Aromantic/ a_romantic (abbr. aro) (adj.)
An aromantic person feels little to no romantic attraction towards other people. This means that aromantic people are generally not interested in romantic relationships (Queer Lexikon 2023).
The spectrum of aromantic people also includes people who can hardly experience romantic attraction or only under very specific circumstances, which can vary greatly from person to person. Aro is an abbreviation for aromantic, which is also often used as a generic term for people on the aromantic spectrum (Queer Lexikon 2023; TAAAD n.d.).
According to gender and sexuality researcher Dr. Kristina Gupta and various organizations, certain characteristics can indicate an aromantic orientation:
- Not being able to relate to stories about romantic love relationships (in books, movies or in personal conversations) or finding them uninteresting
- Having a sense of physical attraction but no feeling of "being in love" or "having a crush"
- Having difficulty understanding what other people mean when they say they are in love or behave accordingly
- Enjoying time with friends and other loved ones, but having no interest in things typically associated with romantic relationships, such as sharing a bed or getting married (Kennedy 2021; Asexuality New Zealand Trust n.d.).
Furthermore, what distinguishes romantic from non-romantic feelings and behaviors may vary from person to person and from culture to culture.
The experience of aromantic people can be very different. Some aromantic individuals may have close friendly, platonic, or familial relationships that they find deeply meaningful, while others have little interest in close personal attachments (Kosiec & Kroschel 2021).
Aromanticism refers to romantic attraction, not sexual attraction, and therefore says nothing about sexual orientation. Aromantic people can have any sexual orientation.
Last updated: April 2025
Sources (in German)
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Asexuality New Zealand Trust (n.d.): Aromanticism and the aromantic spectrum. Last accessed 22.05.2024.
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Kennedy, Madeline (2021): If you're aromantic, you have little or no romantic attraction to other people - here's what that means. Last accessed 08.04.2025.
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Kosiec, Marina; Kroschel, Katharina (2021): Einblick in das Aspec. Informationen zu Aromantik und Asexualität & Hilfestellung zum Coming Out. Universität zu Köln.
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Queer Lexikon (2023): A_romantisch. Last accessed 20.03.2025.
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The ace and aro advocacy project (TAAAP) (n.d.): Identity Terminology. Last accessed 08.04.2025.
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