Hermaphrodite Information

Contributor

By Jessica Pestka
eHow Contributing Writer

Article Rating:

(0 Ratings)

Hermaphrodite Information

A hermaphrodite, according to the 2009 Merriam Webster Dictionary, is a plant or animal that has male and female sex organs. The term is sometimes used to describe humans born with ambiguous genitalia, errors in the sex chromosomes or other genital abnormalities, although it is not the preferred terminology for such conditions.

History

The word "hermaphrodite" comes from the Greek word hermaphroditos; Hermaphroditos was a Greek that had both female and male sex features.

Frequency

The Intersex Society of North America estimates that one in 100 babies are born with genitalia outside of the female or male standard, and one or two in 1000 births resulting in an individual having surgery to normalize genitalia

Types

Hermaphoditism occurs naturally in a number of plant breeds, some fish and invertebrate animals such as flatworms, earthworms, snails and slugs.

Misconceptions

Although plants and animals can be "true" hermaphrodites and have both fully functioning male and female parts no known human has ever been born with complete female and male anatomies.

Considerations

According to the Intersex Society of America, individuals born with ambiguous genitalia or sex chromosome disorders prefer the term "intersex" as it is more inclusive than the word hermaphrodite.