female) Male to Female/MTF ('male-to-female') Neither . Neutrois (taken to mean 'non-gendered class.' It refers to a gender identity which is also called null-gendered on occasion) Non-binary (gender identities that don't fit within the accepted binary of male and female.) Other . Pangender (similar to Androgyne) Trans (transgender people are those born into a body not associated with their gender . Trans Female/Male/Man/ Person . Trans*Female (the asterisk creates an umbrella term that specially encompasses every single gender identity) Trans*Male . Trans*Man . Trans*Person . Trans*Woman . Transexual (a subset of transgender, and refers generally to people who identify as a sex other than that they were assigned at birth) Transexual Female . Transexual Male . Transexual Man . Transexual Person . Transexual Woman . Transgender Female . Transgender Person . Transmasculine (describes those assigned female at birth, but identify as more male) Two-spirit (describes . Indigenous North Americans who fulfill one of many mixed gender roles . found traditionally among many Native Americans and Canadian First . Nations indigenous groups) Definitions from gendercentre.org.au . Simon Milner, Policy Director, UK . Middle East and Africa at Facebook, added: 'When you come to Facebook to . connect with the people, causes, and organisations you care about, we . want you to feel comfortable being your true self. 'An . important part of this is the expression of gender especially when it . extends beyond the definitions of just "male" or "female". Today’s . announcement provides significantly more options for people in the UK.' Facebook, which has 1.23 billion active monthly users around the world, also allows them to keep their gender identity private, and will continue to do so. The Human Rights Campaign last year found that 10 percent of the 10,000 lesbian, gay, bisexual transgender youths it surveyed used 'other' or wrote in their own gender terms. When a Facebook user customises their gender, they can also choose a preferred pronoun so that third party apps and messages from Facebook will be addressed in the right way. There is currently no way for advertisers to target specific groups based on the 'custom' settings on Facebook. Facebook rolled out the changes to its more than 159 million monthly users in the U.S. in February. The changes are aimed at giving people more choices in how they describe themselves, such as androgynous, bi-gender, intersex, gender fluid or transsexual (pictured). Flags at Facebook's headquarters in February, celebrating the move to improve the site's gender selection. The changes were initially rolled out in the U.S, and will start appearing for UK users over the coming weeks . The . change to the gender selection option is seen as a major step toward . acceptance for people who don't self-identify as male or female, but the . high-profile development seemed senseless to those who believe in two . genders, no more. 'Of course Facebook is entitled to . manage its wildly popular site as it sees fit, but here is the bottom . line: It's impossible to deny the biological reality that humanity is . divided into two halves - male and female,' said Jeff Johnston, an . issues analyst for Focus on the Family, an influential national . religious organisation based in Denver. 'Those petitioning for the change insist that there are an infinite number of genders, but just saying it doesn't make it so. 'That said, we have a great deal of compassion for those who reject their biological sex and believe they are the opposite sex. Facebook software engineer Brielle Harrison demonstrates the expanded options for gender identification at her company's California headquarters. Harrison, who helped engineer the project, plans to switch her identifier to 'Transwoman' Masen . Davis, executive director of the San Francisco-based Transgender Law . Center, said it may be hard for some people to understand the importance . of having the ability to select from multiple genders online. But he . said many transgender people will be thrilled with the change. 'We applaud Facebook for making it possible for people to be their authentic selves online,' he said. In . the past decade, the transgender movement has become much more . organised and outspoken, demanding the kind of civil rights and respect . already sought by gay activists. 'During this time, the transgender . umbrella has been growing well beyond transsexuals to encompass a wide . variety of gender identities. The move by Facebook came after years . of lobbying from users, some who started Facebook pages to petition for . the change. Google+ offers male, female and 'other' as choices, but . transgender advocates said Facebook's many specific options puts the . platform well ahead of any other online community. About 1 per cent of . Google+ users identify as 'other'. Facebook has also updated its settings so users can choose a neutral pronoun (pictured). Unlike getting engaged or married, changing gender is not registered as a 'life event' and won't post on timelines. Facebook said advertisers cannot target ads to those who declare themselves transgender or recently changed gender . The . idea of expanding gender choices percolated at Facebook for about a . year and started to come to fruition during an in-house brainstorming . four months ago, project manager Lexi Ross said. Unlike getting engaged or married, changing gender is not registered as a 'life event' on the site and won't post on timelines. Therefore, . Facebook said advertisers cannot target ads to those who declare . themselves transgender or recently changed their gender. Users also can select 'neither' or 'other' and separately indicate whether they want to be referred to as he, she or they. Facebook came up with its range of terms after consulting with leading gay and transgender activists, and the company plans to continue working with them.
in profiles. Facebook has also updated its settings so users can choose a neutral pronoun, meaning they are referred to as 'they, their or after consulting with leading gay and transgender to be referred to as he, she or they. Facebook with leading gay and transgender activists, and