Proxymen

Classical dwarven society was both patriarchal and highly legalistic. Though social caste was inherited maternally, inheritance, clan names, and guild membership were always passed from father to son, and it was a dwarven man's duty alone to care for his parents in their old age. Additionally, in traditional dwarven courtship, the bride's family must "purchase" the groom, making too many daughters a difficult financial burden. Thus, a daughter of a dwarven family who wished to take on a male role in society would become a man legally, albeit not physically, before a council of aldermen.   The reverse process, a dwarf born male becoming a legal female (or "proxymaid"), was rare, but not unheard of. It was primarily accepted by high-status families with gay sons, as an acceptable alternative to homosexual marriage. (Homosexuality, though widely accepted today, was seen during the Age of Integrity as a deceit or inversion of the gods' order, since the only Erden Dynasty god associated with non-heteronormative gender and sexuality is Loki, the trickster.)

Dwarves who wish to become proxymen must come before the village council of aldermen, either in public meeting or by special arrangement. They swear an oath of chastity, filial piety, and civil responsibility, chisel their Nimmenmark (the dwarven equivalent of a signature) into a block of stone, and present the chief alderman with the wedding veil embroidered for them during childhood. (This veil is later given to an orphan girl or daughter of a poor family, so as not to waste the mother's work.) From that point on, they are considered equal to a man in all aspects, besides the ability to marry. It is a major social faux pas to refer to a proxyman with anything other than male pronouns.   In some instances, particularly in times of war or hardship, families with no natural-born sons would swear the oath for their young daughters in their stead before the age of majority. This oath was still considered irreversible and legally binding, and a woman who did not wish to be a proxyman as an adult typically had no choice but to leave her community and flee to somewhere where her status was unknown.