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The clitoris ( or ) is a female
sex organ
A sex organ (or reproductive organ) is any part of an animal or plant that is involved in sexual reproduction. The reproductive organs together constitute the reproductive system. In animals, the testis in the male, and the ovary in the female, a ...
present in
mammals,
ostrich
Ostriches are large flightless birds of the genus ''Struthio'' in the order Struthioniformes, part of the infra-class Palaeognathae, a diverse group of flightless birds also known as ratites that includes the emus, rheas, and kiwis. There ...
es and a limited number of
other animals. In humans, the visible portion – the glans – is at the front junction of the
labia minora
The labia minora (Latin for 'smaller lips', singular: ''labium minus'', 'smaller lip'), also known as the inner labia, inner lips, vaginal lips or nymphae are two flaps of skin on either side of the human vaginal opening in the vulva, situated b ...
(inner lips), above the opening of the
urethra
The urethra (from Greek οὐρήθρα – ''ourḗthrā'') is a tube that connects the urinary bladder to the urinary meatus for the removal of urine from the body of both females and males. In human females and other primates, the urethra c ...
. Unlike the
penis
A penis (plural ''penises'' or ''penes'' () is the primary sexual organ that male animals use to inseminate females (or hermaphrodites) during copulation. Such organs occur in many animals, both vertebrate and invertebrate, but males d ...
, the male
homologue (equivalent) to the clitoris, it usually does not contain the
distal portion (or opening) of the urethra and is therefore not used for urination. In most species, the clitoris lacks any
reproductive function. While few animals urinate through the clitoris or use it reproductively, the
spotted hyena, which has an especially large clitoris, urinates, mates, and gives birth via the organ. Some other mammals, such as
lemur
Lemurs ( ) (from Latin ''lemures'' – ghosts or spirits) are wet-nosed primates of the superfamily Lemuroidea (), divided into 8 families and consisting of 15 genera and around 100 existing species. They are endemic to the island of Madagas ...
s and
spider monkey
Spider monkeys are New World monkeys belonging to the genus ''Ateles'', part of the subfamily Atelinae, family Atelidae. Like other atelines, they are found in tropical forests of Central and South America, from southern Mexico to Brazil. The ...
s, also have a large clitoris.
The clitoris is the human female's most sensitive
erogenous zone
An erogenous zone (from Greek , ''érōs'' "love"; and English ''-genous'' "producing", from Greek , ''-genḗs'' "born") is an area of the human body that has heightened sensitivity, the stimulation of which may generate a sexual response, s ...
and generally the primary
anatomical source of human female
sexual
Sex is the biological distinction of an organism between male and female.
Sex or SEX may also refer to:
Biology and behaviour
*Animal sexual behaviour
**Copulation (zoology)
**Human sexual activity
**Non-penetrative sex, or sexual outercourse
** ...
pleasure.
In humans and other mammals, it develops from an outgrowth in the
embryo called the
genital tubercle
A genital tubercle or phallic tubercle is a body of tissue present in the development of the reproductive system. It forms in the ventral, caudal region of mammalian embryos of both sexes, and eventually develops into a primordial phallus. In t ...
. Initially undifferentiated, the tubercle develops into either a penis or a clitoris during the
development of the reproductive system
The development of the reproductive system is the part of embryonic growth that results in the sex organs and contributes to sexual differentiation. Due to its large overlap with development of the urinary system, the two systems are typically ...
depending on exposure to
androgen
An androgen (from Greek ''andr-'', the stem of the word meaning "man") is any natural or synthetic steroid hormone that regulates the development and maintenance of male characteristics in vertebrates by binding to androgen receptors. This in ...
s (which are primarily male hormones). The clitoris is a complex structure, and its size and sensitivity can vary. The glans (head) of the human clitoris is roughly the size and shape of a pea and is estimated to have 8,000, and possibly more than 10,000,
sensory nerve endings
A nerve is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of nerve fibers (called axons) in the peripheral nervous system.
A nerve transmits electrical impulses. It is the basic unit of the peripheral nervous system. A nerve provides a common pathway for the e ...
.
[
*
* Peters, B; Uloko, M; Isabey, P]
How many Nerve Fibers Innervate the Human Clitoris? A Histomorphometric Evaluation of the Dorsal Nerve of the Clitoris
2 p.m. ET 27 October 2022, 23rd annual joint scientific meeting of Sexual Medicine Society of North America and International Society for Sexual Medicine
Sexological
Sexology is the scientific study of human sexuality, including human sexual interests, behaviors, and functions. The term ''sexology'' does not generally refer to the non-scientific study of sexuality, such as social criticism.
Sexologists ap ...
, medical, and psychological debate have focused on the clitoris,
and it has been subject to
social constructionist
Social constructionism is a theory in sociology, social ontology, and communication theory which proposes that certain ideas about physical reality arise from collaborative consensus, instead of pure observation of said reality. The theor ...
analyses and studies.
Such discussions range from anatomical accuracy,
gender inequality
Gender inequality is the social phenomenon in which men and women are not treated equally. The treatment may arise from distinctions regarding biology, psychology, or cultural norms prevalent in the society. Some of these distinctions are empi ...
,
female genital mutilation, and
orgasm
Orgasm (from Greek , ; "excitement, swelling") or sexual climax is the sudden discharge of accumulated sexual excitement during the sexual response cycle, resulting in rhythmic, involuntary muscular contractions in the pelvic region chara ...
ic factors and their physiological explanation for the
G-spot
The G-spot, also called the Gräfenberg spot (for German gynecologist Ernst Gräfenberg), is characterized as an erogenous area of the vagina that, when stimulated, may lead to strong sexual arousal, powerful orgasms and potential female ejacu ...
.
Although, in humans, the only known purpose of the clitoris is to provide sexual pleasure, whether the clitoris is
vestigial
Vestigiality is the retention, during the process of evolution, of genetically determined structures or attributes that have lost some or all of the ancestral function in a given species. Assessment of the vestigiality must generally rely on co ...
, an
adaptation, or serves a reproductive function has been debated.
Social perceptions of the clitoris include the significance of its role in female sexual pleasure, assumptions about its true size and depth, and varying beliefs regarding
genital modification such as
clitoris enlargement
Clitoral enlargement methods are forms of body modification that have the potential to enhance the size of the clitoris and increase sexual pleasure. Clitoral enlargement can be accomplished through a variety of means, each potentially having certa ...
,
clitoris piercing
A clitoris piercing is a genital piercing placed directly through the head (glans) of the clitoris itself. It is a relatively uncommon piercing by choice because of the potential for nerve damage, and because women may find it too stimulating to a ...
and
clitoridectomy
Clitoridectomy or clitorectomy is the surgical removal, reduction, or partial removal of the clitoris. It is rarely used as a therapeutic medical procedure, such as when cancer has developed in or spread to the clitoris. It is often performed on i ...
.
Genital modification may be for
aesthetic, medical or cultural reasons.
Knowledge of the clitoris is significantly impacted by cultural perceptions of the organ. Studies suggest that knowledge of its existence and anatomy is scant in comparison with that of other sexual organs and that more education about it could help alleviate
social stigma
Social stigma is the disapproval of, or discrimination against, an individual or group based on perceived characteristics that serve to distinguish them from other members of a society. Social stigmas are commonly related to culture, gender, ra ...
s associated with the female body and female sexual pleasure, for example, that the clitoris and
vulva
The vulva (plural: vulvas or vulvae; derived from Latin for wrapper or covering) consists of the external female sex organs. The vulva includes the mons pubis (or mons veneris), labia majora, labia minora, clitoris, vestibular bulbs, vulv ...
in general are visually unappealing, that female
masturbation is
taboo
A taboo or tabu is a social group's ban, prohibition, or avoidance of something (usually an utterance or behavior) based on the group's sense that it is excessively repulsive, sacred, or allowed only for certain persons.''Encyclopædia Britannica ...
, or that men should be expected to master and control women's orgasms.
Etymology
The ''
Oxford English Dictionary
The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the first and foundational historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP). It traces the historical development of the English language, providing a co ...
'' states that the word ''clitoris'' likely has its origin in the
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...
, , perhaps derived from the verb , , "to shut".
''Clitoris'' is also Greek for the word ''key'', "indicating that the ancient anatomists considered it the key" to female sexuality.
In addition to ''key,'' the ''
Online Etymology Dictionary'' suggests other Greek candidates for the word's etymology include a noun meaning "latch" or "hook"; a verb meaning "to touch or titillate lasciviously", "to tickle" (one German synonym for the clitoris is ''der Kitzler'', "the tickler"), although this verb is more likely derived from "clitoris"; and a word meaning "side of a hill", from the same root as "climax".
The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' also states that the shortened form "clit", the first occurrence of which was noted in the United States, has been used in print since 1958: until then, the common abbreviation was "clitty".
The plural forms are ''clitorises'' in English and ''clitorides'' in Latin. The Latin
genitive is ''clitoridis'', as in "
glans clitoridis
The glans (, plural "glandes" ; from the Latin word for "acorn") is a vascular structure located at the tip of the penis in male mammals or a homologous genital structure of the clitoris in female mammals.
Structure
The exterior structure of ...
". In medical and sexological literature, the clitoris is sometimes referred to as "the female penis" or
pseudo-penis A pseudo-penis is any structure found on an animal that, while superficially appearing to be a penis, is derived from a different developmental path.
Mammals
In mammals, all intact developmentally typical males have a penis, but the clitoris in ...
,
and the term ''clitoris'' is commonly used to refer to the glans alone;
partially because of this, there have been various terms for the organ that have
historically confused its anatomy.
Structure
Development
![Stages in the development of the external sexual organs in the female (from Gray1119)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6f/Stages_in_the_development_of_the_external_sexual_organs_in_the_female_%28from_Gray1119%29.png)
In mammals,
sexual differentiation
Sexual differentiation is the process of development of the sex differences between males and females from an undifferentiated zygote. Sex determination is often distinct from sex differentiation; sex determination is the designation for the dev ...
is determined by the
sperm that carries either an
X or a
Y (male) chromosome.
The Y chromosome contains a sex-determining gene (
SRY) that encodes a
transcription factor
In molecular biology, a transcription factor (TF) (or sequence-specific DNA-binding factor) is a protein that controls the rate of transcription of genetic information from DNA to messenger RNA, by binding to a specific DNA sequence. The f ...
for the protein TDF (testis determining factor) and triggers the creation of
testosterone
Testosterone is the primary sex hormone and anabolic steroid in males. In humans, testosterone plays a key role in the development of male reproductive tissues such as testes and prostate, as well as promoting secondary sexual characteristi ...
and
anti-Müllerian hormone
Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), also known as Müllerian-inhibiting hormone (MIH), is a glycoprotein hormone structurally related to inhibin and activin from the transforming growth factor beta superfamily, whose key roles are in growth differen ...
for the
embryo's development into a male.
This differentiation begins about eight or nine weeks after conception.
Some sources state that it continues until the twelfth week,
while others state that it is clearly evident by the thirteenth week and that the sex organs are fully developed by the sixteenth week.
The clitoris develops from a
phallic
A phallus is a penis (especially when Erection, erect), an object that resembles a penis, or a mimesis, mimetic image of an erect penis. In art history a figure with an erect penis is described as ithyphallic.
Any object that symbolically— ...
outgrowth in the embryo called the
genital tubercle
A genital tubercle or phallic tubercle is a body of tissue present in the development of the reproductive system. It forms in the ventral, caudal region of mammalian embryos of both sexes, and eventually develops into a primordial phallus. In t ...
. Initially undifferentiated, the tubercle develops into either a clitoris or penis during the
development of the reproductive system
The development of the reproductive system is the part of embryonic growth that results in the sex organs and contributes to sexual differentiation. Due to its large overlap with development of the urinary system, the two systems are typically ...
depending on exposure to
androgen
An androgen (from Greek ''andr-'', the stem of the word meaning "man") is any natural or synthetic steroid hormone that regulates the development and maintenance of male characteristics in vertebrates by binding to androgen receptors. This in ...
s (which are primarily male hormones). The clitoris forms from the same tissues that become the glans and shaft of the penis, and this shared embryonic origin makes these two organs
homologous (different versions of the same structure).
If exposed to testosterone, the genital tubercle elongates to form the penis. By fusion of the urogenital folds – elongated spindle-shaped structures that contribute to the formation of the urethral groove on the
belly aspect of the genital tubercle – the
urogenital sinus
The urogenital sinus is a part of the human body only present in the development of the urinary and reproductive organs. It is the ventral part of the cloaca, formed after the cloaca separates from the anal canal during the fourth to seventh w ...
closes completely and forms the
spongy urethra
The spongy urethra (cavernous portion of urethra, penile urethra) is the longest part of the male urethra, and is contained in the corpus spongiosum of the penis.
It is about 15 cm long, and extends from the termination of the membranous ...
, and the
labioscrotal swelling
The labioscrotal swellings (genital swellings or labioscrotal folds) are paired structures in the human embryo that represent the final stage of development of the caudal end of the external genitals before sexual differentiation. In both males a ...
s unite to form the
scrotum
The scrotum or scrotal sac is an anatomical male reproductive structure located at the base of the penis that consists of a suspended dual-chambered sac of skin and smooth muscle. It is present in most terrestrial male mammals. The scrotum co ...
.
In the absence of testosterone, the genital tubercle allows for formation of the clitoris; the initially rapid growth of the phallus gradually slows and the clitoris is formed. The urogenital sinus persists as
the vestibule of the
vagina
In mammals, the vagina is the elastic, muscular part of the female genital tract. In humans, it extends from the vestibule to the cervix. The outer vaginal opening is normally partly covered by a thin layer of mucosal tissue called the hymen ...
, the two urogenital folds form the labia minora, and the labioscrotal swellings enlarge to form the labia majora, completing the female genitalia.
A rare condition that can develop from higher than average androgen exposure is
clitoromegaly
Clitoromegaly (or macroclitoris) is an abnormal enlargement of the clitoris that is mostly congenital or acquired, though deliberately induced clitoris enlargement as a form of genital body modification is achieved through various uses of anabo ...
.
Gross anatomy and histology
General
![Clitoris 3 D - Helen O'Connell](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6d/Clitoris_3_D_-_Helen_O%27Connell.jpg)
The clitoris contains external and internal components. It consists of the
glans
The glans (, plural "glandes" ; from the Latin word for "acorn") is a vascular structure located at the tip of the penis in male mammals or a homologous genital structure of the clitoris in female mammals.
Structure
The exterior structure ...
, the body (which is composed of two
erectile Erectile tissue is tissue in the body with numerous vascular spaces, or cavernous tissue, that may become engorged with blood. However, tissue that is devoid of or otherwise lacking erectile tissue (such as the labia minora, the vestibule/vagina an ...
structures known as the
corpora cavernosa), and two
crura ("legs"). It has a
hood
Hood may refer to:
Covering
Apparel
* Hood (headgear), type of head covering
** Article of academic dress
** Bondage hood, sex toy
* Hoodie, hooded sweatshirt
Anatomy
* Clitoral hood, a hood of skin surrounding the clitoris
* Hood, a flap of ...
formed by the
labia minora
The labia minora (Latin for 'smaller lips', singular: ''labium minus'', 'smaller lip'), also known as the inner labia, inner lips, vaginal lips or nymphae are two flaps of skin on either side of the human vaginal opening in the vulva, situated b ...
(inner lips). It also has
vestibular or clitoral bulbs. The frenulum of clitoris is a
frenulum
A frenulum (or frenum, plural: frenula or frena, from the Latin ''frēnulum'', "little bridle", the diminutive of ''frēnum'') is a small fold of tissue that secures the motion of a mobile organ in the body.
In human anatomy
Frenula on the h ...
on the undersurface of the glans and is created by the two medial parts of the labia minora.
The clitoral body may be referred to as the shaft (or internal shaft), while the length of the clitoris between the glans and the body may also be referred to as the shaft. The shaft supports the glans, and its shape can be seen and felt through the clitoral hood.
Research indicates that clitoral tissue extends into the vagina's anterior wall.
Şenaylı et al. said that the
histological
Histology,
also known as microscopic anatomy or microanatomy, is the branch of biology which studies the microscopic anatomy of biological tissues. Histology is the microscopic counterpart to gross anatomy, which looks at larger structures vis ...
evaluation of the clitoris, "especially of the corpora cavernosa, is incomplete because for many years the clitoris was considered a rudimentary and nonfunctional organ." They added that Baskin and colleagues examined the clitoris's
masculinization
Virilization or masculinization is the biological development of adult male characteristics in young males or females. Most of the changes of virilization are produced by androgens.
Virilization is most commonly used in three medical and biology ...
after dissection and using imaging software after
Masson chrome staining, put the serial dissected specimens together; this revealed that the nerves of the clitoris surround the whole clitoral body (corpus).
The clitoris, vestibular bulbs, labia minora, and urethra involve two histologically distinct types of vascular tissue (tissue related to
blood vessel
The blood vessels are the components of the circulatory system that transport blood throughout the human body. These vessels transport blood cells, nutrients, and oxygen to the tissues of the body. They also take waste and carbon dioxide away ...
s), the first of which is
trabecula
A trabecula (plural trabeculae, from Latin for "small beam") is a small, often microscopic, tissue element in the form of a small beam, strut or rod that supports or anchors a framework of parts within a body or organ. A trabecula generally ha ...
ted, erectile tissue innervated by the
cavernous nerves
The cavernous nerves are post-ganglionic parasympathetic nerves that facilitate penile erection and clitoral erection. They arise from cell bodies in the inferior hypogastric plexus where they receive the pre-ganglionic pelvic splanchnic ne ...
. The trabeculated tissue has a
spongy appearance; along with blood, it fills the large, dilated vascular spaces of the clitoris and the bulbs. Beneath the
epithelium of the vascular areas is
smooth muscle.
As indicated by Yang et al.'s research, it may also be that the urethral lumen (the inner open space or cavity of the urethra), which is surrounded by spongy tissue, has tissue that "is grossly distinct from the vascular tissue of the clitoris and bulbs, and on macroscopic observation, is paler than the dark tissue" of the clitoris and bulbs.
The second type of vascular tissue is non-erectile, which may consist of blood vessels that are dispersed within a fibrous matrix and have only a minimal amount of smooth muscle.
Glans and body
![Clitoris - adhesion of the praepuce](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ab/Clitoris_-_adhesion_of_the_praepuce.jpg)
Highly
innervated
A nerve is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of nerve fibers (called axons) in the peripheral nervous system.
A nerve transmits electrical impulses. It is the basic unit of the peripheral nervous system. A nerve provides a common pathway for the e ...
, the glans exists at the tip of the clitoral body as a
fibro
Asbestos cement, genericized as fibro, fibrolite (short for "fibrous (or fibre) cement sheet") or AC sheet, is a building material in which asbestos fibres are used to reinforce thin rigid cement sheets.
Although invented at the end of the 19t ...
-vascular cap
and is usually the size and shape of a pea, although it is sometimes much larger or smaller. The clitoral glans, or the entire clitoris, is estimated to have 8,000, and possibly more than 10,000,
sensory nerve
A sensory nerve, or afferent nerve, is a general anatomic term for a nerve which contains predominantly somatic afferent nerve fibers. Afferent nerve fibers in a sensory nerve carry sensory information toward the central nervous system (CNS) fro ...
endings.
Research conflicts on whether or not the glans is composed of erectile or non-erectile tissue. Although the clitoral body becomes engorged with blood upon
sexual arousal,
erecting the clitoral glans, some sources describe the clitoral glans and labia minora as composed of non-erectile tissue; this is especially the case for the glans.
They state that the clitoral glans and labia minora have blood vessels that are dispersed within a fibrous matrix and have only a minimal amount of smooth muscle,
or that the clitoral glans is "a midline, densely neural, non-erectile structure".
Other descriptions of the glans assert that it is composed of erectile tissue and that erectile tissue is present within the labia minora.
The glans may be noted as having glandular vascular spaces that are not as prominent as those in the clitoral body, with the spaces being separated more by smooth muscle than in the body and crura.
Adipose tissue
Adipose tissue, body fat, or simply fat is a loose connective tissue composed mostly of adipocytes. In addition to adipocytes, adipose tissue contains the stromal vascular fraction (SVF) of cells including preadipocytes, fibroblasts, vascular ...
is absent in the labia minora, but the organ may be described as being made up of
dense connective tissue
Dense connective tissue, also called dense fibrous tissue, is a type of connective tissue with fibers as its main matrix element. The fibers are mainly composed of type I collagen. Crowded between the collagen fibers are rows of fibroblasts, fibe ...
, erectile tissue and
elastic
Elastic is a word often used to describe or identify certain types of elastomer, elastic used in garments or stretchable fabrics.
Elastic may also refer to:
Alternative name
* Rubber band, ring-shaped band of rubber used to hold objects togeth ...
fibers.
![Vulva and Clitoris 1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/Vulva_and_Clitoris_1.png)
The clitoral body forms a
wishbone
Wishbone commonly refers to:
* Furcula, a fork-shaped bone in birds and some dinosaurs
Wishbone may also refer to:
* Wish-Bone, an American salad dressing and condiment company
* Wishbone formation, a type of offense in American football
* Wish ...
-shaped structure containing the corpora cavernosa – a pair of sponge-like regions of erectile tissue that contain most of the blood in the clitoris during clitoral erection. The two corpora forming the clitoral body are surrounded by thick fibro-elastic tunica albuginea, literally meaning "white covering", connective tissue. These corpora are separated incompletely from each other in the midline by a fibrous pectiniform septum – a comblike band of connective tissue extending between the corpora cavernosa.
The clitoral body extends up to several centimeters before reversing direction and branching, resulting in an inverted "V" shape that extends as a pair of crura ("legs").
The crura are the
proximal
Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position pro ...
portions of the arms of the wishbone. Ending at the glans of the clitoris, the tip of the body bends anteriorly away from the pubis.
Each crus (singular form of crura) is attached to the corresponding
– extensions of the copora beneath the descending pubic rami.
Concealed behind the labia minora, the crura end with attachment at or just below the middle of the pubic arch.
Associated are the
urethral sponge
The urethral sponge is a spongy cushion of tissue, found in the lower genital area of females, that sits against both the pubic bone and vaginal wall, and surrounds the urethra.
Functions
The urethral sponge is composed of erectile tissue; d ...
,
perineal sponge, a network of nerves and blood vessels, the
suspensory ligament of the clitoris
The suspensory ligament of the clitoris is a fibrous band at the deep fascial level that extends from the pubic symphysis to the deep fascia of the clitoris, anchoring the clitoris to the pubic symphysis. By virtue of this connection, the pubic s ...
, muscles and the
pelvic floor
The pelvic floor or pelvic diaphragm is composed of muscle fibers of the levator ani, the coccygeus muscle, and associated connective tissue which span the area underneath the pelvis. The pelvic diaphragm is a muscular partition formed by the lev ...
.
There is no identified correlation between the size of the clitoral glans, or clitoris as a whole, and a woman's age, height, weight, use of
hormonal contraception, or being
post-menopausal
Menopause, also known as the climacteric, is the time in women's lives when menstrual periods stop permanently, and they are no longer able to bear children. Menopause usually occurs between the age of 47 and 54. Medical professionals often ...
, although women who have given birth may have significantly larger clitoral measurements.
Centimeter
330px, Different lengths as in respect to the Electromagnetic spectrum, measured by the Metre and its deriveds scales. The Microwave are in-between 1 meter to 1 millimeter.
A centimetre (international spelling) or centimeter (American spellin ...
(cm) and
millimeter
330px, Different lengths as in respect to the electromagnetic spectrum, measured by the metre and its derived scales. The microwave is between 1 meter to 1 millimeter.
The millimetre (American and British English spelling differences#-re, -er, ...
(mm) measurements of the clitoris show variations in its size. The clitoral glans has been cited as typically varying from 2 mm to 1 cm and usually being estimated at 4 to 5 mm in both the transverse and longitudinal planes.
A 1992 study concluded that the total clitoral length, including glans and body, is , where is the mean and is the standard deviation.
Concerning other studies, researchers from the
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson and Obstetric Hospital
The Elizabeth Garrett Anderson and Obstetric Hospital and its predecessor organisations provided health care to women in central London from the mid-Victorian era. It was named after Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, one of Britain's first female phys ...
in London measured the
labia
The labia are part of the female genitalia; they are the major externally visible portions of the vulva. In humans, there are two pairs of labia: the ''labia majora'' (or the outer labia) are larger and thicker, while the '' labia minora'' are fo ...
and other genital structures of 50 women from the age of 18 to 50, with a
mean
There are several kinds of mean in mathematics, especially in statistics. Each mean serves to summarize a given group of data, often to better understand the overall value (magnitude and sign) of a given data set.
For a data set, the '' ari ...
age of 35.6., from 2003 to 2004, and the results given for the clitoral glans were 3–10 mm for the range and 5.5
.7mm for the mean.
Other research indicates that the clitoral body can measure in length, while the clitoral body and crura together can be or more in length.
Hood
![Ausprägung der Klitorisvorhaut](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/Auspr%C3%A4gung_der_Klitorisvorhaut.jpg)
The clitoral hood projects at
the front of the labia commissure, where the edges of the
labia majora
The labia majora (singular: ''labium majus'') are two prominent longitudinal cutaneous folds that extend downward and backward from the mons pubis to the perineum. Together with the labia minora they form the labia of the vulva.
The labia majo ...
(outer lips) meet at the base of the pubic mound; it is partially formed by fusion of the upper part of the external folds of the labia minora (inner lips) and covers the glans and external shaft.
There is considerable variation in how much of the glans protrudes from the hood and how much is covered by it, ranging from completely covered to fully exposed,
and tissue of the labia minora also encircles the base of the glans.
Bulbs
The vestibular bulbs are more closely related to the clitoris than the vestibule because of the similarity of the trabecular and erectile tissue within the clitoris and bulbs, and the absence of trabecular tissue in other genital organs, with the erectile tissue's trabecular nature allowing engorgement and expansion during sexual arousal.
The vestibular bulbs are typically described as lying close to the crura on either side of the vaginal opening; internally, they are beneath the labia majora. When engorged with blood, they cuff the vaginal opening and cause the vulva to expand outward.
Although a number of texts state that they surround the vaginal opening, Ginger et al. state that this does not appear to be the case and tunica albuginea does not envelop the erectile tissue of the bulbs.
In Yang et al.'s assessment of the bulbs' anatomy, they conclude that the bulbs "arch over the distal urethra, outlining what might be appropriately called the 'bulbar urethra' in women."
Homology
The clitoris and penis are generally the same anatomical structure, although the
distal portion (or opening) of the urethra is absent in the clitoris of humans and most other animals. The idea that males have clitorises was suggested in 1987 by researcher Josephine Lowndes Sevely, who theorized that the
male corpora cavernosa (a pair of sponge-like regions of erectile tissue which contain most of the blood in the penis during penile
erection) are the true counterpart of the clitoris. She argued that "the male clitoris" is directly beneath the rim of the
glans penis
In male human anatomy, the glans penis, commonly referred to as the glans, is the bulbous structure at the distal end of the human penis that is the human male's most sensitive erogenous zone and their primary anatomical source of sexual pl ...
, where the
frenulum of prepuce of the penis (a fold of the prepuce) is located, and proposed that this area be called the "Lownde's crown". Her theory and proposal, though acknowledged in anatomical literature, did not materialize in anatomy books.
Modern anatomical texts show that the clitoris displays a hood that is the equivalent of the penis's
foreskin
In male human anatomy, the foreskin, also known as the prepuce, is the double-layered fold of skin, mucosal and muscular tissue at the distal end of the human penis that covers the glans and the urinary meatus. The foreskin is attached to the ...
, which covers the glans. It also has a shaft that is attached to the glans. The male corpora cavernosa are homologous to the corpus cavernosum clitoridis (the female cavernosa), the
bulb of penis
Just before each crus of the penis
A penis (plural ''penises'' or ''penes'' () is the primary sexual organ that male animals use to inseminate females (or hermaphrodites) during copulation. Such organs occur in many animals, both ver ...
is homologous to the vestibular bulbs beneath the labia minora, the
scrotum
The scrotum or scrotal sac is an anatomical male reproductive structure located at the base of the penis that consists of a suspended dual-chambered sac of skin and smooth muscle. It is present in most terrestrial male mammals. The scrotum co ...
is homologous to the labia majora, and the penile urethra and part of the skin of the penis is homologous to the labia minora.
Upon anatomical study, the penis can be described as a clitoris that has been mostly pulled out of the body and grafted on top of a significantly smaller piece of spongiosum containing the urethra.
With regard to nerve endings, the human clitoris's estimated number of nerve endings (8,000 to over 10,000) is commonly cited as being twice as many as the nerve endings found in the
human penis
The human penis is an external male intromittent organ that additionally serves as the urinary duct. The main parts are the root (radix); the body (corpus); and the epithelium of the penis including the shaft skin and the foreskin (prepuce) c ...
(for its glans or body as a whole) and as more than any other part of the human body.
These reports sometimes conflict with other sources on clitoral anatomy or those concerning the nerve endings in the human penis. For example, while some sources estimate that the human penis has 4,000 nerve endings,
other sources state that the glans or the entire penile structure have the same amount of nerve endings as the clitoral glans.
Some sources state that in contrast to the glans penis, the clitoral glans lacks smooth muscle within its fibrovascular cap and is thus differentiated from the erectile tissues of the clitoris and bulbs; additionally, bulb size varies and may be dependent on age and
estrogen
Estrogen or oestrogen is a category of sex hormone responsible for the development and regulation of the female reproductive system and secondary sex characteristics. There are three major endogenous estrogens that have estrogenic hormonal ac ...
ization.
While the bulbs are considered the equivalent of the male spongiosum, they do not completely encircle the urethra.
The thin corpus spongiosum of the penis runs along the underside of the penile shaft, enveloping the urethra, and expands at the end to form the glans. It partially contributes to erection, which are primarily caused by the two corpora cavernosa that comprise the bulk of the shaft; like the female cavernosa, the male cavernosa soak up blood and become erect when sexually excited.
The male corpora cavernosa taper off internally on reaching the spongiosum head.
With regard to the Y-shape of the cavernosa – crown, body, and legs – the body accounts for much more of the structure in men, and the legs are stubbier; typically, the cavernosa are longer and thicker in males than in females.
Function
Sexual activity
General
The clitoris has an abundance of nerve endings, and is the human female's most sensitive
erogenous zone
An erogenous zone (from Greek , ''érōs'' "love"; and English ''-genous'' "producing", from Greek , ''-genḗs'' "born") is an area of the human body that has heightened sensitivity, the stimulation of which may generate a sexual response, s ...
and generally the primary anatomical source of human female
sexual
Sex is the biological distinction of an organism between male and female.
Sex or SEX may also refer to:
Biology and behaviour
*Animal sexual behaviour
**Copulation (zoology)
**Human sexual activity
**Non-penetrative sex, or sexual outercourse
** ...
pleasure.
When
sexually stimulated
Sexual stimulation is any stimulus (including bodily contact) that leads to, enhances and maintains sexual arousal, and may lead to orgasm. Although sexual arousal may arise without physical stimulation, achieving orgasm usually requires physica ...
, it may incite female
sexual arousal. Sexual stimulation, including arousal, may result from mental stimulation,
foreplay
Foreplay is a set of emotionally and physically intimate acts between one or more people meant to create sexual arousal and desire for sexual activity. Although foreplay is typically understood as physical sexual activity, nonphysical activiti ...
with a
sexual partner
Sexual partners are people who engage in sexual activity together. The sexual partners may be in a committed relationship, either on an exclusive basis or not, or engage in the sexual activity on a casual basis. They may be on intimate terms ...
, or
masturbation, and can lead to
orgasm
Orgasm (from Greek , ; "excitement, swelling") or sexual climax is the sudden discharge of accumulated sexual excitement during the sexual response cycle, resulting in rhythmic, involuntary muscular contractions in the pelvic region chara ...
.
The most effective sexual stimulation of the organ is usually
manually or
orally (
cunnilingus
Cunnilingus is an oral sex act performed by a person on the vulva or vagina of another person. The clitoris is the most sexually sensitive part of the human female genitalia, and its stimulation may result in a woman becoming sexually aroused ...
), which is often referred to as direct clitoral stimulation; in cases involving
sexual penetration
Sexual penetration is the insertion of a body part or other object into a body orifice, such as the mouth, vagina or anus, as part of human sexual activity or animal sexual behavior.
The term is most commonly used in statute law in the contex ...
, these activities may also be referred to as additional or assisted clitoral stimulation.
Direct clitoral stimulation involves physical stimulation to the external anatomy of the clitoris – glans, hood, and the external shaft.
Stimulation of the labia minora (inner lips), due to its external connection with the glans and hood, may have the same effect as direct clitoral stimulation.
Though these areas may also receive indirect physical stimulation during sexual activity, such as when in friction with the labia majora (outer lips),
indirect clitoral stimulation is more commonly attributed to
penile-vaginal penetration.
Penile-anal penetration may also indirectly stimulate the clitoris by the shared
sensory nerve
A sensory nerve, or afferent nerve, is a general anatomic term for a nerve which contains predominantly somatic afferent nerve fibers. Afferent nerve fibers in a sensory nerve carry sensory information toward the central nervous system (CNS) fro ...
s (especially the
pudendal nerve
The pudendal nerve is the main nerve of the perineum. It carries sensation from the external genitalia of both sexes and the skin around the anus and perineum, as well as the motor supply to various pelvic muscles, including the male or fem ...
, which gives off the
inferior anal nerves
The Inferior rectal nerves (inferior anal nerves, inferior hemorrhoidal nerve) usually branch from the pudendal nerve but occasionally arises directly from the sacral plexus; they cross the ischiorectal fossa along with the inferior rectal artery a ...
and divides into two terminal branches: the
perineal nerve
The perineal nerve is a nerve of the pelvis. It arises from the pudendal nerve in the pudendal canal. It gives superficial branches to the skin, and a deep branch to muscles. It supplies the skin and muscles of the perineum. Its latency is t ...
and the
dorsal nerve of the clitoris
The dorsal nerve of the clitoris is a nerve in females that branches off the pudendal nerve to innervate the clitoris. The nerve is important for female sexual pleasure, and it may play a role in clitoral erections.
It travels from below the infe ...
).
Due to the glans's high sensitivity, direct stimulation to it is not always pleasurable; instead, direct stimulation to the hood or the areas near the glans is often more pleasurable, with the majority of women preferring to use the hood to stimulate the glans, or to have the glans rolled between the lips of the labia, for indirect touch.
It is also common for women to enjoy the shaft of the clitoris being softly caressed in concert with occasional circling of the clitoral glans. This might be with or without manual penetration of the vagina, while other women enjoy having the entire area of the vulva caressed.
As opposed to use of dry fingers, stimulation from fingers that have been well-lubricated, either by
vaginal lubrication
Vaginal lubrication is a naturally produced fluid that lubricates a
vagina. Vaginal lubrication is always present, but production increases significantly near ovulation and during sexual arousal in anticipation of sexual intercourse. Vaginal ...
or a
personal lubricant
Personal lubricants (colloquially termed lube) are specialized lubricants used during sexual acts, such as intercourse and masturbation, to reduce friction to or between the penis and vagina, anus or other body parts or applied to sex toys to red ...
, is usually more pleasurable for the external anatomy of the clitoris.
As the clitoris's external location does not allow for direct stimulation by sexual penetration, any external clitoral stimulation while in the
missionary position
The missionary position or man-on-top position is a sex position in which, generally, a woman lies on her back and a man lies on top of her while they face each other and engage in vaginal intercourse. The position may also be used for other ...
usually results from the pubic bone area, the movement of the groins when in contact. As such, some couples may engage in the
woman-on-top position or the
coital alignment technique
The coital alignment technique (CAT) sex position, known colloquially as grinding the corn, is used primarily as a variant of the missionary position and is designed to maximize clitoral stimulation during sexual intercourse. This is achieved by co ...
, a
sex position
A sex position is a position of the body that people use for sexual intercourse or other sexual activities. Sexual acts are generally described by the positions the participants adopt in order to perform those acts. Though sexual intercourse ge ...
combining the "riding high" variation of the missionary position with pressure-counterpressure movements performed by each partner in rhythm with sexual penetration, to maximize clitoral stimulation.
Lesbian couples may engage in
tribadism
Tribadism ( ) or tribbing, commonly known by its scissoring position, is a lesbian sexual practice in which a woman rubs her vulva against her partner's body for sexual stimulation, especially for stimulation of the clitoris. This may involve vulv ...
for ample clitoral stimulation or for mutual clitoral stimulation during whole-body contact.
Pressing the penis in a gliding or circular motion against the clitoris (
intercrural sex
Intercrural sex, which is also known as coitus interfemoris, thigh sex (or thighing) and interfemoral sex, is a type of non-penetrative sex in which the penis is placed between the receiving partner's thighs and friction is generated via thrus ...
), or stimulating it by movement against another body part, may also be practiced.
A
vibrator (such as a
clitoral vibrator
Clitoral vibrators are vibrators designed to externally stimulate a woman's clitoris for her sexual pleasure and orgasm. They are sex toys created for massaging the clitoris, and are not penetrating sex toys, although the shape of some vibrato ...
),
dildo
A dildo is a sex toy, often explicitly phallic in appearance, intended for sexual penetration or other sexual activity during masturbation or with sex partners. Dildos can be made from a number of materials and shaped like an erect human p ...
or other
sex toy
A sex toy is an object or device that is primarily used to facilitate human sexual pleasure, such as a dildo, artificial vagina or vibrator. Many popular sex toys are designed to resemble human genitals, and may be vibrating or non-vibratin ...
may be used.
Other women stimulate the clitoris by use of a pillow or other inanimate object, by a jet of water from the faucet of a bathtub or shower, or by closing their legs and rocking.
During sexual arousal, the clitoris and the whole of the genitalia engorge and change color as the
erectile tissue Erectile tissue is tissue in the body with numerous vascular spaces, or cavernous tissue, that may become engorged with blood. However, tissue that is devoid of or otherwise lacking erectile tissue (such as the labia minora, the vestibule/vagina and ...
s fill with blood (
vasocongestion
Vasocongestion, vascular congestion or vascular engorgement is the swelling of bodily tissues caused by increased vascular blood flow and a localized increase in blood pressure. Typical causes of vasocongestion in humans includes menstruation, sexu ...
), and the individual experiences vaginal contractions.
The
ischiocavernosus
The ischiocavernosus muscle (erectores penis ''or'' erector clitoridis in older texts) is a muscle just below the surface of the perineum, present in both men and women.
Structure
It arises by tendinous and fleshy fibers from the inner surface of ...
and
bulbocavernosus muscles, which insert into the corpora cavernosa, contract and compress the dorsal vein of the clitoris (the only vein that drains the blood from the spaces in the corpora cavernosa), and the arterial blood continues a steady flow and having no way to drain out, fills the venous spaces until they become turgid and engorged with blood. This is what leads to clitoral erection.
The clitoral glans doubles in diameter upon arousal and upon further stimulation, becomes less visible as it is covered by the swelling of tissues of the clitoral hood.
The swelling protects the glans from direct contact, as direct contact at this stage can be more irritating than pleasurable.
Vasocongestion eventually triggers a muscular reflex, which expels the blood that was trapped in surrounding tissues, and leads to an orgasm.
A short time after stimulation has stopped, especially if orgasm has been achieved, the glans becomes visible again and returns to its normal state,
with a few seconds (usually 5–10) to return to its normal position and 5–10 minutes to return to its original size.
If orgasm is not achieved, the clitoris may remain engorged for a few hours, which women often find uncomfortable.
Additionally, the clitoris is very sensitive after orgasm, making further stimulation initially painful for some women.
Clitoral and vaginal orgasmic factors
General statistics indicate that 70–80 percent of women require direct clitoral stimulation (consistent manual, oral or other concentrated friction against the external parts of the clitoris) to reach orgasm.
Indirect clitoral stimulation (for example, via vaginal penetration) may also be sufficient for female orgasm.
The area near the entrance of the vagina (the lower third) contains nearly 90 percent of the vaginal nerve endings, and there are areas in the anterior vaginal wall and between the top junction of the labia minora and the urethra that are especially sensitive, but intense sexual pleasure, including orgasm, solely from vaginal stimulation is occasional or otherwise absent because the vagina has significantly fewer nerve endings than the clitoris.
Prominent debate over the quantity of vaginal nerve endings began with
Alfred Kinsey
Alfred Charles Kinsey (; June 23, 1894 – August 25, 1956) was an American sexologist, biologist, and professor of entomology and zoology who, in 1947, founded the Institute for Sex Research at Indiana University, now known as the Kinsey Insti ...
. Although
Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud ( , ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating pathologies explained as originating in conflicts ...
's theory that clitoral orgasms are a prepubertal or adolescent phenomenon and that vaginal (or
G-spot
The G-spot, also called the Gräfenberg spot (for German gynecologist Ernst Gräfenberg), is characterized as an erogenous area of the vagina that, when stimulated, may lead to strong sexual arousal, powerful orgasms and potential female ejacu ...
) orgasms are something that only physically mature females experience had been criticized before, Kinsey was the first researcher to harshly criticize the theory.
Through his observations of female masturbation and interviews with thousands of women,
Kinsey found that most of the women he observed and surveyed could not have vaginal orgasms,
a finding that was also supported by his knowledge of sex organ anatomy.
Scholar Janice M. Irvine stated that he "criticized Freud and other theorists for projecting male constructs of sexuality onto women" and "viewed the clitoris as the main center of sexual response". He considered the vagina to be "relatively unimportant" for sexual satisfaction, relaying that "few women inserted fingers or objects into their vaginas when they masturbated". Believing that vaginal orgasms are "a physiological impossibility" because the vagina has insufficient nerve endings for sexual pleasure or climax, he "concluded that satisfaction from penile penetration
smainly psychological or perhaps the result of referred sensation".
Masters and Johnson
The Masters and Johnson research team, composed of William H. Masters and Virginia E. Johnson, pioneered research into the nature of human sexual response and the diagnosis and treatment of sexual disorders and dysfunctions from 1957 until the 1 ...
's research, as well as
Shere Hite
Shere Hite (; November 2, 1942 – September 9, 2020) was an American-born German sex educator and feminist. Her sexological work focused primarily on female sexuality. Hite built upon biological studies of sex by Masters and Johnson and by Alfred ...
's, generally supported Kinsey's findings about the female orgasm.
Masters and Johnson were the first researchers to determine that the clitoral structures surround and extend along and within the labia. They observed that both clitoral and vaginal orgasms have the same stages of physical response, and found that the majority of their subjects could only achieve clitoral orgasms, while a minority achieved vaginal orgasms. On that basis, they argued that clitoral stimulation is the source of both kinds of orgasms,
reasoning that the clitoris is stimulated during penetration by friction against its hood.
The research came at the time of the
second-wave feminist movement, which inspired feminists to reject the distinction made between clitoral and vaginal orgasms.
Feminist
Anne Koedt
Anne Koedt (born 1941) is an American radical feminist activist and author of "The Myth of the Vaginal Orgasm", a 1970 classic feminist work on women's sexuality. She was connected to the group New York Radical Women and was a founding member ...
argued that because men "have orgasms essentially by friction with the vagina" and not the clitoral area, this is why women's biology had not been properly analyzed. "Today, with extensive knowledge of anatomy, with
. Lombard Kelly Kinsey, and Masters and Johnson, to mention just a few sources, there is no ignorance on the subject
f the female orgasm" she stated in her 1970 article ''
The Myth of the Vaginal Orgasm.'' She added, "There are, however, social reasons why this knowledge has not been popularized. We are living in a male society which has not sought change in women's role."
Supporting an anatomical relationship between the clitoris and vagina is a study published in 2005, which investigated the size of the clitoris; Australian
urologist
Urology (from Greek οὖρον ''ouron'' "urine" and '' -logia'' "study of"), also known as genitourinary surgery, is the branch of medicine that focuses on surgical and medical diseases of the urinary-tract system and the reproductive org ...
Helen O'Connell
Helen O'Connell (May 23, 1920 – September 9, 1993) was an American singer, actress, and hostess, described as "the quintessential big band singer of the 1940s".
Early life
Born in Lima, Ohio, O'Connell grew up in Toledo, Ohio. By the time ...
, described as having initiated discourse among mainstream medical professionals to refocus on and redefine the clitoris, noted a direct relationship between the legs or roots of the clitoris and the erectile tissue of the clitoral bulbs and corpora, and the distal urethra and vagina while using
magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technology.
While some studies, using
ultrasound
Ultrasound is sound waves with frequencies higher than the upper audible limit of human hearing. Ultrasound is not different from "normal" (audible) sound in its physical properties, except that humans cannot hear it. This limit varies ...
, have found physiological evidence of the G-spot in women who report having orgasms during vaginal intercourse,
O'Connell argues that this interconnected relationship is the physiological explanation for the conjectured G-Spot and experience of vaginal orgasms, taking into account the stimulation of the internal parts of the clitoris during vaginal penetration. "The vaginal wall is, in fact, the clitoris," she said. "If you lift the skin off the vagina on the side walls, you get the bulbs of the clitoris – triangular, crescental masses of erectile tissue."
O'Connell et al., having performed dissections on the female genitals of
cadavers and used photography to map the structure of nerves in the clitoris, made the assertion in 1998 that there is more erectile tissue associated with the clitoris than is generally described in anatomical textbooks and were thus already aware that the clitoris is more than just its glans.
They concluded that some females have more extensive clitoral tissues and nerves than others, especially having observed this in young cadavers compared to elderly ones,
and therefore whereas the majority of females can only achieve orgasm by direct stimulation of the external parts of the clitoris, the stimulation of the more generalized tissues of the clitoris via vaginal intercourse may be sufficient for others.
French researchers
Odile Buisson Fr and
Pierre Foldès reported similar findings to that of O'Connell's. In 2008, they published the first complete 3D
sonography
Medical ultrasound includes diagnostic techniques (mainly imaging techniques) using ultrasound, as well as therapeutic applications of ultrasound. In diagnosis, it is used to create an image of internal body structures such as tendons, musc ...
of the stimulated clitoris and republished it in 2009 with new research, demonstrating the ways in which erectile tissue of the clitoris engorges and surrounds the vagina. On the basis of their findings, they argued that women may be able to achieve vaginal orgasm via stimulation of the G-spot, because the highly innervated clitoris is pulled closely to the anterior wall of the vagina when the woman is sexually aroused and during vaginal penetration. They assert that since the front wall of the vagina is inextricably linked with the internal parts of the clitoris, stimulating the vagina without activating the clitoris may be next to impossible. In their 2009 published study, the "coronal planes during perineal contraction and finger penetration demonstrated a close relationship between the root of the clitoris and the anterior vaginal wall". Buisson and Foldès suggested "that the special sensitivity of the lower anterior vaginal wall could be explained by pressure and movement of clitoris's root during a vaginal penetration and subsequent perineal contraction".
Researcher Vincenzo Puppo, who, while agreeing that the clitoris is the center of female sexual pleasure and believing that there is no anatomical evidence of the vaginal orgasm, disagrees with O'Connell and other researchers' terminological and anatomical descriptions of the clitoris (such as referring to the vestibular bulbs as the "clitoral bulbs") and states that "the inner clitoris" does not exist because the penis cannot come in contact with the congregation of multiple nerves/veins situated until the angle of the clitoris, detailed by
Kobelt Kobelt may refer to:
People
* Georg Ludwig Kobelt (1804-1857), German anatomist
* Karl Kobelt (1891-1968), Swiss politician
* Wilhelm Kobelt (1840-1916), German zoologist
Other
* Kobelt Airport, an airport in Ulster County, New York, United St ...
, or with the roots of the clitoris, which do not have sensory receptors or erogenous sensitivity, during vaginal intercourse.
Puppo's belief contrasts the general belief among researchers that vaginal orgasms are the result of clitoral stimulation; they reaffirm that clitoral tissue extends, or is at least stimulated by its bulbs, even in the area most commonly reported to be the G-spot.
The G-spot being analogous to the base of the male penis has additionally been theorized, with sentiment from researcher Amichai Kilchevsky that because female fetal development is the "default" state in the absence of substantial exposure to male hormones and therefore the penis is essentially a clitoris enlarged by such hormones, there is no evolutionary reason why females would have an entity in addition to the clitoris that can produce orgasms.
The general difficulty of achieving orgasms vaginally, which is a predicament that is likely due to nature easing the process of child bearing by drastically reducing the number of vaginal nerve endings,
challenge arguments that vaginal orgasms help encourage sexual intercourse in order to facilitate reproduction.
Supporting a distinct G-spot, however, is a study by
Rutgers University
Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...
, published in 2011, which was the first to map the female genitals onto the sensory portion of the brain; the scans indicated that the brain registered distinct feelings between stimulating the clitoris, the cervix and the vaginal wall – where the G-spot is reported to be – when several women stimulated themselves in a
functional magnetic resonance (fMRI) machine.
Barry Komisaruk, head of the research findings, stated that he feels that "the bulk of the evidence shows that the G-spot is not a particular thing" and that it is "a region, it's a convergence of many different structures".
Vestigiality, adaptionist and reproductive views
Whether the clitoris is
vestigial
Vestigiality is the retention, during the process of evolution, of genetically determined structures or attributes that have lost some or all of the ancestral function in a given species. Assessment of the vestigiality must generally rely on co ...
, an
adaptation, or serves a
reproductive function has also been debated.
Geoffrey Miller stated that
Helen Fisher,
Meredith Small
Meredith Francesca Small (born 20 November 1950) is a Professor Emerita of Anthropology at Cornell University and popular science author. She was born in St. Louis, Missouri. She has been widely published in academic journals, and her research is ...
and
Sarah Blaffer Hrdy "have viewed the clitoral orgasm as a legitimate adaptation in its own right, with major implications for female sexual behavior and sexual evolution".
Like
Lynn Margulis
Lynn Margulis (born Lynn Petra Alexander; March 5, 1938 – November 22, 2011) was an American evolutionary biologist, and was the primary modern proponent for the significance of symbiosis in evolution. Historian Jan Sapp has said that "Lynn Ma ...
and
Natalie Angier
Natalie Angier /ænˈdʒɪər/ (born February 16, 1958 in the The Bronx, Bronx, New York City) is an American nonfiction writer and a science journalist for ''The New York Times''. Her awards include the Pulitzer Prize for Beat Reporting in 1991 ...
, Miller believes, "The human clitoris shows no apparent signs of having evolved directly through male
mate choice. It is not especially large, brightly colored, specifically shaped or selectively displayed during courtship." He contrasts this with other female species such as
spider monkey
Spider monkeys are New World monkeys belonging to the genus ''Ateles'', part of the subfamily Atelinae, family Atelidae. Like other atelines, they are found in tropical forests of Central and South America, from southern Mexico to Brazil. The ...
s and
spotted hyenas that have clitorises as long as their male counterparts. He said the human clitoris "could have evolved to be much more conspicuous if males had preferred sexual partners with larger brighter clitorises" and that "its inconspicuous design combined with its exquisite sensitivity suggests that the clitoris is important not as an object of male mate choice, but as a mechanism of female choice."
While Miller stated that male scientists such as
Stephen Jay Gould and
Donald Symons
Donald Symons (born 1942) is an American anthropologist best known as one of the founders of evolutionary psychology, and for pioneering the study of human sexuality from an evolutionary perspective. He is one of the most cited researchers in co ...
"have viewed the female clitoral orgasm as an evolutionary side-effect of the male capacity for penile orgasm" and that they "suggested that clitoral orgasm cannot be an adaptation because it is too hard to achieve",
Gould acknowledged that "most female orgasms emanate from a clitoral, rather than vaginal (or some other), site" and that his nonadaptive belief "has been widely misunderstood as a denial of either the adaptive value of female orgasm in general, or even as a claim that female orgasms lack significance in some broader sense". He said that although he accepts that "clitoral orgasm plays a pleasurable and central role in female sexuality and its joys," "
l these favorable attributes, however, emerge just as clearly and just as easily, whether the clitoral site of orgasm arose as a
spandrel
A spandrel is a roughly triangular space, usually found in pairs, between the top of an arch and a rectangular frame; between the tops of two adjacent arches or one of the four spaces between a circle within a square. They are frequently fill ...
or an adaptation". He added that the "male biologists who fretted over
he adaptionist questionssimply assumed that a deeply vaginal site, nearer the region of fertilization, would offer greater selective benefit" due to their
Darwinian
Darwinism is a theory of biological evolution developed by the English naturalist Charles Darwin (1809–1882) and others, stating that all species of organisms arise and develop through the natural selection of small, inherited variations that ...
, ''
summum bonum'' beliefs about enhanced reproductive success.
Similar to Gould's beliefs about adaptionist views and that "females grow nipples as adaptations for suckling, and males grow smaller unused nipples as a spandrel based upon the value of single development channels",
Elisabeth Lloyd
Elisabeth Anne Lloyd (born September 3, 1956) is an American philosopher of science specialising in the philosophy of biology. She is currently Distinguished Professor of History and Philosophy of Science and Medicine - as well as Adjunct Professo ...
suggested that there is little evidence to support an adaptionist account of female orgasm.
Meredith L. Chivers
Meredith L. Chivers is a Canadian Sexology, sexologist and Clinical psychology, clinical psychologist noted for her research on female sexuality, sexual orientation, paraphilias, sex differences, gender identity, and the physiology of sexual arou ...
stated that "Lloyd views female orgasm as an
ontogenetic
Ontogeny (also ontogenesis) is the origination and development of an organism (both physical and psychological, e.g., moral development), usually from the time of fertilization of the egg to adult. The term can also be used to refer to the st ...
leftover; women have orgasms because the urogenital neurophysiology for orgasm is so strongly selected for in males that this developmental blueprint gets expressed in females without affecting fitness" and this is similar to "males hav
ngnipples that serve no fitness-related function."
At the 2002 conference for Canadian
Society of Women in Philosophy,
Nancy Tuana argued that the clitoris is unnecessary in reproduction; she stated that it has been ignored because of "a fear of pleasure. It is pleasure separated from reproduction. That's the fear." She reasoned that this fear causes ignorance, which veils female sexuality.
O'Connell stated, "It boils down to rivalry between the sexes: the idea that one sex is sexual and the other reproductive. The truth is that both are sexual and both are reproductive." She reiterated that the vestibular bulbs appear to be part of the clitoris and that the distal urethra and vagina are intimately related structures, although they are not erectile in character, forming a tissue cluster with the clitoris that appears to be the location of female sexual function and orgasm.
Clinical significance
Modification
![Clitoromegaly2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/Clitoromegaly2.jpg)
Modifications to the clitoris can be intentional or unintentional. They include female genital mutilation (FGM),
sex reassignment surgery
Gender-affirming surgery (GAS) is a surgical procedure, or series of procedures, that alters a transgender or transsexual person's physical appearance and sexual characteristics to resemble those associated with their identified gender, and a ...
(for
trans men
A trans man is a man who was assigned female at birth. The label of transgender man is not always interchangeable with that of transsexual man, although the two labels are often used in this way. ''Transgender'' is an umbrella term that inclu ...
as part
transitioning, which may also include
clitoris enlargement
Clitoral enlargement methods are forms of body modification that have the potential to enhance the size of the clitoris and increase sexual pleasure. Clitoral enlargement can be accomplished through a variety of means, each potentially having certa ...
),
intersex surgery
Intersex medical interventions, also known as intersex genital mutilations (IGM), are surgical, hormonal and other medical interventions performed to modify atypical or ambiguous genitalia and other sex characteristics, primarily for the purposes ...
, and genital piercings.
Use of
anabolic steroids by bodybuilders and other athletes can result in significant enlargement of the clitoris in concert with other masculinizing effects on their bodies.
Abnormal enlargement of the clitoris may also be referred to as ''clitoromegaly'', but clitoromegaly is more commonly seen as a
congenital anomaly of the genitalia
Intersex people are individuals born with any of several sex characteristics including chromosome patterns, gonads, or genitals that, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical bin ...
.
Those taking hormones or other medications as part of a transgender transition usually experience dramatic clitoral growth; individual desires and the difficulties of
phalloplasty
Phalloplasty is the construction or reconstruction of a penis or the artificial modification of the penis by surgery. The term is also occasionally used to refer to penis enlargement.
History
Russian surgeon Nikolaj Bogoraz performed the fir ...
(construction of a penis) often result in the retention of the original genitalia with the enlarged clitoris as a penis analogue (
metoidioplasty
Metoidioplasty, metaoidioplasty, or metaidoioplasty (informally called a meto or meta) is a female-to-male sex reassignment surgery.
Testosterone replacement therapy gradually enlarges the clitoris to a mean maximum size of (as the clitoris ...
).
However, the clitoris cannot reach the size of the penis through hormones.
A surgery to add function to the clitoris, such as metoidioplasty, is an alternative to phalloplasty that permits retention of sexual sensation in the clitoris.
In
clitoridectomy
Clitoridectomy or clitorectomy is the surgical removal, reduction, or partial removal of the clitoris. It is rarely used as a therapeutic medical procedure, such as when cancer has developed in or spread to the clitoris. It is often performed on i ...
, the clitoris may be removed as part of a radical
vulvectomy
Vulvectomy refers to a gynecological procedure in which the vulva is partly or completely removed. The procedure is usually performed as a last resort in certain cases of cancer, vulvar dysplasia, vulvar intraepithelial neoplasia, or as part o ...
to treat cancer such as
vulvar intraepithelial neoplasia
Vulvar intraepithelial neoplasia (VIN) refers to particular changes that can occur in the skin that covers the vulva. VIN is an intraepithelial neoplasia, and can disappear without treatment. VINs are benign but if the changes become more severe, ...
; however, modern treatments favor more conservative approaches, as
invasive surgery
Minimally invasive procedures (also known as minimally invasive surgeries) encompass surgical techniques that limit the size of incisions needed, thereby reducing wound healing time, associated pain, and risk of infection. Surgery by definitio ...
can have psychosexual consequences.
Clitoridectomy more often involves parts of the clitoris being partially or completely removed during FGM, which may be additionally known as female circumcision or female genital cutting (FGC).
Removing the glans of the clitoris does not mean that the whole structure is lost, since the clitoris reaches deep into the genitals.
In reduction clitoroplasty, a common intersex surgery, the glans is preserved and parts of the erectile bodies are excised.
Problems with this technique include loss of sensation, loss of sexual function, and sloughing of the glans.
One way to preserve the clitoris with its innervations and function is to imbricate and bury the clitoral glans; however, Şenaylı et al. state that "pain during stimulus because of trapped tissue under the scarring is nearly routine. In another method, 50 percent of the ventral clitoris is removed through the level base of the clitoral shaft, and it is reported that good sensation and clitoral function are observed in follow up"; additionally, it has "been reported that the complications are from the same as those in the older procedures for this method".
With regard to females who have the condition
congenital adrenal hyperplasia
Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) is a group of autosomal recessive disorders characterized by impaired cortisol synthesis. It results from the deficiency of one of the five enzymes required for the synthesis of cortisol in the adrenal cort ...
, the largest group requiring surgical genital correction, researcher Atilla Şenaylı stated, "The main expectations for the operations are to create a normal female anatomy, with minimal complications and improvement of life quality." Şenaylı added that "
smesis, structural integrity, and coital capacity of the vagina, and absence of pain during sexual activity are the parameters to be judged by the surgeon." (
Cosmesis Cosmesis is the preservation, restoration, or bestowing of bodily beauty.''Dorland's Medical Dictionary''. 25th ed. Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders Co.; 1995 In the medical context, it usually refers to the surgical correction of a disfiguring defect, o ...
usually refers to the surgical correction of a disfiguring defect.) He stated that although "expectations can be standardized within these few parameters, operative techniques have not yet become homogeneous. Investigators have preferred different operations for different ages of patients".
Gender assessment and surgical treatment are the two main steps in intersex operations. "The first treatments for clitoromegaly were simply resection of the clitoris. Later, it was understood that the clitoris glans and sensory input are important to facilitate orgasm," stated Atilla. The clitoral glans's epithelium "has high cutaneous sensitivity, which is important in sexual responses", and it is because of this that "recession clitoroplasty was later devised as an alternative, but reduction clitoroplasty is the method currently performed."
What is often referred to as "
clit piercing" is the more common (and significantly less complicated)
clitoral hood piercing
A clitoral hood piercing is a genital piercing through the clitoral hood surrounding the clitoris. There are two main types of hood piercing: the vertical clitoral hood piercing and the horizontal clitoral hood piercing. As the name indicates, t ...
. Since clitoral piercing is difficult and very painful, piercing of the clitoral hood is more common than piercing the clitoral shaft, owing to the small percentage of people who are anatomically suited for it.
Clitoral hood piercings are usually channeled in the form of vertical piercings, and, to a lesser extent, horizontal piercings. The triangle piercing is a very deep horizontal hood piercing, and is done behind the clitoris as opposed to in front of it. For styles such as the
Isabella
Isabella may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Isabella (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
* Isabella (surname), including a list of people
Places
United States
* Isabella, Alabama, an unincorpor ...
, which pass through the clitoral shaft but are placed deep at the base, they provide unique stimulation and still require the proper genital build. The Isabella starts between the clitoral glans and the urethra, exiting at the top of the clitoral hood; this piercing is highly risky with regard to the damage that may occur because of intersecting nerves.
Sexual disorders
Persistent genital arousal disorder
Persistent genital arousal disorder (PGAD), previously called persistent sexual arousal syndrome, is spontaneous, persistent, unwanted and uncontrollable genital arousal in the absence of sexual stimulation or sexual desire, and is typically not ...
(PGAD) results in a spontaneous, persistent, and uncontrollable genital arousal in women, unrelated to any feelings of sexual desire.
Clitoral
priapism
Priapism is a condition in which a penis remains erect for hours in the absence of stimulation or after stimulation has ended. There are three types: ischemic (low-flow), nonischemic (high-flow), and recurrent ischemic (intermittent). Most cases ...
, also known as clitorism, is a rare, potentially painful medical condition and is sometimes described as an aspect of PGAD.
With PGAD, arousal lasts for an unusually extended period of time (ranging from hours to days);
it can also be associated with
morphometric
Morphometrics (from Greek μορϕή ''morphe'', "shape, form", and -μετρία ''metria'', "measurement") or morphometry refers to the quantitative analysis of ''form'', a concept that encompasses size and shape. Morphometric analyses are co ...
and vascular modifications of the clitoris.
Drugs may cause or affect clitoral priapism. The drug
trazodone
Trazodone, sold under many brand names, is an antidepressant medication. It is used to treat major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, and difficulties with sleep. The medication is taken orally.
Common side-effects include dry mouth, f ...
is known to cause male priapism as a side effect, but there is only one documented report that it may have caused clitoral priapism, in which case discontinuing the medication may be a remedy.
Additionally,
nefazodone
Nefazodone, sold formerly under the brand names Serzone, Dutonin, and Nefadar among others, is an atypical antidepressant which was first marketed by Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) in 1994 but has since largely been discontinued. BMS withdrew it from ...
is documented to have caused clitoral engorgement, as distinct from clitoral priapism, in one case,
and clitoral priapism can sometimes start as a result of, or only after, the discontinuation of
antipsychotic
Antipsychotics, also known as neuroleptics, are a class of psychotropic medication primarily used to manage psychosis (including delusions, hallucinations, paranoia or disordered thought), principally in schizophrenia but also in a range of ...
s or
selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are a class of drugs that are typically used as antidepressants in the treatment of major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, and other psychological conditions.
SSRIs increase the extracellul ...
s (SSRIs).
Because PGAD is relatively rare and, as its own concept apart from clitoral priapism, has only been researched since 2001, there is little research into what may cure or remedy the disorder.
In some recorded cases, PGAD was caused by, or caused, a pelvic arterial-venous malformation with
arterial
An artery (plural arteries) () is a blood vessel in humans and most animals that takes blood away from the heart to one or more parts of the body (tissues, lungs, brain etc.). Most arteries carry oxygenated blood; the two exceptions are the pu ...
branches to the clitoris; surgical treatment was effective in these cases.
In 2022, The New York Times reported several instance of women experiencing reduced clitoral sensitivity or inability to orgasm following various surgical procedures, including
biopsies
A biopsy is a medical test commonly performed by a surgeon, interventional radiologist, or an interventional cardiologist. The process involves extraction of sample cells or tissues for examination to determine the presence or extent of a dise ...
of the vulva,
pelvic mesh surgeries (sling surgeries), and
labiaplasties. The Times quoted several researchers who suggest that surgeons' lack of training in clitoral anatomy and nerve distribution may have been a factor.
Society and culture
Ancient Greek–16th century knowledge and vernacular
With regard to historical and modern perceptions of the clitoris, the clitoris and the penis were considered equivalent by some scholars for more than 2,500 years in all respects except their arrangement.
Due to it being frequently omitted from, or misrepresented in, historical and contemporary anatomical texts, it was also subject to a continual cycle of male scholars claiming to have discovered it.
The
ancient Greeks
Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity ( AD 600), that comprised a loose collection of cult ...
,
ancient Romans
In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 ...
, and Greek and Roman generations up to and throughout the
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history
The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...
, were aware that male and female sex organs are anatomically similar,
but prominent anatomists such as
Galen
Aelius Galenus or Claudius Galenus ( el, Κλαύδιος Γαληνός; September 129 – c. AD 216), often Anglicized as Galen () or Galen of Pergamon, was a Greek physician, surgeon and philosopher in the Roman Empire. Considered to be one ...
(129 – c. 200 AD) and
Vesalius
Andreas Vesalius (Latinized from Andries van Wezel) () was a 16th-century anatomist, physician, and author of one of the most influential books on human anatomy, ''De Humani Corporis Fabrica Libri Septem'' (''On the fabric of the human body'' '' ...
(1514–1564) regarded the vagina as the structural equivalent of the penis, except for being inverted; Vesalius argued against the existence of the clitoris in normal women, and his anatomical model described how the penis corresponds with the vagina, without a role for the clitoris.
Ancient Greek and
Roman sexuality additionally designated penetration as "male-defined" sexuality. The term ''
tribas'', or ''tribade'', was used to refer to a woman or intersex individual who actively penetrated another person (male or female) through use of the clitoris or a
dildo
A dildo is a sex toy, often explicitly phallic in appearance, intended for sexual penetration or other sexual activity during masturbation or with sex partners. Dildos can be made from a number of materials and shaped like an erect human p ...
. As any sexual act was believed to require that one of the partners be "
phallic
A phallus is a penis (especially when Erection, erect), an object that resembles a penis, or a mimesis, mimetic image of an erect penis. In art history a figure with an erect penis is described as ithyphallic.
Any object that symbolically— ...
" and that therefore sexual activity between women was impossible without this feature, mythology popularly associated lesbians with either having enlarged clitorises or as incapable of enjoying sexual activity without the substitution of a phallus.
In 1545,
Charles Estienne
Charles Estienne (; 1504–1564), known as Carolus Stephanus in Latin and Charles Stephens in English, was an early exponent of the science of anatomy in France. Charles was a younger brother of Robert Estienne I, the famous printer, and son to ...
was the first writer to identify the clitoris in a work based on dissection, but he concluded that it had a urinary function.
Following this study,
Realdo Colombo
Matteo Realdo Colombo (c. 1515 – 1559) was an Italian professor of anatomy and a surgeon at the University of Padua between 1544 and 1559.
Early life and education
Matteo Realdo Colombo or Realdus Columbus, was born in Cremona, Lombardy, th ...
(also known as Matteo Renaldo Colombo), a lecturer in surgery at the
University of Padua
The University of Padua ( it, Università degli Studi di Padova, UNIPD) is an Italian university located in the city of Padua, region of Veneto, northern Italy. The University of Padua was founded in 1222 by a group of students and teachers from ...
, Italy, published a book called ''De re anatomica'' in 1559, in which he describes the "seat of woman's delight".
In his role as researcher, Colombo concluded, "Since no one has discerned these projections and their workings, if it is permissible to give names to things discovered by me, it should be called the love or sweetness of Venus.", in reference to the mythological
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never f ...
, goddess of erotic love.
Colombo's claim was disputed by his successor at Padua,
Gabriele Falloppio
Gabriele Falloppio (also Gabrielle Falloppia) (1522/23 – 9 October 1562) was an Italian anatomist often known by his Latin name Fallopius. He was one of the most important anatomists and physicians of the sixteenth century, giving his name ...
(discoverer of the
fallopian tube), who claimed that he was the first to discover the clitoris. In 1561, Falloppio stated, "Modern anatomists have entirely neglected it ... and do not say a word about it ... and if others have spoken of it, know that they have taken it from me or my students." This caused an upset in the European medical community, and, having read Colombo's and Falloppio's detailed descriptions of the clitoris, Vesalius stated, "It is unreasonable to blame others for incompetence on the basis of some sport of nature you have observed in some women and you can hardly ascribe this new and useless part, as if it were an organ, to healthy women." He concluded, "I think that such a structure appears in
hermaphrodites who otherwise have well formed genitals, as
Paul of Aegina
Paul of Aegina or Paulus Aegineta ( el, Παῦλος Αἰγινήτης; Aegina, ) was a 7th-century Byzantine Greek physician best known for writing the medical encyclopedia ''Medical Compendium in Seven Books.'' He is considered the “Father ...
describes, but I have never once seen in any woman a penis (which
Avicenna called albaratha and the Greeks called an enlarged nympha and classed as an illness) or even the rudiments of a tiny phallus."
The average anatomist had difficulty challenging Galen's or Vesalius's research; Galen was the most famous physician of the Greek era and his works were considered the standard of medical understanding up to and throughout the Renaissance (i.e. for almost two thousand years),
and various terms being used to describe the clitoris seemed to have further confused the issue of its structure. In addition to Avicenna's naming it the ''albaratha'' or ''virga'' ("rod") and Colombo's calling it sweetness of Venus,
Hippocrates
Hippocrates of Kos (; grc-gre, Ἱπποκράτης ὁ Κῷος, Hippokrátēs ho Kôios; ), also known as Hippocrates II, was a Greek physician of the classical period who is considered one of the most outstanding figures in the history o ...
used the term ''columella'' ("little pillar'"), and
Albucasis
Abū al-Qāsim Khalaf ibn al-'Abbās al-Zahrāwī al-Ansari ( ar, أبو القاسم خلف بن العباس الزهراوي; 936–1013), popularly known as al-Zahrawi (), Latinised as Albucasis (from Arabic ''Abū al-Qāsim''), was ...
, an Arabic medical authority, named it ''tentigo'' ("tension"). The names indicated that each description of the structures was about the body and glans of the clitoris but usually the glans.
It was additionally known to the Romans, who named it (vulgar slang) ''
landica''.
However,
Albertus Magnus
Albertus Magnus (c. 1200 – 15 November 1280), also known as Saint Albert the Great or Albert of Cologne, was a German Dominican friar, philosopher, scientist, and bishop. Later canonised as a Catholic saint, he was known during his li ...
, one of the most prolific writers of the Middle Ages, felt that it was important to highlight "homologies between male and female structures and function" by adding "a psychology of sexual arousal" that
Aristotle
Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of ph ...
had not used to detail the clitoris. While in
Constantine
Constantine most often refers to:
* Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I
*Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria
Constantine may also refer to:
People
* Constantine (name), a masculine given name ...
's treatise ''Liber de coitu'', the clitoris is referred to a few times, Magnus gave an equal amount of attention to male and female organs.
Like Avicenna, Magnus also used the word ''virga'' for the clitoris, but employed it for the male and female genitals; despite his efforts to give equal ground to the clitoris, the cycle of suppression and rediscovery of the organ continued, and a 16th-century justification for
clitoridectomy
Clitoridectomy or clitorectomy is the surgical removal, reduction, or partial removal of the clitoris. It is rarely used as a therapeutic medical procedure, such as when cancer has developed in or spread to the clitoris. It is often performed on i ...
appears to have been confused by hermaphroditism and the imprecision created by the word ''nymphae'' substituted for the word ''clitoris''.
Nymphotomia was a medical operation to excise an unusually large clitoris, but what was considered "unusually large" was often a matter of perception.
The procedure was routinely performed
on Egyptian women,
due to physicians such as
Jacques Daléchamps who believed that this version of the clitoris was "an unusual feature that occurred in almost all Egyptian women
ndsome of ours, so that when they find themselves in the company of other women, or their clothes rub them while they walk or their husbands wish to approach them, it erects like a male penis and indeed they use it to play with other women, as their husbands would do ... Thus the parts are cut".
17th century–present day knowledge and vernacular
Caspar Bartholin, a 17th-century Danish anatomist, dismissed Colombo's and Falloppio's claims that they discovered the clitoris, arguing that the clitoris had been widely known to medical science since the second century.
Although 17th-century midwives recommended to men and women that women should aspire to achieve orgasms to help them get pregnant for general health and well-being and to keep their relationships healthy,
debate about the importance of the clitoris persisted, notably in the work of
Regnier de Graaf
Regnier de Graaf (English spelling), original Dutch spelling Reinier de Graaf, or Latinized Reijnerus de Graeff (30 July 164117 August 1673) was a Dutch physician, physiologist and anatomist who made key discoveries in reproductive biology. He ...
in the 17th century
and
Georg Ludwig Kobelt
Georg Ludwig Kobelt (March 12, 1804 in Kehl – May 18, 1857) was a German anatomist. He studied medicine at the University of Heidelberg, where he was a student of Friedrich Tiedemann (1781–1861). He received his medical doctorate in 1833, ...
in the 19th.
Like Falloppio and Bartholin, De Graaf criticized Colombo's claim of having discovered the clitoris; his work appears to have provided the first comprehensive account of clitoral anatomy.
"We are extremely surprised that some anatomists make no more mention of this part than if it did not exist at all in the universe of nature," he stated. "In every cadaver we have so far dissected we have found it quite perceptible to sight and touch." De Graaf stressed the need to distinguish ''nympha'' from ''clitoris'', choosing to "always give
he clitoris
He or HE may refer to:
Language
* He (pronoun), an English pronoun
* He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ
* He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets
* He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...
the name clitoris" to avoid confusion; this resulted in frequent use of the correct name for the organ among anatomists, but considering that ''nympha'' was also varied in its use and eventually became the term specific to the labia minora, more confusion ensued.
Debate about whether orgasm was even necessary for women began in the
Victorian era
In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...
, and Freud's 1905 theory about the immaturity of clitoral orgasms (
see above) negatively affected women's sexuality throughout most of the 20th century.
Toward the end of World War I, a maverick British MP named
Noel Pemberton Billing
Noel Pemberton Billing (31 January 1881 – 11 November 1948), sometimes known as Noel Pemberton-Billing, was a British aviator, inventor, publisher and Member of Parliament for Hertford. He founded the firm that became Supermarine and promoted ...
published an article entitled "The Cult of the Clitoris", furthering his conspiracy theories and attacking the actress
Maud Allan
Maud Allan (born as either Beulah Maude Durrant or Ulah Maud Alma Durrant;Birthname given as Ulah Maud Alma DurrantMcConnell, Virginia A. ''Sympathy for the Devil: The Emmanuel Baptist Murders of Old San Francisco'', University of Nebraska Pr ...
and
Margot Asquith
Emma Margaret Asquith, Countess of Oxford and Asquith (' Tennant; 2 February 1864 – 28 July 1945), known as Margot Asquith, was a British socialite, author. She was married to H. H. Asquith, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, from 1894 ...
, wife of the prime minister. The accusations led to a sensational libel trial, which Billing eventually won;
Philip Hoare
Philip Hoare (born Patrick Kevin Philip Moore, 1958) is an English writer, especially of history and biography. He instigated the Moby Dick Big Read project. He is Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Southampton and Leverhulme a ...
reports that Billing argued that "as a medical term, 'clitoris' would only be known to the 'initiated', and was incapable of corrupting moral minds". Jodie Medd argues in regard to "The Cult of the Clitoris" that "the female nonreproductive but desiring body
..simultaneously demands and refuses interpretative attention, inciting scandal through its very resistance to representation."
From the 18th – 20th century, especially during the 20th, details of the clitoris from various genital diagrams presented in earlier centuries were omitted from later texts.
The full extent of the clitoris was alluded to by Masters and Johnson in 1966, but in such a muddled fashion that the significance of their description became obscured; in 1981, the Federation of
Feminist Women's Health Clinics (FFWHC) continued this process with anatomically precise illustrations identifying 18 structures of the clitoris.
Despite the FFWHC's illustrations, Josephine Lowndes Sevely, in 1987, described the vagina as more of the counterpart of the penis.
Concerning other beliefs about the clitoris, Hite (1976 and 1981) found that, during sexual intimacy with a partner, clitoral stimulation was more often described by women as
foreplay
Foreplay is a set of emotionally and physically intimate acts between one or more people meant to create sexual arousal and desire for sexual activity. Although foreplay is typically understood as physical sexual activity, nonphysical activiti ...
than as a primary method of sexual activity, including orgasm.
Further, although the FFWHC's work significantly propelled feminist reformation of anatomical texts, it did not have a general impact.
Helen O'Connell's late 1990s research motivated the medical community to start changing the way the clitoris is anatomically defined.
O'Connell describes typical textbook descriptions of the clitoris as lacking detail and including inaccuracies, such as older and modern anatomical descriptions of the female human urethral and genital anatomy having been based on dissections performed on elderly cadavers whose erectile (clitoral) tissue had shrunk.
She instead credits the work of Georg Ludwig Kobelt as the most comprehensive and accurate description of clitoral anatomy.
MRI
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to form pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes of the body. MRI scanners use strong magnetic fields, magnetic field gradients, and radio waves ...
measurements, which provide a live and multi-planar method of examination, now complement the FFWHC's, as well as O'Connell's, research efforts concerning the clitoris, showing that the volume of clitoral erectile tissue is ten times that which is shown in doctors' offices and in anatomy text books.
In
Bruce Bagemihl Bruce Bagemihl is a Canadian biologist, linguist, and author of the book ''Biological Exuberance: Animal Homosexuality and Natural Diversity''.
Life and career
He completed his BA at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee in 1981, and served on th ...
's survey of ''
The Zoological Record
''The Zoological Record'' (''ZR'') is an electronic index of zoological literature that also serves as the unofficial register of scientific names in zoology.
It was started as a print publication in 1864 by the Zoological Society of London, ...
'' (1978–1997) – which contains over a million documents from over 6,000 scientific journals – 539 articles focusing on the penis were found, while 7 were found focusing on the clitoris.
In 2000, researchers Shirley Ogletree and Harvey Ginsberg concluded that there is a general neglect of the word ''clitoris'' in common vernacular. They looked at the terms used to describe genitalia in the
PsycINFO
PsycINFO is a database of abstracts of literature in the field of psychology. It is produced by the American Psychological Association and distributed on the association's APA PsycNET and through third-party vendors. It is the electronic versio ...
database from 1887 to 2000 and found that ''penis'' was used in 1,482 sources, ''vagina'' in 409, while ''clitoris'' was only mentioned in 83. They additionally analyzed 57 books listed in a computer database for sex instruction. In the majority of the books, ''penis'' was the most commonly discussed body part – mentioned more than ''clitoris'', ''vagina'', and ''uterus'' put together. They last investigated terminology used by college students, ranging from Euro-American (76%/76%), Hispanic (18%/14%), and African American (4%/7%), regarding the students' beliefs about sexuality and knowledge on the subject. The students were overwhelmingly educated to believe that the vagina is the female counterpart of the penis. The authors found that the students' belief that the inner portion of the vagina is the most sexually sensitive part of the female body correlated with negative attitudes toward masturbation and strong support for sexual myths.
![8_mars_2019_-_Paris_République_(40355995113)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e8/8_mars_2019_-_Paris_R%C3%A9publique_%2840355995113%29.jpg)
A 2005 study reported that, among a sample of undergraduate students, the most frequently cited sources for knowledge about the clitoris were school and friends, and that this was associated with the least tested knowledge. Knowledge of the clitoris by self-exploration was the least cited, but "respondents correctly answered, on average, three of the five clitoral knowledge measures". The authors stated that "
owledge correlated significantly with the frequency of women's orgasm in masturbation but not partnered sex" and that their "results are discussed in light of gender inequality and a social construction of sexuality, endorsed by both men and women, that privileges men's sexual pleasure over women's, such that orgasm for women is pleasing, but ultimately incidental." They concluded that part of the solution to remedying "this problem" requires that males and females are taught more about the clitoris than is currently practiced.
In May 2013,
humanitarian group
Clitoraid
Clitoraid is a non-profit project started by the Raelian movement to combat female genital mutilation.
The project was started in 2005 or 2006. The Raelian movement sees sexual gratification as a positive thing and Clitoraid has sponsored clitora ...
launched the first annual International Clitoris Awareness Week, from 6 to 12 May. Clitoraid spokesperson Nadine Gary stated that the group's mission is to raise public awareness about the clitoris because it has "been ignored, vilified, made taboo, and considered sinful and shameful for centuries".
In 2016, Odile Fillod created a
3D printable, open source, full-size model of the clitoris, for use in a set of anti-sexist videos she had been commissioned to produce. Fillod was interviewed by
Stephanie Theobald, whose article in ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' stated that the 3D model would be used for
sex education
Sex education, also known as sexual education, sexuality education or sex ed, is the instruction of issues relating to human sexuality, including emotional relations and responsibilities, human sexual anatomy, sexual activity, sexual reproduc ...
in French schools, from primary to secondary level, from September 2016 onwards;
this was not the case, but the story went viral across the world.
In a 2019 study, a questionnaire was administered to a sample of educational sciences postgraduate students to trace the level of their knowledge concerning the organs of the female and male reproductive system. The authors reported that about two-thirds of the students failed to name external female genitals, such as the clitoris and labia, even after detailed pictures were provided to them. A 2022 analysis reported that the clitoris is mentioned in only one out of 113 Greek secondary education textbooks used in biology classes from 1870s to present.
Contemporary art
In 2012, New York artist
Sophia Wallace started work on a multimedia project to challenge misconceptions about the clitoris. Based on O'Connell's 1998 research, Wallace's work emphasizes the sheer scope and size of the human clitoris. She says that ignorance of this still seems to be pervasive in modern society. "It is a curious dilemma to observe the paradox that on the one hand the female body is the primary metaphor for sexuality, its use saturates advertising, art and the mainstream erotic imaginary," she said. "Yet, the clitoris, the true female sexual organ, is virtually invisible." The project is called ''Cliteracy'' and it includes a "clit rodeo", which is an interactive,
climb-on model of a giant golden clitoris, including its inner parts, produced with the help of sculptor Kenneth Thomas. "It's been a showstopper wherever it's been shown. People are hungry to be able to talk about this," Wallace said. "I love seeing men standing up for the clit
..Cliteracy is about not having one's body controlled or legislated
..Not having access to the pleasure that is your birthright is a deeply political act."
In 2016, another project started in New York,
street art that has since spread to almost 100 cities: Clitorosity, a "community-driven effort to celebrate the full structure of the clitoris", combining chalk drawings and words to spark interaction and conversation with passers-by, which the team documents on social media.
In 2016, Lori-Malépart Traversy made an animated documentary about the unrecognized anatomy of the clitoris.
In 2017, Alli Sebastian Wolf created a golden 100:1 scale model anatomical of a clitoris, called the ''Glitoris'' and said, she hopes knowledge of the clitoris will soon become so uncontroversial that making art about them would be as irrelevant as making art about penises.
Other projects listed by the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
include Clito Clito, body-positive jewellery made in Berlin; ''Clitorissima'', a documentary intended to normalize mother-daughter conversations about the clitoris; and a ClitArt festival in London, encompassing spoken word performances as well as visual art.
French art collective Les Infemmes (a pun on "infamous" and "women") published a
fanzine whose title can be translated as "The Clit Cheatsheet".
Influence on female genital mutilation
Significant controversy surrounds female genital mutilation (FGM),
with the
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of ...
(WHO) being one of many health organizations that have campaigned against the procedures on behalf of
human rights
Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...
, stating that "FGM has no health benefits" and that it is "a violation of the human rights of girls and women" which "reflects deep-rooted inequality between the sexes".
The practice has existed at one point or another in almost all human civilizations,
most commonly to exert control over the sexual behavior, including masturbation, of girls and women, but also to change the clitoris's appearance.
Custom and tradition are the most frequently cited reasons for FGM, with some cultures believing that not performing it has the possibility of disrupting the cohesiveness of their social and political systems, such as FGM also being a part of a girl's initiation into adulthood. Often, a girl is not considered an adult in an FGM-practicing society unless she has undergone FGM,
and the "removal of the clitoris and labia – viewed by some as the ''male parts'' of a woman's body – is thought to enhance the girl's femininity, often synonymous with docility and obedience".
Female genital mutilation is carried out in several societies, especially in Africa, with 85 percent of genital mutilations performed in Africa consisting of clitoridectomy or excision,
and to a lesser extent in other parts of the Middle East and Southeast Asia, on girls from a few days old to mid-adolescent, often to reduce sexual desire in an effort to preserve vaginal
virginity
Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...
.
The practice of FGM has spread globally, as immigrants from Asia, Africa, and the Middle East bring the custom with them.
In the United States, it is sometimes practiced on girls born with a clitoris that is larger than usual.
Comfort Momoh
Comfort Iyabo Amah Momoh, (born 1962) is a British midwife who specializes in the treatment of female genital mutilation (FGM). Born in Nigeria, Momoh is a member of the British FGM national clinical group, established in 2007 to train he ...
, who specializes in the topic of FGM, states that FGM might have been "practiced in ancient Egypt as a sign of distinction among the aristocracy"; there are reports that traces of
infibulation
Infibulation is the ritual removal of the external female genitalia and the suturing of the vulva, a practice found mainly in northeastern Africa, particularly in Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, and Sudan. The World Health Organization refer ...
are on Egyptian mummies.
FGM is still routinely practiced in Egypt.
Greenberg et al. report that "one study found that 97% of married women in Egypt had had some form of genital mutilation performed."
Amnesty International estimated in 1997 that more than two million FGM procedures are performed every year.
Other animals
General
Although the clitoris exists in all mammal species,
few detailed studies of the anatomy of the clitoris in non-humans exist.
The clitoris is especially developed in
fossas,
ape
Apes (collectively Hominoidea ) are a clade of Old World simians native to sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia (though they were more widespread in Africa, most of Asia, and as well as Europe in prehistory), which together with its sister g ...
s,
lemur
Lemurs ( ) (from Latin ''lemures'' – ghosts or spirits) are wet-nosed primates of the superfamily Lemuroidea (), divided into 8 families and consisting of 15 genera and around 100 existing species. They are endemic to the island of Madagas ...
s,
moles Moles can refer to:
* Moles de Xert, a mountain range in the Baix Maestrat comarca, Valencian Community, Spain
* The Moles (Australian band)
*The Moles, alter ego of Scottish band Simon Dupree and the Big Sound
People
*Abraham Moles, French engin ...
,
and, like the penis in many non-human
placental
Placental mammals (infraclass Placentalia ) are one of the three extant subdivisions of the class Mammalia, the other two being Monotremata and Marsupialia. Placentalia contains the vast majority of extant mammals, which are partly distinguishe ...
mammals, often contains a small bone. In females, this bone is known as the
os clitoridis The os clitoridis (also called the os clitoris or baubellum) is a bone inside the clitoris of many mammalian taxa. It is absent from the human clitoris, but present in clitoris#Non-human primates, the clitoris of some primates, such as the ring-tail ...
.
The clitoris exists in
turtle
Turtles are an order of reptiles known as Testudines, characterized by a special shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Cryptodira (hidden necked t ...
s,
ostrich
Ostriches are large flightless birds of the genus ''Struthio'' in the order Struthioniformes, part of the infra-class Palaeognathae, a diverse group of flightless birds also known as ratites that includes the emus, rheas, and kiwis. There ...
es,
crocodiles,
and in species of birds in which the male counterpart has a penis.
Some
intersex
Intersex people are individuals born with any of several sex characteristics including chromosome patterns, gonads, or genitals that, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical bin ...
female bears mate and give birth through the tip of the clitoris; these species are
grizzly bears,
brown bear
The brown bear (''Ursus arctos'') is a large bear species found across Eurasia and North America. In North America, the populations of brown bears are called grizzly bears, while the subspecies that inhabits the Kodiak Islands of Alaska is ...
s,
American black bears and
polar bears. Although the bears have been described as having "a birth canal that runs through the clitoris rather than forming a separate vagina" (a feature that is estimated to make up 10 to 20 percent of the bears' population),
scientists state that female
spotted hyenas are the only non-
hermaphroditic
In reproductive biology, a hermaphrodite () is an organism that has both kinds of reproductive organs and can produce both gametes associated with male and female sexes.
Many taxonomic groups of animals (mostly invertebrates) do not have s ...
female mammals devoid of an external vaginal opening, and whose sexual anatomy is distinct from usual intersex cases.
Non-human primates
In
spider monkey
Spider monkeys are New World monkeys belonging to the genus ''Ateles'', part of the subfamily Atelinae, family Atelidae. Like other atelines, they are found in tropical forests of Central and South America, from southern Mexico to Brazil. The ...
s, the clitoris is especially developed and has an interior passage, or urethra, that makes it almost identical to the penis, and it retains and distributes urine droplets as the female spider monkey moves around. Scholar Alan F. Dixson stated that this urine "is voided at the bases of the clitoris, flows down the shallow groove on its perineal surface, and is held by the skin folds on each side of the groove".
Because spider monkeys of South America have pendulous and erectile clitorises long enough to be mistaken for a penis, researchers and observers of the species look for a scrotum to determine the animal's sex; a similar approach is to identify
scent-marking
In ethology, territory is the sociographical area that an animal consistently defends against conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against animals of other species) using agonistic behaviors or (less commonly) real physical aggression. A ...
glands that may also be present on the clitoris.
The clitoris erects in
squirrel monkeys
Squirrel monkeys are New World monkeys of the genus ''Saimiri''. ''Saimiri'' is the only genus in the subfamily Saimirinae. The name of the genus is of Tupi origin (''sai-mirím'' or ''çai-mbirín'', with ''sai'' meaning 'monkey' and ''mirím'' ...
during dominance displays, which indirectly influences the squirrel monkeys' reproductive success.
The clitoris of
bonobos is larger and more externalized than in most mammals;
Natalie Angier said that a young adolescent "female bonobo is maybe half the weight of a human teenager, but her clitoris is three times bigger than the human equivalent, and visible enough to waggle unmistakably as she walks".
Female bonobos often engage in the practice of genital-genital (GG) rubbing, which is the non-human form of
tribadism
Tribadism ( ) or tribbing, commonly known by its scissoring position, is a lesbian sexual practice in which a woman rubs her vulva against her partner's body for sexual stimulation, especially for stimulation of the clitoris. This may involve vulv ...
that human females engage in.
Ethologist
Ethology is the scientific study of animal behaviour, usually with a focus on behaviour under natural conditions, and viewing behaviour as an evolutionarily adaptive trait. Behaviourism as a term also describes the scientific and objectiv ...
Jonathan Balcombe stated that female bonobos rub their clitorises together rapidly for ten to twenty seconds, and this behavior, "which may be repeated in rapid succession, is usually accompanied by grinding, shrieking, and clitoral engorgement"; he added that, on average, they engage in this practice "about once every two hours", and as bonobos sometimes mate face-to-face, "evolutionary biologist Marlene Zuk has suggested that the position of the clitoris in bonobos and some other primates has evolved to maximize stimulation during sexual intercourse".
Many
strepsirrhine
Strepsirrhini or Strepsirhini (; ) is a suborder of primates that includes the lemuriform primates, which consist of the lemurs of Madagascar, galagos ("bushbabies") and pottos from Africa, and the lorises from India and southeast Asia. Colle ...
species exhibit elongated clitorises that are either fully or partially tunneled by the urethra, including
mouse lemur
The mouse lemurs are nocturnal lemurs of the genus ''Microcebus''. Like all lemurs, mouse lemurs are native to Madagascar.
Mouse lemurs have a combined head, body and tail length of less than , making them the smallest primates (the smallest spe ...
s,
dwarf lemur
The dwarf lemurs are the lemurs of the genus ''Cheirogaleus''. All of the species in this genus, like all other lemurs, are native to Madagascar.
Description
Measuring 19–27 cm in body length with a tail about 16–17 cm, they are ...
s, all ''
Eulemur'' species,
loris
Loris is the common name for the strepsirrhine mammals of the subfamily Lorinae (sometimes spelled Lorisinae) in the family Lorisidae. ''Loris'' is one genus in this subfamily and includes the slender lorises, ''Nycticebus'' is the genus conta ...
es and
galago
Galagos , also known as bush babies, or ''nagapies'' (meaning "night monkeys" in Afrikaans), are small nocturnal primates native to continental, sub-Sahara Africa, and make up the family Galagidae (also sometimes called Galagonidae). They are ...
s.
Some of these species also exhibit a membrane seal across the vagina that closes the vaginal opening during the non-mating seasons, most notably mouse and dwarf lemurs.
The clitoral morphology of the
ring-tailed lemur is the most well-studied. They are described as having "elongated, pendulous clitorises that are
ullytunneled by a urethra". The urethra is surrounded by erectile tissue, which allows for significant swelling during breeding seasons, but this erectile tissue differs from the typical male
corpus spongiosum
The corpus spongiosum is the mass of spongy tissue surrounding the male urethra within the penis. It is also called the corpus cavernosum urethrae in older texts.
Anatomy
The proximal part of the corpus spongiosum is expanded to form the ure ...
. Non-pregnant adult ring-tailed females do not show higher testosterone levels than males, but they do exhibit higher
A4 and estrogen levels during seasonal aggression. During pregnancy, estrogen, A
4, and testosterone levels are raised, but female fetuses are still "protected" from excess testosterone.
These "masculinized" genitalia are often found alongside other traits, such as female-dominated social groups, reduced sexual dimorphism that makes females the same size as males, and even ratios of sexes in adult populations.
This phenomenon that has been dubbed the "lemur syndrome".
A 2014 study of ''Eulemur'' masculinization proposed that behavioral and morphological masculinization in female
lemuriformes
Lemuriformes is an infraorder of primate that falls under the suborder Strepsirrhini. It includes the lemurs of Madagascar, as well as the galagos and lorisids of Africa and Asia, although a popular alternative taxonomy places the lorisoids i ...
is an ancestral trait that likely emerged after their split from
lorisiformes.
Spotted hyenas
![Spotted hyena in Kenya](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/be/Spotted_hyena_in_Kenya.jpg)
While female
spotted hyenas are sometimes referred to as
hermaphrodites or as
intersex
Intersex people are individuals born with any of several sex characteristics including chromosome patterns, gonads, or genitals that, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical bin ...
,
and scientists of ancient and later historical times believed that they were hermaphrodites,
modern scientists do not refer to them as such.
That designation is typically reserved for those who simultaneously exhibit features of both sexes;
the genetic makeup of female spotted hyenas "are clearly distinct" from male spotted hyenas.
Female spotted hyenas have a clitoris 90 percent as long and the same diameter as a male penis (171 millimeters long and 22 millimeters in diameter),
and this
pseudo-penis A pseudo-penis is any structure found on an animal that, while superficially appearing to be a penis, is derived from a different developmental path.
Mammals
In mammals, all intact developmentally typical males have a penis, but the clitoris in ...
's formation seems largely
androgen
An androgen (from Greek ''andr-'', the stem of the word meaning "man") is any natural or synthetic steroid hormone that regulates the development and maintenance of male characteristics in vertebrates by binding to androgen receptors. This in ...
-independent because it appears in the female fetus before differentiation of the fetal ovary and
adrenal gland
The adrenal glands (also known as suprarenal glands) are endocrine glands that produce a variety of hormones including adrenaline and the steroids aldosterone and cortisol. They are found above the kidneys. Each gland has an outer cortex whic ...
.
The spotted hyenas have a highly erectile clitoris, complete with a false scrotum; author John C. Wingfield stated that "the resemblance to male genitalia is so close that sex can be determined with confidence only by palpation of the scrotum".
The pseudo-penis can also be distinguished from the males' genitalia by its greater thickness and more rounded glans.
The female possesses no external vagina, as the labia are fused to form a pseudo-scrotum. In the females, this scrotum consists of soft adipose tissue.
Like male spotted hyenas with regard to their penises, the female spotted hyenas have small
penile spines
Many mammalian species have developed keratinized penile spines along the glans and/or shaft, which may be involved in sexual selection. These spines have been described as being simple, single-pointed structures (macaques) or complex with two ...
on the head of their clitorises, which scholar said makes "the clitoris tip feel like soft sandpaper". She added that the clitoris "extends away from the body in a sleek and slender arc, measuring, on average, over 17 cm from root to tip. Just like a penis,
tis fully erectile, raising its head in hyena greeting ceremonies, social displays, games of rough and tumble or when sniffing out peers".
![Anatomischer Anzeiger (1922) (18006271698)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/Anatomischer_Anzeiger_%281922%29_%2818006271698%29.jpg)
Due to their higher levels of androgen exposure during fetal development, the female hyenas are significantly more muscular and aggressive than their male counterparts; social-wise, they are of higher rank than the males, being
dominant or dominant and
alpha, and the females who have been exposed to higher levels of androgen than average become higher-ranking than their female peers. Subordinate females lick the clitorises of higher-ranked females as a sign of submission and obedience, but females also lick each other's clitorises as a greeting or to strengthen social bonds; in contrast, while all males lick the clitorises of dominant females, the females will not lick the penises of males because males are considered to be of lowest rank.
The urethra and vagina of the female spotted hyena exit through the clitoris, allowing the females to urinate, copulate and give birth through this organ.
This trait makes mating more laborious for the male than in other mammals, and also makes attempts to
sexually coerce (physically force sexual activity on) females futile.
Joan Roughgarden, an
ecologist
Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps wi ...
and
evolutionary biologist
Evolutionary biology is the subfield of biology that studies the evolutionary processes (natural selection, common descent, speciation) that produced the diversity of life on Earth. It is also defined as the study of the history of life for ...
, said that because the hyena's clitoris is higher on the belly than the vagina in most mammals, the male hyena "must slide his rear under the female when mating so that his penis lines up with
er clitoris. In an action similar to pushing up a shirtsleeve, the "female retracts the
seudo-penison itself, and creates an opening into which the male inserts his own penis".
The male must practice this act, which can take a couple of months to successfully perform.
Female spotted hyenas exposed to larger doses of androgen have significantly damaged ovaries, making it difficult to conceive.
After giving birth, the pseudo-penis is stretched and loses much of its original aspects; it becomes a slack-walled and reduced prepuce with an enlarged orifice with split lips.
Approximately 15% of the females die during their first time giving birth, and over 60% of their species' firstborn young die.
A 2006 Baskin et al. study concluded, "The basic anatomical structures of the corporeal bodies in both sexes of humans and spotted hyenas were similar. As in humans, the dorsal nerve distribution was unique in being devoid of nerves at the 12 o'clock position in the penis and clitoris of the spotted hyena" and that "
rsal nerves of the penis/clitoris in humans and male spotted hyenas tracked along both sides of the corporeal body to the corpus spongiosum at the 5 and 7 o'clock positions. The dorsal nerves penetrated the corporeal body and distally the glans in the hyena", and in female hyenas, "the dorsal nerves fanned out laterally on the clitoral body. Glans morphology was different in appearance in both sexes, being wide and blunt in the female and tapered in the male".
Moles
Many species of
Talpid moles exhibit peniform clitorises that are tunneled by the urethra and are found to have erectile tissue, most notably species from the ''
Talpa Talpa may refer to:
Places
* Talpa, Iran, a village in Khuzestan Province, Iran
* Talpa, Teleorman, a commune in Teleorman County, Romania
* Talpa, a village in Cândeşti Commune, Botoşani County, Romania
* Talpa, a village in Bârgăuani Com ...
'' genus found in Europe.
Unique to this clade are the presence of ovotestes, wherein the female ovary also is mostly made up of sterile testicular tissue that secretes testosterone with only a small portion of the gonad containing ovarian tissue. Genetic studies have revealed that females have an XX genotype and do not have any translocated Y-linked genes.
Detailed developmental studies of ''
Talpa occidentalis'' have revealed that the female gonads develop in a "testis-like pattern".
DMRT1
Doublesex and mab-3 related transcription factor 1, also known as DMRT1, is a protein which in humans is encoded by the ''DMRT1'' gene.
Function
DMRT1 is a dose sensitive transcription factor protein that regulates Sertoli cells and germ cells ...
, a gene that regulates development of
Sertoli cell
Sertoli cells are a type of sustentacular "nurse" cell found in human testes which contribute to the process of spermatogenesis (the production of sperm) as a structural component of the seminiferous tubules. They are activated by follicle-stimu ...
s, was found to be expressed in female germ cells before meiosis, however no Sertoli cells were present in the fully-developed ovotestes. Additionally, the female germ cells only enter meiosis postnatally, a phenomenon that has not been found in any other
eutherian mammal.
Phylogenetic analyses have suggested that, like in lemuroids, this trait must have evolved in a common ancestor of the clade, and has been "turned off and on" in different Talpid lineages.
Female European moles are highly territorial and will not allow males in to their territory outside of breeding season, the probable cause of this behavior being the high levels of testosterone secreted by the female ovotestes.
During the non-breeding season, their vaginal opening is covered by skin, akin to the condition seen in mouse and dwarf lemurs.
Cats, sheep and mice
Researchers studying the peripheral and central afferent pathways from the feline clitoris concluded that "afferent neurons projecting to the clitoris of the cat were identified by WGA-HRP tracing in the S1 and S2 dorsal root ganglia. An average of 433 cells were identified on each side of the animal. 85 percent and 15 percent of the labeled cells were located in the S1 and S2 dorsal root ganglia, respectively. The average cross sectional area of clitoral afferent neuron profiles was 1.479±627 μm2." They also stated that light "constant pressure on the clitoris produced an initial burst of single unit firing (maximum frequencies 170–255 Hz) followed by rapid adaptation and a sustained firing (maximum 40 Hz), which was maintained during the stimulation" and that further examination of tonic firing "indicate that the clitoris is innervated by mechano-sensitive myelinated afferent fibers in the pudental nerve which project centrally to the region of the dorsal commissure in the L7-S1 spinal cord".
The external phenotype and reproductive behavior of 21
freemartin
A freemartin or free-martin (sometimes martin heifer) is an infertile female cattle with masculinized behavior and non-functioning ovaries. Phenotypically, the animal appears female, but various aspects of female reproductive development are alt ...
sheep and two male pseudohermaphrodite sheep were recorded with the aim of identifying any characteristics that could predict a failure to breed. The vagina's length and the size and shape of the vulva and clitoris were among the aspects analyzed. While the study reported that "a number of physical and behavioural abnormalities were detected," it also concluded that "the only consistent finding in all 23 animals was a short vagina which varied in length from 3.1 to 7.0 cm, compared with 10 to 14 cm in normal animals."
In a study concerning the clitoral structure of mice, the mouse perineal urethra was documented as being surrounded by erectile tissue forming the bulbs of the clitoris.
The researchers stated, "In the mouse, as in human females, tissue organization in the corpora cavernosa of the clitoris is essentially similar to that of the penis except for the absence of a subalbugineal layer interposed between the tunica albuginea and the erectile tissue."
See also
*
Clitoral pump
A clitoral pump is a sex toy designed for sexual pleasure that is applied to the clitoris to create suction and increase blood flow and sensitivity. A clitoral pump is designed to be used on the entire external clitoris including the clitoral hoo ...
*
Clitoria
''Clitoria'' is a genus of mainly tropical and subtropical, insect-pollinated flowering pea vines.
Taxonomy Naming of the genus
This genus was named after the human clitoris, for the flowers bear a resemblance to the vulva. The first referenc ...
, a type of tropical plant
*
Clitoraid
Clitoraid is a non-profit project started by the Raelian movement to combat female genital mutilation.
The project was started in 2005 or 2006. The Raelian movement sees sexual gratification as a positive thing and Clitoraid has sponsored clitora ...
, a non-profit organization working against female genital mutilation
* ''
The Evolution of Human Sexuality
''The Evolution of Human Sexuality'' is a 1979 book about human sexuality by the anthropologist Donald Symons, in which the author discusses topics such as human sexual anatomy, ovulation, orgasm, homosexuality, sexual promiscuity, and rape, at ...
''
Notes
References
{{reflist, refs=
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[
{{harvnb, Adams, 1982, pp=97–98
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108–109
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[
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[
{{harvnb, Balcombe, 2011, p=88
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[{{cite news , first=Irwin , last=Goldstein , title=Persistent Sexual Arousal Syndrome , date=1 March 2004 , publisher=]Boston University Medical Campus
The Boston University Medical Campus (BUMC) is one of the three campuses of Boston University, the others being the ''Charles River Campus'' and the ''Fenway Campus''. The campus is situated in the South End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusett ...
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[
{{cite news , last=Cairney , first=Richard , title=Exploring female sexuality , publisher=University of Alberta , work=ExpressNews , date=21 October 2002 , access-date=21 December 2011 , url=http://www.expressnews.ualberta.ca/article.cfm?id=3201 , archive-date=21 December 2011 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111221175533/http://www.archives.expressnews.ualberta.ca/article/2002/10/3201.html
]
[{{cite news , last=Carey , first=Bjorn , title=The Painful Realities of Hyena Sex , work=]LiveScience
Live Science is a science news website run by Future via Purch, which it purchased from Imaginova in 2009. Stories and editorial commentary are typically syndicated to major news outlets, such as Yahoo!, MSNBC, AOL, and Fox News.{{fact, date=Marc ...
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[
{{harvnb, Carroll, 2012, p]
110–111
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[{{cite web , title=The Clitoral Truth: The Secret World at Your Fingertips , publisher=Federation of Feminist Women's Health Clinics (FFWHC) , access-date=2 November 2012 , url=http://www.fwhc.org/clitoraltruth.htm , archive-date=13 November 2012 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121113003107/http://www.fwhc.org/clitoraltruth.htm , url-status=live ]
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{{harvnb, O'Connell, Sanjeevan, Hutson, 2005, pp=1189–1195;
{{harvnb, Kilchevsky, Vardi, Lowenstein, Gruenwald, 2012, pp=719–726
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{{harvnb, Rosenthal, 2012, ]
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{{harvnb, Weiten, Dunn, Hammer, 2011,
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{{harvnb, Lief, 1994, p
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{{harvnb, Wilkinson, 2012, ]
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{{harvnb, Farage, Maibach, 2013,
4
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Journals
{{Refbegin, 30em
* {{cite journal , last1=Baskin , first1=Laurence S. , last2=Yucel , first2=Selcuk , last3=Cunha , first3=Gerald R. , last4=Glickman , first4=Stephen E. , last5=Place , first5=Ned J. , title=A Neuroanatomical Comparison of Humans and Spotted Hyena, a Natural Animal Model for Common Urogenital Sinus: Clinical Reflections on Feminizing Genitoplasty , journal=Journal of Urology , volume=175 , issue=1 , pages=276–283 , date=January 2006 , doi=10.1016/S0022-5347(05)00014-5 , pmid=16406926
* {{cite journal , last1=Battaglia , first1=Cesare , last2=Venturoli , first2=Stefano , title=Persistent Genital Arousal Disorder and Trazodone. Morphometric and Vascular Modifications of the Clitoris. A Case Report , journal=
The Journal of Sexual Medicine
''The Journal of Sexual Medicine'' (''JSM'') is a peer-reviewed medical journal published on behalf of the International Society for Sexual Medicine. Besides the latter society, it is also an official journal for the International Society for the ...
, volume=6 , issue=10, pages=2896–2900 , date=August 2009 , doi=10.1111/j.1743-6109.2009.01418.x , pmid=19674253
* {{cite journal , last2=Buisson , first2=Odile , last1=Foldès , first1=Pierre , title=The clitoral complex: a dynamic sonographic study , journal=
The Journal of Sexual Medicine
''The Journal of Sexual Medicine'' (''JSM'') is a peer-reviewed medical journal published on behalf of the International Society for Sexual Medicine. Besides the latter society, it is also an official journal for the International Society for the ...
, volume=6 , issue=5 , pages=1223–1231 , year=2009 , pmid=19453931 , doi=10.1111/j.1743-6109.2009.01231.x
* {{cite journal , last1= Blechner , first1=Mark J., title=The Clitoris: Anatomical and Psychological Issues , journal=Studies in Gender and Sexuality, volume=18 , issue=3 , pages=190–200, date=2017, doi=10.1080/15240657.2017.1349509 , s2cid=148717326
* {{cite journal , last=Chivers , first=Meredith L. , editor-first=Michael W , editor-last=Wiederman , title=A Narrow (But Thorough) Examination of the Evolutionary Significance of Female Orgasm , journal=
Journal of Sex Research
The ''Journal of Sex Research'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal covering the study of human sexuality and the field of sexology in general. It is published by Routledge on behalf of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality. In 1963, th ...
, volume=44 , issue=1 , pages=104–105 , year=2007 , doi=10.1080/00224490709336797 , url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/275511477 , url-access=subscription
* {{cite journal , last1=Copcu , first1=Eray , last2=Aktas , first2=Alper , last3=Sivrioglu , first3=Nazan , last4=Copcu , first4=Ozgen , last5=Oztan , first5=Yucel , title=Idiopathic isolated clitoromegaly: A report of two cases , journal=Reprod Health , volume=1 , issue=1 , page=4 , year=2004 , pmid=15461813 , pmc=523860 , doi=10.1186/1742-4755-1-4
* {{cite journal , last1=Glickman , first1=Stephen E. , last2=Cunha , first2=Gerald R. , last3=Drea , first3=Christine M. , last4=Conley , first4=Alan J. , last5=Place , first5=Ned J. , year=2006 , title=Mammalian sexual differentiation: lessons from the spotted hyena , journal=Trends in Endocrinology and Metabolism , volume=17 , issue=9 , pages=349–356 , doi=10.1016/j.tem.2006.09.005 , pmid=17010637 , s2cid=18227659
* {{cite journal , last1=Goldmeier , first1=D , last2=Leiblum , first2=SR , s2cid=38012437 , title=Persistent genital arousal in women – a new syndrome entity, journal=International Journal of STD & AIDS , volume=17 , issue=4 , year=2006 , pages=215–216 , doi=10.1258/095646206776253480 , pmid=16595040
* {{cite journal , last=Harvey , first=Elizabeth D. , date=Winter 2002 , title=Anatomies of Rapture: Clitoral Politics/Medical Blazons , journal=
Signs , volume=27 , issue=2 , pages=315–346 , doi=10.1086/495689 , jstor=3175784 , s2cid=144437433
* {{cite journal , last1=Hawkins , first1=C. E. , last2=Dallas , first2=J. F. , last3=Fowler , first3=P. A. , last4=Woodroffe , first4=R. , last5=Racey , first5=P. A. , title=Transient Masculinization in the Fossa, ''Cryptoprocta ferox'' (Carnivora, Viverridae) , doi=10.1095/biolreprod66.3.610 , doi-access=free , journal=Biology of Reproduction , volume=66 , issue=3 , pages=610–615 , date=1 March 2002 , pmid=11870065
* {{cite journal , last1=Jocelyn , first1=Henry David , last2=Setchell , first2=Brian Peter , title=Regnier de Graaf on the human reproductive organs. An annotated translation of 'Tractatus de Virorum Organis Generationi Inservientibus' (1668) and 'De Mulierub Organis Generationi Inservientibus Tractatus Novus' (1672) , year=1972 , volume=17 , journal=Journal of Reproduction and Fertility. Supplement , oclc=468341279 , pmid=4567037 , pages=1–222
* {{cite journal , last1=Kammerer-Doak , first1=Dorothy , first2=Rebecca G. , last2=Rogers , title=Female Sexual Function and Dysfunction , journal=Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinics of North America , volume=35 , issue=2 , pages=vii, 169–183 , date=June 2008 , pmid=18486835 , doi=10.1016/j.ogc.2008.03.006
* {{cite journal , last1=Kawatani , first1=Masahito , first2=Michael , last2=Tanowitza , display-authors=2 , first3=William C. , last3=de Groata , title=Morphological and electrophysiological analysis of the peripheral and central afferent pathways from the clitoris of the cat , journal=
Brain Research
''Brain Research'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal focusing on several aspects of neuroscience. It publishes research reports and " minireviews". The editor-in-chief is Matthew J. LaVoie (University of Florida).
Until 2011, full reviews were ...
, volume=646 , issue=1 , pages=26–36 , date=February 1994 , doi=10.1016/0006-8993(94)90054-X , pmid=7519963 , s2cid=20616698
* {{cite journal , last1=Kilchevsky , first1=Amichai , last2=Vardi , first2=Yoram , last3=Lowenstein , first3=Lior , last4=Gruenwald , first4=Ilan , title=Is the Female G-Spot Truly a Distinct Anatomic Entity? , journal=
The Journal of Sexual Medicine
''The Journal of Sexual Medicine'' (''JSM'') is a peer-reviewed medical journal published on behalf of the International Society for Sexual Medicine. Besides the latter society, it is also an official journal for the International Society for the ...
, volume= 9, issue=3 , pages=719–726 , date=January 2012, pmid=22240236 , doi=10.1111/j.1743-6109.2011.02623.x
** {{cite news , first=Lauren , last=Cox , url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/19/g-spot-does-not-exist_n_1215822.html , title=G-Spot Does Not Exist, 'Without A Doubt,' Say Researchers , work=
The Huffington Post
''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...
, date=19 January 2012 , access-date=2 March 2012 , archive-date=10 March 2019 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190310161629/https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/19/g-spot-does-not-exist_n_1215822.html , url-status=live
* {{cite journal , author1-link=Barry Komisaruk , last1=Komisaruk , first1=Barry R. , last2=Wise , first2=Nan , last3=Frangos , first3=Eleni , last4=Liu , first4=Wen-Ching , last5=Allen , first5=Kachina , last6=Brody , first6=Stuart , title=Women's Clitoris, Vagina, and Cervix Mapped on the Sensory Cortex: fMRI Evidence , journal=
The Journal of Sexual Medicine
''The Journal of Sexual Medicine'' (''JSM'') is a peer-reviewed medical journal published on behalf of the International Society for Sexual Medicine. Besides the latter society, it is also an official journal for the International Society for the ...
, volume=8 , issue=10 , pages=2822–2830 , date=October 2011 , doi=10.1111/j.1743-6109.2011.02388.x , pmid=21797981 , pmc=3186818
** {{cite news , url=http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/08/05/scitech/main20088836.shtml , title=Surprise finding in response to nipple stimulation , work=
CBS News , date=5 August 2011 , access-date=2 March 2012 , archive-date=9 November 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131109124523/http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/08/05/scitech/main20088836.shtml , url-status=live
* {{cite journal , last1=Lloyd , first1=Jillian , last2=Crouch , first2=Naomi S. , last3=Minto , first3=Catherine L. , last4=Liao , first4=Lih-Mei , last5=Creighton , first5=Sarah M , title=Female genital appearance: 'normality' unfolds , journal=British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology , volume=112 , issue=6 , pages=643–646 , date=May 2005 , pmid=15842291 , url=http://www.newviewcampaign.org/userfiles/file/BJOG%2005-normal-genitalia.pdf , doi=10.1111/j.1471-0528.2004.00517.x , citeseerx=10.1.1.585.1427 , s2cid=17818072 , access-date=21 March 2014 , archive-date=5 October 2011 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111005144436/http://www.newviewcampaign.org/userfiles/file/BJOG%2005-normal-genitalia.pdf , url-status=live
* {{cite journal , last1=Mah , first1=Kenneth, last2=Binik , first2=Yitzchak M , title=The nature of human orgasm: a critical review of major trends , journal=
Clinical Psychology Review
Clinical Psychology Review' is a peer-reviewed academic journal that supports subscription based and open access publication of reviews on topics relevant to the field of clinical psychology. Gordon J. G. Asmundson ( University of Regina) serv ...
, volume=21 , issue=6 , pages=823–856 , date=August 2001 , pmid=11497209 , doi=10.1016/S0272-7358(00)00069-6
* {{cite journal , last1=Martin-Alguacil , first1=Nieves , first2=Donald W. , last2=Pfaff , first3=Deborah N. , last3=Shelley , first4=Justine M. , last4=Schober , title=Clitoral sexual arousal: an immunocytochemical and innervation study of the clitoris , journal=
BJUI
''BJU International'' (or ''BJUI'', formerly known as the ''British Journal of Urology'') is a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal that was established in 1929. The editor-in-chief is Freddie Hamdy and the journal is published by Wiley-Blackwel ...
, volume=101 , issue=11 , pages=1407–1413 , date=June 2008 , doi=10.1111/j.1464-410X.2008.07625.x , pmid=18454796 , s2cid=31132967 , doi-access=free
* {{cite journal , last1=O'Connell , first1=Helen E. , last2=Sanjeevan , first2=Kalavampara V. , last3=Hutson , first3=John M. , s2cid=26109805 , title=Anatomy of the clitoris , journal=The Journal of Urology , volume=174 , issue=4 , pages=1189–1195 , date=October 2005 , pmid=16145367 , doi=10.1097/01.ju.0000173639.38898.cd
** {{cite news , last=Mascall , first=Sharon , url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/5013866.stm , title=Time for rethink on the clitoris , work=
BBC News
BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...
, date=11 June 2006 , access-date=22 April 2010 , archive-date=9 September 2019 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190909192820/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/5013866.stm , url-status=live
* {{cite journal , last1=Ogletree , first1=Shirley Matile , last2=Ginsburg , first2=Harvey J. , year=2000 , title=Kept Under the Hood: Neglect of the Clitoris in Common Vernacular , journal=
Sex Roles
A gender role, also known as a sex role, is a social role encompassing a range of behaviors and attitudes that are generally considered acceptable, appropriate, or desirable for a person based on that person's sex. Gender roles are usually cente ...
, volume=43 , issue=11–12 , pages=917–926 , doi=10.1023/A:1011093123517 , s2cid=140325571
* {{cite journal , last1=Moore , first1=Lisa Jean , last2= Clarke , first2=Adele E., title=Clitoral Conventions and Transgressions: Graphic Representations in Anatomy Texts, c1900-1991 , journal=
Feminist Studies
Women's studies is an academic field that draws on feminist and interdisciplinary methods to place women's lives and experiences at the center of study, while examining social and cultural constructs of gender; systems of privilege and oppressi ...
, volume=21 , issue=2 , pages=255–301 , date=April 1995, doi=10.2307/3178262 , jstor=3178262
* {{cite journal , last=Puppo , first=Vincenzo , title=Anatomy of the Clitoris: Revision and Clarifications about the Anatomical Terms for the Clitoris Proposed (without Scientific Bases) by Helen O'Connell, Emmanuele Jannini, and Odile Buisson , journal=ISRN Obstetrics and Gynecology , volume=2011 , issue=ID 261464 , date=September 2011 , pmid=21941661 , doi=10.5402/2011/261464 , pmc=3175415 , page=261464
* {{cite journal , last1=Rubenstein , first1=N. M. , first2=G. R. , last2=Cunha , first3=Y. Z. , last3=Wang , first4=K. L. , last4=Campbell , first5=A. J. , last5=Conley , first6=K. C. , last6=Catania , first7=S. E. , last7=Glickman , first8=N. J. , last8=Place , title=Variation in ovarian morphology in four species of New World moles with a peniform clitoris , journal=Reproduction , volume=126 , issue=6 , date=December 2003 , pages=713–719 , doi=10.1530/rep.0.1260713 , pmid=14748690 , doi-access=free
* {{cite journal , last1=Schmotzer , first1=B. , last2=Zimmerman , first2=A. , date=15 April 1922 , title=Über die weiblichen Begattungsorgane der gefleckten Hyäne , trans-title=About the female sexual organs of the spotted hyena , editor-last=von Eggeling , editor-first=H. , journal=Anatomischer Anzeiger , volume=55 , issue=12/13 , pages=257–264 , language=de , url=https://archive.org/stream/anatomischeranze55anat/#page/257/mode/2up
* {{cite journal , last1=Şenaylı , first1=Atilla , first2=Etlik , last2=Ankara , title=Controversies on clitoroplasty , journal=Therapeutic Advances in Urology , volume=3 , issue=6 , pages=273–277 , date=December 2011 , pmid=22164197 , doi=10.1177/1756287211428165 , pmc=3229251
* {{cite journal , last1=Sinclair , first1=Adriane Watkins , first2=Stephen E. , last2=Glickman , first3=Laurence , last3=Baskin , first4=Gerald R. , last4=Cunha , title=Anatomy of mole external genitalia: setting the record straight , doi=10.1002/ar.23309 , pmid=26694958 , doi-access=free , journal=The Anatomical Record , volume=299 , issue=3 , date=March 2016 , pages=385–399, pmc=4752857
* {{cite journal , last1=Smith , first1=K. C. , first2=T. J. , last2=Parkinson , first3=S. E. , last3=Long , first4=F. J. , last4=Barr , title=Anatomical, cytogenetic and behavioural studies of freemartin ewes , journal=
Veterinary Record
''Veterinary Record'', branded as ''Vet Record'', is a semi-monthly peer-reviewed medical journal covering the field of veterinary medicine. It is published by Wiley on behalf of the British Veterinary Association and is distributed to its membe ...
, volume=146 , issue=20 , pages=574–578 , year=2000 , doi=10.1136/vr.146.20.574 , pmid=10839234 , s2cid=35207213
* {{cite journal , last1=Szykman , first1=Micaela , last2=Engh , first2=Anne , last3=Van Horn , first3=Russell , last4=Holekamp , first4=Kay , last5=Boydston , first5=Erin , year=2007 , title=Courtship and mating in free-living spotted hyenas , journal=Behaviour , volume=144 , issue=7 , pages=815–846 , jstor=4536481 , doi=10.1163/156853907781476418 , url=http://tuvalu.santafe.edu/~bowles/Dominance/Papers/SzykmanetalHyenaMatingBehaviour2007.pdf , citeseerx=10.1.1.630.5755 , access-date=26 June 2012 , archive-date=30 November 2012 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121130193631/http://tuvalu.santafe.edu/~bowles/Dominance/Papers/SzykmanetalHyenaMatingBehaviour2007.pdf , url-status=live
* {{cite journal , last1=Verkauf , first1=BS , last2=Von Thron , first2=J , last3=O'Brien , first3=WF , year=1992 , title=Clitoral size in normal women , journal=
Obstetrics & Gynecology
Obstetrics and Gynaecology (also spelled as Obstetrics and Gynecology; abbreviated as Obs and Gynae, O&G, OB-GYN and OB/GYN) is the medical specialty that encompasses the two subspecialties of obstetrics (covering pregnancy, childbirth, and t ...
, volume=80 , issue=1 , pages=41–44 , pmid=1603495
* {{cite journal , last1=Wade , first1=Lisa D. , last2=Kremer , first2=Emily C. , last3=Brown , first3=Jessica , title=The Incidental Orgasm: The Presence of Clitoral Knowledge and the Absence of Orgasm for Women , journal=
Women & Health , volume=42 , issue=1 , pages=117–138 , pmid=16418125 , year=2005 , doi=10.1300/J013v42n01_07 , s2cid=39966093 , url=http://osf.io/9e6cq , access-date=22 December 2020 , archive-date=15 April 2021 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415011006/https://osf.io/9e6cq/ , url-status=live
* {{cite journal , last1=Waskul , first1=Dennis D. , last2= Vannini , first2=Phillip , last3=Wiesen , first3=Desiree, title=Women and Their Clitoris: Personal Discovery, Signification, and Use , journal=
Symbolic Interaction , volume=30 , issue=2 , pages=151–174 , year=2007 , doi=10.1525/si.2007.30.2.151 , hdl=10170/157 , hdl-access=free
* {{cite journal , last1=Yang , first1=Claire C. , last2=Cold , first2=Christopher J. , last3=Yilmaz , first3=Ugur , last4=Maravilla , first4=Kenneth R. , title=Sexually responsive vascular tissue of the vulva , journal=
BJUI
''BJU International'' (or ''BJUI'', formerly known as the ''British Journal of Urology'') is a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal that was established in 1929. The editor-in-chief is Freddie Hamdy and the journal is published by Wiley-Blackwel ...
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Macmillan , isbn=978-1-4668-0927-7 , year=2000 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tmFJ1LhbVWcC&pg=PT690 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613162139/http://books.google.com/books?id=tmFJ1LhbVWcC&pg=PT690 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Balcombe , first=Jonathan , title=Pleasurable Kingdom: Animals and the Nature of Feeling Good , publisher=
Macmillan , isbn=978-1-4039-8602-3 , year=2007 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JTb7_XfgelYC&pg=PA111 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=15 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615061205/http://books.google.com/books?id=JTb7_XfgelYC&pg=PA111 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Balcombe , first=Jonathan Peter , author-link=Jonathan Balcombe , title=The Exultant Ark: A Pictorial Tour of Animal Pleasure , publisher=
University of California Press
The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by facult ...
, isbn=978-0-520-26024-5 , year=2011 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tz9mSyTWh0oC&pg=PA88 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=27 May 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130527214645/http://books.google.com/books?id=tz9mSyTWh0oC&pg=PA88 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Balon , first1=Richard , last2=Segraves , first2=Robert Taylor , title=Clinical Manual of Sexual Disorders , publisher=
American Psychiatric Pub
The American Psychiatric Association (APA) is the main professional organization of psychiatrists and trainee psychiatrists in the United States, and the largest psychiatric organization in the world. It has more than 37,000 members are involve ...
, isbn=978-1-58562-905-3 , year=2009 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YuP3Hb0TMLQC , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=17 July 2021 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210717165207/https://books.google.com/books?id=YuP3Hb0TMLQC , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Basavanthappa , first=BT , title=Textbook of Midwifery and Reproductive Health Nursing , isbn=978-81-8061-799-7 , publisher=
Jaypee Brothers Publishers , year=2006 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wemr8eOB9w4C&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=17 June 2016 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160617103127/https://books.google.com/books?id=wemr8eOB9w4C&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Blackledge , first=Catherine , title=The Story of V: A Natural History of Female Sexuality , isbn=978-0-8135-3455-8 , publisher=
Rutgers University Press , year=2003 , url=https://archive.org/details/storyofv00cath , url-access=registration
* {{cite book , author=Boston Women's Health Book Collective , title=Our bodies, Ourselves: A Book by and for Women , url=https://archive.org/details/ourbodiesourselv1979bost , url-access=registration , publisher=
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest pu ...
, year=1976 , isbn=978-0-671-22145-4 , ref={{SfnRef, Boston Women's Health, 1976
* {{cite book , last=Blumberg , first=Mark S. , title=Freaks of Nature: And what they tell us about evolution and development , publisher=
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, isbn=978-0-19-988994-5 , year=2009 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7bN6_n7g7H4C&pg=PA233 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=15 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615032142/http://books.google.com/books?id=7bN6_n7g7H4C&pg=PA233 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Brandes , first1=Steven B. , last2=Morey , first2=Allen F. , title=Advanced Male Urethral and Genital Reconstructive Surgery , publisher=
Springer
Springer or springers may refer to:
Publishers
* Springer Science+Business Media, aka Springer International Publishing, a worldwide publishing group founded in 1842 in Germany formerly known as Springer-Verlag.
** Springer Nature, a multinationa ...
, isbn=978-1-4614-7708-2 , year=2013 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cRYJAgAAQBAJ , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=24 December 2019 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191224141031/https://books.google.com/books?id=cRYJAgAAQBAJ , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Carroll , first=Janell L. , title=Sexuality Now: Embracing Diversity , publisher=
Cengage Learning , year=2009 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5f8mQx7ULs4C&pg=PP1 , isbn=978-0-495-60274-3 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613133216/http://books.google.com/books?id=5f8mQx7ULs4C&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Carroll , first=Janell L. , title=Sexuality Now: Embracing Diversity , publisher=
Cengage Learning , year=2012 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RY0n2CGS5EcC&pg=PP1 , isbn=978-1-111-83581-1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=14 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130614022634/http://books.google.com/books?id=RY0n2CGS5EcC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Carroll , first=Janell L. , title=Discovery Series: Human Sexuality , edition=1st , publisher=
Cengage Learning , year=2013 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gU3SZSh-eXsC , isbn=978-1-111-84189-8 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=31 December 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131231143704/http://books.google.com/books?id=gU3SZSh-eXsC , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Casper , first=Regina C. , title=Women's Health: Hormones, Emotions and Behavior , isbn=978-0-521-06020-2 , publisher=
Cambridge University Press
Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press in the world. It is also the King's Printer.
Cambridge University Pre ...
, year=2008 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3UjzYoYez80C&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613162715/http://books.google.com/books?id=3UjzYoYez80C&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Cavendish , first=Marshall , title=Sex and Society , volume=2 , isbn=978-0-7614-7907-9 , publisher=
Marshall Cavendish Corporation
Marshall Cavendish is a subsidiary company of Times Publishing Group, the printing and publishing subsidiary of Singapore-based conglomerate Fraser and Neave (which in turn currently owned by ThaiBev, the beverage company in Thailand), and at pre ...
, year=2010 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YtsxeWE7VD0C&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613171128/http://books.google.com/books?id=YtsxeWE7VD0C&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Chalker , first=Rebecca , year=2002 , orig-year=2000 , title=The Clitoral Truth , publisher=Seven Seas Press , isbn=978-1-58322-473-1 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m3m3_Uq8qWkC&pg=PP1 , access-date=5 June 2020 , archive-date=17 July 2021 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210717165206/https://books.google.com/books?id=m3m3_Uq8qWkC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Chapple , first1=C. R. , first2=William D. , last2=Steers , year=2010 , title=Practical Urology: Essential Principles and Practice , publisher=Springer , isbn=978-1-84882-033-3 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=A9m8TkdCUqEC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=15 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615011338/http://books.google.com/books?id=A9m8TkdCUqEC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Collins , first1=Eve , last2=Drake , first2=Mandy , last3=Deacon , first3=Maureen , title=The Physical Care of People with Mental Health Problems: A Guide For Best Practice , isbn=978-1-4462-7468-2 , publisher=
SAGE
Sage or SAGE may refer to:
Plants
* ''Salvia officinalis'', common sage, a small evergreen subshrub used as a culinary herb
** Lamiaceae, a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint or deadnettle or sage family
** ''Salvia'', a large ...
, year=2013 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cgnTlyXxoy8C&q=source , access-date=19 October 2020 , archive-date=17 July 2021 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210717165211/https://books.google.com/books?id=cgnTlyXxoy8C&q=source , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Crawford , first1=Mary , first2=Rhoda , last2=Unger , date=2004 , title=Women and Gender: A Feminist Psychology , edition=4th , location=Boston , publisher=McGraw Hill
* {{cite book , last1=Crooks , first1=Robert , first2=Karla , last2=Baur , title=Our Sexuality , publisher=
Cengage Learning , year=2010 , isbn=978-0-495-81294-4 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MpRnPtmdRVwC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613201752/http://books.google.com/books?id=MpRnPtmdRVwC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Cunningham , first=F Gary , title=Williams Obstetrics: 22nd Edition , isbn=978-0-07-150125-5 , publisher=
McGraw Hill Professional , year=2005 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2zZjuYaK9eUC , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=21 December 2019 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191221233606/https://books.google.com/books?id=2zZjuYaK9eUC , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Dennerstein , first1=Dorraine , first2=Lorraine , last2=Dennerstein , first3=Graham D , last3=Burrows , title=Handbook of psychosomatic obstetrics and gynaecology , publisher=
Elsevier Biomedical Press , year=1983 , isbn=978-0-444-80444-0
* {{cite book , last=Di Marino , first=Vincent , title=Anatomic Study of the Clitoris and the Bulbo-Clitoral Organ , publisher=
Springer
Springer or springers may refer to:
Publishers
* Springer Science+Business Media, aka Springer International Publishing, a worldwide publishing group founded in 1842 in Germany formerly known as Springer-Verlag.
** Springer Nature, a multinationa ...
, year=2014 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wKMpBAAAQBAJ&q=gbs_navlinks_s , isbn=978-3-319-04894-9 , access-date=19 October 2020 , archive-date=6 September 2014 , archive-url=http://archive.wikiwix.com/cache/20140906050741/https://books.google.com/books?id=wKMpBAAAQBAJ&dq=gbs_navlinks_s , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Dixson , first=Alan F. , title=Primate Sexuality: Comparative Studies of the Prosimians, Monkeys, Apes, and Humans , isbn=978-0-19-954464-6 , publisher=
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, year=2012 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SY-PyKNQglIC&pg=PA364 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=11 May 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130511061400/http://books.google.com/books?id=SY-PyKNQglIC&pg=PA364 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Drenth , first=Jelto , title=The Origin of the World: Science and Fiction of the Vagina , isbn=978-1-86189-210-2 , publisher=
Reaktion Books
Reaktion Books is an independent book publisher based in Islington, London, England. It was founded in 1985 in Edinburgh, Scotland, and moved to London in 1987. Reaktion originally focused on the fields of art, architecture, and design. In rece ...
, year=2005 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aauFT9jPNRoC , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=21 December 2019 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191221203331/https://books.google.com/books?id=aauFT9jPNRoC , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Fahs , first=Breanne , title=Performing Sex: The Making and Unmaking of Women's Erotic Lives , isbn=978-1-4384-3781-1 , publisher=
SUNY Press , year=2011 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wuUhNGPf86oC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613224936/http://books.google.com/books?id=wuUhNGPf86oC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Farage , first1=Miranda A. , last2=Maibach , first2=Howard I. , title=The Vulva: Anatomy, Physiology, and Pathology , isbn=978-1-4200-0531-8 , publisher=
CRC Press , year=2013 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=beenEjKmvPwC&q=The+crura+meet+the+fourchette , access-date=19 October 2020 , archive-date=26 January 2021 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126031457/https://books.google.com/books?id=beenEjKmvPwC&q=The+crura+meet+the+fourchette , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Fishbeck , first1=Dale W. , last2=Sebastiani , first2=Aurora , title=Comparative Anatomy: Manual of Vertebrate Dissection , isbn=978-1-61731-439-1 , publisher=Morton Publishing Company , year=2015 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-cFnBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA64
* {{cite book , last1=Flaherty , first1=Joseph A. , first2=John Marcell , last2=Davis , first3=Philip G. , last3=Janicak , title=Psychiatry: Diagnosis & therapy. A Lange clinical manual , isbn=978-0-8385-1267-8 , publisher=Appleton & Lange , year=1993 , url=https://archive.org/details/psychiatrydiagno00flah
* {{cite book , last1=Fogel , first1=Ingram , first2=Fugate , last2=Woods , title=Women's Health Care in Advanced Practice Nursing , publisher=
Springer Publishing Company
Springer Publishing Company is an American publishing company of academic journals and books, focusing on the fields of nursing, gerontology, psychology, social work, counseling, public health, and rehabilitation (neuropsychology). It was esta ...
, year=2008 , isbn=978-0-8261-0235-5 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BSgd9XZe7fkC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613173817/http://books.google.com/books?id=BSgd9XZe7fkC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Francoeur , first=Robert T. , year=2000 , title=The Complete Dictionary of Sexology , publisher=The Continuum Publishing Company , isbn=978-0-8264-0672-9 , url-access=registration , url=https://archive.org/details/completedictiona0000unse_w1u0
* {{cite book , last1=Frayser , first1=Suzanne G. , first2=Thomas J , last2=Whitby , title=Studies in Human Sexuality: A Selected Guide , publisher=
Libraries Unlimited , year=1995 , isbn=978-1-56308-131-6 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZArPH0nFGo0C&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=14 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130614014123/http://books.google.com/books?id=ZArPH0nFGo0C&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Freberg , first=Laura A. , title=Discovering Biological Psychology , publisher=
Cengage Learning , year=2009 , isbn=978-0-547-17779-3 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-zyTMXAjzQsC&pg=PA300 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613181757/http://books.google.com/books?id=-zyTMXAjzQsC&pg=PA300 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Fuller , first=Linda K , title=African Women's Unique Vulnerabilities to HIV/AIDS: Communication Perspectives and Promises , isbn=978-1-4039-8405-0 , publisher=
Macmillan , year=2008 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4RgldGBrVwIC&pg=PA45 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613213733/http://books.google.com/books?id=4RgldGBrVwIC&pg=PA45 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Ghaem-Maghami , first1=Sadaf , last2=Souter , first2=William Patrick , editor-first=Pat , editor-last=Price , editor-first2=Karol , editor-last2=Sikora , chapter=Carcinoma of the vagina and vulva , title=Treatment of Cancer , date=2014 , publisher=CRC Press , isbn=978-1-4822-1494-9
* {{cite book , last1=Ginger , first1=V A T , last2=Yang , first2=C C , editor-last=Mulhall , editor-first=John P. , editor2-first=Luca , editor2-last=Incrocci , editor3-first=Irwin , editor3-last=Goldstein , editor4-first=Ray , editor4-last=Rosen , title=Cancer and Sexual Health , chapter=Chapter 2: Functional Anatomy of the Female Sex Organs , isbn=978-1-60761-915-4 , publisher=
Springer Publishing
Springer Publishing Company is an American publishing company of academic journals and books, focusing on the fields of nursing, gerontology, psychology, social work, counseling, public health, and rehabilitation (neuropsychology). It was e ...
, year=2011 , chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GpIadil3YsQC&pg=PP1 , access-date=5 June 2020 , archive-date=17 July 2021 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210717165220/https://books.google.com/books?id=GpIadil3YsQC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Girshick , first1=Lori B. , first2=Jamison , last2=Green , title=Transgender Voices: Beyond Women and Men , publisher=
University Press of New England
The University Press of New England (UPNE), located in Lebanon, New Hampshire and founded in 1970, was a university press consortium including Brandeis University, Dartmouth College (its host member), Tufts University, the University of New Hampsh ...
, isbn=978-1-58465-683-8 , year=2009 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Gu8TKksSx0QC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613232351/http://books.google.com/books?id=Gu8TKksSx0QC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Goodman , first=S. , editor-last=Wilson , editor-first=D , editor2-last=Mittermeier , editor2-first=R , chapter=Family Eupleridae (Madagascar Carnivores) , title=Handbook of the Mammals of the World , volume=1: Carnivores , year=2009 , publisher=Lynx Edicions , isbn=978-84-96553-49-1 , chapter-url=http://www.lynxeds.com/hmw/species-accounts/hmw-1-species-accounts-red-panda-ailurus-fulgens , access-date=26 June 2012 , archive-date=25 July 2011 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110725081653/http://www.lynxeds.com/hmw/species-accounts/hmw-1-species-accounts-red-panda-ailurus-fulgens , url-status=dead
* {{cite book, last1=Gordon, first1=David A., last2=Katlic, first2=Mark R, title=Pelvic Floor Dysfunction and Pelvic Surgery in the Elderly: An Integrated Approach, publisher=
Springer
Springer or springers may refer to:
Publishers
* Springer Science+Business Media, aka Springer International Publishing, a worldwide publishing group founded in 1842 in Germany formerly known as Springer-Verlag.
** Springer Nature, a multinationa ...
, isbn=978-1-4939-6554-0, year=2017, page=259, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F4olDwAAQBAJ
* {{cite book , last=Gould , first=Stephen Jay , author-link=Stephen Jay Gould , title=The Structure of Evolutionary Theory , publisher=
Harvard University Press
Harvard University Press (HUP) is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. After the retir ...
, year=2002 , isbn=978-0-674-00613-3 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nhIl7e61WOUC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=14 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130614214253/http://books.google.com/books?id=nhIl7e61WOUC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Greenberg , first1=Jerrold S. , first2=Clint E. , last2=Bruess , first3=Sarah C , last3=Conklin , title=Exploring the Dimensions of Human Sexuality , publisher=Jones & Bartlett Learning , isbn=978-0-7637-7660-2 , year=2010 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1NC5R0RozBYC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613231741/http://books.google.com/books?id=1NC5R0RozBYC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Halberstam , first=Judith , author-link=Judith Halberstam , title=Female Masculinity , publisher=
Duke University Press
Duke University Press is an academic publisher and university press affiliated with Duke University. It was founded in 1921 by William T. Laprade as The Trinity College Press. (Duke University was initially called Trinity College). In 1926 D ...
, year=1998 , isbn=978-0-8223-2243-6 , url=https://archive.org/details/femalemasculinit00judi , url-access=registration
* {{cite book , last=Hall , first=Brian Keith , title=Bones and Cartilage: Developmental and Evolutionary Skeletal Biology , publisher=
University of California Press
The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by facult ...
, isbn=978-0-12-319060-4 , year=2005 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=y-RWPGDONlIC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613161808/http://books.google.com/books?id=y-RWPGDONlIC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Heffner , first=Linda , year=2001 , title=Human Reproduction at a Glance , publisher=Blackwell Sciences , isbn=978-0-632-05461-9 , url-access=registration , url=https://archive.org/details/humanreproductio0000heff
* {{cite book , last=Hite , first=Shere , author-link=Shere Hite , title=The Hite Report: A Nationwide Study of Female Sexuality , publisher=
Seven Stories Press , year=2003 , location=New York , isbn=978-1-58322-569-1 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s3OZaVn2wfkC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=15 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615051514/http://books.google.com/books?id=s3OZaVn2wfkC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Hooper , first=Anne , title=Sex Q & A , publisher=Penguin , year=2001 , isbn=978-0-7566-6347-6 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HDuF0Wbez-AC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613142436/http://books.google.com/books?id=HDuF0Wbez-AC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Hyde , first=Janet Shibley , title=Understanding Human Sexuality , isbn=978-0-07-298636-5 , publisher=
McGraw-Hill
McGraw Hill is an American educational publishing company and one of the "big three" educational publishers that publishes educational content, software, and services for pre-K through postgraduate education. The company also publishes refere ...
, year=2006
* {{cite book , last1=Jones , first1=Richard E. , last2=Lopez , first2=Kristin H. , year=2013 , title=Human Reproductive Biology , publisher=
Academic Press
Academic Press (AP) is an academic book publisher founded in 1941. It was acquired by Harcourt, Brace & World in 1969. Reed Elsevier bought Harcourt in 2000, and Academic Press is now an imprint of Elsevier.
Academic Press publishes referen ...
, isbn=978-0-12-382185-0 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M4kEdSnS-pkC , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=9 August 2021 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210809234119/https://books.google.com/books?id=M4kEdSnS-pkC , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Irvine , first=Janice M. , year=2005 , title=Disorders of desire: sexuality and gender in modern American sexology , publisher=
Temple University Press
Temple University Press is a university press founded in 1969 that is part of Temple University (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania). It is one of thirteen publishers to participate in the Knowledge Unlatched pilot, a global library consortium approach ...
, isbn=978-1-59213-151-8 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uIJXT7ZCTCsC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=14 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130614000225/http://books.google.com/books?id=uIJXT7ZCTCsC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Kahn , first1=Ada P. , first2=Jan , last2=Fawcett , title=The Encyclopedia of Mental Health , publisher=
Infobase Publishing , year=2008 , isbn=978-0-8160-6454-0 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tTFYIh-HcYYC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=15 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615004827/http://books.google.com/books?id=tTFYIh-HcYYC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Kaplan , first=Helen Singer , title=The Evaluation of Sexual Disorders: Psychological and Medical Aspects , publisher=
Psychology Press
Taylor & Francis Group is an international company originating in England that publishes books and academic journals. Its parts include Taylor & Francis, Routledge, F1000 Research or Dovepress. It is a division of Informa plc, a United Ki ...
, year=1983 , isbn=978-0-87630-329-0 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WCqMzcAka54C&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=15 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615021937/http://books.google.com/books?id=WCqMzcAka54C&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Kaufman , first1=Raymond H , last2=Faro , first2=Sebastian , last3=Brown , first3=Dale , title=Benign Diseases of the Vulva And Vagina , publisher=
Elsevier Mosby , isbn=978-0-323-01474-8 , year=2005 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t5BsAAAAMAAJ , quote=The external genitalia of a female fetus may become masculinized if exposed to excess androgens in utero. ... Besides enlargement, congenital abnormalities of the clitoris may also include agenesis or hypoplasia. ... After the 13th to 14th weeks of gestation, androgen exposure produces clitoromegaly alone. , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=23 December 2019 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191223062603/https://books.google.com/books?id=t5BsAAAAMAAJ , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Komisaruk , first1=Barry R. , last2=Whipple , first2=Beverly , first3=Sara , last3=Nasserzadeh , first4=Carlos , last4=Beyer-Flores , author-link2=Beverly Whipple , title=The Orgasm Answer Guide , isbn=978-0-8018-9396-4 , publisher=
Johns Hopkins University Press , year=2009 , url=https://archive.org/details/orgasmanswerguid00komi , url-access=registration
* {{cite book , last=Kotpal , first=R. L. , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m-eQUEUjG2UC&pg=PA394 , title=Modern Text Book of Zoology: Vertebrates , publisher=Rastogi Publications , year=2010 , isbn=978-81-7133-891-7
* {{cite book , last=Krychman , first=Michael L. , title=100 Questions & Answers About Women's Sexual Wellness and Vitality: A Practical Guide for the Woman Seeking Sexual Fulfillment , publisher=
Jones & Bartlett Publishers
Jones & Bartlett Learning, a division of Ascend Learning, is a scholarly publisher. The name comes from Donald W. Jones, the company's founder, and Arthur Bartlett, the first editor.
History
In 1988, the company was named by ''New England Busines ...
, year=2009 , isbn=978-0-7637-8697-7 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kW64xtC4dBcC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=15 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615043540/http://books.google.com/books?id=kW64xtC4dBcC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Labuski , first=Christine , title=It Hurts Down There: The Bodily Imaginaries of Female Genital Pain , publisher=
SUNY Press , year=2015 , isbn=978-1-4384-5885-4 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=l4F2CgAAQBAJ , access-date=7 June 2018 , archive-date=17 July 2021 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210717165221/https://books.google.com/books?id=l4F2CgAAQBAJ , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Lehmiller , first=Justin J. , title=The Psychology of Human Sexuality , publisher=
John Wiley & Sons
John Wiley & Sons, Inc., commonly known as Wiley (), is an American multinational publishing company founded in 1807 that focuses on academic publishing and instructional materials. The company produces books, journals, and encyclopedias, ...
, year=2013 , isbn=978-1-118-35129-1 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YS1IAgAAQBAJ , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=18 December 2019 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218133144/https://books.google.com/books?id=YS1IAgAAQBAJ , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Libertino , first=John A. , year=1998 , title=Reconstructive urologic surgery , publisher=Mosby , isbn=978-0-8016-7802-8
* {{cite book , last=Lief , first=Harold I. , editor-last=Berger , editor-first=Milton Miles , chapter=Discussion of the Paper by Helen Singer Kalplan , title=Women Beyond Freud: New Concepts of Feminine Psychology , isbn=978-0-87630-709-0 , publisher=
Psychology Press
Taylor & Francis Group is an international company originating in England that publishes books and academic journals. Its parts include Taylor & Francis, Routledge, F1000 Research or Dovepress. It is a division of Informa plc, a United Ki ...
, year=1994 , chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=By3n48Gqt_kC&pg=PP1 , url=https://archive.org/details/womenbeyondfreud00milt
* {{cite book , last1=Llord , first1=J , first2=D , last2=Uchil , editor-first=Sabaratnam , editor-last=Arulkumaran , editor2-first=Lesley , editor2-last=Regan , editor3-first=Aris , editor3-last=Papageorghiou , editor4-first=Ash , editor4-last=Monga , editor5-first=David , editor5-last=Farquharson , chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lRaWcRYx_7YC&pg=PP1 , chapter=12: Reproduction: Ambiguous Genitalia , title=Oxford Desk Reference: Obstetrics and Gynaecology , publisher=
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, date=2011 , isbn=978-0-19-162087-4 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=2 May 2016 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160502024357/https://books.google.com/books?id=lRaWcRYx_7YC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Lloyd , first=Elisabeth Anne , author-link=Elisabeth Lloyd , title=The Case of the Female Orgasm: Bias in the Science of Evolution , isbn=978-0-674-01706-1 , publisher=
Harvard University Press
Harvard University Press (HUP) is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. After the retir ...
, year=2005 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6GFNvA6TvlwC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613221632/http://books.google.com/books?id=6GFNvA6TvlwC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live , oclc=432675780
* {{cite book , last1=Merz , first1=Eberhard , first2=F. , last2=Bahlmann , title=Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology , volume=1 , publisher=
Thieme Medical Publishers
Thieme Medical Publishers is a German medical and science publisher in the Thieme Publishing Group. It produces professional journals, textbooks, atlases, monographs and reference books in both German and English covering a variety of medical ...
, year=2004 , isbn=978-1-58890-147-7
* {{cite book , last1=McAnulty , first1=Richard D. , first2=M. Michele , last2=Burnette , title=Exploring human sexuality: making healthy decisions , publisher=
Allyn & Bacon
Allyn & Bacon, founded in 1868, is a higher education textbook publisher in the areas of education, humanities and social sciences. It is an imprint of Pearson Education, the world's largest education publishing and technology company which is par ...
, year=2003 , isbn=978-0-205-38059-6
* {{cite book , last=Miller , first=Geoffrey , author-link=Geoffrey Miller (psychologist) , title=The Mating Mind: How Sexual Choice Shaped the Evolution of Human Nature , publisher=
Random House Digital , year=2011 , isbn=978-0-307-81374-9 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QG-8PbZb4csC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=14 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130614014140/http://books.google.com/books?id=QG-8PbZb4csC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Momoh , first=Comfort , author-link=Comfort Momoh , chapter=1: Female Genital Mutilation , chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dVjIP0RfVAMC&pg=PP1 , title=Female Genital Mutilation , editor-last=Momoh , editor-first=Comfort , publisher=Radcliffe Publishing , year=2005 , isbn=978-1-85775-693-7 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=15 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615031319/http://books.google.com/books?id=dVjIP0RfVAMC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Morris , first=Desmond , author-link=Desmond Morris , title=The Naked Woman: A Study of the Female Body , isbn=978-0-312-33853-4 , publisher=
Macmillan , year=2007 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Wa9zntiEKeAC&pg=PP1 , access-date=10 December 2014 , archive-date=18 May 2015 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150518015653/https://books.google.com/books?id=Wa9zntiEKeAC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Morganstern , first1=Steven , first2=Allen , last2=Abrahams , title=The Prostate Sourcebook , isbn=978-1-56565-871-4 , publisher=
McGraw-Hill Professional , year=1998 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VRJTq11Zjh0C&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=15 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615032636/http://books.google.com/books?id=VRJTq11Zjh0C&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Neil , first1=L. , last2=Sigal , first2=Pete , last3=Chuchiak, IV , first3=John F. , title=Sexual Encounters/Sexual Collisions: Alternative Sexualities in Colonial Mesoamerica , publisher=
Duke University Press
Duke University Press is an academic publisher and university press affiliated with Duke University. It was founded in 1921 by William T. Laprade as The Trinity College Press. (Duke University was initially called Trinity College). In 1926 D ...
, year=2007 , isbn=978-0-8223-6670-6 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fTA4yyo4YCYC , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=19 December 2019 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191219065733/https://books.google.com/books?id=fTA4yyo4YCYC , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=O'Connell , first1=Helen E. , first2=Kalavampara V , last2=Sanjeevan , editor-last=Goldstein , editor-first=Irwin Joseph , title=Women's Sexual Function and Dysfunction: Study, Diagnosis and Treatment , publisher=
Taylor & Francis US
Taylor & Francis Group is an international company originating in England that publishes books and academic journals. Its parts include Taylor & Francis, Routledge, F1000 Research or Dovepress. It is a division of Informa plc, a United Ki ...
, year=2006 , isbn=978-1-84214-263-9 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T5P_5UwqYhoC , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=2 January 2021 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210102115232/https://books.google.com/books?id=T5P_5UwqYhoC , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Pitts-Taylor , first=Victoria , title=Cultural Encyclopedia of the Body , publisher=
Greenwood Publishing Group
Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc. (GPG), also known as ABC-Clio/Greenwood (stylized ABC-CLIO/Greenwood), is an educational and academic publisher (middle school through university level) which is today part of ABC-Clio. Established in 1967 as Gr ...
, isbn=978-0-313-34145-8 , year=2008 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=66u24WAyO_YC&q=Cultural+Encyclopedia+of+the+Body , access-date=19 October 2020 , archive-date=26 January 2021 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126150752/https://books.google.com/books?id=66u24WAyO_YC&q=Cultural+Encyclopedia+of+the+Body , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Pomeroy , first=Wardell Baxter , title=Dr. Kinsey and the Institute for Sex Research 1982 , publisher=
Yale University Press
Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day, and became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and operationally autonomous.
, Yale Universi ...
, year=1982 , orig-year=1972 , isbn=978-0-300-02916-1 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kRtDUxZSx7EC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613153126/http://books.google.com/books?id=kRtDUxZSx7EC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Porst , first1=Hartmut , last2=Buvat , first2=Jacques , title=Standard Practice in Sexual Medicine , publisher=
John Wiley & Sons
John Wiley & Sons, Inc., commonly known as Wiley (), is an American multinational publishing company founded in 1807 that focuses on academic publishing and instructional materials. The company produces books, journals, and encyclopedias, ...
, year=2008 , isbn=978-1-4051-7872-3 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=S4GJio79XOUC , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=22 December 2019 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191222154607/https://books.google.com/books?id=S4GJio79XOUC , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Reinisch , first1=June M , first2=Ruth , last2=Beasley , title=The Kinsey Institute New Report on Sex , publisher=Macmillan , year=1991 , isbn=978-0-312-06386-3 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KsW6wPiXEd0C&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=14 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130614204231/http://books.google.com/books?id=KsW6wPiXEd0C&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Roberts , first=Keath , title=Lotus Illustrated Dictionary of Sex , publisher=Lotus Press , year=2006 , isbn=978-81-89093-59-4 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zDS9kC03x2IC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=15 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615030340/http://books.google.com/books?id=zDS9kC03x2IC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Rodgers , first=Joann Ellison , title=Sex: A Natural History , publisher=
Macmillan , year=2003 , isbn=978-0-8050-7281-5 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eJutAwmKCPEC&q=gbs_navlinks_s , access-date=19 October 2020 , archive-date=17 July 2021 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210717165214/https://books.google.com/books?id=eJutAwmKCPEC&q=gbs_navlinks_s , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Rosenthal , first=Martha , title=Human Sexuality: From Cells to Society , publisher=
Cengage Learning , year=2012 , isbn=978-0-618-75571-4 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d58z5hgQ2gsC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=14 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130614011449/http://books.google.com/books?id=d58z5hgQ2gsC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Rosenzweig , first1=Mark R. , first2=Arnold L. , last2=Leiman , author3-link=Marc Breedlove , first3=Marc , last3=Breedlove , title=Biological psychology , publisher=
Sinauer Associates
Sinauer Associates, Inc. is a publisher of college-level textbooks. It was started in 1969 by Andrew D. Sinauer and has since grown to be an internationally recognized publisher of seminal scientific works.
References
External linksOfficial we ...
, isbn=978-0-87893-775-2 , year=1996 , url=https://archive.org/details/biologicalpsycho00rose
* {{cite book , last=Rosevear , first=Donovan Reginald , year=1974 , title=The carnivores of West Africa , location=London , publisher=Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History) , isbn=978-0-565-00723-2 , url=https://archive.org/details/carnivoresofwest00rose
* {{cite book , last=Roughgarden , first=Joan , year=2004 , title=Evolution's Rainbow: Diversity, Gender, and Sexuality in Nature and People , publisher=
University of California Press
The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by facult ...
, isbn=978-0-520-24073-5 , url=https://archive.org/details/evolutionsrainbo00roug , url-access=registration
* {{cite book , last=Saladin , first=Kenneth S. , title=Human anatomy , isbn=978-0-07-298636-5 , publisher=
McGraw-Hill Higher Education , year=2010 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ul4QAQAAMAAJ , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=15 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615003325/http://books.google.com/books?id=Ul4QAQAAMAAJ , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Seidman , first1=Steven , first2=Nancy L. , last2=Fischer , first3=Chet , last3=Meeks , title=Handbook of the New Sexuality Studies , isbn=978-0-415-38648-7 , publisher=
Taylor & Francis
Taylor & Francis Group is an international company originating in England that publishes books and academic journals. Its parts include Taylor & Francis, Routledge, F1000 (publisher), F1000 Research or Dovepress. It is a division of Informa ...
, year=2006 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qkp65to1wn8C&pg=PA112 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=15 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615025555/http://books.google.com/books?id=qkp65to1wn8C&pg=PA112 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Schatzberg , first1=Alan F. , last2=Cole , first2=Jonathan O. , last3=DeBattista , first3=Charles , title=Manual of Clinical Psychopharmacology , volume=1 , publisher=
American Psychiatric Pub
The American Psychiatric Association (APA) is the main professional organization of psychiatrists and trainee psychiatrists in the United States, and the largest psychiatric organization in the world. It has more than 37,000 members are involve ...
, year=2010 , isbn=978-1-58562-377-8 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D3zz1NCm3qcC , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=17 July 2021 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210717165213/https://books.google.com/books?id=D3zz1NCm3qcC , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Schünke , first1=Michael , first2=Erik , last2=Schulte , first3=Lawrence M. , last3=Ross , first4=Edward D. , last4=Lamperti , first5=Udo , last5=Schumacher , title=Thieme Atlas of Anatomy: General Anatomy and Musculoskeletal System , volume=1 , publisher=
Thieme Medical Publishers
Thieme Medical Publishers is a German medical and science publisher in the Thieme Publishing Group. It produces professional journals, textbooks, atlases, monographs and reference books in both German and English covering a variety of medical ...
, year=2006 , isbn=978-3-13-142081-7 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NK9TgTaGt6UC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613224311/http://books.google.com/books?id=NK9TgTaGt6UC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Schuenke , first1=Michael , first2=Erik , last2=Schulte , first3=Udo , last3=Schumacher , year=2010 , title=General Anatomy and Musculoskeletal System , publisher=
Thieme Medical Publishers
Thieme Medical Publishers is a German medical and science publisher in the Thieme Publishing Group. It produces professional journals, textbooks, atlases, monographs and reference books in both German and English covering a variety of medical ...
, isbn=978-1-60406-287-8 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FcpVUrdYk9sC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613235834/http://books.google.com/books?id=FcpVUrdYk9sC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Schwartz , first1=Pepper , first2=Martha , last2=Kempner , year=2015 , title=50 Great Myths of Human Sexuality , publisher=
John Wiley & Sons
John Wiley & Sons, Inc., commonly known as Wiley (), is an American multinational publishing company founded in 1807 that focuses on academic publishing and instructional materials. The company produces books, journals, and encyclopedias, ...
, isbn=978-0-470-67433-8 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p0goBgAAQBAJ , access-date=11 March 2018 , archive-date=21 December 2019 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191221201902/https://books.google.com/books?id=p0goBgAAQBAJ , url-status=live
* {{cite book, last1=Shrage, first1=Laurie J., last2=Stewart, first2=Robert Scott, year=2015, title=Philosophizing About Sex, publisher=
Broadview Press
Broadview Press is an independent academic publisher that focuses on the humanities. Founded in 1985 by Don LePan, the company now employs over 30 people, has over 800 titles in print, and publishes approximately 40 titles each year. Broadview's o ...
, isbn=978-1-77048-536-5, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RysEBgAAQBAJ, access-date=7 June 2018, archive-date=17 July 2021, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210717165212/https://books.google.com/books?id=RysEBgAAQBAJ, url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Sloane , first=Ethel , title=Biology of Women , publisher=
Cengage Learning , year=2002 , isbn=978-0-7668-1142-3 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kqcYyk7zlHYC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613202222/http://books.google.com/books?id=kqcYyk7zlHYC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Swancutt , first=Diana M , editor-last=Penner , editor-first=Todd C. , editor2-first=Caroline Vander , editor2-last=Stichele , title=Mapping gender in ancient religious discourses , chapter=Still before sexuality: "Greek" androgyny, the Roman imperial politics of masculinity and the Roman invention of the ''Tribas'' , publisher=Brill , year=2007 , isbn=978-90-04-15447-6 , chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2udV9fAz1UkC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=13 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613180803/http://books.google.com/books?id=2udV9fAz1UkC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Taormino , first=Tristan , author-link=Tristan Taormino , title=The Big Book of Sex Toys , publisher=Quiver , year=2009 , isbn=978-1-59233-355-4 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Hfly-iMkWRkC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=30 April 2016 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160430062109/https://books.google.com/books?id=Hfly-iMkWRkC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last1=Tavris , first1=Carol , last2=Wade , first2=Carole , last3=Offir , first3=Carole , title=The longest war: sex differences in perspective , publisher=
University of Michigan
, mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth"
, former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821)
, budget = $10.3 billion (2021)
, endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
, year=1984 , isbn=978-0-15-551186-6 , url=https://archive.org/details/longestwarsexdif00tavr
* {{cite book , last1=Weiten , first1=Wayne , first2=Dana S. , last2=Dunn , first3=Elizabeth Yost , last3=Hammer , title=Psychology Applied to Modern Life: Adjustment in the 21st century , isbn=978-1-111-18663-0 , publisher=
Cengage Learning , year=2011 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CGu96TeAZo0C&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=2 January 2014 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140102164122/http://books.google.com/books?id=CGu96TeAZo0C&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Westheimer , first=Ruth , author-link=Ruth Westheimer , title=Encyclopedia of sex , publisher=
Continuum
Continuum may refer to:
* Continuum (measurement), theories or models that explain gradual transitions from one condition to another without abrupt changes
Mathematics
* Continuum (set theory), the real line or the corresponding cardinal number ...
, year=2000 , isbn=978-0-8264-1240-9
* {{cite book , last=Wilkinson , first=Edward J. , title=Wilkinson and Stone Atlas of Vulvar Disease , publisher=
Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (LWW) is an American imprint of the American Dutch publishing conglomerate Wolters Kluwer. It was established by the acquisition of Williams & Wilkins and its merger with J.B. Lippincott Company in 1998. Under the L ...
, year=2012 , isbn=978-1-4511-7853-1 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UNCvfblD1qgC , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=21 December 2019 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191221035117/https://books.google.com/books?id=UNCvfblD1qgC , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Williams , first=Linda , title=Screening Sex , publisher=
Duke University Press
Duke University Press is an academic publisher and university press affiliated with Duke University. It was founded in 1921 by William T. Laprade as The Trinity College Press. (Duke University was initially called Trinity College). In 1926 D ...
, year=2008 , isbn=978-0-8223-4285-4 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UHPEp2AbYxcC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=15 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615040323/http://books.google.com/books?id=UHPEp2AbYxcC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book , last=Wingfield , first=John C , editor-last=Neill , editor-first=Jimmy D , year=2006 , chapter=Communicative Behaviors Hormone–Behavior Interactions, and Reproduction in Vertebrates , title=Physiology of Reproduction , volume=2 , isbn=978-0-12-515402-4 , publisher=
Gulf Professional Publishing , chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=11f2zMjqqVkC&pg=PP1 , access-date=27 October 2015 , archive-date=14 June 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130614235749/http://books.google.com/books?id=11f2zMjqqVkC&pg=PP1 , url-status=live
* {{cite book, last=Wood, first=Rachel, year=2017, title=Consumer Sexualities: Women and Sex Shopping, publisher=
Routledge
Routledge () is a British multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanities, behavioural science, education, law ...
, isbn=978-1-315-44750-6, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GFsvDwAAQBAJ, access-date=11 March 2018, archive-date=20 December 2019, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191220031956/https://books.google.com/books?id=GFsvDwAAQBAJ, url-status=live
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External links
''The Clitoris - Animated Documentary''by Lori-Malépart Traversy (Video), 2016.
* {{Wiktionary-inline, clitoris
* {{commons category-inline, Clitoris
{{Female reproductive system
{{Human regional anatomy
{{Sex
{{Good article
{{Authority control
Mammal female reproductive system
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Women's health