Who do we think we are?

“The fact of being who or what a person or thing is.”

“The state or fact of remaining the same, as under varying aspects or conditions.”

Not identical, are they? The first is Oxford Dictionary’s definition of identity. The second, from Dictionary.com, brings in the idea of change — of being or staying the same in a more fluid environment.

And change in this fundamental concept, Ladies and Gentlemen — and All Persons however identified — is why Dictionary.com’s 2015 Word of the Year is “identity.” The year Coeur d’Alene took center stage.

In June, Press reporters Maureen Dolan and Jeff Selle broke the story of Rachel Dolezal, a blonde, light-skinned, blue-eyed woman (while working in Coeur d’Alene) who later presented as dark-skinned and African-American to the NAACP chapter she headed in Spokane. Dolezal’s response to outcry and national headlines was that she identified as non-white or biracial, despite her Caucasian heritage. Discussions and debate broadened beyond her story, with questions about ethnic identity: Who should define it, can it be changed, and does it matter?

Certainly racial identity does; controversies over profiling and inequities along racial lines have plagued the nation since its birth.

June 2015 was a big month; it’s also when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on the legality of same-sex marriage. The law recognized sexual identity as a basic right; we’ll see how far that stretches. “Same-sex” doesn’t cover all. Consider asexual, polysexual, or as Miley Cyrus defined herself this year, pansexual (attracted to any or all genders, nonspecific).

In the realm of gender identity in 2015 was also a Golden Globe Award for “Transparent,” a TV series about a patriarch who became a matriarch. In June, Caitlyn (f.k.a. Bruce) Jenner appeared on magazine covers as an attractive, happier woman. Jenner openly discussed her lifelong struggles feeling female in a man’s body and very public athletic life.

Yes, “her.” But not everyone is “he” or “she”; some now use the gender-neutral term “they.” To respect that and other gender distinctions, Dictionary.com notes one may address such persons as “Mx.” rather than Mr., Mrs., or Ms.

That’s part of “code-switching,” a linguistic term whose definition has expanded to encompass all aspects of identity beyond just language or manner of speech. Other highlights from Dictionary.com’s updates related to identity’s “increasing fluidity” include:

Gender expression: External expression of gender roles, through socially defined behaviors and dress

Sapiosexual: One who finds intelligence sexually attractive

Microaggression: Subtle, offensive comment or action directed at a minority “or other non-dominant group,” unintentional or unconsciously reinforcing a stereotype.

New York Times Magazine in October called 2015 the year we obsessed over identity. Writer Wesley Morris observed, “Gender roles are merging. Races are being shed. In the last six years or so, but especially in 2015, we’ve been made to see how trans and bi and poly-ambi-omni- we are.”

Linguistics and lexicography are mirrors that reflect culture and society. Language follows where civilization’s river flows — not fixed, but fluid. Like those varying circumstances of identity.

Sholeh Patrick is a columnist for the Hagadone News Network who just learned she is sapiosexual (and thus happily hitched). She can be reached at Sholeh@cdapress.com.