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{{short description|Young male human}}
{{about|young human males}}
{{Redirect|Boys|other uses|Boys (disambiguation)|and|Boy (disambiguation)}}
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] baby boy]]
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{{Human growth and development}}
A '''boy''' is a young ] ], usually ] or ]. When he becomes an adult he's described as a ]. The most apparent thing that differentiates a boy from a ] is that a boy typically has a ] while girls have a ]. However, some ] children with ambiguous genitals, and genetically female ] children may also be classified or self-identify as a boy.
A '''boy''' is a young ] ]. The term is commonly used for a ] or an ]. When a male human reaches adulthood, he is usually described as a ].


==Definition, etymology, and use==
The term "boy" is primarily used to indicate biological ] distinctions, cultural ] role distinctions or both. The latter most commonly applies to adult men, either considered in some way immature or inferior, in a position associated with aspects of boyhood, or even without such boyish connotation as age-indiscriminate synonym. The term can be joined with a variety of other words to form these gender-related labels as compound words.
According to the ''Merriam-Webster Dictionary'', a boy is "a male child from birth to adulthood".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/boy|title = Definition of BOY}}</ref>
==Etymology==
The word "boy" comes from ] ''boi, boye'' ("boy, servant"), related to other ] words for ''boy'', namely ] ''boi'' ("boy, young man") and ] ''boai'' ("boy"). Although the exact ] is obscure, the English and Frisian forms probably derive from an earlier ] *''bō-ja'' ("little brother"), a diminutive of the Germanic root *''bō-'' ("brother, male relation"), from ] *''bhā-'', *''bhāt-'' ("father, brother"). The root is also found in ] ''boe'' ("brother"), ] ''boa'' ("brother"), and, through a reduplicated variant *''bō-bō-'', in ] ''bófi'', ] ''boef'' "(criminal) knave, rogue", ] ''Bube'' ("knave, rogue, boy"). Furthermore, the word may be related to ''Bōia'', an ] personal name.


The word "boy" comes from ] ''boi, boye'' ("boy, servant"), related to other ] words for ''boy'', namely ] ''boi'' ("boy, young man") and ] ''boai'' ("boy"). Although the exact ] is obscure, the English and Frisian forms probably derive from an earlier ] *''bō-ja'' ("little brother"), a diminutive of the Germanic root *''bō-'' ("brother, male relation"), from ] *''bhā-'', *''bhāt-'' ("father, brother"). The root is also found in <!--] ''boe'' ("brother"), ] ''boa'' ("brother"), and, through a reduplicated variant *''bō-bō-'', in ] ''bófi'', ] ''boef'' "(criminal) knave, rogue", ] ''Bube'' ("knave, rogue, boy"). Furthermore, the word may be related to ''Bōia'', an ] personal name.<ref>See:
==Characteristics of boys==
* - entry for "boy"
Ongoing debates about the influences of ] in shaping the behavior of girls and boys raises questions about whether the roles played by boys are mainly the result of inborn differences or of socialization. Images of boys in art, literature and popular culture often demonstrate assumptions about ].
* H. H. Malincrodt, ''Latijn-Nederlands woordenboek'' (Latin-Dutch dictionary)

* ''Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary''
An adult male human is a ], but when age is not a crucial factor, both terms can be interchangeable, e.g., 'boys and their toys' applies equally to adults and young boys, just as 'Are you mice or men?' can also apply to young boys.
* {{cite book | first=Carl Darling | last=Buck | author-link=Carl Darling Buck | title=A Dictionary of Selected Synonyms in the Principal Indo-European Languages | location=Chicago | publisher=University of Chicago Press | orig-year=1949 | year=1988 | isbn=978-0-226-07937-0 }}</ref>

]
] boys wearing ] at a festival.]]
<!--Do not remove the following image without a consensus to do so. The matter has been discussed at length on the talk page. -->]
The age boundary is not clear cut, rather dependent on the context or even on individual circumstances. A young man who has not assumed (or has been denied) the traditional roles of a man might also be called a boy. It may feel uncomfortable to a young male upon being referred to as a "man" before he believes he has assumed these roles, such as having a career, a partner, a household of his own, fatherhood, etc., though the addition of a jocular modifier such as "young man" or "little man" might lessen the dissonance. Conversely, it may feel uncomfortable to a male to be called a "boy" if he believes he has assumed the traditional roles of a "man". In ''mother's/mama's boy'', the word emphatically implies a male (] or adult in years) who is too immature to be independent.

In some traditions boyhood is held to be exchanged for adult manhood, or at least approach it significantly, by certain -in se independent- acts assuming a role deemed to be typical for a "normal" man (though there are limits) as marriage, fathering offspring or military service. Various cultural and/or religious ] serve, partially or specifically, to mark the transition to manhood.
<!--Do not remove the following image without a consensus to do so. The matter has been discussed at length on the talk page. --> ] in a sacred tank in Tiruvanamalai, ]]]
There is often a number of traditional differences in attire between boys and adult men, which may even give rise to a metaphoric term such as ''broekvent'' in Dutch (i.e., a boy who has not yet "graduated" from shorts to trousers) and in what is socially accepted as appropriate behaviour, e.g., boys may be publicly seen ] in cultures where men are not.

==Uses of the term "boy" and related terms==
In English, the words ], ] and ] may refer to either male or female. No gender-specific term exists for an intermediate stage between a boy and a man, except "young man", although the term ], for one who reached sexual reproductivity (or the legally assumed age, e.g. 14 for boys, often set lower for girls) without being a legal adult yet, stems from a Latin word for boys only, itself named after the accompanying male body hair, ''pubes'', on face and genital region.

Many occasions occur when an adult male is commonly referred to as a boy. A person's ] or loverboy may be of any age; this even applies to a 'working' call-boy, ] (though usually younger than the client as youth is generally considered attractive). Reflecting the general aesthetic preference for youth, one says ''pretty boy'' (e.g. in the nickname of ], who committed his first bank robbery at age 30) or ] (name of a mythological youth) even when a male beauty is clearly of riper age. In terms (used pejoratively or neutrally) for ] such as ] (alongside "batty man"; from "bottom") or "bum boy", age is not essential, but the connotation of immaturity can strengthen insulting use.

] at summer camp in the ].]]
A man's group of male friends etc. engaged in ] are often called "the boys". It is most common to refer to men, irrespective of age or even in an adult age group, as boys in the context of a team (especially all-male), such as ]s for networking of adult men who attended the same school(s) as boys, or as professional colleagues, e.g. "the boys at the office, - police station etc." (often all adults). The members of a ] can be called frat(ernity) boys, technically preferable to the pleonasm frat-bro(ther), and remain so for life as adults, after graduation.

In sports 'the boys' commonly refers to the ]s; e.g., ] football managers quite often refer to their players as "The boy so-and-so" and this usage is by no means restricted to the youngest players, though it is rarely applied to the most senior.

In US urban, particularly ] and ] ] the term boy is used with a possessive as meaning friend (''my boy,'' ''his boys''), presumably as a reduction of ''homeboy'', originally a male from the same area.

In some cases, the word ''boy'' is used merely to designate the age of the (male) person, irrespective of the function, as in ], a minor acting as liturgical ], or in ]s, an organisation specifically for boys. Thus the compound ''-man'' can then be replaced by ''-boy'', as in ]; or boy is simply added, either as a prefix (e.g., in ]) or as a suffix (e.g., in ]).

An adult equivalent (with or without ''-man'') is not to be expected when -boy designates an apprentice (for which some languages use a compound with the equivalent of boy, e.g. ''leerjongen'' 'learning boy' in Dutch) or lowest rank implying specific on the job training if promotion is to be obtained, as in ]. Similarly ''schoolboy'' only applies to minors; the modern near-synonym ''pupil'' originally designated a minor in Roman law as being under a specific adult's authority, as ''in loco parentis''.

Expressions such as "boys will be boys" (i.e., a male always retains a tendency for boyish games or mischief) allude to stereotypically ascribed characteristics of boys and men; in the term '']'', a woman's (according to the counterpart-gender stereotype) uncharacteristically bold nature is even described solely by comparing her to a boy.

The use of boy (like ]) in (fantasy or descriptive) nicknames, also for adult men (e.g. ] for a wrestler with matching costume), may also connote to the informal or naughty image of boyhood.

In such terms as 'city boy' or 'home boy', the age notion is at most anachronistic, as they indicate any male who grew up (or by extension lived a long time) in a certain environment.

==Specific uses and compounds==
The following subsections treat some specific contexts where the term boy is frequently used, as such or in compound terms, often 'emancipated' from the age notion as such.

<!-- They also show that similar semantic broadness applies to many languages, notably Indo-European; to avoid lengthy duplication, cases may simply be linked here or there. -->
*] was replaced (not for a slave owner or his overseer etc.) by the late 19th century, as a form of address, especially employed by servants, by ] (etymologically equal) for the master of the household and other adults, but retained for boys until age 13.

===Military===
The term 'our boys' is commonly used for a nation's soldiers, often with sympathy. Given the physical demands of battle, recruits are preferably in their physical prime, but adult professionals remain included in the term as long as they remain in service.
A case where the term is formally used for (adult) men is ], a member of an even-numbered group of seamen posted in two rows at the Quarterdeck when a visiting dignitary boards or leaves a ship.
In the Ottoman Empire, the young, mainly Christian military recruits for life (often forcibly enlisted by ']') were officially called ''acemi oglanlar'' ("novice boys").

Thus "-boy" can enter the ] for a particular nation's ]s, e.g. the US (infantry) ], or a specific force, e.g. ''Fly-boy'' is slang for an ].

Furthermore, specific terms refer to minors used in the armed forces:
*]
*] is a ] in naval training; ] refers to specific, low-paid apprentice ranks, notably in the ]; until the middle of the twentieth century, they were the only Navy staff subject (like their civilian age-peers, at home and in school) to physical punishment, usually ], traditionally administered on the bare bottom (as in English public schools; the adults were lashed on the backside above the waist), either formally (ordered in ], publicly executed on deck) or, more often but less severely, summary; the same was true of a ], also a minor, but indicated with "-man" rather than "-boy", possibly reflecting their higher status as future naval officers. Sometimes in ex-servicemen's parades, an old man is described as "ship's boy" to say that he served so classed in the Navy as a boy.

However, when a minor in military employ is considered (historically often far less restrictive then nowadays) too young to be a 'normal' warrior (illegal under present UN rules, but without precise enforceable age limits), he's called ], regardless whether he's used as an armed fighter or only in logistic or similar functions such as bearer.

===Domestic, residential and similar 'personal' attendants===
*] was originally a ship's bell-ringer, later a hotel page.
*] is a rank in restaurants etc. below (head) waiter, fitting for trainees but may be held by ripe adults, even under younger (e.g. better qualified) superiors
*]
*]
*]
*] "bath boy" (also called Tellak) working in a Turkish bath.
*], or often "boy" for short, became a common term for domestic staff, notably non-European natives in the Asian and African colonies, adopted as such in other languages, e.g. in Dutch and French (also in the Belgian colonies).
*], belows the cook(s); in a large household there may be specific functions, such as ]
*] like linkman meant ]- or other light-bearer
*], from the Greek παις ''pais'', again in many languages, already in Hellenistic times παίδες βασιλικοί ''paides basilikoi'' 'royal (i.e. court) boys'.

===Cultural and religious life===
*] (see above)
*] designates a boy (always a minor) singer in a ]; here applies a specific physiological, artistically relevant criterion: they remain a musical category of their own (], also known as a ]) until their voice 'breaks', during puberty, to join one of the adult male ]s (] (closest to treble), ], ], ], or ]); only the ] may (not guaranteed) remain a ] as an adult man; historically the term was designed for all-male (mainly church) choirs, with men with already broken voices (often former choir boys), in modern times it also applies to mixed choirs.

===Rural life and professions===
*] originally designated a herds''boy'' employed as ], but lost the age notion, first retaining the connotation of inferior status, later applying to the whole ranch life culture; by contrast "shepherd's boy" (rather herding ] or ]s, representing less capital) remained restricted to minors.

===Commercial and other services===
Often the term "boy" describes positions of the ] type, such as ] (a junior ]).
*] in a film crew denotes the chief assistant, usually of the gaffer or key grip, next in line to be promoted; an example of a use where the term is traditionally unaltered in crediting female incumbents
*]s were boys between 8 and 12 years old who worked as coal breakers in U.S. coal mines. The job resulted in a high number of fatal and debilitating injuries and the practice of employing children as coal breakers largely ended by 1920 due to the efforts of the ].
*] and ] refer to a young(est) employee (i.e. lacking experience), in training and/or performing menial services such as carrying typewritten texts between offices of a newspaper.
*Even into the early 20th century, the British empire systematically employed boy ]s, including a specific rank of boy copyist, recruited by examination (despite the name, requiring schooling) and reserved for candidates aged 15–18, not retained in that rank after the age of 20.

Certain jobs need so little training or formal qualifications that they can easily be performed as ]s, and thus tend to be filled mostly or exclusively by minors, as it would not pay to employ an adult at or above minimum wage. Thus an equivalent word with the compound man (or similar) may be the rarer one, or even inexistent. Examples include ], errand boy, messenger boy and various specific terms naming the product to deliver, such as ] (closest adult counterpart postman), ] boy (alongside pizzaman), or to serve, such as a ] (drinks waiter, or a gather of empties). In other cases the compound mentions a crucial attribute of his task, e.g. ] (more recently also girls) in tennis.

In some cases his small, light body makes a boy a better choice, e.g. as ] where no weight handicap is in force.
* A nipper originally was a boy send out by an adult (often his own father) as ], later a boy assistant to various professions such as a ], still later (recorded since 1859) a boys' age term roughly equal to ]

===Race===
Historically, in the US and South Africa, "boy" was not only a 'neutral' term for domestics but also as a disparaging term towards men of colour, implying their subservient status - the usage ran from the period of slavery through ] and ], though it became less acceptable and decreased as time passed.{{Citation needed|date=June 2014}}


===Specific uses===
The use of the term "boy" has not always been used as an insult. As an example, Thomas Branch, an early African-American Seventh-day Adventist missionary to Nyassaland (Malawi) referred to the native students as boys:{{quotation|There is one way by which we judge many of our present boys to be quite different from some of those who were here long ago: those that are married have their wives here with them, and build their own houses, and all are busy making their gardens. I have told all the boys that if they wished to stay here and learn, those that had wives must bring them. This is having a good effect on them. They stay longer, and are more attentive to their work and their studies.<ref>{{Cite journal
====Race====
Historically,{{When|date=June 2024}} in the United States and South Africa, "boy" was used not only for domestic servants but also more generally as a disparaging term for black men; the term implied a subservient status.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://harvardlpr.com/2011/12/21/court-finally-says-boy-comments-are-racist/|title=Court finally says 'boy' comments are racist|last=Corriher|first=Billy|date=2011-12-21|website=Harvard Law and Policy Review|access-date=2017-07-18}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.theroot.com/when-boy-is-not-a-racist-remark-1790880694|title=When 'Boy' Is Not a Racist Remark|last=Ifill|first=Sherrilyn A.|date=24 August 2010|work=The Root|access-date=2017-07-18|language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2008/04/15/understanding-why-you-dont-call-a-black-man-a-boy/|title=Understanding why you don't call a black man a boy|last=Martin|first=Roland S.|date=15 April 2008|website=CNN.com|access-date=2017-07-18|archive-date=2022-05-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220525032022/https://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2008/04/15/understanding-why-you-dont-call-a-black-man-a-boy/|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite news|url=https://newsone.com/2282554/chris-christie-boy/|title=Racist Or Not? Gov. Chris Christie Calls Black Man 'Boy' In Town Hall |date=2013-03-16|work=News One|access-date=2017-07-18|language=en-US}}</ref> Thomas Branch, an early African-American Seventh-day Adventist missionary to Nyassaland (]) referred to the native students as "boys":{{blockquote|There is one way by which we judge many of our present boys to be quite different from some of those who were here long ago: those that are married have their wives here with them, and build their own houses, and all are busy making their gardens. I have told all the boys that if they wished to stay here and learn, those that had wives must bring them.<ref>{{Cite journal
| last = Branch | last = Branch
| first = Thomas H. | first = Thomas H.
Line 107: Line 30:
| journal = Review and Herald | journal = Review and Herald
| volume = 84 | volume = 84
| issue = 01 | issue = 1
| page = 18 | page = 18
| publisher = Review and Herald Publishing Association | publisher = Review and Herald Publishing Association
| location = Washington, D.C. | location = Washington, D.C.
| date = January 3, 1907 | date = January 3, 1907
| url = http://www.adventistarchives.org/docs/RH/RH19070103-V84-01__B.pdf#view=fit | url = http://docs.adventistarchives.org/docs/RH/RH19070103-V84-01__B.pdf?q=docs/RH/RH19070103-V84-01__B.pdf
| accessdate = May 12, 2012}}</ref>}} | access-date = May 5, 2015
}}</ref>}} Multiple politicians – including New Jersey Governor ] and former Kentucky Congressman ] – have been criticized publicly for referring to a black man as "boy".<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" />


During an event promoting the 2017 ] between ] and ], the latter told the former to "dance for me, boy."<ref name=":2">{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2017/jul/15/mayweather-accuses-mcgregor-of-racism-and-uses-homophobic-slur|title=Floyd Mayweather accuses Conor McGregor of racism and uses homophobic slur|date=2017-07-15|work=The Guardian|access-date=2017-07-18|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}</ref> The remarks led several boxers – including Mayweather and ] – as well as multiple commentators to accuse McGregor of racism.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2721466-andre-ward-doesnt-like-conor-mcgregor-calling-floyd-mayweather-boy|title=Andre Ward Doesn't Like Conor McGregor Calling Floyd Mayweather 'Boy'|last=Chiari|first=Mike|date=13 July 2017|work=Bleacher Report|access-date=2017-07-18|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://thegrapevine.theroot.com/yes-conor-mcgregor-is-a-racist-1796876545|title=Yes, Conor McGregor Is a Racist|last=Callahan|first=Yesha|date=13 June 2017|work=The Root|access-date=2017-07-18|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.salon.com/2017/07/14/conor-mcgregor-racist/|title=Conor McGregor denies being a racist with racist statement|last=Bell|first=Gabriel|date=14 July 2017|website=Salon|access-date=2017-07-18}}</ref>
==Non-function specific analogous terms==
Boys, in the strict or a wider sense, are often informally referred to by analogous or metaphorical terms. The literal connotations, which may be ironic or downright pejorative, have often been eroded by common use. Some terms are unisex, with or without (at least historical) preponderance of use for boys:
* ], ](py) and ] compare boys to the young of predatory animals, the slang ] even to that of an amphibian;
* Buck, another animal young, usually refers to a sexually adventurous male youngster
* ], originally an (idle) lout, has got -mainly in Scotland- unrelated specific meanings, including boy, ] and looney person
* ] compares to a plant's young shoots
* References to the boy's generally lighter physique than a man include ] 'slender youth' and -rather insulting- slang like half-pint or small-fry
* More specifically, ''shaveling'' (or in slang ]) refers to boys' lesser hair growth than men's before - and densification around puberty
* Various terms refer to children's, often especially boys', lack of adult manners (e.g. "snot(ty) nose(d) (kid)") or to often mischievous behavior, e.g. "]", also by analogy with animals, e.g. "monkey", "]" (as 'prickly' as a hedgehog); "]" refers to such undiscipline for lack of firm upbringing.
* Furthermore, common boys' names have also been used ] to stand for boys and/or men in general, as in 'every Dick and Tom'.


==Biology==
==Analogous uses and popular etymology==
===Sex determination===
By analogy, "boy" can also refer as an ] term to a young male (or any male) of another animal, either in general or species-specific; in the last case it may even have a specific term, notably derived from a boy's name, such as "billy goat" for a 'boy' goat, or ] (known since 1809, for any male cat; but just Tom, applied to male kittens, is recorded since c.1303)


]
Again, by analogy, "boy" can occasionally even refer to a 'male' object.


Human sex is determined at ] when the ]tic ] of the ] is determined by whether the ] ] contains an X or Y chromosome. If the sperm cell contains an ], the fetus will be XX and, typically, a ] will develop. A sperm cell carrying a Y chromosome results in an XY combination, and typically a boy will develop. Variations from this general rule result in ] fetuses.{{sfn|Fauci|Braunwald|Kasper|Hauser|2008|pp=2339-2346}}
Some words contain 'boy' in English by mistake (]), actually referring to a (near) homophone such as French ''bois'' = "wood" (e.g. in "low boy", a type of ], and in "tallboy", both furniture and a high glass or ]).


===In utero development and genitalia===
==Similar originally youth-related terms==
] boys at play]]
<!-- Unsourced image removed: ] -->
In male embryos at six to seven weeks' gestation, "the expression of a gene on the Y chromosome induces changes that result in the development of the testes". At approximately nine weeks' gestation, the production of testosterone by a male embryo results in the development of the male reproductive system.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK222286/|title=Sex Begins in the Womb|author=Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Understanding the Biology of Sex and Gender Differences|editor-first1=Theresa M.|editor-last1=Wizemann|editor-first2=Mary-Lou|editor-last2=Pardue|date=November 28, 2001|publisher=National Academies Press (US)|via=www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov}}</ref>
{{Main|Youth related terms}}
] boy]]
The ] includes both external and internal organs. The external organs include the ], the ], and the ]s (or testes). The penis is a cylindrical organ filled with spongy tissue. It is the organ used by boys to expel ]. The foreskin of some boys' penises is removed in a process known as ]. The scrotum is a loose sac of skin behind the penis which contains the testicles. Testicles are oval-shaped gonads. A boy generally possesses two testicles. Internal male reproductive organs include the ], the ], the ], the ], and the ] gland.<ref name="clevelandclinic1">{{cite web|url=https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/9117-male-reproductive-system|title=Male Reproductive System Information|website=Cleveland Clinic}}</ref><ref name="webmd1">{{cite web|url=https://www.webmd.com/sex-relationships/guide/male-reproductive-system|title=The Male Reproductive System|website=WebMD}}</ref>


===Physical maturation===
==Boys in art==
] is the process by which children's bodies mature into adult bodies that are capable of reproduction. On average, boys begin puberty at ages 11–12 and complete puberty at ages 16–17.<ref name="Kail">{{cite book| last = Kail | first = RV |author2=Cavanaugh JC| title = Human Development: A Lifespan View | isbn = 978-0-495-60037-4 | publisher = ] | year = 2010 | page = 296 |edition = 5th|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E-n5E7oyCgoC&pg=PA296}}</ref><ref name="Phillips">{{cite book|author=D. C. Phillips| title =Encyclopedia of Educational Theory and Philosophy| isbn = 978-1-4833-6475-9 | publisher = ] | year = 2014 | pages = 18–19|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=84StBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA18|quote=On average, the onset of puberty is about 18 months earlier for girls (usually starting around the age of 10 or 11 and lasting until they are 15 to 17) than for boys (who usually begin puberty at about the age of 11 to 12 and complete it by the age of 16 to 17, on average).}}</ref>
Many mythological boys have frequently been represented in various arts, e.g. Venus' often mischievous son ], himself a young god of love which he 'inflicts' on humans by shooting his arrows; in some style periods even multiplied as naked little boys called '']''.


In boys, puberty begins with the enlargement of the testicles and scrotum. The penis also increases in size, and a boy develops pubic hair. A boy's testicles also begin making sperm. The release of semen, which contains sperm and other fluids, is called ejaculation.<ref name="hopkinsmedicine1">{{cite web|url=https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/puberty-adolescent-male |title=Puberty: Adolescent Male &#124; Johns Hopkins Medicine |publisher=Hopkinsmedicine.org |access-date=2020-02-27}}</ref> During puberty, a boy's erect penis becomes capable of ] ] and impregnating a ].<ref name="clevelandclinic1"/><ref name="webmd1"/> A boy's first ejaculation is an important milestone in his development.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.health24.com/Lifestyle/Teen/Your-body/Male-puberty-milestones-20120721 |title=Male puberty milestones |publisher=Health24 |access-date=2020-02-27}}</ref> On average, a boy's first ] occurs at age 13.<ref name="Jorgensen & Keiding">(Jorgensen & Keiding 1991).</ref> Ejaculation sometimes occurs during sleep; this phenomenon is known as a ].<ref name="hopkinsmedicine1"/>
In religious art, generally adults preponderate (except as extras), with certain marked, stereotypical exceptions such as the ] or ]s which may even act as 'Christianized' putti.


When a boy reaches puberty, ] triggers the development of secondary sex characteristics. A boy's muscles increase in size and mass, his voice deepens, his bones lengthen, and the shape of his face and body changes.<ref name="Bjorklund">{{cite book |vauthors=Bjorklund DF, Blasi CH|title=Child and Adolescent Development: An Integrated Approach|publisher=]|isbn=978-1133168379|year=2011|pages=152–153|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZTQIAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA152}}</ref> The increased secretion of testosterone from the testicles during puberty causes the male secondary sexual characteristics to be manifested.{{sfn|Van de Graaff|Fox|1989|p=933-4}} Male secondary sex characteristics include:
In children's books of ], ] are often portrayed as mischievous little boys who are very small with leaf-shaped ears and blond hair.
]]]
* Growth of ], including ], ], ], and ] hair.<ref name="Pack">{{cite book |vauthors=Pack PE|title=CliffsNotes AP Biology, 5th Edition|publisher=]|isbn=978-0544784178|year=2016|page=219|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GsalDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA219}}</ref><ref name="Bjorklund"/>
* Growth of ].<ref name="Bjorklund"/>
* Enlargement of ] (Adam's apple) and deepening of ].<ref name="Bjorklund"/><ref name="autogenerated1">{{cite web|url=https://www.hartnell.edu/faculty/asteinhardt/mywebs/sexual_reproduction.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090208223522/http://www.hartnell.edu/faculty/asteinhardt/mywebs/sexual_reproduction.htm|url-status=dead|title=Help is here!|archive-date=February 8, 2009|website=hartnell.edu}}</ref>
* Increased ]; adult males are taller than adult females, on average.<ref name="Bjorklund"/>
* Heavier ] and ] ].<ref name="Bjorklund"/>
* Increased ] mass and strength.<ref name="Bjorklund"/>
* Broadening of ]s and chest; shoulders wider than hips.<ref name="secondary">{{cite web|url=http://www2.hu-berlin.de/sexology/ATLAS_EN/html/secondary_characteristics.html |title=Secondary Characteristics |work=hu-berlin.de |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927075821/http://www2.hu-berlin.de/sexology/ATLAS_EN/html/secondary_characteristics.html |archive-date=2011-09-27 }}</ref>
* Increased secretions of oil and ]s.<ref name="autogenerated1" />


== Group and gender norms ==
In ] art, and generally in commissioned work (including funeral art), the subjects are usually determined by the wishes of the (adult) client, so minors are often in the minority, yet in wealthy families especially heirs are (re)presented as part of their social positioning in view of future marriage and succession, generally either as mini-adults or stereotypical youth, e.g. at play or in cozy home scenes.
Boys across various age groups are often part of social circles that establish their own unique norms. These norms serve as a benchmark for boys to assess their peers. The adherence to these group norms often holds more weight than the mere affiliation to the group. In fact, boys who do not conform to these norms are often evaluated lower than those who, despite being strangers, conform to the group’s norms. This phenomenon underscores the powerful influence of group norms in shaping attitudes and actions, and the social implications of conformity.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Children's and adolescents' evaluations of peers who challenge their group: The role of gender norms and identity|date=2022 |doi=10.1111/sode.12546 |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/sode.12546 |last1=McGuire |first1=Luke |last2=Palmer |first2=Sally B. |last3=Rutland |first3=Adam |journal=Social Development |volume=31 |issue=2 |pages=423–437 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|chapter=Group Norms |doi=10.1093/acrefore/9780190236557.013.453 |isbn=978-0-19-023655-7 |chapter-url=https://oxfordre.com/psychology/abstract/10.1093/acrefore/9780190236557.001.0001/acrefore-9780190236557-e-453|access-date=2024-03-25 |title=Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Psychology |date=2020 |last1=Smith |first1=Joanne R. }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Conformity in Groups: The Effects of Others' Views on Expressed Attitudes and Attitude Change|date=2016 |doi=10.1007/s11109-015-9312-x |url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11109-015-9312-x|access-date=2024-03-25 |last1=Levitan |first1=Lindsey C. |last2=Verhulst |first2=Brad |journal=Political Behavior |volume=38 |issue=2 |pages=277–315 }}</ref>
Boys who defy gender norms may face a higher risk of abuse, and may experience more depression than gender-conforming peers, as well as ] from parents<ref>{{cite news|last1=Bridges|first1=Dori|date=24 April 2019|title=Parents more uncomfortable with gender-nonconforming behaviors in boys, study finds|publisher=PsyPost|url=https://www.psypost.org/2019/04/parents-more-uncomfortable-with-gender-nonconforming-behaviors-in-boys-study-finds-53540|access-date=19 August 2020}}</ref> and peers.<ref>{{cite web|title=Gender Nonconforming Children, Particularly Boys, Are Less Popular With Peers|url=https://goodmenproject.com/featured-content/gender-nonconforming-children-particularly-boys-are-less-popular-with-peers-lbkr/|access-date=19 August 2020|website=The Good Men Project|date=20 January 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Roberts|first1=Andrea|last2=Rosario|first2=Margaret|last3=Slopen|first3=Natalie|last4=Calzo|first4=Jeren|date=2012|title=Childhood Gender Nonconformity, Bullying Victimization, and Depressive Symptoms Across Adolescence and Early Adulthood: An 11-Year Longitudinal Study|url=https://jaacap.org/article/S0890-8567(12)00872-6/fulltext|journal=Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry|volume=52|issue=2|pages=143–152|doi=10.1016/j.jaac.2012.11.006|pmid=23357441|pmc=3635805|access-date=19 August 2020}}</ref> The ] towards them can increase the risk of alcohol use, anxiety, and depression in adulthood.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Bauermeister|first1=José A.|last2=Connochie|first2=Daniel|last3=Jadwin-Cakmak|first3=Laura|last4=Meanley|first4=Steven|date=May 2017|title=Gender Policing During Childhood and the Psychological Well-Being of Young Adult Sexual Minority Men in the United States|journal=American Journal of Men's Health|volume=11|issue=3|pages=693–701|doi=10.1177/1557988316680938|issn=1557-9883|pmc=5393921|pmid=27903954}}</ref>


In some cultures, the birth of a male child (boy) is considered prosperous.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Selecting Boys Over Girls Is A Trend In More And More Countries|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2015/08/26/434616512/selecting-boys-over-girls-is-a-trend-in-more-and-more-countries|access-date=2021-05-14|website=NPR.org|date=26 August 2015 |language=en|last1=Brink |first1=Susan }}</ref>
Some artists displayed a clear predeliction for scenes with boys, in certain cases (especially if frequently depicting revealing poses) believed to have to do with a homo-erotic taste, as is believed of the highly respected Old Master ], or ] who kept producing such works even though the market circa 1900 was rather unappreciative.


== Boys and child labor ==
In music, boys' voices, before they 'break' being of a soprano register (specifically known as ]) unlike adult men (in a choir usually tenor and bass), have been most sought-after, especially where female voices were considered inappropriate as often in church and certain theatrical music - this even led to the practice of physically trying to prevent their 'angelical' voices ever to break by surgically cutting short the hormonal drive to manhood: for centuries, ] singers, who coupled adult strength and experience with a treble register, starred in ] parts, mainly in operatic styles.
], 1912]]
Boys perform the majority of ] around the world compared to girls; 88 million child laborers are boys and 64 million are girls. Boys are also the primary victims of hazardous child labor. They are mainly employed in the ], ] and ] sectors. Boy workers also account for about 87 percent of those who died on the job between 2003 and 2016 in the US.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Child Labor Facts and Statistics about Child Labor Around The World - Compassion International|url=https://www.compassion.com/poverty/child-labor-quick-facts.htm|access-date=2021-05-26|website=www.compassion.com}}</ref>


Boys are given a basic reading, writing and mathematics skill and then forced to pursue their father's profession in order to alleviate financial burden of the family. This is one of the main reasons why boys are preferred over girls by the rural communities in poor countries. In ], by contrast, the majority of adopted children are girls even though boys are preferred in general compared to girls.<ref>{{Cite web|title=10 Basic Facts about Child Labor Globally – stopchildlabor|url=https://stopchildlabor.org/?p=4504|access-date=2021-05-26|website=stopchildlabor.org| date=16 July 2018 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=June 12, 2018|title=World Day Against Child Labour: 152 million children are forced to work for a living|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/fyi/story/world-day-against-child-labour-over-152-million-children-are-forced-to-work-for-a-living-1258140-2018-06-12|access-date=2021-05-26|website=India Today|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2016-07-11|title=The number of Children available for adoption is less than 1/4th the demand despite the simplification in adoption process|url=https://factly.in/number-children-available-adoption-less-14th-demand-despite-simplification-adoption-process/|access-date=2021-05-26|website=FACTLY|language=en-US}}</ref>
==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Fayum02.jpg|]-] ] ] of a young boy
File:WalterRaleighandson.jpg|Sir ] and his son, 1602
File:C L Vogel Die Söhne des Künstlers.jpg|''Die Söhne des Künstlers'' ]
File:Ernst Weise Geschwister an der Ostsee 1915.jpg|''Die Geschwister an der Ostsee'', by ], 1915
</gallery>


==See also== ==See also==
{{Commons category|Boys}}
*] *]
*] *]
*] *]
*]
*]


==References== ==References==

{{reflist}} {{reflist}}
{{More footnotes|date=March 2009}}
* - entry for "boy"
* H. H. Malincrodt, ''Latijn-Nederlands woordenboek'' (Latin-Dutch dictionary)
* Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary
* {{cite book | first=Carl Darling | last=Buck | authorlink=Carl Darling Buck | title=A Dictionary of Selected Synonyms in the Principal Indo-European Languages | location=Chicago | publisher=University of Chicago Press | origyear=1949 | year=1988 | isbn=978-0-226-07937-0 }}


==Further reading== ==Further reading==
*{{cite journal |last=Allen |first=Edward A. |title=Public School Elites in Early-Victorian England: The Boys at Harrow and Merchant Taylors' Schools from 1825 to 1850 |journal=Journal of British Studies |volume=21 |issue=2 |year=1982 |pages=87–117 |doi=10.1086/385791 |s2cid=144610133 }}
* Sommers, Christina Hoff (2000). ''The War against Boys: How Misguided Feminism Is Harming Our Young Men''. New York: Simon & Schuster. 251 p. ISBN 0-684-84956-9
*{{cite book |last1=Baggerman |first1=Arianne |author-link1=Arianne Baggerman |first2=Rudolf |last2=Dekker |author-link2=Rudolf Dekker|title=Child of the Enlightenment: Revolutionary Europe Reflected in a Boyhood Diary |year=2009 |publisher=Brill |isbn= 9789004273641}}
*{{cite book |editor-last=Clement |editor-first=Priscilla Ferguson |editor2-first=Jacqueline S. |editor2-last=Reinier |title=Boyhood in America: an encyclopedia |others=2 vol |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2001 |isbn=978-1-57607-215-8}}
* {{cite book|title = Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine|last1 = Fauci|first1 = Anthony S.|publisher = McGraw-Hill Medical|year = 2008|isbn= 9780071466332|pages = 2339–2346|edition = 17th|last2 = Braunwald|first2 = Eugene|last3 = Kasper|first3 = Dennis L.|last4 = Hauser|first4 = Stephen L.|last5 = Longo|first5 = Dan L.|last6 = Jameson|first6 = J. Larry|last7 = Loscalzo|first7 = Joseph}}
*{{cite book |last=Giese |first=Rachel |title=Boys: What it Means to Become a Man |publisher=Seal Press |year=2018 |isbn= 9781443442916}}
*{{cite book |last=Hunt |first=Peter |title=International companion encyclopedia of children's literature |publisher=Routledge |year=2004 |isbn=9780415290531}}
*{{cite book |last=Illick |first=Joseph E. |title=American childhoods |year=2005 |publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press |isbn=9780812236590}}
*{{cite journal |last=Killian |first=Caitlin |title=Covered girls and savage boys: Representations of Muslim youth in France |journal=Journal of Social and Ecological Boundaries |volume=3 |issue=1 |year=2007 |pages=69–90 }}
*{{cite journal |last1=Kugler |first1=Adriana D. |first2=Santosh |last2=Kumar |title=Preference for boys, family size, and educational attainment in India |journal=] |volume=54 |issue=3 |year=2017 |pages=835–859 |doi=10.1007/s13524-017-0575-1 |pmid=28484996 |pmc=5486858 |doi-access=free }}
*{{cite journal |last=Liu |first=Fengshu |title=Boys as only-children and girls as only-children—parental gendered expectations of the only-child in the nuclear Chinese family in present-day China |journal=Gender and Education |volume=18 |issue=5 |year=2006 |pages=491–505 |doi=10.1080/09540250600881626 |s2cid=144525986 }}
*{{cite journal |last=Macleod |first=David I. |title=Act Your Age: Boyhood, Adolescence and the Rise of the Boy Scouts of America |journal=] |volume=16 |issue=2 |year=1982 |pages=3–20 |doi=10.1353/jsh/16.2.3 }}
*{{cite book |last=Mintz |first=Steven |title=Huck's raft: A history of American childhood |url=https://archive.org/details/hucksrafthistory00mint_0 |url-access=registration |publisher=Harvard UP |year=2004 |isbn=9780674015081}}
*{{cite book |last=Naka |first=Kansuke |title=The Silver Spoon: Memoir of a Boyhood in Japan |publisher=Stone Bridge Press |year=2015 |isbn=9781611720198 }}
*{{cite journal |last=Plafker |first=Ted |title=Sex selection in China sees 117 boys born for every 100 girls |journal=] |volume=324 |issue=7348 |year=2002 |page=1233 |doi=10.1136/bmj.324.7348.1233/a |pmid=12028966 |pmc=1123206 }}
*{{cite book |editor-last=Powell |editor-first=Sacha |editor2-first=Kate |editor2-last=Smith |title=An introduction to early childhood studies |publisher=Sage |year=2017 |isbn=9781526417480}}
*{{cite book |last=Rose |first=Clare |title=Making, selling and wearing boys' clothes in late-Victorian England |publisher=Routledge |year=2016 |isbn=9781138261860}}
*{{cite journal |last=Theriault |first=Daniel |title=A Socio-Historical Overview of Black Youth Development in the United States for Leisure Studies |journal=International Journal of the Sociology of Leisure |volume=1 |issue=2 |year=2018 |pages=197–213 |doi=10.1007/s41978-018-0013-y |s2cid=158309254 |doi-access=free }}
* {{cite book|last1=Van de Graaff|first1=Kent M.|last2=Fox|first2=Stuart Ira|title=Concepts of Human Anatomy and Physiology|date=1989|publisher=William C. Brown Publishers|location=Dubuque, Iowa|isbn=0697056759|url=https://archive.org/details/conceptsofhumana00vand}}
*{{cite journal |last=Wainman |first=Ruth |title='Engineering for Boys': Meccano and the Shaping of a Technical Vision of Boyhood in Twentieth-Century Britain |journal=Cultural and Social History |volume=14 |issue=3 |year=2017 |pages=381–396 |doi=10.1080/14780038.2017.1314581 |s2cid=164528642 }}
*{{cite journal |last=Wolff |first=Larry |title=The Boys Are Pickpockets, and the Girl Is a Prostitute": Gender and Juvenile Criminality in Early Victorian England from Oliver Twist to London Labour |journal=New Literary History |volume=27 |issue=2 |year=1996 |pages=227–249 |doi=10.1353/nlh.1996.0029 |jstor=20057349 |s2cid=162188050 }}


==External links== ==External links==
* {{commons category-inline}}
{{Wiktionary}}
* {{Wikiquote-inline}}
* , website and journal for the study of boys
* {{Wiktionary-inline}}
* , discusses news items, new research
* , website and journal for the study of boys
* *


{{EB1911}} {{Family}}
{{Humandevelopment}}
{{Authority control}}


] ]
] ]
] ]

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A young boy in Laos
Part of a series on
Human growth
and development
Stages
Biological milestones
Development and psychology
Developmental stage theories

A boy is a young male human. The term is commonly used for a child or an adolescent. When a male human reaches adulthood, he is usually described as a man.

Definition, etymology, and use

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a boy is "a male child from birth to adulthood".

The word "boy" comes from Middle English boi, boye ("boy, servant"), related to other Germanic words for boy, namely East Frisian boi ("boy, young man") and West Frisian boai ("boy"). Although the exact etymology is obscure, the English and Frisian forms probably derive from an earlier Anglo-Frisian *bō-ja ("little brother"), a diminutive of the Germanic root *bō- ("brother, male relation"), from Proto-Indo-European *bhā-, *bhāt- ("father, brother"). The root is also found in Norwegian dialectal boa ("brother"), and, through a reduplicated variant *bō-bō-, in Old Norse bófi, Dutch boef "(criminal) knave, rogue", German Bube ("knave, rogue, boy"). Furthermore, the word may be related to Bōia, an Anglo-Saxon personal name.

Poor Neapolitan children
African boy transporting fodder
Tanzanian boy transporting fodder

Specific uses

Race

Historically, in the United States and South Africa, "boy" was used not only for domestic servants but also more generally as a disparaging term for black men; the term implied a subservient status. Thomas Branch, an early African-American Seventh-day Adventist missionary to Nyassaland (Malawi) referred to the native students as "boys":

There is one way by which we judge many of our present boys to be quite different from some of those who were here long ago: those that are married have their wives here with them, and build their own houses, and all are busy making their gardens. I have told all the boys that if they wished to stay here and learn, those that had wives must bring them.

Multiple politicians – including New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and former Kentucky Congressman Geoff Davis – have been criticized publicly for referring to a black man as "boy".

During an event promoting the 2017 boxing bout between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Conor McGregor, the latter told the former to "dance for me, boy." The remarks led several boxers – including Mayweather and Andre Ward – as well as multiple commentators to accuse McGregor of racism.

Biology

Sex determination

A child's genetic sex is determined by the sex chromosome of the sperm involved. Typically, if an egg is fertilized by a sperm containing an X chromosome, the fetus will have two X chromosomes and its chromosomal sex will be female. If an egg is fertilized by a sperm containing a Y chromosome, the fetus will have XY chromosomes and its chromosomal sex will be male.

Human sex is determined at fertilization when the genetic sex of the zygote is determined by whether the sperm cell contains an X or Y chromosome. If the sperm cell contains an X chromosome, the fetus will be XX and, typically, a girl will develop. A sperm cell carrying a Y chromosome results in an XY combination, and typically a boy will develop. Variations from this general rule result in intersex fetuses.

In utero development and genitalia

Armenian boys at play

In male embryos at six to seven weeks' gestation, "the expression of a gene on the Y chromosome induces changes that result in the development of the testes". At approximately nine weeks' gestation, the production of testosterone by a male embryo results in the development of the male reproductive system.

Filipino boy

The male reproductive system includes both external and internal organs. The external organs include the penis, the scrotum, and the testicles (or testes). The penis is a cylindrical organ filled with spongy tissue. It is the organ used by boys to expel urine. The foreskin of some boys' penises is removed in a process known as circumcision. The scrotum is a loose sac of skin behind the penis which contains the testicles. Testicles are oval-shaped gonads. A boy generally possesses two testicles. Internal male reproductive organs include the vas deferens, the ejaculatory ducts, the urethra, the seminal vesicles, and the prostate gland.

Physical maturation

Puberty is the process by which children's bodies mature into adult bodies that are capable of reproduction. On average, boys begin puberty at ages 11–12 and complete puberty at ages 16–17.

In boys, puberty begins with the enlargement of the testicles and scrotum. The penis also increases in size, and a boy develops pubic hair. A boy's testicles also begin making sperm. The release of semen, which contains sperm and other fluids, is called ejaculation. During puberty, a boy's erect penis becomes capable of ejaculating semen and impregnating a female. A boy's first ejaculation is an important milestone in his development. On average, a boy's first ejaculation occurs at age 13. Ejaculation sometimes occurs during sleep; this phenomenon is known as a nocturnal emission.

When a boy reaches puberty, testosterone triggers the development of secondary sex characteristics. A boy's muscles increase in size and mass, his voice deepens, his bones lengthen, and the shape of his face and body changes. The increased secretion of testosterone from the testicles during puberty causes the male secondary sexual characteristics to be manifested. Male secondary sex characteristics include:

Adolescent boys in Uruguay

Group and gender norms

Boys across various age groups are often part of social circles that establish their own unique norms. These norms serve as a benchmark for boys to assess their peers. The adherence to these group norms often holds more weight than the mere affiliation to the group. In fact, boys who do not conform to these norms are often evaluated lower than those who, despite being strangers, conform to the group’s norms. This phenomenon underscores the powerful influence of group norms in shaping attitudes and actions, and the social implications of conformity. Boys who defy gender norms may face a higher risk of abuse, and may experience more depression than gender-conforming peers, as well as social stigma from parents and peers. The gender policing towards them can increase the risk of alcohol use, anxiety, and depression in adulthood.

In some cultures, the birth of a male child (boy) is considered prosperous.

Boys and child labor

Boys working in textile mills Massachusetts, 1912

Boys perform the majority of child labor around the world compared to girls; 88 million child laborers are boys and 64 million are girls. Boys are also the primary victims of hazardous child labor. They are mainly employed in the agriculture, construction and mining sectors. Boy workers also account for about 87 percent of those who died on the job between 2003 and 2016 in the US.

Boys are given a basic reading, writing and mathematics skill and then forced to pursue their father's profession in order to alleviate financial burden of the family. This is one of the main reasons why boys are preferred over girls by the rural communities in poor countries. In India, by contrast, the majority of adopted children are girls even though boys are preferred in general compared to girls.

See also

References

  1. "Definition of BOY".
  2. See:
    • Etymology Online - entry for "boy"
    • H. H. Malincrodt, Latijn-Nederlands woordenboek (Latin-Dutch dictionary)
    • Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary
    • Buck, Carl Darling (1988) . A Dictionary of Selected Synonyms in the Principal Indo-European Languages. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0-226-07937-0.
  3. Corriher, Billy (December 21, 2011). "Court finally says 'boy' comments are racist". Harvard Law and Policy Review. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  4. Ifill, Sherrilyn A. (August 24, 2010). "When 'Boy' Is Not a Racist Remark". The Root. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  5. ^ Martin, Roland S. (April 15, 2008). "Understanding why you don't call a black man a boy". CNN.com. Archived from the original on May 25, 2022. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  6. ^ "Racist Or Not? Gov. Chris Christie Calls Black Man 'Boy' In Town Hall [VIDEO]". News One. March 16, 2013. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  7. Branch, Thomas H. (January 3, 1907). "British Central Africa" (PDF). Review and Herald. 84 (1). Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association: 18. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  8. ^ "Floyd Mayweather accuses Conor McGregor of racism and uses homophobic slur". The Guardian. July 15, 2017. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  9. Chiari, Mike (July 13, 2017). "Andre Ward Doesn't Like Conor McGregor Calling Floyd Mayweather 'Boy'". Bleacher Report. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  10. Callahan, Yesha (June 13, 2017). "Yes, Conor McGregor Is a Racist". The Root. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  11. Bell, Gabriel (July 14, 2017). "Conor McGregor denies being a racist with racist statement". Salon. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  12. Fauci et al. 2008, pp. 2339–2346.
  13. Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Understanding the Biology of Sex and Gender Differences (November 28, 2001). Wizemann, Theresa M.; Pardue, Mary-Lou (eds.). Sex Begins in the Womb. National Academies Press (US) – via www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.
  14. ^ "Male Reproductive System Information". Cleveland Clinic.
  15. ^ "The Male Reproductive System". WebMD.
  16. Kail, RV; Cavanaugh JC (2010). Human Development: A Lifespan View (5th ed.). Cengage Learning. p. 296. ISBN 978-0-495-60037-4.
  17. D. C. Phillips (2014). Encyclopedia of Educational Theory and Philosophy. SAGE Publications. pp. 18–19. ISBN 978-1-4833-6475-9. On average, the onset of puberty is about 18 months earlier for girls (usually starting around the age of 10 or 11 and lasting until they are 15 to 17) than for boys (who usually begin puberty at about the age of 11 to 12 and complete it by the age of 16 to 17, on average).
  18. ^ "Puberty: Adolescent Male | Johns Hopkins Medicine". Hopkinsmedicine.org. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
  19. "Male puberty milestones". Health24. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
  20. (Jorgensen & Keiding 1991).
  21. ^ Bjorklund DF, Blasi CH (2011). Child and Adolescent Development: An Integrated Approach. Cengage Learning. pp. 152–153. ISBN 978-1133168379.
  22. Van de Graaff & Fox 1989, p. 933-4.
  23. Pack PE (2016). CliffsNotes AP Biology, 5th Edition. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. p. 219. ISBN 978-0544784178.
  24. ^ "Help is here!". hartnell.edu. Archived from the original on February 8, 2009.
  25. "Secondary Characteristics". hu-berlin.de. Archived from the original on September 27, 2011.
  26. McGuire, Luke; Palmer, Sally B.; Rutland, Adam (2022). "Children's and adolescents' evaluations of peers who challenge their group: The role of gender norms and identity". Social Development. 31 (2): 423–437. doi:10.1111/sode.12546.
  27. Smith, Joanne R. (2020). "Group Norms". Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Psychology. doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780190236557.013.453. ISBN 978-0-19-023655-7. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  28. Levitan, Lindsey C.; Verhulst, Brad (2016). "Conformity in Groups: The Effects of Others' Views on Expressed Attitudes and Attitude Change". Political Behavior. 38 (2): 277–315. doi:10.1007/s11109-015-9312-x. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  29. Bridges, Dori (April 24, 2019). "Parents more uncomfortable with gender-nonconforming behaviors in boys, study finds". PsyPost. Retrieved August 19, 2020.
  30. "Gender Nonconforming Children, Particularly Boys, Are Less Popular With Peers". The Good Men Project. January 20, 2020. Retrieved August 19, 2020.
  31. Roberts, Andrea; Rosario, Margaret; Slopen, Natalie; Calzo, Jeren (2012). "Childhood Gender Nonconformity, Bullying Victimization, and Depressive Symptoms Across Adolescence and Early Adulthood: An 11-Year Longitudinal Study". Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. 52 (2): 143–152. doi:10.1016/j.jaac.2012.11.006. PMC 3635805. PMID 23357441. Retrieved August 19, 2020.
  32. Bauermeister, José A.; Connochie, Daniel; Jadwin-Cakmak, Laura; Meanley, Steven (May 2017). "Gender Policing During Childhood and the Psychological Well-Being of Young Adult Sexual Minority Men in the United States". American Journal of Men's Health. 11 (3): 693–701. doi:10.1177/1557988316680938. ISSN 1557-9883. PMC 5393921. PMID 27903954.
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