A girl is any female human from birth through childhood and adolescence to attainment of adulthood and may also mean a young woman. Female (♀ is the Sex of an Organism, or a part of an organism which produces ova (egg cells Human beings, humans or man (Origin 1590–1600 L homō man OL hemō the earthly one (see Humus Child article read through the various talk pages for the debate -- it's been put on and removed twice For the 2008 British film by Noel Clarke see Adulthood (film. [1]
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Etymology
The word girl first appeared during the Middle Ages between 1250 and 1300 CE and came from the Anglo-Saxon words gerle (also spelled girle or gurle), likely cognate with the Old Low German word gör (sometimes given as kerl). Old Saxon, also known as Old Low German ( ISO 639 -3 code osx) is the earliest recorded form of Low German, documented from the 9th century [2] The Anglo-Saxon word gerela meaning dress or clothing item also seems to have been used as a metonym in some sense. In Rhetoric, metonymy (mɨˈtɒnɨmi is the use of a word for a concept or object associated with the concept/object originally denoted by the word [3]
Girl has meant any young unmarried woman since about 1530. Its first noted meaning for sweetheart is 1648. The earliest known appearance of girl-friend is in 1892 and girl next door, meant as a teenaged female or young woman with a kind of wholesome appeal, dates only to 1961. Girlfriend is a term that can refer to either a Female partner in a non- marital romantic relationship or a female non-intimate Friend For other uses see Girl Next Door. The cultural and sexual stereotype of the girl next door is invoked in American contexts [4]
Deprecated meaning
Although the word girl is sometimes used to describe a female of any age, such as in some casual social settings by women among themselves, when meant to describe a woman in professional or other adult contexts it might imply child or be otherwise misleading (as with the term boy when applied to an adult man), hence this meaning is often deprecated. BOY is a Canadian Indie pop band The band consists of vocalist and general instrumentalist Stephen Kozmeniuk, drummer Maurie Kaufmann, A man is a Male Human. The term man (irregular plural [5]
Demographics
In 2004 there were more than one billion girls in the world. At birth girls are a slight minority although this changes with age. Since the 1700s the human sex ratio has been observed as about 1,050 boys for every 1,000 girls born and sex selection on the part of parents further lessens the number of female births. Sex ratio is the Ratio of Males to Females in a Population. The primary sex ratio is the ratio at the time of conception secondary sex ratio is Sex-selective abortion is the targeted Abortion of a Fetus based upon its Sex. Although the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has asserted "primary education shall be compulsory and available free to all" girls are slightly less likely to be enrolled as students in primary and secondary schools (70%:74% and 59%:65%). The International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR is a multilateral Treaty adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on December Worldwide efforts have been made to end this disparity (such as through the Millennium Development Goals) and the gap has closed since 1990. Year 1990 ( MCMXC) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar) [6]
Gender and environment
Biological gender interacts with environment in ways not fully understood. [7] Identical twin girls separated at birth and reunited decades later have shown both startling similarities and differences. [8] In 2005 Kim Wallen of Emory University noted, "I think the 'nature versus nurture' question is not meaningful, because it treats them as independent factors, whereas in fact everything is nature and nurture. " Wallen said gender differences emerge very early and come about through an underlying preference males and females have for their chosen activities. Girls tend to like toys and other objects they can interact with, while boys will more likely prefer "things that they can manipulate and do things to. " According to Wallen, expectations will nonetheless play a role in how girls perform academically. For example, if females skilled in math are told a test is "gender neutral" they achieve high scores, but if they are told males outperformed females in the past, the females will do much worse. "What’s strange is," Wallen observed, "according to the research, all one apparently has to do is tell a woman who has a lifetime of socialization of being poor in math that a math test is gender neutral, and all effects of that socialization go away. "[9] Author Judith Harris has said that aside from their genetic contribution, the nurturing provided by parents likely has less long-term influence over their offspring than other environmental aspects such as the children's peer group. Judith Rich Harris (born February 10, 1938) is a Psychologist and the author of The Nurture Assumption, a book criticizing the belief A peer group is a group of approximately the same age Social status, and interests [10]
In England, studies by the National Literacy Trust have shown girls do better than boys in every area of learning before they are 5 and girls score consistently higher than boys from the ages of 5 through 16, with the most striking differences noted in reading and writing skills. Moreover, girls tend to outperform boys at GCSE and A level in the UK. [11] Historically, girls lagged on standardized tests. In 1996 the average score of 503 for US girls from all races on the SAT verbal test was 4 points lower than boys. The SAT Reasoning Test (formerly Scholastic Aptitude Test and Scholastic Assessment Test) is a standardized test for College admissions in the In math, the average for girls was 492, which was 35 points lower than boys. "When girls take the exact same courses," commented Wayne Camara, a research scientist with the College Board, "that 35-point gap dissipates quite a bit. " At the time Leslie R. Wolfe, president of the Center for Women Policy Studies said girls scored differently on the math tests because they tend to work the problems out while boys use "test-taking tricks" such as immediately checking the answers already given in multiple-choice questions. Wolfe said girls are steady and thorough while "boys play this test like a pin-ball machine. " Wolfe also said although girls had lower SAT scores they consistently get higher grades than boys across all courses their first year in college. [12] By 2006 girls were outscoring boys on the verbal portion of the SAT by 11 points. The SAT Reasoning Test (formerly Scholastic Aptitude Test and Scholastic Assessment Test) is a standardized test for College admissions in the [13] A 2005 University of Chicago study showed that a majority presence of girls in the classroom tends to enhance the academic performance of boys. [14]
Art and literature
Egyptian murals included sympathetic portraits of young girls who were daughters of royalty. Ancient Egyptian art refers to the style of painting sculpture crafts and architecture developed by the Civilization in the lower Nile Valley from 5000 Sappho's poetry carries love poems addressed to girls. Sappho (ˈsæfoʊ in English Attic Greek el Σαπφώ sapːʰɔː Aeolic Greek el Ψάπφω) was an Ancient Greek lyric
In Europe, some early paintings featuring girls were Petrus Christus' Portrait of a Young Girl (about 1460), Juan de Flandes' Portrait of a Young Girl (about 1505), Frans Hals' Die Amme mit dem Kind in 1620, Diego Velázquez' Las Meninas in 1656, Jan Steen's The Feast of St. Petrus Christus (c 1410/1420 – 1475/1476 was a Netherlandish painter active in Bruges from 1444 Juan de Flandes ('John of Flanders' was an Early Netherlandish painter who was active in Spain from 1496 to 1519 Frans Hals (c 1580– August 26, 1666) was a Dutch Golden Age painter especially famous for portraiture. Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez ( June 6, 1599 &ndash August 6, 1660) was a Spanish painter who was the leading Las Meninas ( Spanish for The Maids of Honour) is a 1656 painting by Diego Velázquez (1599–1660 the leading artist of the Jan Havickszoon Steen (c 1626 – buried February 3 1679) was a Dutch genre painter of the 17th century (also known as the Dutch Nicolas (about 1660) and Johannes Vermeer's Girl with a Pearl Earring along with Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window. Johannes or Jan Vermeer (baptized in Delft with the name Joannis on October 31 1632, and buried in the same city under the name Jan The painting Girl with a Pearl Earring ( Het Meisje met de Parel) is one of Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer 's masterworks and as the Later paintings of girls include Albert Anker's portrait of a Girl with a Domino Tower and Camille Pissarro's 1883 Portrait of a Felix Daughter. Albert Samuel Anker ( April 1 1831 &ndash July 16 1910) was a Swiss painter and Illustrator who has been Camille Pissarro ( July 10 1830 &ndash November 13 1903) was a French Impressionist painter.
American paintings featuring girls include Mary Cassatt's 1884 Children on the Beach and Whistler's Harmony in Gray and Green: Miss Cicely Alexander and The White Girl (shown at right). Mary Stevenson Cassatt ( May 22, 1844 &ndash June 14, 1926) was an American painter and Printmaker.
Many novels begin with the childhood of their heroine, such as Jane Eyre who suffers ill treatment or Natasha in War and Peace, who is sentimentalized. Jane Eyre (dʒeɪn ɛə by Charlotte Brontë, published by Smith Elder & Company of London in 1847, is one of the most influential and War and Peace (Война и мир Voyna i mir) is a Novel by Leo Tolstoy, first published from 1865 to 1869 in Russkii Vestnik Other novels include Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird in which a young girl is protagonist. To Kill a Mockingbird is a Pulitzer Prize -winning Novel by Harper Lee published in 1960. Vladimir Nabokov's controversial book Lolita (1955) is about a doomed relationship between a 12 year old girl and an adult scholar as they travel across the United States. Lolita (1955 is a Novel by Vladimir Nabokov, first written in English and published in 1955 in Paris, later translated by the author Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden begins as the female main character and her sister are dropped off in the pleasure district after being separated from their family. Memoirs of a Geisha is a Novel by Arthur Golden, published in 1997.
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll featured a widely noted female protagonist. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865 is a novel written by English author Charles Lutwidge Dodgson better known under the Pseudonym Lewis Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (ˈdɒdsən (27 January 1832 &ndash 14 January 1898 better known by the Pen name Lewis Carroll (/ˈkærəl/ was an English Moreover, Carroll's photographs of girls are often cited in histories of photographic art.
Popular culture
European fairy tales have preserved memorable stories about girls. A fairy tale or fairy story is a fictional Story that may feature folkloric characters (such as fairies, enchantments]] often involving Among these are Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Rapunzel, Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Match Girl, The Little Mermaid, The Princess and the Pea and the Brothers Grimm's Little Red Riding Hood. The Three Bears or Goldilocks and the Three Bears is a notable children's bedtime story " Rapunzel " is a German Fairy tale in the collection assembled by the Brothers Grimm, and first published in 1812 as part of Children's Hans Christian Andersen (ˈhanˀs ˈkʰʁæʂd̥jan ˈɑnɐsn̩ in Danish or simply H "The Little Match Girl" (Den Lille Pige med Svovlstikkerne is a Fairy tale by Danish Poet and Author Hans Christian Andersen The Little Mermaid (Den lille havfrue is a Fairy tale by the Danish Poet and Author Hans Christian Andersen about a young " The Princess and the Pea " ("Prinsessen paa Ærten" da "Prinsessen på ærten" in modern Orthography) is a Fairy tale by Danish The Brothers Grimm ( German: Die Gebrüder Grimm) Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, Little Red Riding Hood is a famous fairy tale about a young girl's encounter with a wolf
Children's books about girls include Little House on the Prairie, Alice in Wonderland, Pippi Longstocking, Dragonsong and A Wrinkle in Time. Little House on the Prairie is a children's book by Laura Ingalls Wilder that was published in 1935 Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865 is a novel written by English author Charles Lutwidge Dodgson better known under the Pseudonym Lewis Pippi Longstocking ( Swedish Pippi Långstrump) is a Fictional character in a series of children's books created by Swedish author Astrid Dragonsong is a novel written by Anne McCaffrey in 1976. It is the first in the Harper Hall Trilogy. A Wrinkle in Time is a Science fantasy novel by Madeleine L'Engle, written between 1959 and 1960 and published in 1962 Books which have both boy and girl protagonists have tended to focus more on the boys but important girl characters appear in Knight's Castle, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, The Book of Three and the Harry Potter series. Edward McMaken Eager (1911 – October 23, 1964) was an American Author who made a distinct contribution to children's literature by introducing The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe is a fantasy novel for children by C The Book of Three is the first of Lloyd Alexander 's five-part novel series The Chronicles of Prydain (first published 1964) Harry Potter is a series of seven Fantasy novels written by British author J
There have been many American comic books and comic strips featuring a girl as the main character such as Little Lulu, Little Orphan Annie, Girl Genius and Amelia Rules. Little Lulu is a Comic strip character created by Marjorie Henderson Buell. Little Orphan Annie is a Full page (later half page or tab) American Comic strip, created by Harold Gray (1894-1968 Girl Genius is an ongoing Comic book series turned Webcomic, written and drawn by Phil and Kaja Foglio and published by their Amelia Rules! is the title of a Comic book series written and drawn by Jimmy Gownley. In superhero comic books an early girl character was Etta Candy, one of Wonder Woman's sidekicks. SideKick was an early Personal Information Manager (PIM Software application by Borland launched in 1983 under Philippe Kahn In the Peanuts series (by Charles Schulz) girl characters include Peppermint Patty, Lucy van Pelt and Sally Brown. Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday Comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M Charles Monroe Schulz (November 26 1922 &ndash February 12 2000 was an American Cartoonist best known worldwide for his Peanuts Comic strip Patricia "Peppermint Patty" Reichardt is a Fictional character featured in Charles M Lucille "Lucy" van Pelt is a Fictional character in the syndicated Comic strip Peanuts, written Sally Ann Brown is the younger sister of Charlie Brown in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles Schulz.
In Japanese animated cartoons and comic books girls are often protagonists. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. (anime in Japanese, ˈmɑŋgə is the Japanese word for Comics (sometimes called komikku コミック and print Cartoons In their modern form manga date from shortly Most of Hayao Miyazaki's animated films feature a young girl heroine, as in Majo no takkyūbin (Kiki's Delivery Service). is a is the fifth Studio Ghibli anime film, produced written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki in 1989. There are many other girl protagonists in the Shōjo style of manga, which is targeted to girls as an audience. is a Japanese word originally derived from a Chinese expression written with the same characters Among these are The Wallflower, Ceres, Celestial Legend, Tokyo Mew Mew and Full Moon o Sagashite. is a Manga series written by Tomoko Hayakawa. The individual chapters have been serialized in Bessatsu Friend since its premiere in 2000 and in 21 is a Fantasy Shōjo Manga series written by Yuu Watase. It was originally serialized in Shōjo Comic from May 1996 through March also known as Mew Mew Power, is a Japanese ''shōjo'' manga series written by Reiko Yoshida and illustrated by Mia Ikumi. is a Japanese Shōjo Manga by Arina Tanemura. According to the Furigana, the Kanji in the title are read furu mūn Meanwhile, some genres of Japanese cartoons may feature sexualized and objectified portrayals of girls.
Sexualization of young girls in art and entertainment has been a common theme across all eras and mediums. Sexualization is the pernicious application of sexuality or sexual perceptions to an individual or class This has been more or less explicitly visible in modern cinema and television. Some famous examples include Taxi Driver, Diva, Lolita The Blue Lagoon, Léon: The Professional and Pretty Baby, all of which deal with young girls in adult situations, typically under extraordinary circumstances. Taxi Driver is a film directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Paul Schrader. A diva is a celebrated female singer The Italian term is used to describe a woman of rare outstanding talent in the world of Opera, and by extension in theatre and Lolita (1955 is a Novel by Vladimir Nabokov, first written in English and published in 1955 in Paris, later translated by the author The Blue Lagoon is a 1980 English language romance and Adventure film starring Brooke Shields and Christopher Atkins Léon (also known as The Professional and Léon The Professional) is a French 1994 action drama Film Pretty Baby is a 1978 Historical fiction, Dramatic Film directed by Louis Malle.
References
- ^ dictionary. com, girl, retrieved 2 January 2008
- ^ Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), girl, retrieved 2 January 2008
- ^ dictionary. com, girl, retrieved 2 Jabuary 2008
- ^ Online Etymology Dictionary, girl, retrieved 2 January 2008
- ^ dictionary. com, girl, retrieved 2 Jabuary 2008
- ^ The State of the World's Children 2004 - Girls, Education and Development , UNICEF, 2004
- ^ Salon. com, Kurt Kleiner, A mind of their own (book review of Nature via Nurture by Matt Ridley), 19 June 2003, retrieved 2 January 2008
- ^ BBC, Jane Beresford, Twins reunited, after 35 years apart, 31 December 2007, retrieved 2 January 2008
- ^ Emory University website, Women's work?, September 2005, retrieved 2 January 2008
- ^ PBS. org, Nature vs. nurture, 20 October 1998, retrieved 2 January 2008
- ^ literacytrust. org, Literacy achievement by gender, 2007, retrieved 2 January 2008
- ^ New York Times, Katherine Q Seelye, Group Seeks to Alter S.A.T. to Raise Girls' Scores, 14 March 1997, retrieved 2 January 2008
- ^ ABC News, John Berman, Girls Achieve Rare SAT Scores, 30 August 2006, retrieved 2 January 2008
- ^ harrisschool. uchicago. edu, Girl-Dominated Classrooms Can Improve Boys’ Early School Performance, retrieved 2 January 2008
See also
Sex-selective abortion is the targeted Abortion of a Fetus based upon its Sex. A girl group is a Popular music act featuring several young Female Singers who generally harmonize together This is an article about the young person in the Scouting movement The phrase " Girl Power " is a term of empowerment expressed a cultural phenomenon of the mid-late 1990s to the early 2000s and is also linked to Third-wave feminismDictionary
girl
-noun
- A young female (in contrast to boy), usually a child or adolescent.
- Any woman, regardless of her age. See usage notes.
- A female servant; a maid. See usage notes.
- (figuratively, pejorative) A boy with girl-like qualities, especially squeamishness.
- (uncommon) A queen (the playing card.)<ref>* Weisenberg, Michael (2000) The Official Dictionary of Poker. MGI/Mike Caro University. ISBN 978-1880069523 </ref>
- (colloquial) A term of endearment. See usage notes.
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