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A woman is a female human, in contrast to an adult male, who is a man.
The term woman (irregular plural: women) is usually used for an adult, with the term girl being the usual term for a female child or adolescent. However, the term is also sometimes used for a female human regardless of age, as in phrases like "women's rights".
Etymology
The English term "man" (from Proto-Germanic mannaz "man, person") and words derived therefrom can designate any or even all of the human race regardless of their gender or age. This is indeed the oldest usage of "man". In Old English the words wer and wyf (also wæpman and wifman) were what was used to refer to "a man" and "a woman" respectively, and "man" was gender neutral. In Middle English man displaced wer as term for "male human", whilst wyfman (which eventually evolved into woman) was retained for "female human". "Man" does continue to carry its original sense of "Human" however, resulting in an asymmetry sometimes criticized as sexist. * (See also Womyn.) The symbol for the planet Venus is the sign also known in biology for the female sex: a stylized representation of the goddess Venus's hand mirror: a circle with a small cross underneath (Unicode: ♀). The Venus symbol also represented femininity, and in ancient alchemy stood for copper. Alchemists constructed the symbol from a circle (representing spirit) above a cross (representing matter).
Terminology
The English language's original word for "woman" was Old English wīf, akin to German Weib; it later became the modern word "wife." The modern word "woman" etymologically derives from wīfmann, with the addition of mann, "person", from Germanic mannaz. This formation is peculiar to English. The equivalents for "man" in Old English were wer (a cognate of Latin vir, "man") and wǣpnedmann, literally "weaponed person". As previously mentioned, the term man continues to carry its original sense of "Human", though this usage results in an asymmetry which is sometimes criticized as sexist. The word girl originally meant "young person of either sex"; it was only around the beginning of the 16th century that it came to mean specifically a female child. Nowadays girl is also often used colloquially to refer to a young or unmarried woman. Since the early 1970s, feminists have challenged such usage, and today, using the word in the workplace (as in office girl) is typically considered inappropriate in the United States and United Kingdom because it implies a view of women as infantile. The use remains commonplace in several other English-speaking countries. Conversely, in certain non-Western cultures which link family honor with female virginity, the word girl is still used to refer to a never-married woman; in this sense it is used in a fashion roughly analogous to the obsolete English maid or maiden. Referring to an unmarried female as woman can, in such a culture, imply that she is sexually experienced, which would be an insult to her family. In more informal settings, the use of girl to refer to an adult female is also common practice in certain usage (such as girls' night out), even among elderly women. In this sense, girl may be considered to be the analogue to the British word bloke for a man. Some regard non-parallel usages, such as men and girls, as sexist. A number of other derogatory terms for women are also in common usage. There are various words used to refer to the quality of being a woman. The term "womanhood" merely means the state of being a woman; "femininity" is used to refer to a set of supposedly typical female qualities associated with a certain attitude to gender roles; "womanliness" is like "femininity", but is usually associated with a different view of gender roles; "femaleness" is a general term, but is often used as shorthand for "human femaleness"; "distaff" is an archaic adjective derived from women's conventional role as a spinner, now used only as a deliberate archaism; "muliebrity" is a "neologism" (derived from the Latin) meant to provide a female counterpart of "virility", but used very loosely, sometimes to mean merely "womanhood", sometimes "femininity", and sometimes even as a collective term for women. More on [ Woman ]
Military Women :: People
History :: Women
Women in #HUNG are so generous...
pto2k (Shi Songhua) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:09:50 -0000
Women in #HUNG are so generous...
Women will play the whole sympathy/victim role thing for as long as you let em.
Phi2Phx (Gee Ali) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:09:46 -0000
Women will play the whole sympathy/victim role thing for as long as you let em.
@KandiConnection Kandi keep it up girl! You are such a strong women! It's good to see someone like you on T.V!
Minniemuu (Erica Nunez) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:09:46 -0000
@KandiConnection Kandi keep it up girl! You are such a strong women! It's good to see someone like you on T.V!
: thinks rihanna is just doing this lame interview to promot her new album..why not interview all the other women w ... http://lnk.ms/4Kz2n
ashleydesiga (Ashley Desiga) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:09:44 -0000
: thinks rihanna is just doing this lame interview to promot her new album..why not interview all the other women w ... http://lnk.ms/4Kz2n
what do sexy educated 40+ yr old women do for fun?
ooohhCola (Colanthony Humphrey) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:09:44 -0000
what do sexy educated 40+ yr old women do for fun?
@kanter thoughts on delivery of social media to women v men as public audiences? What does the ladies glossy conversion look like online?
Constance_D (Constance DeCherney) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:09:43 -0000
@kanter thoughts on delivery of social media to women v men as public audiences? What does the ladies glossy conversion look like online?
99s Museum of Women Pilots - A collection of the papers, personal items and other historic artifacts of some of the most significant achievements and adventures of the international community of women pilots at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Hanoi Women's Museum - Offering exhibits and events about minority women, a research library and space for conference on women's issues.
International Women's Air and Space Museum - Preserving the history of women in aviation.
Kingston Woman's History Museum - Displays artifacts, scrapbooks and photographs in two museums maintained by the Kingston Woman's History Club in Kingston, Georgia.
Meta Description: [ Relive the War Between the States in Kingston, Georgia ]
National Women's Hall of Fame - The Hall is home to exhibits, artifacts of historical interest, a research library and office.
National Women's History Museum - Located in Washington, DC. A nonpartisan, nonprofit educational institution dedicated to preserving, displaying, interpreting, and celebrating the historic contributions of women.
National Women's History Museum - The contributions of women to the social, cultural, economic and political life of the nation in a context of world history at Washington, D.C.
New Mexico Committee of the National Museum of Women in the Arts - Focusing on living artists of New Mexico through statewide and national art shows, educational programs, lectures and special events. Includes membership guidelines and activities.
Meta Description: [ The New Mexico Committee of Women in the Arts is a chapter of the National Museum of Women in the Arts. ]
Pioneer Woman Museum - Preserve and exhibit artifacts honoring pioneer women of all eras, with 17-foot bronze monument.
The International Museum of Women - Located in San Francisco, the museum combines exhibits that celebrate and chronicle the history of women's roles in society and history.
The National Cowgirl Museum - Dedicated to honoring and documenting the lives of women who have distinguished themselves in all walks of life. Features five gallery areas, a multi-purpose theater with state-of-the-art audio visual equipment, interactive information kiosks, hands-on children's area and traveling displays. Includes hours, fees and directions. Located in Fort Worth, Texas.
The National Museum of Women in the Arts - Dedicated exclusively to the exhibition, preservation, and acquisition of works by women artists of all nationalities and periods.
The National WASP WWII Museum - The history of the Women Airforce Service Pilots, the first women in history to fly American's military aircraft and who forever changed the role of women in aviation at Sweetwater, Texas.
Meta Description: [ A site dedicated to the WASP and their training grounds--at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas. ]
The Women's Museum - Celebrating women's history and providing a public forum for the communication of women's contributions to society.
U.S. Army Women's Museum - Artifacts and archival material pertaining to the service of women across all branches and organizations from inception to present day at Fort Lee, Virginia.
Meta Description: [ U.S. Army Women's Museum a resource for history of women in the Army. ]
Working Women's Museum - Provides purpose of the exhibit, history of working women and general museum information. Sponsored by the Japan Association for the advancement of Working Women.
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