Gender refers to the differences between men and women. A man is a Male Human. The term man (irregular plural Encyclopædia Britannica notes that gender identity is "an individual's self-conception as being male or female, as distinguished from actual biological sex. The Encyclopædia Britannica is a general English-language encyclopaedia published by Encyclopædia Britannica Inc Gender identity (or core gender identity) is a person's own sense of Identification as Male or Female. "^[1] Although gender is commonly used interchangeably with sex, within the social sciences it often refers to specifically social differences, known as gender roles in the biological sciences. An organism's sex is defined by the gametes it produces males produce male gametes (spermatozoa or Sperm) while females produce female gametes (ova or Egg cells; individual The social sciences comprise academic disciplines concerned with the study of the social life of human groups and individuals including Anthropology, Communication studies Sociology (from Latin: socius "companion" and the suffix -ology "the study of" from Greek λόγος lógos "knowledge" A gender role is defined as a set of perceived behavioural norms associated particularly with Males or Females in a given social group or system Foundations of modern biology There are five unifying principles Historically, feminism has posited that many gender roles are socially constructed, and lack a clear biological explanation. Feminism is a discourse that involves various movements theories, and Philosophies which are concerned with the issue of Gender difference, advocate A social construction or social construct is any phenomenon "invented" or "constructed" by participants in a particular Culture or Society People whose gender identity feels incongruent with their physical bodies may call themselves transgender or genderqueer. Transgender (trænzˈdʒɛndɚ from ( Latin) derivatives Genderqueer and intergender are catchall terms for gender identities other than man and woman

Many languages have a system of grammatical gender, a type of noun class system — nouns may be classified as masculine or feminine (for example Spanish, Hebrew, Arabic and French) and may also have a neuter grammatical gender (for example Sanskrit, German, Polish, and the Scandinavian languages). In Linguistics, grammatical genders, sometimes also called Noun classes are classes of nouns reflected in the behavior of associated words every noun must belong In Linguistics, the term noun class refers to a system of categorizing Nouns A noun may belong to a given class because of characteristic features of its Referent Arabic (ar الْعَرَبيّة (informally ar عَرَبيْ) in terms of the number of speakers is the largest living member of the Semitic language French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people Sanskrit (sa संस्कृता वाक् saṃskṛtā vāk, for short sa संस्कृतम् saṃskṛtam) is a historical The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. Polish ( język polski, polszczyzna) is the Official language of Poland. In such languages, this is essentially a convention, which may have little or no connection to the meaning of the words. A convention is a set of agreed, stipulated or generally accepted Standards norms social norms or criteria, often taking the form of Likewise, a wide variety of phenomena have characteristics termed gender, by analogy with male and female bodies (such as the gender of connectors and fasteners) or due to societal norms. Male (♂ refers to the sex of an organism or part of an organism which produces small mobile Gametes called spermatozoa. Female (♀ is the Sex of an Organism, or a part of an organism which produces ova (egg cells In Electrical and mechanical trades and manufacturing each of a pair of mating connectors or Fasteners is conventionally assigned the designation male Social norms have been defined as "the rules that a group uses for appropriate and inappropriate values beliefs attitudes and behaviors

Contents 1 Etymology and usage 1.1 The word gender in English 1.1.1 As kind 1.1.2 As masculinity or femininity 1.1.3 As a grammatical term 1.1.4 As a sexual stereotype 1.2 The concept of gender in other languages 1.3 Summary 2 Biology of gender 2.1 Gender taxonomy 3 Sex 3.1 Sexual reproduction 3.2 Sexual differentiation 4 Genes, Brains and Behaviour 4.1 Genes 4.2 Brain 4.3 Behaviour 5 Social categories 5.1 Sociology 5.2 Feminism and Gender studies 5.3 Legal status 5.4 Gender and development 6 Spirituality 7 Other uses 7.1 Linguistics 7.2 Connectors, pipe fittings, and fasteners 7.3 Music 8 See also 9 References 10 Further reading 11 External links

Etymology and usage

The word gender in English

As kind

The word gender comes from the Middle English gendre, a loanword from Norman-conquest-era Old French. Middle English is the name given by Historical linguistics to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman invasion of A loanword (or loan word) is a word directly taken into one Language from another with little or no translation Old French was the Romance Dialect continuum spoken in territories which span roughly the northern half of modern France and parts of modern Belgium This, in turn, came from Latin la:genus. Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Both words mean 'kind', 'type', or 'sort'. They derive ultimately from a widely attested Proto-Indo-European (PIE) root g^en-,^[2][3] which is also the source of kin, kind, king and many other English words. The root is the primary lexical unit of a Word, which carries the most significant aspects of semantic content and cannot be reduced into smaller constituents ^[4] It appears in Modern French in the word genre (type, kind, also fr:genre sexuel) and is related to the Greek root gen- (to produce), appearing in gene, genesis and oxygen. French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people A genre (ˈʒɑːnrə also /ˈdʒɑːnrə/ from French "kind" or "sort" from Latin: genus (stem gener-) is a loose set Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly History See also History of genetics The existence of genes was first suggested by Gregor Mendel (1822-1884 who in the 1860s studied inheritance Oxygen (from the Greek roots ὀξύς (oxys (acid literally "sharp" from the taste of acids and -γενής (-genēs (producer literally begetteris the As a verb, it means breed in the King James Bible:

• 1616: Thou shalt not let thy cattle gender with a diverse kind — Leviticus 19:19. Etymology According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the word bible is from Latin biblia, traced from the same word through Medieval Latin and Late Latin

Most uses of the root gen in Indo-European languages refer either directly to what pertains to birth or, by extension, to natural, innate qualities and their consequent social distinctions (for example gentry, generation, gentile, genocide and eugenics). The first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary (OED1, Volume 4, 1900) notes the original meaning of gender as 'kind' had already become obsolete. The Oxford English Dictionary ( OED) published by the Oxford University Press (OUP is a comprehensive Dictionary of the English

Gender (dʒe'ndəɹ), sb. Also 4 gendre. [a. OF. gen(d)re (F. genre) = Sp. and Pg. genero, It. genere, ad. L. gener- stem form of genus race, kind = Gr. γένος, Skr. jánas:— OAryan *genes-, f. root γεν- to produce; cf. KIN. ]

†1. Kind, sort, class; also, genus as opposed to species. The general gender: the common sort (of people). Obs.

13. . E. E. Allit. P. P. 434 Alle gendrez so ioyst wern ioyned wyth-inne. c 1384 CHAUSER H. Fame* 1. 18 To knowe of hir signifiaunce The gendres. 1398 TREVISA Barth. De P. K. VIII. xxix. (1495) 34^I Byshynynge and lyghte ben dyuers as species and gendre, for suery shinyng is lyght, but not ayenwarde. 1602 SHAKES. Ham. IV. vii. 18 The great loue the generall gender beare him. 1604 — Oth. I. iii. 326 Supplie it with one gender of Hearbes, or distract it with many. 1643 and so on.

As masculinity or femininity

The use of gender to refer to masculinity and femininity as types is attested throughout the history of Modern English (from about the 14th century). Modern English is the form of the English language spoken since the Great Vowel Shift, completed in roughly 1550

• 1387-8: No mo genders been there but masculine, and femynyne, all the remnaunte been no genders but of grace, in facultie of grammar — Thomas Usk, The Testament of Love II iii (Walter William Skeat) 13. Thomas Usk (died March 4, 1388) was appointed the under- Sheriff of London by Richard II in 1387 Walter William Skeat ( November 21, 1835 - 1912 English Philologist, was born in London on the 21st of November 1835 and educated
• c. 1460: Has thou oght written there of the femynyn gendere? — Towneley Mystery Plays xxx 161 Act One.
• 1632: Here's a woman! The soul of Hercules has got into her. She has a spirit, is more masculine Than the first gender — Shackerley Marmion, Holland's Leaguer III iv. Shackerley Marmion (January 1603 &ndash 1639 also Shakerley, Shakerly, Schackerley, Marmyon, Marmyun, or Mermion, was
• 1658: The Psyche, or soul, of Tiresias is of the masculine gender — Thomas Browne, Hydriotaphia. Sir Thomas Browne ( October 19, 1605 &ndash October 19, 1682) was an English author of varied works which disclose his wide learning Hydriotaphia Urn Burial or a Discourse of the Sepulchral Urns lately found in Norfolk, is a work by Sir Thomas Browne, published in 1658 as the first
• 1709: Of the fair sex . . . my only consolation for being of that gender has been the assurance it gave me of never being married to any one among them — Mary Wortley Montagu, Letters to Mrs Wortley lxvi 108. The Lady Mary Wortley Montagu ( 26 May 1689 &ndash 21 August 1762) was an English aristocrat and writer
• 1768: I may add the gender too of the person I am to govern — Laurence Sterne, A Sentimental Journey Through France and Italy. Laurence Sterne ( November 24, 1713 &ndash March 18, 1768) was an Irish -born English Novelist and an Anglican A Sentimental Journey Through France and Italy is a novel by the Irish-born English author Laurence Sterne, written and first published in 1768, as
• 1859: Black divinities of the feminine gender — Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities. A Tale of Two Cities (1859 is the second Historical novel by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the
• 1874: It is exactly as if there were a sex in mountains, and their contours and curves and complexions were here all of the feminine gender — Henry James, 'A Chain of Italian Cities', The Atlantic Monthly 33 (February, p. Henry James, OM ( –) son of theologian Henry James Sr, brother of the philosopher and psychologist William James and diarist Alice James The Atlantic (formerly known as The Atlantic Monthly) is an American Magazine founded in Boston in 1857 162. )
• 1892: She was uncertain as to his gender — Robert Grant, 'Reflections of a Married Man', Scribner's Magazine 11 (March, p. Robert Grant my also refer to the Romantic period writer Robert Grant (Romantic writer. Scribner's Magazine was first published in January 1887, also by the publishing house of Charles Scribner's Sons, which spent $500000 to compete 376. )
• 1896: As to one's success in the work one does, surely that is not a question of gender either — Daily News 17 July. The News Chronicle was a British daily Newspaper. It ceased publication in 1960 being absorbed into the Daily Mail.
• c. 1900: Our most lively impression is that the sun is there assumed to be of the feminine gender — Henry James, Essays on Literature. Henry James, OM ( –) son of theologian Henry James Sr, brother of the philosopher and psychologist William James and diarist Alice James

As a grammatical term

According to Aristotle, the Greek philosopher Protagoras used the terms "masculine", "feminine", and "neuter" to classify nouns, introducing the concept of grammatical gender. Aristotle (Greek Aristotélēs) (384 BC – 322 BC was a Greek philosopher a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. Aristotle (Greek Aristotélēs) (384 BC – 322 BC was a Greek philosopher a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. Protagoras ( Greek:) (ca 490&ndash 420 BC was a pre-Socratic Greek Philosopher and is numbered as one of the Sophists by In Linguistics, grammatical genders, sometimes also called Noun classes are classes of nouns reflected in the behavior of associated words every noun must belong

τὰ γένη τῶν ὀνομάτων ἄρρενα καὶ θήλεα καὶ σκεύη

The classes (genē) of the nouns are males, females and things. ^[5]

— Aristotle, The Technique of Rhetoric III v

The words for this concept are not related to g^en- in all Indo-European languages (for example, rod in Slavic languages). Aristotle 's Rhetoric is an ancient Greek treatise on the art of persuasion dating from the fourth century BCE The Slavic languages (also called Slavonic languages) a group of closely related Languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages

The usage of gender in the context of grammatical distinctions is a specific and technical usage. However, in English, the word became attested more widely in the context of grammar, than in making sexual distinctions.

This was noted in OED1, prompting Henry Watson Fowler to recommend this usage as the primary and preferable meaning of gender in English. Henry Watson Fowler ( 10 March 1858 – 26 December 1933) was an English schoolmaster Lexicographer and commentator "Gender . . . is a grammatical term only. To talk of persons . . . of the masculine or feminine g[ender], meaning of the male or female sex, is either a jocularity (permissible or not according to context) or a blunder. "^[6]

The sense of this can be felt by analogy with a modern expression like "persons of the female persuasion. " It should be noted, however, that this was a recommendation, neither the Daily News nor Henry James citations (above) are "jocular" nor "blunders. " Additionally, patterns of usage of gender have substantially changed since Fowler's day (noun class above, and sexual stereotype below).

As a sexual stereotype

The word sex is sometimes used in the context of social roles of men and women — for example, the British Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act 1919 that ended exclusion of women from various official positions. The Sex Disqualification (Removal Act 1919 (9 & 10 Geo V c 71 was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom. Such usage was more common before the 1970s, over the course of which the feminist movement took the word gender into their own usage to describe their theory of human nature. Year 1970 ( MCMLXX) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link shows full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Early in that decade, gender was used in ways consistent with both the history of English and the history of attestation of the root. However, by the end of the decade consensus was achieved among feminists regarding this theory and its terminology. The theory was that human nature is essentially epicene and social distinctions based on sex are arbitrarily constructed. Epicene is an Adjective (sometimes substantive) for loss of Gender distinction often specific loss of Masculinity. Matters pertaining to this theoretical process of social construction were labelled matters of gender.

• 1998: Today a return to separate single-sex schools may hasten the revival of separate gender roles. — Wendy Kaminer, 'The Trouble with Single-Sex Schools', The Atlantic Monthly (April). Wendy Kaminer (born 1950 is a Lawyer and Writer. She has written several books on contemporary social issues including A Fearful Freedom Women's Flight The Atlantic (formerly known as The Atlantic Monthly) is an American Magazine founded in Boston in 1857

The American Heritage Dictionary uses the following two sentences to illustrate the difference. The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language ( AHD) is an American Dictionary of the English language published by ^[7]

• 2000: The effectiveness of the medication appears to depend on the sex (not gender) of the patient.
• 2000: In peasant societies, gender (not sex) roles are likely to be more clearly defined.

In the last two decades of the 20th century, the use of gender in academia increased greatly, outnumbering uses of sex in the social sciences. ^[8] Frequently, but not exclusively, this indicates acceptance of the feminist theory of human nature. However, in many instances, the term gender still refers to sexual distinction generally without such an assumption.

• 2004: Among the reasons that working scientists have given me for choosing gender rather than sex in biological contexts are desires to signal sympathy with feminist goals, to use a more academic term, or to avoid the connotation of copulation — David Haig, The Inexorable Rise of Gender and the Decline of Sex.

In fact, the ideological distinction between sex and gender is only fitfully observed. ^[8]

The concept of gender in other languages

Greek (distinguishes biological from sociological in adjectives)

In Greek, male biology and masculine grammatical inflection are denoted by arsenikos (αρσενικός), in distinction to sociological masculinity, which is denoted by andrikos (ανδρικός). Likewise, female biology and feminine grammatical inflection are denoted by thēlukos (θηλυκός); and sociological femininity is denoted by gunaikeios (γυναικείος, compare English gynaecology). Gynaecology or gynecology (see spelling differences) refers to the surgical specialty dealing with health of the female reproductive system ( Uterus This distinction is at least as old as Aristotle (see above). It is a different distinction to English, where 'male' and 'female' refer to animals as well as humans, but not to grammatical categories; however, 'masculine' and 'feminine' refer to grammatical categories as well as humans, but not properly to animals, except as anthropomorphism. Anthropomorphism is the attribution of uniquely Human characteristics to non-human creatures and beings natural and supernatural phenomena material states and objects

German and Dutch (no distinction in nouns — Geschlecht and geslacht)

In English, both 'sex' and 'gender' can be used in contexts where they could not be substituted — 'sexual intercourse', 'safe sex', 'sex worker', or on the other hand, 'grammatical gender'. Other languages, like German or Dutch, use the same word, de:Geschlecht or nl:geslacht, to refer not only to biological sex, but social differences as well, making a distinction between biological 'sex' and 'gender' identity difficult. In some contexts, German has adopted the English loanword Gender to achieve this distinction. Sometimes Geschlechtsidentität is used for 'gender' (although it literally means 'gender identity') and Geschlecht for 'sex'. ^[9] More common is the use of modifiers: biologisches Geschlecht for 'biological sex', Geschlechtsidentität for 'gender identity' and Geschlechtsrolle for 'gender role', and so on. Both German and Dutch use a separate word, de:Genus, for grammatical gender. A genus (plural genera from Γένος Latin genus "descent family type gender" is a low-level Taxonomic

Swedish (clear distinction in nouns — genus and kön)

In Swedish, 'gender' is translated with the linguistically cognate sv:genus, including sociological contexts, thus: Genusstudier (gender studies) and Genusvetenskap (gender science). 'Sex' in Swedish, however, only signifies sexual relations, and not the proposed English dichotomy, a concept for which sv:kön (also from PIE g^en-) is used. A common distinction is then made between kön (sex) and genus (gender), where the former refers only to biological sex. However, Swedish uses the words sv:könsroll and sv:könsidentitet (literally 'sex role' and 'sex-identity') for the English terms 'gender role' and 'gender identity'.

Summary

The historical meaning of gender is something like "things we treat differently because of their inherent differences". It has three common applications in contemporary English. Most commonly it is applied to the general differences between men and women, without any assumptions regarding biology or sociology. Sometimes however, the usage is technical or assumes a particular theory of human nature, this is always clear from the context. Finally the same word, gender, is also commonly applied to the independent concept of distinctive word categories in certain languages. Grammatical gender has little or nothing to do with differences between men and women.

Likewise, the word sex has two distinct meanings in English. It can be used to describe whether an individual of a sexually reproducing species is physically male or female. Sex in this sense means of or pertaining to reproduction. Used this way, sex, male and female view humans as Homo sapiens and are impersonal, or dehumanizing, in many contexts.

• Person A: We just had our first baby!
• Reply 1: Boy or girl? (personal, suited to a friend)
• Reply 2: Male or female? (impersonal, suited to a doctor — or vet — unsuited to a friend)

The word sex is also used to refer to erotic behaviour between humans, rather more broadly than mating is used of animals. Reproduction is not assumed in reference to human sexual behaviour. Both uses of sex are clearly relevant to the study of differences between men and women.

Biology of gender

The biology of gender became the subject of an expanding number of studies over the course of the late 20th century. The biology of gender is scientific analysis of the physical basis for behavioural differences between men and women One of the earliest areas of interest was what is now called gender identity disorder (GID). Gender identity disorder (GID is the formal diagnosis used by Psychologists and Physicians to describe persons who experience significant gender dysphoria (discontent Studies in this, and related areas, inform the following summary of the subject by John Money, a pioneer and controversial sex and gender researcher. John William Money ( 8 July 1921 &ndash 7 July, 2006) was a psychologist and sexologist well-known for his research into

“

The term "gender role" appeared in print first in 1955. The term "gender identity" was used in a press release, November 21, 1966, to announce the new clinic for transsexuals at The Johns Hopkins Hospital. It was disseminated in the media worldwide, and soon entered the vernacular. The definitions of gender and gender identity vary on a doctrinal basis. In popularized and scientifically debased usage, sex is what you are biologically; gender is what you become socially; gender identity is your own sense or conviction of maleness or femaleness; and gender role is the cultural stereotype of what is masculine and feminine. Causality with respect to gender identity disorder is subdivisible into genetic, prenatal hormonal, postnatal social, and postpubertal hormonal determinants, but there is, as yet, no comprehensive and detailed theory of causality. Gender coding in the brain is bipolar. In gender identity disorder, there is discordancy between the natal sex of one's external genitalia and the brain coding of one's gender as masculine or feminine. [10]

”

Money refers to attempts to distinguish a difference between biological sex and social gender as "scientifically debased", because of our increased knowledge of a continuum of dimorphic features (Money's word is "dipolar"), that link biological and behavioural differences. Sexual dimorphism is the systematic difference in form between individuals of different Sex in the same Species. These extend from the exclusively biological "genetic" and "prenatal hormonal" differences between men and women, to postnatal features, some of which are social, but others have been shown to result from "postpubertal hormonal" effects.

Prior to recent technology that made study of brain differences possible, observable differences in behaviour between men and women could not be adequately explained solely on the basis of the limited observable physical differences between them. The brain is the center of the Nervous system in animals All Vertebrates and the majority of Invertebrates have a brain Hence the, then plausible, theory that these differences might be explained by arbitrary cultural assignments of roles. However, Money notes concisely that masculine or feminine self-identity is now seen as essentially an expression of dimorphic brain structure (Money's word is "coding"). The new discoveries have an additional advantage over the theory of cultural arbitrariness of gender roles, as they help explain the similarities between these roles in widely divergent cultures (see Steven Pinker on Donald Brown's Human Universals, including romantic love,^[11] sexual jealousy,^[12][13][14] and patriarchy). Steven Arthur Pinker (born September 18 1954 is a prominent Canadian - American experimental psychologist, cognitive scientist, and author Donald E Brown is an American professor of Anthropology ( Emeritus) Human Universals is a book by Donald Brown, an American professor of Anthropology ( Emeritus) who worked at the University of California NOTICE TO WOULD-BE-ROMEOS*************** Sexual jealousy is a special form of Jealousy in sexual relationships present in Animals that reproduce through Internal fertilization, such Patriarchy is the structuring of Society on the basis of Family units where fathers have primary responsibility for the welfare of hence authority over ^[15]

Although causation from the biological — genetic and hormonal — to the behavioural has been broadly demonstrated and accepted, Money is careful to also note that understanding of the causal chains from biology to behaviour in sex and gender issues is very far from complete. Genetics (from Ancient Greek grc-Latn genetikos, “genitive” and that from grc-Latn genesis, “origin” a discipline of Biology, is Sex steroids, also known as gonadal steroids, are Steroid hormones that interact with Vertebrate Androgen or Estrogen receptors For example, we have not conclusively identified a "gay gene", but nor have we excluded such a possibility. Biology and sexual orientation is research into possible biological influences on the development of human Sexual orientation. ^[16]

The following systematic list (gender taxonomy) illustrates the kinds of diversity that have been studied and reported in medical literature. The gender taxonomy is a classification of the range of different levels at which Humans vary in Sexual characteristics. It is placed in roughly chronological order of biological and social development in the human life cycle. The earlier stages are more purely biological and the latter are more dominantly social. Causation is known to operate from chromosome to gonads, and from gonads to hormones. It is also significant from brain structure to gender identity (see Money quote above). Brain structure and processing (biological) that may explain erotic preference (social), however, is an area of ongoing research. Terminology in some areas changes quite rapidly to accommodate the constantly growing knowledge base. One journal, published since 2002, is specifically devoted to Genes, Brains and Behavior. An academic journal is a peer-reviewed Periodical in which scholarship relating to a particular Academic discipline is published An interactive, animated display of early development is available online.

Gender taxonomy

• chromosomes: 46xx, 46xy, 47xxy (Klinefelter's syndrome), 45xo (Turner's syndrome), 47xyy, 47xxx, 48xxyy, 46xx/xy mosaic, other mosaic, and others
• gonads: testicles, ovaries, one of each (hermaphrodites), ovotestes, or other gonadal dysgenesis
• hormones: androgens including testosterone; estrogens — including estradiol, estriol, estrone; antiandrogens and others
• genitals: primary sexual characteristics, see diagram for the "six class system"
• secondary sexual characteristics: dimorphic physical characteristics, other than primary characteristics (most prominently breasts or their absence)
• brain structure: special kinds of secondary characteristics, due to their influence on psychology and behaviour
• gender identity: psychological identification with either of the two main sexes
• gender role: social conformity with expectations for either of the two main sexes
• erotic preference: gynophilia, androphilia, bisexuality, asexuality and various paraphilias. A chromosome is an organized structure of DNA and Protein that is found in cells. Klinefelter's syndrome, 47XXY or XXY syndrome is a condition caused by a Chromosome Aneuploidy. Turner syndrome or Ullrich-Turner syndrome encompasses several conditions of which monosomy X is the most common In Medicine ( Genetics) a mosaic or mosaicism denotes the presence of two populations of cells with different Genotypes in one The gonad is the organ that makes Gametes The gonads in males are the Testes and the gonads in Females are the Ovaries. The testicle (from Latin testiculus, diminutive of testis, meaning "witness" virility plural testes) is the male "Ovaria" redirects here This is also a proposed section and a Synonym of Solanum. A hermaphrodite is an organism having both male and female reproductive organs An ovotestis is a Gonad with both testicular and ovarian aspects Gonadal dysgenesis generally refers to a condition where gonadal development is abnormal often only presenting streaks of connective tissue so-called streak gonads. Androgen is the generic term for any natural or synthetic compound usually a Steroid Hormone, that stimulates or controls the development and maintenance of masculine Estrogens (US otherwise oestrogens or œstrogens) are a group of Steroid compounds named for their importance in the Estrous cycle, Estradiol (17β-estradiol (also oestradiol) is a Sex hormone. Estriol (also oestriol) is one of the three main Estrogens produced by the human body Estrone (also oestrone) is an Estrogenic Hormone secreted by the Ovary. An antiandrogen, or androgen antagonist, is any of a group of Hormone Receptor antagonist compounds that are capable of preventing or inhibiting the biologic A sex organ, or primary sexual characteristic, as narrowly defined is any of the anatomical parts of the body which are involved in sexual reproduction and constitute A sex organ, or primary sexual characteristic, as narrowly defined is any of the anatomical parts of the body which are involved in sexual reproduction and constitute Secondary sex characteristics are traits that distinguish the two Sexes of a species but that are not directly part of the Reproductive system. The breast is the upper Ventral region of an animal’s Torso, particularly that of Mammals including Human beings. Psychology (from Greek grc ψῡχή psȳkhē, "breath life soul" and grc -λογία -logia) is an Academic and Gynephilia (or gynophilia) (From Greek gunē, "women" + -philia, "love" is the romantic and/or sexual attraction to adult Bisexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of both sexes or to a bisexual orientation Asexuality is a Sexual orientation that describes individuals who do not experience Sexual attraction.

Sex

Sexual reproduction

• Sexual differentiation demands the fusion of gametes which are morphologically different. — Cyril Dean Darlington, Recent Advances in Cytology, 1937. Cyril Dean Darlington ( 19 December 1903 - 26 March 1981) was an English Biologist,

Sexual reproduction is a popular system of producing new individuals within various species. Flies in the Diptera family Syrphidae are commonly known as hoverflies, flower flies, or Syrphid flies. The Evolution of sexual reproduction is a major puzzle The first Fossilized evidence of sexually reproducing Organisms is from Eukaryotes of the Stenian Individuals of sexually reproducing species produce special kinds of cells called gametes, whose function is specifically to fuse with one unlike gamete and hence form a new individual. The cell is the structural and functional unit of all known living Organisms It is the smallest unit of an organism that is classified as living and is often called A gamete (from Ancient Greek γαμέτης; translated gamete = wife gametes = husband is a cell that fuses with another gamete This fusion of two unlike gametes is called fertilization. For soil improvement see Fertilization (soil. By convention, where one type of gamete cell is physically larger than the other, it is associated with female sex. Thus an individual that produces exclusively large gametes (ova in humans) is said to be female, and one that produces exclusively small gametes (spermatozoa in humans) is said to be male. An ovum (plural ova) is a Haploid Female reproductive cell or Gamete. A spermatozoon or spermatozoan ( pl spermatozoa) from the Ancient Greek σπέρμα (seed and ζῷον (living being and more commonly known An individual that produces both types of gametes is called hermaphrodite (a name applicable also to people with one testis and one ovary). In some species hermaphrodites can self-fertilize, in others they can achieve fertilization with females, males or both. Some species, like the Japanese Ash, Fraxinus lanuginosa, only have males and hermaphrodites, a rare reproductive system called androdioecy. Fraxinus lanuginosa ( Japanese Ash; Japanese: アオダモ Aodamo) is a species of ash native to Japan and southern Androdioecy is a reproductive system found in Species composed of a Male Population and a distinct Hermaphrodite population

What is considered defining of sexual reproduction is the difference between the gametes and the binary nature of fertilization. Multiplicity of gamete types within a species would still be considered a form of sexual reproduction. However, of more than 1. 5 million living species,^[17] recorded up to about the year 2000, "no third sex cell — and so no third sex — has appeared in multicellular animals. "^[18][19][20] Why sexual reproduction has an exclusively binary gamete system is not yet known. A few rare species that push the boundaries of the definitions are the subject of active research for light they may shed on the mechanisms of the evolution of sex. For example, the most toxic insect,^[21] the harvester ant Pogonomyrmex, has two kinds of female and two kinds of male. Pogonomyrmex is a Genus of harvester Ants occurring primarily in the deserts of North and South America. One hypothesis is that the species is a hybrid, evolved from two closely related preceding species. In Biology, hybrid has two meanings The first meaning is the result of interbreeding between two animals or plants of different taxa.

Fossil records indicate that sexual reproduction has been occurring for at least one billion years. ^[22] However, the reason for the initial evolution of sex, and the reason it has survived to the present are still matters of debate, there are many plausible theories. It appears that the ability to reproduce sexually has evolved independently in various species on many occasions. There are cases where it has also been lost. The flatworm, Dugesia tigrina, and a few other species can reproduce either sexually or asexually depending on various conditions. The flatworms (Phylum Platyhelminthes from the Greek πλατύ platy, meaning "flat" and ἕλμινς (root ἑλμινθ- helminth- Dugesia is a genus of Flatworms containing some common representatives of the class Turbellaria Asexual reproduction is a form of reproduction which does not involve Meiosis, Ploidy reduction or Fertilization. ^[23]

Sexual differentiation

Although sexual reproduction is defined at the cellular level, key features of sexual reproduction operate within the structures of the gamete cells themselves. The term peafowl refers to Gallinaceous Birds classified within the genera Rheinardia Argusianus Afropavoand Pavo Notably, gametes carry very long molecules called DNA that the biological processes of reproduction can "read" like a book of instructions. Deoxyribonucleic acid ( DNA) is a Nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known In fact, there are typically many of these "books", called chromosomes. Human gametes usually have 23 chromosomes, 22 of which are common to both sexes. The final chromosomes in the two human gametes are called sex chromosomes because of their role in sex determination. A sex-determination system is a biological system that determines the development of sexual characteristics in an Organism. Ova always have the same sex chromosome, labelled X. The X chromosome is one of the two sex-determining Chromosomes in many animal species including mammals (the other is the Y chromosome) About half of spermatozoa also have this same X chromosome, the rest have a Y chromosome. A spermatozoon or spermatozoan ( pl spermatozoa) from the Ancient Greek σπέρμα (seed and ζῷον (living being and more commonly known The Y chromosome is the sex-determining Chromosome in most Mammals including Humans In mammals it contains the gene SRY, which triggers At fertilization the gametes fuse to form a cell, usually with 46 chromosomes, and either XX female or XY male, depending on whether the sperm carried an X or a Y chromosome. Some of the other possibilities are listed above. Gender comprises a range of differences between men and women extending from the biological to the social

In humans, the "default" processes of reproduction result in an individual with female characteristics. For other uses of the word see the Default disambiguation page An intact Y chromosome contains what is needed to "reprogram" the processes sufficiently to produce male characteristics, leading to sexual differentiation (see also Sexual dimorphism). See Sex differences in humans for permanent sex differences Sexual differentiation is the process of development of the differences between Sexual dimorphism is the systematic difference in form between individuals of different Sex in the same Species. Part of the Y chromosome, the Sex-determining Region Y (SRY), causes what would normally become ovaries to become testes. SRY ( Sex-determining Region Y) is a Sex -determining Gene on the Y chromosome in the Therians (placental mammals and marsupials These, in turn, produce male hormones called androgens. However, several points in the processes have been identified where variations can result in people with atypical characteristics, including atypical sexual characteristics. Terminology for atypical sexual characteristics has not stabilized. Disorder of sexual development (DSD) is used by some in preference to intersex, which is used by others in preference to pseudohermaphroditism. Disorder of sex development ( DSD) is a medical term referring to "congenital conditions in which development of chromosomal gonadal or Anatomical sex is atypical Intersexuality is the state of a living thing of a gonochoristic species whose Sex chromosomes, Genitalia, and/or Secondary sex characteristics See also Intersexuality Pseudohermaphroditism or pseudo-hermaphroditism, is a name used to describe people born with Secondary sex characteristics

Androgen insensitivity syndrome (AIS) is an example of a DSD that also illustrates that female development is the default for humans. Androgen insensitivity syndrome (AIS also referred to as androgen resistance syndrome, is a set of disorders of Sexual differentiation caused by Mutations Although having one X and one Y chromosome, some people are biologically insensitive to the androgens produced by their testes. As a result they follow the normal human processes which result in a person of female sex. Women who are XY report identifying as a woman — feeling and thinking like a woman — and, where their biology is completely insensitive to masculinizing factors, externally they look identical to other women. In biology and medicine virilization refers to the biological development of Sex differences, changes which make a Male body different from a Female body Unlike other women, however, they cannot produce ova, because they do not have ovaries.

The human XY system is not the only sex determination system. The XY sex-determination system is the Sex-determination system found in Humans most other Mammals some insects ( Drosophila) and some Birds typically have a reverse, ZW system — males are ZZ and females ZW. Whether male or female birds influence the sex of offspring is not known for all species. Several species of butterfly are known to have female parent sex determination. A butterfly is an Insect of the order Lepidoptera. Like all Lepidoptera butterflies are notable for their unusual life cycle with a The platypus has a complex hybrid system, the male has ten sex chromosomes, half X and half Y. The Platypus ( Ornithorhynchus anatinus) is a semi- aquatic Mammal endemic to eastern Australia, including Tasmania.

Genes, Brains and Behaviour

Genes

Chromosomes were likened to books (above), also like books they have been studied at more detailed levels. Chimpanzee (often shortened to chimp) is the common name for the two extant Species of Apes in the Genus Pan. They contain "sentences" called genes. In fact, many of these sentences are common to multiple species. Sometimes they are organized in the same order, other times they have been "edited" — deleted, copied, changed, moved, even relocated to another "book", as species evolve. Genes are a particularly important part of understanding biological processes because they are directly associated with observable objects, outside chromosomes, called proteins, whose influence on cell chemistry can be measured. Proteins are large Organic compounds made of Amino acids arranged in a linear chain and joined together by Peptide bonds between the Carboxyl Chemistry (from Egyptian kēme (chem meaning "earth") is the Science concerned with the composition structure and properties In some cases genes can also be directly associated with differences clear to the naked eye, like eye-colour itself. Some of these differences are sex specific, like hairy ears. The "hairy ear" gene is on the Y chromosome which is why only men have it. However, sex-limited genes on any chromosome can "say" for example, "if you are in a male body do X, otherwise don't. Sex-limited genes are Genes which are present in both sexes of sexually reproducing Species but turned on in only one sex " The same principle explains why chimpanzees and humans are distinct, despite sharing nearly all their genes. Chimpanzee (often shortened to chimp) is the common name for the two extant Species of Apes in the Genus Pan.

The study of genetics is particularly inter-disciplinary. It is relevant to almost every biological science. It is investigated in detail by molecular level sciences, and itself contributes details to high level abstractions like evolutionary theory.

Brain

"It is well established that men have a larger cerebrum than women by about 8–10% (Filipek et al. The brain is the center of the Nervous system in animals All Vertebrates and the majority of Invertebrates have a brain , 1994; Nopoulos et al. , 2000; Passe et al. , 1997a,b; Rabinowicz et al. , 1999; Witelson et al. , 1995). ^[24][25] However, what is functionally relevant are differences in composition and "wiring", some of these differences are very pronounced. Richard J. Haier and colleagues at the universities of New Mexico and California (Irvine) found, using brain mapping, that men have more than six times the amount of grey matter related to general intelligence than women, and women have nearly ten times the amount of white matter related to intelligence than men. Richard J Haier is an American Psychologist best known for his work on the neural basis of human intelligence Psychometrics, General intelligence The University of New Mexico ( UNM) is a Public University in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The University of California Irvine is a public Coeducational Research university situated in Irvine, California. Brain mapping is a set of Neuroscience techniques predicated on the Mapping of (biological quantities or properties onto spatial representations of the (human or Intelligence (also called intellect) is an Umbrella term used to describe a property of the Mind that encompasses many related abilities such as the capacities White matter is one of the three main solid components of the Central nervous system. ^[26]

Gray matter is used for information processing, while white matter consists of the connections between processing centers. Other differences are measurable but less pronounced. ^[27] Most of these differences are known to be produced by the activity of hormones, hence ultimately derived from the Y chromosome and sexual differentiation. However, differences arising from the activity of genes directly have also been observed.

“

A sexual dimorphism in levels of expression in brain tissue was observed by quantitative real-time PCR, with females presenting an up to 2-fold excess in the abundance of PCDH11X transcripts. Gene expression is the process by which inheritable information from a Gene, such as the DNA sequence, is made into a functional Gene product, such Tissue is a cellular organizational level intermediate between cells and a complete organism A quantitative attribute is one that exists in a range of magnitudes and can therefore be measured. In Computer science, real-time computing (RTC is the study of hardware and software systems that are subject to a "real-time constraint"—i Transcription is the synthesis of RNA under the direction of DNA We relate these findings to sexually dimorphic traits in the human brain. A trait is a distinct phenotypic character of an organism that may be inherited environmentally determined or somewhere in between Interestingly, PCDH11X/Y gene pair is unique to Homo sapiens, since the X-linked gene was transposed to the Y chromosome after the human–chimpanzee lineages split. Sex linkage is the phenotypic expression of an Allele that is related to the chromosomal sex of the individual Transposons are sequences of DNA that can move around to different positions within the Genome of a single cell, a process called transposition An evolutionary lineage is a sequence of Species, that form a line of descent each new species the direct result of speciation from an immediate ancestral species [28]

”

It has also been demonstrated that brain processing responds to the external environment. A language is a dynamic set of visual auditory or tactile Symbols of Communication and the elements used to manipulate them Learning, both of ideas and behaviours, appears to be coded in brain processes. It also appears that in several simplified cases this coding operates differently, but in some ways equivalently, in the brains of men and women. ^[29] For example, both men and women learn and use language; however, bio-chemically, they appear to process it differently. Biochemistry is the study of the chemical processes in living Organisms It deals with the Structure and function of cellular components such as Differences in male and female use of language are likely reflections both of biological preferences and aptitudes, and of learned patterns.

Two of the main fields that study brain structure, biological (and other causes) and behavioural (and other results) are brain neurology and biological psychology. Cognitive science is another important discipline in the field of brain research. Cognitive science may be broadly defined as the multidisciplinary study of mind and behavior

Behaviour

Some behaviours are so simple that biological explanation may be sufficient. Blinking, yawning and stretching are more reflexes than behaviours. A reflex action, also known as a reflex, is an involuntary and almost instant movement in response to stimulus. However, etiquette and protocol are complicated behaviours, presumably influenced by many environmental factors, including social (man-made) ones. Etiquette is a code that governs the expectations of Social behavior, according to the contemporary conventional norm within a Society, A large area of research in behavioural psychology collates evidence in an effort to discover correlations between behaviour and various possible antecedents such as genetics, culture, gender, physical or social development, or physical or social environments. Behavioralism (not to be confused with the learning theory Behaviorism) is an approach in Political science which seeks to provide an objective quantified approach In Probability theory and Statistics, correlation, (often measured as a correlation coefficient) indicates the strength and direction of a linear

A core research area within sociology is the way human behaviour operates on itself, in other words, how the behaviour of one group or individual influences the behaviour of other groups or individuals. Starting in the late 20th century, the feminist movement has contributed extensive study of gender and theories about it, notably within sociology but not restricted to it.

Social categories

Sociology

Sexologist John Money coined the term gender role in 1955. A neologism (from Greek neo = "new" + logos = "word" is a word that although devised relatively recently in a specific time period has been "The term gender role is used to signify all those things that a person says or does to disclose himself or herself as having the status of boy or man, girl or woman, respectively. It includes, but is not restricted to, sexuality in the sense of eroticism. "^[30] Elements of such a role include clothing, speech patterns, movement, occupations and other factors not limited to biological sex. Because social aspects of gender can normally be presumed to be the ones of interest in sociology and closely related disciplines, gender role is often abbreviated to gender in their literature, without leading to ambiguity in that context.

Most societies have only two distinct, broad classes of gender roles — male and female — and these correspond with biological sex. However, some societies explicitly incorporate people who adopt the gender role opposite to their biological sex, for example the Two-Spirit people of some indigenous American peoples. Two-Spirit (also two spirit or twospirit) people are Native Americans who fulfill one of many mixed Gender roles found traditionally among many Other societies include well-developed roles that are explicitly considered more or less distinct from archetypal male and female roles in those societies. In the language of the sociology of gender they comprise a third gender,^[31] more or less distinct from biological sex (sometimes the basis for the role does include intersexuality or incorporates eunuchs). Sociology of gender is a prominent subfield of Sociology. Since 1950 an increasing part of the academic literature and of the public discourse uses gender The terms third gender and third sex describe individuals who are considered to be neither women nor men as well as the social category present in those societies who recognize A eunuch (ˈjuːnək is a Castrated man in particular one castrated early enough to have major hormonal consequences the term usually refers to those castrated in order to ^[32] One such gender role is that adopted by the hijras of India and Pakistan. In the culture of the Indian subcontinent, a hijra ( Hindi: हिजड़ा Urdu: حجڑا is usually considered a member of "the Third India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Pakistan () officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia, Southwest Asia, Middle East and ^[33][34]

The Bugis people of Sulawesi, Indonesia have a tradition incorporating all of the features above. The Bugis are the most numerous of the three major linguistic and ethnic groups of South Sulawesi, the southwestern province of Sulawesi, Indonesia's third largest Sulawesi (formerly known as Celebes, ˈsɛlɛbiz is one of the four larger Sunda Islands of Indonesia and is situated between Borneo and the The Republic of Indonesia ( (Republik Indonesia is a Country in Southeast Asia. ^[35] Joan Roughgarden argues that in some non-human animal species, there can also be said to be more than two genders, in that there might be multiple templates for behavior available to individual organisms with a given biological sex. Joan E Roughgarden (b Jonathan Roughgarden in Paterson New Jersey on 13 March 1946) is an American Biologist. ^[36]

Throughout history social theorists have sought to determine the specific nature of gender in relation to biological sex and sexuality, with the result being that culturally established gender and sex have become interchangeable identifications which signify the allocation of a specific ‘biological’ sex within a categorical gender. {{Fact} The social sciences, however, now argue that gender is socially constructed and hegemonic in all societies.

Contemporary socialisation theory proposes the notion that when a child is first born it has a biological sex but no social gender. As the child grows, "society provides a string of prescriptions, templates, or models of behaviours appropriate to the one sex or the other"^[37] which socialises the child into belonging to a culturally specific gender. There is huge incentive for a child to concede to their socialisation with gender shaping the individual’s opportunities for education, work, family, sexuality, reproduction, authority, and to make an impact on the production of culture and knowledge ^[38]. Adults who do not perform these ascribed roles are perceived from this perspective as deviant and improperly socialised. ^[39]

Some believe society is constructed in a way in which gender is split into a dichotomy by social organisations which constantly invent and reproduce cultural images of gender. Joan Ackner (The Gendered Society Reader) believes gendering occurs in at least five different interacting social processes:

1. The construction of divisions along the lines of gender, such as those which are produced by labour, power, family, the state, even allowed behaviours and locations in physical space 2. The construction of symbols and images such as language, ideology, dress and the media, that explain, express and reinforce, or sometimes oppose, those divisions 3. Interactions between men and women, women and women and men and men which involve any form dominance and submission. Conversational theorists, for example, have studied the way in which interruptions, turn taking and the setting of topics re-create gender inequality in the flow of ordinary talk 4. The way in which the preceding three processes help to produce gendered components of individual identity. i. e. the way in which they create and maintain an image of a gendered self 5. Gender is implicated in the fundamental, ongoing processes of creating and conceptualising social structures. ^[40]

Looking at gender through a Foucauldian lens, gender is transfigured into a vehicle for the social division of power. Gender difference is merely a construct of society used to enforce the distinctions made between that which is assumed to be male and female, and allow for the domination of masculinity over femininity through the attribution of specific gender-related characteristics.

‘The idea that men and women are more different from one another than either is from anything else, must come from something other than nature… far from being an expression of natural differences, exclusive gender identity is the suppression of natural similarities. ’ (Glover & Kaplan, 2000, p. xxi)

Gender conventions play a large role in attributing masculine and feminine characteristics to a fundamental biological sex. Socio-cultural codes and conventions, the rules by which society functions, and which are both a creation of society as well as a constituting element of it, determine the allocation of these specific traits to the sexes. These traits provide the foundations for the creation of hegemonic gender difference. It follows then, that gender can be assumed as the acquisition and internalisation of social norms. Individuals are therefore socialised through their receipt of society’s expectations of ‘acceptable’ gender attributes which are flaunted within institutions such as the family, the state and the media. Such a notion of ‘gender’ then becomes naturalised into a person’s sense of self or identity, effectively imposing a gendered social category upon a sexed body ^[41].

The conception that people are gendered rather than sexed also coincides with Judith Butler’s theories of gender performativity. Butler argues that gender is not an expression of what one is, but rather something that one does ^[42]. It follows then, that if gender is acted out in a repetitive manner it is in fact re-creating and effectively embedding itself within the social consciousness.

Contemporary sociological reference to male and female gender roles typically uses masculinities and femininities in the plural rather than singular, suggesting diversity both within cultures as well as across them.

From the 'evidence', it can only be concluded that gender is socially constructed and each individual is unique in their gender characteristics, regardless of which biological sex they are as every child is socialised to behave a certain way and have the ‘proper’ gender attributes. If individuals in society do not conform to this pressure, they are destined to be treated as abnormal; therefore it is personally greatly beneficial for them to cooperate in the determined ‘correct’ ordering of the world. In fact, the very construct of society is a product of and produces gender norms. There is bias in applying the word ‘gender’ to anyone in a finite way; rather each person is endowed with certain gender characteristics. The world cannot be egalitarian while there are ‘assigned’ genders and individuals are not given the right to express any gender characteristic they desire.

Feminism and Gender studies

The philosopher and feminist Simone de Beauvoir applied existentialism to women's experience of life: "One is not born a woman, one becomes one. "La Beauvoir" redirects here also see Beauvoir (disambiguation Existentialism is a philosophical doctrine which posits that individuals create the meaning and essence of their lives and that this essence follows from their existence "^[43] In context, this is a philosophical statement, however, it is true biologically — a girl must pass puberty to become a woman — and true sociologically — mature relating in social contexts is learned, not instinctive.

Within feminist theory, terminology for gender issues developed over the 1970s. Feminist theory is the extension of Feminism into theoretical or philosophical, ground In the 1974 edition of Masculine/Feminine or Human, the author uses "innate gender" and "learned sex roles",^[44] but in the 1978 edition, the use of sex and gender is reversed. ^[45] By 1980, most feminist writings had agreed on using gender only for socioculturally adapted traits. In Psychology, Trait theory is a major approach to the study of human personality.

In gender studies the term gender is used to refer to proposed social and cultural constructions of masculinities and femininities. Gender studies is a field of Interdisciplinary study which analyzes the phenomenon of Gender. In this context, gender explicitly excludes reference to biological differences, to focus on cultural differences. ^[46] This emerged from a number of different areas: in sociology during the 1950s; from the theories of the psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan; and in the work of French psychoanalysts like Julia Kristeva, Luce Irigaray and Bracha L. Ettinger and American feminists such as Judith Butler. Jacques-Marie-Émile Lacan (French ʒak lakɑ̃ ( April 13, 1901 &ndash September 9, 1981) was a French Psychoanalyst Julia Kristeva (Юлия Кръстева (born 24 June 1941) is a Bulgarian - French Philosopher, Literary critic, Luce Irigaray (born 1932 Belgium) is a French feminist, Philosopher, Linguist, psychoanalytic and cultural theorist Bracha L Ettinger (born 1951 also known as Bracha Ettinger, Bracha Lichtenberg Ettinger, Hebrew ברכה אטינגר, ברכה ליכטנברג-אטינגר Judith Butler (born February 24, 1956) is an American Post-structuralist philosopher who has contributed to the fields of Feminism Those who followed Butler came to regard gender roles as a practice, sometimes referred to as "performative. The notion of performative utterances was introduced by J L Austin. "^[47]

Hurst states that some people think sex will “automatically determine one’s gender demeanor and role (social) as well as one’s sexual orientation (sexual attractions and behavior). Sexual orientation is believed to refer to "an enduring pattern of emotional romantic and/or sexual attractions to men women or both sexes (Hurst, p. 141)”^[48] We have cultural origins and habits for dealing with gender. Culture (from the Latin cultura stemming from colere, meaning "to cultivate" generally refers to patterns of human activity and the symbolic Michael Schwalbe believes that humans must be taught how to act appropriately in their designated gender in order to properly fill the role. The way we behave as masculine or feminine interacts with social expectations. Schwalbe comments that we “are the results of many people embracing and acting on similar ideas. (Schwalbe, p. 23)”^[49]

We do this through everything from clothing and hairstyle to relationship and employment choices. Clothing (also called clothes, accoutrements, accouterments, or habiliments) protects the Human body from extreme Weather Schwalbe believes that these distinctions are important, because we want to identify and categorize people as soon as we see them. We need to place people into distinct categories in order to know how we should feel about them.

Hurst comments that in a society where we present our genders so distinctly, there can often be severe consequences for breaking these cultural norms. Many of these consequences are rooted in discrimination based on sexual orientation. Unlike most discrimination policies discrimination between, which is the discernment of qualities and recognition of the differences focused here discrimination against is Gays and lesbians are often discriminated against in our legal system due to societal prejudices. Hurst describes how this discrimination works against people for breaking gender norms, no matter what their sexual orientation is. He says that “courts often confuse sex, gender, and sexual orientation, and confuse them in a way that results in denying the rights not only of gays and lesbians, but also of those who do not present themselves or act in a manner traditionally expected of their sex. (Hurst, p. 141)” This prejudice plays out in our legal system when a man or woman is judged differently because he or she does not present the “correct” gender. How we present and display our gender has consequences in everyday life, but also in institutionalized aspects of our society.

Legal status

A person's sex as male or female has legal significance — sex is indicated on government documents, and laws provide differently for men and women. Many pension systems have different retirement ages for men or women. Marriage is usually only available to opposite-sex couples.

The question then arises as to what legally determines whether someone is male or female. In most cases this can appear obvious, but the matter is complicated for intersexual or transgender people. Intersexuality is the state of a living thing of a gonochoristic species whose Sex chromosomes, Genitalia, and/or Secondary sex characteristics Transgender (trænzˈdʒɛndɚ from ( Latin) derivatives Different jurisdictions have adopted different answers to this question. Almost all countries permit changes of legal gender status in cases of intersexualism, when the gender assignment made at birth is determined upon further investigation to be biologically inaccurate — technically, however, this is not a change of status per se. Rather, it is recognition of a status which was deemed to exist, but unknown, from birth. Increasingly, jurisdictions also provide a procedure for changes of legal gender for transgender people.

Gender assignment, when there are indications that genital sex might not be decisive in a particular case, is normally not defined by a single definition, but by a combination of conditions, including chromosomes and gonads. Sex assignment refers to the assigning of Sex at the birth of a Baby. Thus, for example, in many jurisdictions a person with XY chromosomes but female gonads could be recognised as female at birth.

The ability to change legal gender for transgender people in particular has given rise to the phenomena in some jurisdictions of the same person having different genders for the purposes of different areas of the law. Transsexual people are those who establish a permanent identity with the Gender opposite to that which they were assigned at birth For example, in Australia prior to the Re Kevin decisions, transsexual people could be recognised as having the genders they identified with under many areas of the law, including social security law, but not for the law of marriage. Thus, for a period, it was possible for the same person to have two different genders under Australian law.

It is also possible in federal systems for the same person to have one gender under state law and a different gender under federal law (a state recognises gender transitions, but the federal government does not).

Gender and development

Gender, and particularly the role of women is widely recognized as vitally important to international development issues. This article is about international development See the closely related concept of development cooperation. This often means a focus on gender-equality, ensuring participation, but includes an understanding of the different roles and expectation of the genders within the community. Participation in Social science is an umbrella term including different means for the public to directly participate in political economic management or other social decisions

As well as directly addressing inequality, attention to gender issues is regarded as important to the success of development programs, for all participants. For example, in microfinance it is common to target women, as besides the fact that women tend to be over-represented in the poorest segments of the population, they are also regarded as more reliable at repaying the loans. Microfinance refers to the provision of financial services to poor or low-income clients including consumers and the self-employed Also, it is claimed that women are more likely to use the money for the benefit of their families.

Some organizations working in developing countries and in the development field have incorporated advocacy and empowerment for women into their work. A notable example is Wangari Maathai's environmental organization, the Green Belt Movement. Dr Wangari Muta Maathai (born April 1, 1940 in Ihithe village Tetu division Nyeri District of Kenya) is an The Green Belt Movement is a Grassroots Non-governmental organization based in Kenya that takes an holistic approach to development by focusing on environmental

Spirituality

Further information: God and gender

In Taoism, yin and yang are considered feminine and masculine, respectively. In Chinese philosophy, the concept of yin and yang ( is used to describe how seemingly opposing forces are bound together intertwined and interdependent in the Taoism (pronounced /ˈdaʊɪzəm/ or /ˈtaʊɪzəm/ also spelled '''Daoism''') refers to a variety of related Philosophical and Religious traditions In Chinese philosophy, the concept of yin and yang ( is used to describe how seemingly opposing forces are bound together intertwined and interdependent in the

In Judaism, God is described with mainly masculine language. God is strongly identified with the sky - God lives in Heaven and sends rain - which was understood as masculine compared to the earth understood as feminine. God is often compared to a warrior, defender, judge, and king. Once God is compared to a person sewing and once to a person knitting. In the Kabbalah (Jewish mysticism) the Shekhinah represents the feminine aspect of God's essence. Kabbalah (קַבָּלָה lit "receiving" is a discipline and school of thought discussing the mystical aspect of Judaism. Shekhinah (- alternative transliterations Shekinah, Shechinah, Shekina, Shechina, Schechinah, שכינה) is the English

In Christianity, God is described in masculine terms and the Church has historically been described in feminine terms. Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings On the other hand, Christian theology in many churches distinguishes between the masculine images used of God (Father, King, God the Son) and the reality they signify, which transcends gender, embodies all the virtues of both genders perfectly, and is the creator of both human sexes. Theology is the study of a god or the gods from a religious perspective In the New Testament, the Holy Spirit is treated with the neuter pronoun. In mainstream Christianity, the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost is one of the three entities of the Holy Trinity which make up the single substance Gender-neutral, gender-inclusive or epicene pronouns are Pronouns that neither reveal nor imply the Gender or sex of a person Hebrew speaking Christians like the Ebionites used the female gender for the Holy Spirit. The Ebionites ( Greek: grc Ἐβιωναῖοι Ebionaioi from Hebrew; he '''אביונים''' he-Latn ''Ebyonim'' "the Poor Ones" were an

In Hinduism,

“

"One of the several forms of the Hindu God Shiva, is Ardhanarishwar (literally half-female God). Hinduism is a religious tradition that originated in the Indian subcontinent. Hinduism is a religious tradition that originated in the Indian subcontinent. Shiva:(pronunciation; Sanskrit: शिव Śiva, lit "Auspicious one" One of the Trimurtis Shiva is the supreme God in the Shaiva Here Shiva manifests himself so that the left half is Female and the right half is Male. The left represents Shakti (energy, power) in the form of Goddess Parvati (otherwise his consort) and the right half Shiva. Parvati ( Sanskrit: Pārvatī sa [[wiktपार्वती पार्वती]] sometimes spelled Parvathi or Parvathy, is a Hindu Whereas Parvati is the cause of arousal of Kama (desires), Shiva is the killer. Shiva is pervaded by the power of Parvati and Parvati is pervaded by the power of Shiva. While the stone images may seem to represent a half-male and half-female God, the true symbolic representation is of a being the whole of which is Shiva and the whole of which is Shakti at the same time. It is a 3-D representation of only shakti from one angle and only Shiva from the other. Shiva and Shakti are hence the same being representing a collective of Jnana (knowledge) and Kriya (activity). Adi Shankaracharya, the founder of non-dualistic philosophy (Advaita–"not two") in Hindu thought says in his "Saundaryalahari"—Shivah Shaktayaa yukto yadi bhavati shaktah prabhavitum na che devum devona khalu kushalah spanditam api " i. e. , It is only when Shiva is united with Shakti that He acquires the capability of becoming the Lord of the Universe. In the absence of Shakti, He is not even able to stir. In fact, the term "Shiva" originated from "Shva," which implies a dead body. It is only through his inherent shakti that Shiva realizes his true nature. This mythology projects the inherent view in ancient Hinduism, that each human carries within himself both male and female components, which are forces rather than sexes, and it is the harmony between the creative and the annihilative, the strong and the soft, the proactive and the passive, that makes a true person. Such thought, leave alone entail gender equality, in fact obliterates any material distinction between the male and female altogether. This may explain why in ancient India we find evidence of homosexuality, bisexuality, androgyny, multiple sex partners and open representation of sexual pleasures in artworks like the Khajuraho temples, being accepted within prevalent social frameworks. "[50]

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Other uses

The word gender is used in several contexts to describe binary differences, more or less loosely associated by analogy with various actual or perceived differences between men and women.

Linguistics

Natural languages often make gender distinctions. These may be of various kinds.

• Grammatical gender is a property of some languages in which every noun is assigned a gender, often with no direct relation to its meaning. In Linguistics, grammatical genders, sometimes also called Noun classes are classes of nouns reflected in the behavior of associated words every noun must belong For example, the word for "girl" is es:muchacha (grammatically feminine) in Spanish, de:Mädchen (grammatically neuter) in German, and ga:cailín (grammatically masculine) in Irish. The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. Irish (ga ''Gaeilge'' is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish.
• Several languages attest the use of different vocabulary by men and women, to differing degrees. See, for instance, Gender differences in spoken Japanese. The Japanese language is unusual among major Languages in the high degree to which the speech of women seen collectively differs from that of men The oldest documented language, Sumerian, records a distinctive sub-language only used by female speakers. Sumerian ( " native tongue " was the language of ancient Sumer, spoken in Southern Mesopotamia since at least the 4th millennium BC
• Most languages include terms that are used asymmetrically in reference to men and women. Concern that current language may be biased in favor of men has led some authors in recent times to argue for the use of a more Gender-neutral vocabulary in English and other languages. Gender neutrality in English language (and in many other languages is a feature in its written and spoken versions in the late twentieth century for some people

Connectors, pipe fittings, and fasteners

In electrical and mechanical trades and manufacturing, and in electronics, each of a pair of mating connectors or fasteners (such as nuts and bolts) is conventionally assigned the designation male or female. Mechanics ( Greek) is the branch of Physics concerned with the behaviour of physical bodies when subjected to Forces or displacements Electronics refers to the flow of charge (moving Electrons through Nonmetal conductors (mainly Semiconductors, whereas electrical An electrical connector is a conductive device for joining Electrical circuits together A fastener is a Hardware device that mechanically joins or affixes two or more objects together A nut is a type of Hardware Fastener with a threaded hole Nuts are almost always used opposite a mating bolt to fasten a stack of parts together A screw is a shaft with a helical groove or thread formed on its surface and provision at one end to turn the screw The assignment is by direct analogy with animal genitalia; the part bearing one or more protrusions, or which fits inside the other, being designated male and the part containing the corresponding indentations or fitting outside the other being female. Analogy is both the cognitive process of transferring Information from a particular subject (the analogue or source to another particular subject (the target and A sex organ, or primary sexual characteristic, as narrowly defined is any of the anatomical parts of the body which are involved in sexual reproduction and constitute

This kind of male-female distinction is known as gender (not sex) of connectors and fastners. It provides an example of a technical use of the term gender that evokes association with the physiology, rather than sociology, of male-female differences.

The standard letters "M" and "F" are commonly used in part numbers. For example, in Switchcraft XLR microphone or hydrophone connectors, the part numbers are denoted as follows:

• A3F = Audio 3-pin Female connector;
• A3M = Audio 3-pin Male connector. A hydrophone (Greek "hydro" = "water" and "phone" = "sound" is a Microphone designed to be used underwater for recording or listening

A cable that has A3F on both ends or A3M on both ends is sometimes referred to as a "gay cable" or "gay cord".

In plumbing fittings, the "M" or "F" usually comes at the beginning rather than the end. For example:

• MIP denotes Male International Pipe thread;
• FIP denotes Female International Pipe thread.

A "gay" male pipe (i. e. a short length of pipe having an MIP at both ends) is sometimes called a "nipple". ^[51]

Music

In western music theory, keys, chords and scales are often described as having major or minor tonality, sometimes related to masculine and feminine. By analogy, the major scales are masculine (clear, open, extroverted), while the minor scales are given feminine qualities (dark, soft, introverted). German uses the word Tongeschlecht ("Tone gender") for tonality, and the words Dur (from Latin durus, hard) for major and moll (from Latin mollis, soft) for minor. See Major and minor. In Music, the adjectives major and minor can describe a scale, key, chord, or interval.

See also

General

• Androcentrism
• Androgyny
• Biological determinism
• Epicene
• Femininity
• Gender bender
• Gender differences
• Gender role
• Gynocentrism
• Masculinity
• Misandry
• Misogyny
• Postgenderism
• Sexism
• Sexual identity
• Transgender

Books

• Brain Sex, Anne Moir and David Jessel, 1989. Androcentrism ( Greek, andro-, "man male" is the practice conscious or otherwise of placing male human beings or the masculine point of view at Androgyny is a term derived from the Greek words ανήρ ( anér, meaning man and γυνή ( gyné, meaning woman that can refer to either of two Biological determinism, also called genetic determinism is the Hypothesis that biological factors such as an organism's individual genes (as opposed to social or environmental Epicene is an Adjective (sometimes substantive) for loss of Gender distinction often specific loss of Masculinity. Gender bender is an informal term used to refer to a person who actively transgresses or "bends" expected Gender roles Boy George is called a A Gender difference is a distinction of biological and/or physiological characteristics typically associated with either males or females of a species in general A gender role is defined as a set of perceived behavioural norms associated particularly with Males or Females in a given social group or system Gynocentrism ( Greek γυνο gyno-, "woman" χεντρον kentron, "center" is the practice conscious or otherwise of placing Misandry ( IPA) is hatred (or contempt of Men or Boys. Misandry is parallel to Misogyny —the hatred of women Misogyny (mɪˈsɒdʒɪni is hatred (or contemptof women Misogyny is parallel to Misandry — the hatred of men Transgenderism is a Social movement seeking Transgender rights and affirming transgender Pride. Sexism is the belief or attitude that one Gender or Sex is inferior to or less valuable than the other and can also refer to a Hatred or distrust towards Sexual identity is a term that like sex, has two distinctively different meanings Transgender (trænzˈdʒɛndɚ from ( Latin) derivatives Brain Sex (ISBN 978-0385311830 is a popular book about the Biology of gender, the biological differences between men and women,
• The Female Brain, Louann Brizendine, 2006. The Female Brain is a book by Louann Brizendine, MD whose main thesis is that women’s behavior is radically different from that of men due to hormonal Louann Brizendine MD is a Neuropsychiatrist and the author of The Female Brain which was published by Morgan Road Books in 2006

Other

• List of animal names — Animal: male, female; horse: stallion, mare; human: man, woman; etc. This lists names of animals used depending on the context Many Species of Animals particularly those domesticated have been given specific names for the Male .

References

Further reading

• Chafetz, JS. The Times of India ( TOI) is a leading English-language Broadsheet Daily newspaper in India. Events 1618 - Johannes Kepler discovers the third law of planetary motion. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Masculine/Feminine or Human? An Overview of the Sociology of Sex Roles. Itasca, Illinois: F. E. Peacock, 1974 (1st ed. ), 1978 (2nd ed. ).
• Lepowsky, Maria. Fruit of the Motherland: Gender in an Egalitarian Society. New York: Columbia University Press, 1993.

External links

• Children's Gender Beliefs
• Gendercide Watch: a project of the Gender Issues Education Foundation (GIEF), a registered charitable foundation based in Edmonton, Alberta
• WikEd—Gender Differences
• WikEd—Gender Inequities in the Classroom

Edmonton (ˈɛdmɨntɨn is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta. Alberta (ælˈbɝtə is one of Canada's prairie provinces. It became a province on September 1 1905

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