| Revision as of 11:47, 24 October 2004 editThe Anome (talk | contribs)Edit filter managers, Administrators253,411 edits →See also: equal-oppotunity links← Previous edit | Revision as of 03:21, 23 November 2004 edit undoJumbuck (talk | contribs)14,218 editsm robot Adding:pt,itNext edit → | ||
| Line 22: | Line 22: | ||
| * ] | * ] | ||
| * ] | * ] | ||
| ⚫ | ] ] ] | ||
| ] | ] | ||
| ] | ] | ||
| ] | ] | ||
| ] | |||
| ] | ] | ||
| ] | |||
| ⚫ | ] ] ] | ||
Revision as of 03:21, 23 November 2004
The term adult describes any mature organism, but normally it refers to a human: one that is no longer a child and is now either a man or a woman. Coming of age is the event of becoming an adult, i.e. of entering adulthood.
Legally it means that one can engage in a contract. The same or a different minimum age may be applicable for e.g. parents losing parenting rights and duties regarding the person concerned, parents losing financial responsibility, marriage, voting, having a job, being a soldier, driving, travelling abroad, drinking alcoholic beverages (perhaps different ages for different categories), smoking, sex, being a prostitute (if legal at all), being a client of a prostitute, being a model or actor in pornography, etc.
The legal definition of entering adulthood varies between ages 16-21, depending on the region in question. Some cultures in Africa define adult at age 13, but most other civilizations consider this the teenager stage.
Often the age is 18. Exceptions:
- 19: South Korea
- 20: Japan
"Adult" also means "not considered suitable for children", in particular as a euphemism for being related to sexual behaviour, e.g. adult entertainment, adult video, adult magazine, adult bookstore.
However, adult education simply means education for adults, not particularly sex education.
See also
- Adolescence
- watershed (television)
- age of consent
- manhood
- womanhood
- Adult (music group)
- Legal drinking age