Gender (Japanese: 性別 sex) is a characteristic of Pokémon and humans in the Pokémon world.

In Generation I games, Nidoran♀ and Nidoran♂ were the only Pokémon shown to have a gender. Starting in the Generation II games, most Pokémon have a gender (including Pokémon previously transferred from Generation I games): male (Japanese: オス male) or female (Japanese: メス female); however, some species of Pokémon are gender unknown. The gender mechanic is fundamental to Pokémon breeding.

In the core series games, starting in Pokémon Crystal, the player can choose between a male (Japanese: 男性 male) or female (Japanese: 女性 female) player character. However, human men and women have appeared in all core series Pokémon games. Notably, some human characters, such as Ball Guy from Pokémon Sword and Shield, Blanche and Rhi from Pokémon GO, and the unnamed player character in Pokémon: Magikarp Jump, do not have a specified gender.

Pokémon

In the core series

Determining gender

One factor that determines gender is each Pokémon species's gender ratio, which is approximately how likely a Pokémon is a specific gender instead of the other.

Generation II

In Generation II, a Pokémon's gender is determined based solely on its physical Attack IV when compared to its gender ratio. A Pokémon is female if its physical Attack IV is less than or equal to its species' gender ratio, otherwise it is male. For species that are exclusively one gender or gender unknown, the calculation based on the physical Attack IV is ignored.

Due to this calculation, it is impossible to obtain a female Pokémon with high physical Attack, unless the Pokémon is a member of an all-female species like Jynx or Chansey. First partner Pokémon and others with a gender ratio of seven males to one female suffer the most, with the maximum physical Attack IV for a female Pokémon of those species being 1.

Pokémon from the Generation I games are assigned a gender using the same process when transferred to the Generation II games, used in Pokémon Stadium 2, or transferred from the Virtual Console games to Pokémon Bank. As a result, a Pokémon maintains its gender when transferred between the Generation I and II games (even though the gender is not shown in the Generation I games, aside from Nidoran♀ and Nidoran♂).

Attack IV Nominal ratio
(♂:♀)
Frequency
Male Female Male Female
N/A N/A Gender unknown
0-15 N/A Male 100.0% 0.0%
2-15 0-1 7:1 87.5% 12.5%
4-15 0-3 3:1 75.0% 25.0%
8-15 0-7 1:1 50.0% 50.0%
12-15 0-11 1:3 25.0% 75.0%
N/A 0-15 Female 0.0% 100.0%

Example
For two Cyndaquil obtained from Professor Elm:

Pokémon Gender HP Attack Defense Speed Sp. Atk Sp. Def
Cyndaquil A 20 10 9 12 11 10
13
(1101)
1
(0001)
3
(0011)
10
(1010)
9
(1001)
Cyndaquil B 19 11 10 12 11 10
6
(0110)
14
(1110)
7
(0111)
11
(1011)
2
(0010)


Generations III to V

00000000 00000000 00000000 00000000

From Generation III to V, a Pokémon's gender is determined by the personality value's lowest eight digits (the lowest byte, highlighted in red above) of p in binary form. Mathematically, this can be derived by calculating p % 256. Below, this value will be referred to as pgender.

In a Pokémon species' data structure, there is a value called the gender threshold, a byte with a value ranging from 0 to 255. With the exception of a few special cases, pgender is compared to the gender threshold to determine if the Pokémon is male or female.

If the gender threshold is not a special value (0, 254, or 255), pgender is compared to the gender threshold. If pgender is greater than or equal to the gender threshold, the Pokémon is male, otherwise it is female. Because the comparison to determine gender is greater than or equal, Pokémon are slightly more likely to be male than they would be according to the ideal ratios.

If a species has a gender threshold of 255, all Pokémon of that species are gender unknown (such as Magnemite). If a species has a gender threshold of 254, it is a female-only species (such as Nidoran♀). If a species has a gender threshold of 0, it is a male-only species (such as Nidoran♂).

Gender threshold Nominal ratio
(♂:♀)
Frequency
Binary Decimal Male Female
11111111 255 Gender unknown
11111110 254 Female 0.00% 100.00%
‭‭11100001‬ 225 1:7 12.11% 87.89%
10111111 191 1:3 25.39% 74.61%
01111111 127 1:1 50.39% 49.61%
00111111 63 3:1 75.39% 24.61%
00011111 31 7:1 87.89% 12.11%
00000000 0 Male 100.00% 0.00%

From Pokémon Emerald onwards, if a Pokémon with Cute Charm is in the first place in the party (even if fainted), there is a 66.7% chance that the game will force an encountered Pokémon to be the opposite gender to the Pokémon with Cute Charm if it can be that gender. This does not affect a swarming Pokémon species or Pokémon found in Hidden Grottos.

Generations VI to VII

From Generation VI to VII, the gender threshold is compared to a random number between 1 and 252 (inclusive) instead of pgender (which is between 0 and 255); this causes Pokémon with a "1:1" gender ratio to actually be distributed according to the ideal ratio. All other Pokémon are more likely to be the more common gender than they would be according to their nominal ratio.

Gender threshold Nominal ratio
(♂:♀)
Frequency
Binary Decimal Male Female
11111111 255 Gender unknown
11111110 254 Female 0.0% 100.00%
‭‭11100001‬ 225 1:7 11.11% 88.89%
10111111 191 1:3 24.60% 75.40%
01111111 127 1:1 50.00% 50.00%
00111111 63 3:1 75.40% 24.60%
00011111 31 7:1 88.10% 11.90%
00000000 0 Male 100.00% 0.00%
Generation VIII

In Generation VIII, the gender threshold is compared to a random number between 1 to 253 (inclusive). This leads to slightly different ratios, with male Pokémon being slightly more common than before.[1]

Gender threshold Nominal ratio
(♂:♀)
Frequency
Binary Decimal Male Female
11111111 255 Gender unknown
11111110 254 Female 0.0% 100.00%
‭‭11100001‬ 225 1:7 11.46% 88.54%
10111111 191 1:3 24.90% 75.10%
01111111 127 1:1 50.20% 49.80%
00111111 63 3:1 75.50% 24.50%
00011111 31 7:1 88.14% 11.86%
00000000 0 Male 100.00% 0.00%

Additionally, due to a bug in Pokémon Sword and Shield, all overworld symbol encounters are forced to have a 1:1 gender ratio, excluding 100% male, 100% female, and gender unknown species.

Generation IX
  This section is incomplete.
Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it.
Reason: Any changes from Gen 8, new gender ratio table for Gen 9 if different

Gender differences

Main article: List of Pokémon with gender differences

Generation IV premiered minimal differences in sprite between two Pokémon of the same species. For example, a male Raichu will have the full tail seen in previous games, while the female is missing the very tip of it. Generations V and VI would introduce Pokémon with more drastic differences in appearance.

The only four Pokémon with gender differences that are not just aesthetic are Meowstic, Indeedee, Basculegion, and Oinkologne, who have different learnsets and sets of Abilities depending on its gender, with the latter two even having different base stats.

Meowstic

The male Meowstic has Prankster and the female Meowstic has Competitive as its Hidden Ability. At certain levels, they learn different moves from one another: the male Meowstic learns status moves, while the female Meowstic learns special moves. In Generations VI and VII, female Meowstic learned one gender-exclusive status move, Me First.

 
Meowstic
Male
 Psychic 
Keen Eye or
Infiltrator
Hidden: Prankster
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
74 48 76 83 81 104
 
Meowstic
Female
 Psychic 
Keen Eye or
Infiltrator
Hidden: Competitive
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
74 48 76 83 81 104
Male VI VII VIII Female VI VII VIII
Quick Guard Stored Power
Mean Look Me First
Miracle Eye Magical Leaf
Imprison Extrasensory
Misty Terrain Future Sight
Notes
  • Despite not being exclusive, some moves are learned by one gender naturally, and the other depends on external method.
Helping Hand Charge Beam
Reflect Shadow Ball
Charm Signal Beam
Indeedee

Indeedee differs more drastically by gender than Meowstic, with male and female Indeedee having slightly different base stats as well as learnsets. Male Indeedee have higher Attack, Special Attack, and Speed, while female Indeedee have higher Defense, Special Defense, and HP. While male Indeedee can learn the TM and TR moves Power Swap, Trick Room, Magic Room, Wonder Room, Tri Attack, and Encore, female Indeedee can learn Light Screen, Reflect, Safeguard, Guard Swap, and Baton Pass. The Egg Move Extrasensory is exclusive to male Indeedee while the Egg Moves Psycho Shift and Heal Pulse are exclusive to female Indeedee.

 
Indeedee
Male
 Psychic  Normal 
Inner Focus or
Synchronize
Hidden: Psychic Surge
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
60 65 55 105 95 95
 
Indeedee
Female
 Psychic  Normal 
Own Tempo or
Synchronize
Hidden: Psychic Surge
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
70 55 65 95 105 85
Male VIII IX Female VIII IX
Encore Baton Pass
Power Split Guard Split
Last Resort Healing Wish
Power Swap Guard Swap
Trick Room * Light Screen
Wonder Room Reflect
Magic Room Safeguard
Tri Attack Heal Pulse
Extrasensory Psycho Shift
After You Follow Me
Charm
Basculegion

Male and female Basculegion have slightly differing base stats; the male form has higher Attack while the female form has higher Special Attack.

 
Basculegion
Male
 Water  Ghost 
Swift Swim or
Adaptability
Hidden: Mold Breaker
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
120 112 65 80 75 78
 
Basculegion
Female
 Water  Ghost 
Swift Swim or
Adaptability
Hidden: Mold Breaker
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
120 92 65 100 75 78
Oinkologne

The male Oinkologne has access to the Ability Lingering Aroma, while the female has access to Aroma Veil. Male Oinkologne have higher Attack and Defense, while female Oinkologne have higher HP and Special Defense.

 
Oinkologne
Male
 Normal 
Lingering Aroma or
Gluttony
Hidden: Thick Fat
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
110 100 75 59 80 65
 
Oinkologne
Female
 Normal 
Aroma Veil or
Gluttony
Hidden: Thick Fat
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
115 90 70 59 90 65

Single-gender Pokémon

Nidoran lines

The Nidoran family is a special case in terms of gender. Introduced in Generation I, before gender was known for all Pokémon, Nidoran♀ and Nidoran♂ are considered separate species of Pokémon and indeed have many differences, from appearance to moveset. However, Nidoran Eggs have a 50/50 chance of hatching into either Nidoran♀ or Nidoran♂.

Female Male
 
Nidoran♀
 Poison 
Poison Point or
Rivalry
Hidden: Hustle
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
55 47 52 40 40 41
 
Nidorina
 Poison 
Poison Point or
Rivalry
Hidden: Hustle
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
70 62 67 55 55 56
 
Nidoqueen
 Poison  Ground 
Poison Point or
Rivalry
Hidden: Sheer Force
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
90 92 87 75 85 76
 
Nidoran♂
 Poison 
Poison Point or
Rivalry
Hidden: Hustle
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
46 57 40 40 40 50
 
Nidorino
 Poison 
Poison Point or
Rivalry
Hidden: Hustle
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
61 72 57 55 55 65
 
Nidoking
 Poison  Ground 
Poison Point or
Rivalry
Hidden: Sheer Force
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
81 102 77 85 75 85
Firefly Pokémon

In a manner similar to Nidoran, Eggs produced by Illumise may hatch into Volbeat.

Female
 
Illumise
 Bug 
Oblivious or
Tinted Lens
Hidden: Prankster
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
65 47 75 73 85 85
Male
 
Volbeat
 Bug 
Illuminate or
Swarm
Hidden: Prankster
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
65 73 75 47 85 85
Eon Pokémon

While Latias and Latios are in the No Eggs Discovered Group in the games, likely due to being Legendary Pokémon, Latias have produced Eggs containing Latios in the anime, confirming that they are similarly related.

Female
 
Latias
 Dragon  Psychic 
Levitate
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
80 80 90 110 130 110
Male
 
Latios
 Dragon  Psychic 
Levitate
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
80 90 80 130 110 110
 
Latias
Mega Evolution
 Dragon  Psychic 
Levitate
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
80 100 120 140 150 110
 
Latios
Mega Evolution
 Dragon  Psychic 
Levitate
HP Atk Def SpA SpD Spd
80 130 100 160 120 110
Gender-based evolutions

Some Pokémon may have different ways of evolving depending on their gender. These Pokémon may therefore have one or more evolutions that can only be a single gender.

Pre-evolution Method Evolved
 
Kirlia
Male only

Dawn Stone
  
Gallade
Either
gender

Level 30+
  
Gardevoir
 
Snorunt
Female only

Dawn Stone
 
Froslass
Either
gender

Level 42+
  
Glalie
 
Burmy
Male only

Level 20+
 
Mothim
Female only

Level 20+
 
Wormadam
 
Combee
Female only
(Male Combee never evolve)

Level 21+
 
Vespiquen
 
Salandit
Female only
(Male Salandit never evolve)

Level 33+
 
Salazzle

Eviolite will always work on Combee and Salandit, regardless of their gender and whether they are able to evolve.

Other single-gender Pokémon

The following is a list of all Pokémon that are either 100% male or 100% female and have not been mentioned in an above section. In particular, these Pokémon have no explicit relation to a Pokémon of the opposite gender through evolution or breeding, although some of them may have a counterpart such as with Grimmsnarl and Hatterene.

Male
 
Tyrogue
 
Hitmonlee
 
Hitmonchan
 
Hitmontop
    
Tauros
 
Throh
 
Sawk
 
Rufflet
  
Braviary
  
Tornadus
  
Thundurus
  
Landorus
 
Impidimp
 
Morgrem
  
Grimmsnarl
 
Okidogi
 
Munkidori
 
Fezandipiti
Female
 
Happiny
 
Chansey
 
Blissey
  
Kangaskhan
 
Smoochum
 
Jynx
 
Miltank
 
Cresselia
 
Petilil
  
Lilligant
 
Vullaby
 
Mandibuzz
 
Flabébé
 
Floette
 
Florges
 
Bounsweet
 
Steenee
 
Tsareena
 
Hatenna
 
Hattrem
  
Hatterene
 
Milcery
  
Alcremie
  
Enamorus
 
Tinkatink
 
Tinkatuff
 
Tinkaton
    
Ogerpon

Single-gender forms

Certain forms of Pokémon are exclusively one gender. These forms are often based on established Pokémon characters. Aside from Bloodmoon Ursaluna, none of the Pokémon with these forms can breed.

Male
 
Pikachu
in a cap
  
Battle Bond/Ash-
Greninja
 
Bloodmoon
Ursaluna
Female
 
Cosplay
Pikachu
 
Spiky-eared
Pichu

In battle

The Love Ball is more effective when catching Pokémon that are of the opposite (or same in Generation II, due to a programming error) gender of the player's Pokémon.

The following moves are dependent on gender:

Gen Move Category Contest Power Accuracy PP Target Description
II Attract Status Cute 100% 15 (max 24)
     
     
Any adjacent Pokémon
If it is the opposite gender of the user, the target becomes infatuated and less likely to attack.
IV Captivate Status Cute 100% 20 (max 32)
     
     
All adjacent foes
If any opposing Pokémon is the opposite gender of the user, it is charmed, which harshly lowers its Sp. Atk stat.
VIII G-Max Cuddle Physical Varies % 1 (max 1)
     
     
Any adjacent Pokémon
Deals damage and all opponents of the opposite gender of the user become infatuated.
VIII G-Max Cuddle Special Varies % 1 (max 1)
     
     
Any adjacent Pokémon
Deals damage and all opponents of the opposite gender of the user become infatuated.
All details are accurate to Generation VII games. For details that have changed between generations, please see an individual move's page. Target data assumes user is in the lower left.

The following Abilities are dependent on gender:

Gen Ability Description
III Cute Charm Contact with the Pokémon may cause infatuation.
IV Rivalry Becomes competitive and deals more damage to Pokémon of the same gender, but deals less to Pokémon of the opposite gender.
All details are accurate to Generation VII games. For details that have changed between generations, please see an individual Ability's page.

In side series games

Pokémon Stadium 2

Pokémon Stadium 2 may connect to Generation I or Generation II core series games via the Transfer Pak, and is compatible with Pokémon genders. While Generation I games don't identify Pokémon genders (other than Nidoran♀ and Nidoran♂), the gender displayed in Pokémon Stadium 2 is the same as in the core series Generation II games, which is determined by the Pokémon's physical Attack IV when compared to its gender ratio.

For instance, a Pikachu from Pokémon Red, Blue, or Yellow is shown as either male or female in Pokémon Stadium 2.

In spin-off games

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series

Red and Blue Rescue Team

In Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team and Blue Rescue Team, there is no gender displayed for any Pokémon other than Nidoran♀ and Nidoran♂. There are no gender-based game mechanics in battle, therefore Attract and Cute Charm are able to infatuate any opponent.

Explorers of Time, Darkness, and Sky

In Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness and Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky, male Pokémon, as well as gender-unknown Pokémon (such as Magnemite), have a 1.5× bonus applied to move's base critical rate before other modifiers are applied, and at the same time all moves that target them have 263/256 (~1.03×) accuracy multiplier if no other accuracy or evasion modifiers are in effect. Barring those that are gender-locked, Pokémon encountered on odd dungeon floors will always be male, and Pokémon encountered on even floors will always be female.

Hey You, Pikachu!

In an American trailer for Hey You, Pikachu!, Pikachu's gender is discussed. When a young boy refers to Pikachu using the pronoun "he", the boy's sister retorts with "How do you know he's a he? Maybe Pikachu is a she."

In the game dialogue, Professor Oak and the player's Mom refer to Pikachu using the pronoun "it".

In the anime

Prior to the introduction of the gender mechanic in the games, some Pokémon were already shown to be male or female. For instance, Meowth from the Team Rocket trio is male, while Meowzie is female.

Humans

 
Choosing to play as male or female in Pokémon Black and White
Main article: Category:Characters by gender

In the games

Starting in Pokémon Crystal, players were given the option of choosing to play as a boy or girl Trainer at the start of the game. Since then, every game in the main series has included that choice. Starting in Pokémon Sun and Moon, the game will ask what the player looks like, rather than specifying gender. The character picked will still determine certain outfit choices and pronouns. Starting in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, the opposite-gender player character may also be encountered in some games as an NPC.

Game RGBY FRLG GS C HGSS RS E ORAS DP Pt BDSP
Male

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Red Ethan Brendan Lucas
Female N/A

 

N/A

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Leaf Kris Lyra May Dawn
BW B2W2 XY SM USUM PE SwSh LA S V
Male

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hilbert Nate Calem Elio Chase Victor Rei Florian
Female

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hilda Rosa Serena Selene Elaine Gloria Akari Juliana

Some Trainer classes have male and female variants, such as Swimmers, while others appear to be counterparts, such as Campers and Picnickers. Others, such as Kimono Girls, have no opposite-gender counterpart.

Certain in-game events may differ depending on the player character's gender. For example, in Pokémon Black 2 and White 2, Curtis will be encountered if the player is female, and Yancy if the player is male. In Pokémon X and Y and Generation VII, availability of different clothing is gender-specific. Also, only the female player character has the option of changing their lip color using lipstick stored in a Makeup Bag in Generation VII.

Outside of battle facilities, the gender of a non-playable character often determines the default gender of their Pokémon. If the Pokémon's species has an even 1:1 gender ratio, then its gender will match its Trainer's; if the gender ratio is skewed, then the more common gender of the species will be used. Prior to Generation VII, Trainer classes for Double Battles are treated as male, even if both Trainers are female.

For some Trainers, especially Gym Leaders and the Elite Four since Generation V, the default genders have been overridden to give their teams a more balanced gender distribution. Oddly, the Elite Four in FireRed and LeafGreen and Gym Leaders in Emerald all use male-dominant teams in rematches, even though the female Trainers use all-female teams in their initial battles. In HeartGold and SoulSilver, Bugsy and Will* use all-female teams despite being male.

In Pokémon Sword and Shield, Ball Guy's gender, along with their true identity and age, is unknown.


In the side games

Pokémon Stadium series

In Pokémon Stadium 2, the player character is usually represented by a nameless, faceless boy, who previously appeared in the original English release. If the player is using a Pokémon Crystal Game Pak, however, the boy's portrait is exchanged for a girl's.

Game Stadium 2
Male  
Female  
Pokémon HOME

The player can select an avatar from the overworld sprites of twelve of the core series protagonists. The gender of the avatar is stored with the Original Trainer with any gifts received.

Game HOME
Male

          

Female

         

In spin-off games

Many side games in the Pokémon franchise allow the player to choose between a male or female player character as well.

The English localization of Pokémon GO and its associated social media accounts avoid using gendered language or pronouns when referring to Blanche, the leader of Team Mystic.[2] The German localization similarly stopped using gendered language to refer to them since 2020.[3] Likewise, Rhi has only been referred to using either their name or neutral third-person pronouns.[4]

The player character in Pokémon: Magikarp Jump is noted to be gender unknown.[5]

Game Card GB2 Ranger Ranger SoA Ranger GS Battle Revolution Conquest GO Masters EX
Male                
Mark Lunick Kellyn Ben Nate Hero N/A Scottie
Female                
Mint Solana Kate Summer Cyndy Heroine N/A Bettie

In the anime

In Kanto, O-Hina Town hosts a female-exclusive tournament during the annual Princess Festival. Porta Vista also hosts a beauty pageant for women only, known as the Beach Beauty and Pokémon Costume Contest. In Kalos, Pokémon Performers are exclusively female, as only girls may participate in Pokémon Showcases.

Trivia

 
Nidoran♀ and Nidoran♂ show genders twice in Generation II, but only once in Generation III onward
  • Several Pokémon beside Nidoran were mentioned to have genders in Generation I games, prior to the introduction of the gender mechanic:
    • A Beauty in Route 13 asks "I wonder which is stronger, male or female Pokémon?"
    • A character in S.S. Anne refers to a Machoke using a male pronoun: "My buddy, Machoke, is super strong! He has enough Strength to move big rocks!"
    • In the French version, one of the Pokémon Mansion journals reads "Mew is now a dad (or a mom?). The newborn was named Mewtwo." (French: Mew est papa (ou maman?). Le petit fut baptisé Mewtwo.)
    • Some early Pokédex entries specifically mention female Kangaskhan. ("The female raises its offspring in a pouch on its belly.", from Japanese Pokémon Red and Green, as well as FireRed; "The female raises its young in its belly pouch for around three years.", from Japanese Pokémon Stadium, as well as Pokémon Stadium) This may imply that there are male Kangaskhan as well, although they are not seen in any Pokémon media as of Generation IX.
    • Seaking's Pokédex entry from Pokémon Yellow mentions male Seaking. However, this game was released after the Pokémon Gold and Silver Spaceworld '97 demo, which already had Pokémon with genders.
  • In Generation II, a Pokémon's gender was determined through its Attack IV. Due to this, a female Pokémon could never have a maximized Attack stat (unless they were a member of an all-female species, such as Smoochum), because female Pokémon were given the lower portion of the IV range. This also prevented female Pokémon of a species with a gender ratio of seven males to one female, such as first partner Pokémon or Eevee, from being Shiny, due to that also being based partly on the Attack IV. Because of this, their Hidden Power is always a physical type. From Generation III onward, neither of these traits are determined by IVs, allowing for Pokémon species with two genders to have females with maximized Attack and simultaneously retain their chances of being Shiny.
  • Although its English and French names suggest that it is exclusively male, Mr. Mime may be of either gender; however, its name predates the introduction of gender to the series.
    • Its Galarian evolution, Mr. Rime, also shares these traits, despite being introduced after the introduction of gender to the series.
  • Since Azurill has a different gender ratio than Marill and Azumarill, one in three female Azurill used to become male after evolving into Marill, dependent on the personality value of the Azurill in question, though this no longer happens since Generation VI.
  • In the international versions of Generation II, due to how the battlefield display is programmed, Nidoran♂ and Nidoran♀ have their gender icon shown twice, once in their name, and once after the level. This does not occur in the Japanese and Korean games, however, as the gender icon was present after all Pokémon's names due to the shorter character limit there. This was addressed in all later generations, which prevent the gender icon from showing up when an un-nicknamed Nidoran of either gender is on the field.
  • A non-player character, Beauty Nova in Pokémon X and Y, is implied to be transgender. She says that she was reborn as a Beauty after originally being a Black Belt (a male-only Trainer class); in the Japanese versions, she credits this transformation to medical science.[6]
  • Although they are gender unknown Pokémon, Solgaleo and Lunala are said to be the male and female final forms of Cosmog, respectively.
    • Similarly, Zacian's Pokédex entry in Pokémon Shield mentions it possibly being the older sister of Zamazenta, implying Zacian to be female, despite being gender unknown.

In other languages

Language Title
Chinese Cantonese 性別 Singbiht
Mandarin 性別 / 性别 Xìngbié
  Danish Køn
  Dutch Geslacht
  Finnish Sukupuoli
  French Sexe
  German Geschlecht
  Greek Φύλο Fýlo
  Hebrew מין Min
  Indonesian Jenis Kelamin
  Italian Sesso
  Korean 성별 Seongbyeol
  Malaysian Jantina
  Norwegian Kjønn
  Polish Płeć
  Portuguese Sexo
  Russian Пол Pol
  Spanish Sexo
Género
  Swedish Kön
  Thai เพศ Phet
  Turkish Cinsiyet
  Vietnamese Giới tính

Male

Language Title
Chinese Cantonese 雄性 Hùhngsing
Mandarin 雄性 Xióngxìng
  Danish Han
  Finnish Uros
  French Mâle
  German Männlich
  Hebrew זכר Zakhar
  Indonesian Jantan
  Italian Maschio
  Korean 수컷 Sukeot
  Malaysian Jantan
  Norwegian Hann*
Mannlig*
  Polish Samiec
Portuguese   Brazil Macho
Gênero Masculino (XY126)
  Portugal Macho
  Spanish Macho
  Swedish Manlig
  Thai ตัวผู้ Tua phu
  Turkish Erkek
  Vietnamese Đực

Female

Language Title
Chinese Cantonese 雌性 Chīsing
Mandarin 雌性 Cīxìng / Cíxìng
  Danish Hun
  Finnish Naaras
  French Femelle
  German Weiblich
  Hebrew נקבה Nekeva
  Indonesian Betina
  Italian Femmina
  Korean 암컷 Amkeot
  Malaysian Betina
  Norwegian Hunn*
Kvinnelig*
  Polish Samiczka
  Portuguese Fêmea
  Spanish Hembra
  Swedish Kvinnlig
  Thai ตัวเมีย Tua mia
  Turkish Dişi
  Vietnamese Cái

See also

References

  1. https://twitter.com/SciresM/status/1197055570290700288
  2. "Blanche became visibly upset, which tends to happen when things don't go to their carefully curated plans." - Willow Report: Looming in the Shadows — Pokémon GO
  3. German Website for Season of Heritage
  4. Professor Willow: "Rhi says [Team GO Rocket] may be taking an interest in our otherworldly visitors, huh? I’m inclined to think they’re right. Good thing you’re here to save the day!" (Pokémon GO, Special Research "Ultra Beast Protection Efforts")
  5. "Hey, you! Um...boy? Girl? You're working hard raising that Magikarp of yours, aren't you?" —Man of Mystery, Pokémon: Magikarp Jump
  6. Q&A: Is This Character in Pokémon X/Y Transgender? « Legends of Localization

External links



Pokémon individuality
LevelStatsFriendshipGenderAbility (Hidden Ability) • NatureCharacteristic
Effort valuesIndividual valuesGo PowerEffort level
ConditionPerformanceAffectionMemory


  This game mechanic article is part of Project Games, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on the Pokémon games.