Virgin

A virgin is most commonly seen as a person who has not engaged in sexual intercourse. Typically, it refers strictly to a person who has not yet engaged in vaginal intercourse. In broader terms, it sometimes refers to one who has not engaged in sexual activities. The status of "virginity" is sometimes respected and valued in certain societies, especially in relation to views of many religions on sexual conduct before marriage. The term maiden is also sometimes used to mean a female virgin, although that can also refer to an unmarried or merely young woman. It has also (generally historically) been used to refer to a male virgin.

In Culture

Female virginity is closely interwoven with personal or even family honor in many cultures. Traditionally in some cultures (especially those dominated by Christianity or Islam) there has been a widespread belief that the loss of virginity before marriage is a matter of deep shame. In some countries, this loss has been linked to honor killings.

Related Topics:
Family - Honor killings

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Traditionally in western marriage ceremonies, a veil is taken as a symbol of the bride's virginity; it is a popular misconception that the white dress indicated virginity. It is unclear the extent to which this symbolism is accurate given that some women may choose to wear white even if they are no longer virgins. This may even hold true for women who are assumed to be non-virgins (for example, those involved in a second marriage), but the practice is not universal.

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Some elements within western culture no longer regard premarital virginity as a virtue and may allude to it disparagingly. The increasingly-common belief of some western youth that virginity is no longer to be regarded as a virtue has become a matter of considerable debate, especially related to controversies involving sexuality among young people. Continuing virginity after a certain age is even regarded by some to be a negative thing, implying that the person is perhaps prudish or sexually immature.

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Some historians and anthropologists note that many societies that place a high value on virginity before marriage, such as the United States before the sexual revolution, actually have a large amount of premarital sexual activity that does not involve vaginal penetration, e.g., oral sex, anal sex and mutual masturbation. This has been termed technical virginity or hot virginity.

Related Topics:
Anthropologists - United States - Sexual revolution - Penetration - Oral sex - Anal sex - Masturbation

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