View source for Woman

{{short description|Female adult human}}
{{other uses}}
{{Redirect-multi|2|Women|Womanhood}}
{{pp-semi-indef|small=yes}}
{{Use British English|date=July 2023}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2023}}
[[File:Woman at Lover's Bridge Tanjung Sepat (cropped, unedited).jpg|thumb|An [[Asian people|Asian woman]] in Selangor, Malaysia|alt=portrait of a middle-aged woman]]
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A '''woman''' is an adult female human.{{efn|''Female'' may refer to sex or [[gender]].<ref>{{Cite Merriam-Webster|female}}</ref> The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as ''[[women's rights]]'' to denote female humans regardless of age.}}<ref name="Mosby">{{cite book |chapter=woman |page=1453 |chapter-url={{GBurl|_QGaoiFCIDMC|p=1453}}
 |title=Mosby's Pocket Dictionary of Medicine, Nursing & Health Professions |date=2009 |publisher=Elsevier Health Sciences |isbn=978-0-323-06604-4 }}</ref><ref name="Venes">{{cite book |last1=Venes |first1=Donald |chapter=woman |page=2539 |chapter-url={{GBurl|OA37DQAAQBAJ|p=2539}} |title=Taber's Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary |date=2017 |publisher=F.A. Davis |isbn=978-0-8036-5940-7 }}</ref> Before adulthood, a female child or adolescent is referred to as a [[girl]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Definition of girl noun |url=https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/girl?q=girl |website=Oxford learner's Dictionary}}</ref>

Typically, women inherit a pair of [[X chromosome]]s, one from each parent. [[Sex differentiation]] of the female [[fetus]] is governed by the lack of a present functioning ''[[SRY]]'' gene on either one of the respective sex chromosomes.<ref name="Passarge">{{cite book |last1=Passarge |first1=Eberhard |title=Color Atlas of Genetics |date=2017 |publisher=New York |isbn=978-3-13-241440-2 |page=362 }}</ref> [[Sex differences in human physiology|Female anatomy]] is distinguished from male anatomy by the [[female reproductive system]], which includes the [[ovaries]], [[fallopian tube]]s, [[uterus]], [[vagina]], and [[vulva]]. A woman generally has a wider [[pelvis]], broader [[hip]]s, and larger [[breasts]] than a man. These characteristics can facilitate pregnancy, [[childbirth]] and [[breastfeeding]]. Women typically have less facial and other [[body hair]], have a higher [[body fat]] composition, and are on average shorter and less muscular than men. Women are at greater risk of certain diseases like breast cancer, and at lower risk of other diseases like lung cancer.

[[Transgender women|Transgender women]] were [[sex assignment|assigned male at birth]].<ref>{{Cite Merriam-Webster|trans woman}}</ref><ref name="apa.org">{{Cite web |date=9 March 2023 |title=Understanding transgender people, gender identity and gender expression |url=https://www.apa.org/topics/lgbtq/transgender-people-gender-identity-gender-expression |access-date=14 June 2023 |website=American Psychological Association}}</ref> Some women are [[intersex]], meaning they have unusual sex characteristics (chromosomes, genitalia or internal sex organs), such as [[trisomy X]] or [[vaginal atresia]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ohchr.org/en/sexual-orientation-and-gender-identity/intersex-people|title=Intersex people|website=OHCHR}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights |author-link=Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights |title=Free & Equal Campaign Fact Sheet: Intersex |date=2015 |url=https://unfe.org/system/unfe-65-Intersex_Factsheet_ENGLISH.pdf }}</ref>

Throughout human history, [[Patriarchal society|patriarchal]] [[gender role]]s have often limited women's opportunities. With restrictions loosening during the 20th century in many societies, women have gained wider access to [[career]]s and education. [[Violence against women]] is primarily committed by men. Some women are denied [[reproductive rights]] and denied [[women's rights|legal rights on the basis of sex]]. Many religions and governments stipulate certain rules for women. [[Feminism|Feminist]] movements aim to achieve [[gender equality]].

== Etymology ==
{{See also|Man (word)}}
The spelling of ''woman'' in English has progressed over the past millennium from {{Lang|ang|wīfmann}}<ref>"wīfmann": Bosworth & Toller, ''Anglo-Saxon Dictionary'' (Oxford, 1898–1921) p. 1219. The spelling "wifman" also occurs: C.T. Onions, ''[[Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology]]'' (Oxford, 1966) p. 1011</ref> to ''wīmmann'' to ''wumman'', and finally, the modern spelling ''woman''.<ref>''Webster's New World Dictionary, Second College Edition'', entry for "woman".</ref> In [[Old English]], {{Lang|ang|mann}} had the gender-neutral meaning of {{gloss|human}}, akin to the Modern {{gloss|person}} or {{gloss|someone}}. The word for {{gloss|woman}} was {{Lang|ang|wīf}} or {{Lang|ang|wīfmann}} ({{Literal translation|woman-person}}) whereas {{gloss|man}} was {{Lang|ang|wer}} or {{Lang|ang|wǣpnedmann}} (from {{Lang|ang|wǣpn}} {{Gloss|weapon; penis}}). However, following the [[Norman Conquest]], ''man'' began to mean {{gloss|male human}}, and by the late 13th century it had largely replaced {{Lang|ang|wer}}.<ref>[http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=man man] – definition Dictionary.reference.com</ref> The consonants {{IPA|/f/}} and {{IPA|/m/}} in {{Lang|ang|wīfmann}} [[Coalescence (linguistics)|coalesced]] into the modern ''woman'', while {{Lang|ang|wīf}} [[Narrowing (historical linguistics)|narrowed]] to specifically mean a married woman ({{gloss|wife}}).{{citation needed |date=November 2025}}

It is a [[Folk etymology|popular misconception]] that the term "woman" is [[etymologically]] connected to "womb".<ref>{{cite book |last1=Stanton |first1=Elizabeth Cady |url=https://archive.org/details/womansbibleclass0000stan |title=The Woman's Bible: A Classic Feminist Perspective |date=2002 |publisher=[[Dover Publications]] |isbn=978-0486424910 |location=Mineola, New York |pages=21–22 |chapter=The Book of Genesis, Chapter II |quote=Next comes the naming of the mother of the race. "She shall be called Woman", in the ancient form of the word Womb-man. She was man and more than man because of her maternity. |url-access=registration}} (Originally published in two volumes, 1895 and 1898, by The European Publishing Company.)</ref> "Womb" derives from the Old English word {{Lang|ang|wamb}} meaning {{gloss|belly, uterus}}<ref name=OED>{{cite web|title=womb (n.)|url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/womb|website=[[Online Etymology Dictionary]]|access-date=29 August 2019}}</ref> (cognate to the modern German colloquial term "{{Lang|de|Wamme}}" from Old High German {{Lang|goh|wamba}} for {{gloss|belly, paunch, lap}}).<ref name=Starostin>{{cite web|author=S. Starostin|url=http://starling.rinet.ru/cgi-bin/response.cgi?single=1&basename=/data/ie/germet&text_number=%20562|title=Germanic etymology|website=The Tower of Babel}}</ref><ref name=Kluge>{{cite book|last1=Kluge|first1=Friedrich|title=An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language|date=1891|page=384 |publisher=[[George Bell & Sons]]|location=London|url=https://archive.org/details/etymologicaldict |archive-url=https://archive.org/details/etymologicaldict00kluguoft/page/384|archive-date=November 1, 2007|quote=Translated by John Francis Davis, D.Litl, M.A.}}</ref>

== Terminology ==
{{Further|girl|mother|wife|daughter|lady}}
{{redirect|Young Woman|the painting by Isabel Bishop|Young Woman (painting)}}
[[File:Three_Generations_of_Navajos.jpg|thumb|Three generations: grandmother, daughter, and granddaughter.]]
The word ''woman'' can be used generally, to mean any female human, or specifically, to mean an adult female human as contrasted with ''girl''. The word ''girl'' originally meant "young person of either sex" in English;<ref>Used in Middle English from c. 1300, meaning 'a child of either sex, a young person'. Its derivation is uncertain, perhaps from an Old English word which has not survived: another theory is that it developed from Old English 'gyrela', meaning 'dress, apparel': or was a diminutive form of a borrowing from another West Germanic Language. (Middle Low German has Gör, Göre, meaning 'girl or small child'.) "girl, n.". OED Online. September 2013. Oxford University Press. 13 September 2013</ref> it was only around the beginning of the 16th century that it came to mean specifically a ''female'' child.<ref>By late 14th century a distinction was arising between female children, often called 'gay girls'&nbsp;– and male, or 'knave girls' -: a1375 William of Palerne (1867) l. 816 ' Whan þe gaye gerles were in-to þe gardin come, Faire floures þei founde.' ('When the gay girls came into the garden, Fair flowers they found.') By the 16th century, the unsupported word had begun to mean specifically a female: 1546 J. Heywood Dialogue Prouerbes Eng. Tongue i. x. sig. D, 'The boy thy husbande, and thou the gyrle his wyfe.' The usage meaning 'child of either sex' survived much longer in [[Hiberno-English|Irish English]]. "girl, n.". OED Online. September 2013. Oxford University Press. 13 September 2013</ref> The term ''girl'' is sometimes used colloquially to refer to a young or unmarried woman; however, during the early 1970s, feminists challenged such use because the use of the word to refer to a fully grown woman may cause offense. In particular, previously common terms such as ''office girl'' are no longer widely used. Conversely, in certain cultures which link family honor with female [[virginity]], the word ''girl'' (or its equivalent in other languages) is still used to refer to a never-married woman; in this sense it is used in a fashion roughly analogous to the more-or-less obsolete English ''maid'' or ''maiden''.{{citation needed |date=November 2025}}

The social sciences' views on what it means to be a woman have changed significantly since the early 20th century as women gained more rights and greater representation in the workforce, with scholarship in the 1970s moving toward a focus on the [[sex–gender distinction]] and [[social construction of gender]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Poeschl |first1=Gabrielle |title=A hundred years of debates on sex differences: Developing research for social change |journal=Journal of Social and Political Psychology |date=7 June 2021 |volume=9 |issue=1 |pages=221–235 |doi=10.5964/jspp.6399 |hdl=10216/134531 |hdl-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Haig |first=David |date=April 2004 |title=The inexorable rise of gender and the decline of sex: social change in academic titles, 1945-2001 |journal=Archives of Sexual Behavior |volume=33 |issue=2 |pages=87–96 |doi=10.1023/b:aseb.0000014323.56281.0d |pmid=15146141 }}</ref>

Different countries have different laws, but age 18 is frequently considered the [[age of majority]] (the age at which a person is legally considered an adult).<ref>{{Cite web |title=age of majority |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/age_of_majority |access-date=2023-12-20 |website=LII / Legal Information Institute |language=en}}</ref> Menarche, the onset of [[menstruation]], occurs on average at age 12–13. Many cultures have [[rites of passage]] to symbolize a girl's [[coming of age]], such as [[bat mitzvah]] in Judaism, or a custom of a special celebration for a certain birthday (generally between 12 and 21), like the [[quinceañera]] of Latin America.

[[Alternative spellings of woman]], such as ''womyn'' and ''wimmin'' have been used in feminist contexts, especially since the 1970s.<ref>{{cite web | title=wimmin, n. meanings, etymology and more | website=Oxford English Dictionary | date=1 September 2024 | url=https://www.oed.com/dictionary/wimmin_n?tl=true | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251010002319/https://www.oed.com/dictionary/wimmin_n?tl=true | archive-date=10 October 2025 | url-status=live | access-date=27 October 2025}}</ref>

== Biology ==
[[Image:Anterior view of human female and male, with labels 2.png|upright|thumb|Photograph of an adult female human, with an adult male for comparison. The [[pubic hair]] of both models is removed. |alt=Photograph of an adult female human, with an adult male for comparison. The [[pubic hair]] of both models is removed.]]
{{main|Sex differences in humans}}

=== Genetic characteristics ===
{{Main|Sexual differentiation in humans}}

[[Image:Sky spectral karyotype.png|upright|thumb|[[Spectral karyotype]] of a human female|alt=A multi-colored sphere, and a set of chromosomes listed in a data table]]
Typically, the cells of female humans contain two X chromosomes, while the cells of male humans have an X and a Y chromosome.<ref name=Hake>{{cite journal |last1=Hake |first1=Laura |last2=O'Connor |first2=Clare |title=Genetic Mechanisms of Sex Determination |journal=Nature Education |volume=1 |issue=1 |date=2008 |page=25 |url=https://www.nature.com/scitable/topicpage/genetic-mechanisms-of-sex-determination-314/ }}</ref> During [[Human fertilization|early fetal development]], all embryos have phenotypically female genitalia up until week 6 or 7, when a male embryo's gonads differentiate into testes due to the action of the [[SRY gene|''SRY'' gene]] on the Y chromosome.<ref name="Pardue-2001" /> [[Sex differentiation]] proceeds in female humans in a way that is independent of gonadal hormones.<ref name="Pardue-2001">{{cite book |author=Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Understanding the Biology of Sex and Gender Differences |last2=Wizemann |first2=Theresa M. |last3=Pardue |first3=Mary-Lou |title=Exploring the Biological Contributions to Human Health |chapter=Sex Begins in the Womb |chapter-url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK222286/ |publisher=National Academies Press (US) |language=en |date= 2001 |isbn=978-0-309-07281-6 |doi=10.17226/10028 |pmid=25057540 |quote=All human individuals{{snd}}whether they have an XX, an XY, or an atypical sex chromosome combination{{snd}}begin development from the same starting point. During early development the gonads of the fetus remain undifferentiated; that is, all fetal genitalia are the same and are phenotypically female. After approximately 6 to 7 weeks of gestation, however, the expression of a gene on the Y chromosome induces changes that result in the development of the testes.}}</ref> Because humans inherit [[mitochondrial DNA]] only from the mother's ovum, [[Genetic genealogy|genealogical]] researchers can trace [[Matrilineality|maternal lineage]] far back in time.<ref>{{cite journal |journal=Investigative Genetics |title=Maternal ancestry and population history from whole mitochondrial genomes |last=Kivisild |first=Toomas |date=2015 |volume=6 |page=3 |doi=10.1186/s13323-015-0022-2 |doi-access=free |pmid=25798216 |pmc=4367903 }}</ref>

=== Puberty, menstruation and menopause ===
{{Main|Menstrual cycle|Menstruation|Menopause}}

<!---Topic: Puberty--->
[[Female puberty]] triggers many bodily changes. In response to chemical signals from the [[pituitary gland]], the [[ovaries]] secrete hormones that stimulate maturation of the body, including increased height and weight, body hair growth, breast development and [[menarche]] (the onset of menstruation).<ref name="UK menarche">{{cite book | last=Hamilton-Fairley | first=Diana | title=Lecture notes. Obstetrics and gynaecology | publisher=Wiley-Blackwell | publication-place=Chichester, UK | date=2009 | isbn=978-1-4051-7801-3 | oclc=230193908}}</ref> Most girls go through [[menarche]] between ages 12–13.<ref name="Canadian menarche">{{cite journal|title=Age at menarche in Canada: results from the National Longitudinal Survey of Children & Youth |year= 2010 |pmid=21110899 |doi=10.1186/1471-2458-10-736 |pmc=3001737 |volume=10 |vauthors=Al-Sahab B, Ardern CI, Hamadeh MJ, Tamim H |journal=BMC Public Health |article-number=736 |doi-access= free }}</ref><ref name="U.S. menarche">{{cite journal |vauthors=Anderson SE, Dallal GE, Must A |title =Relative weight and race influence average age at menarche: results from two nationally representative surveys of US girls studied 25 years apart |journal=Pediatrics |volume=111 |issue=4 Pt 1 |pages=844–850 |date=April 2003 |pmid=12671122 |doi=10.1542/peds.111.4.844 |bibcode =2003Pedia.111..844A }}</ref>

<!---Topic: Menstruation--->
Menstruation is a monthly hormonal cycle that involves the shedding of the [[endometrium|lining of the uterus]]. Blood and tissue exit through the vagina. Menstrual cycles may be irregular at first, and usually become more regular by a woman's 20s.<ref>{{cite web |title=Menstrual Cycle |access-date=19 November 2025 |url=https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/10132-menstrual-cycle |publisher=Cleveland Clinic}}</ref> Most women are able to perform all their daily activities during menstruation,<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Schoep ME, Nieboer TE, van der Zanden M, Braat DD, Nap AW | title = The impact of menstrual symptoms on everyday life: a survey among 42,879 women | journal = American Journal of Obstetric Gynecology | volume = 220 | issue = 6 | date = 2019 | pmid = 30885768 | doi = 10.1016/j.ajog.2019.02.048 | doi-access = free }}</ref> though some women experience symptoms ranging from uncomfortable to disabling<ref name=AFP2011>{{cite journal | vauthors = Biggs WS, Demuth RH | title = Premenstrual syndrome and premenstrual dysphoric disorder | journal = American Family Physician | volume = 84 | issue = 8 | pages = 918–924 | date = October 2011 | pmid = 22010771 }}</ref> or are prohibited from regular activity by strong social stigma.<ref>{{cite journal |journal=PLoS One |last1=Thakuri |first1=Dipendra |last2=Thapa |first2=Rashan |title=A harmful religio-cultural practice (Chhaupadi) during menstruation among adolescent girls in Nepal: Prevalence and policies for eradication |url=https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8409632  |pmid=34469491 |date=1 September 2021}}</ref>

[[File:Pregnancy 26 weeks 1.jpg|thumb|upright|A pregnant woman|alt=nude woman in the middle of pregnancy]]

<!---Topic: Fertility-->
The changes of puberty typically enable [[sexual reproduction]]. Pregnancy generally requires [[Insemination|fertilization]] of a woman's egg cells with a man's [[Spermatozoon|sperm cells]]. Humans are similar to other large mammals in that they usually give birth to a single offspring per pregnancy, but are unusual in being [[Precociality and altriciality|altricial]], meaning young are undeveloped at time of birth and require the aid of their parents or guardians to fully mature.<ref>{{cite web |title=Overview of Multiple Pregnancy |url=https://www.stanfordchildrens.org/en/topic/default?id=overview-of-multiple-pregnancy-85-P08019 |website=Stanford Medicine Children's Health }}</ref> Sometimes humans have [[multiple birth]]s, most commonly twins.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Twins, Triplets, Multiple Births |url=https://medlineplus.gov/twinstripletsmultiplebirths.html |access-date=2022-07-25 |website=medlineplus.gov}}</ref>

<!---Menopause--->
Usually between ages 49–52, a woman reaches [[menopause]], the time when menstrual periods stop permanently, and they are no longer able to bear children.<ref name="NIH2013Def">{{cite web|date=2013-06-28|title=Menopause: Overview|url=https://www.nichd.nih.gov/health/topics/menopause|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402111845/http://www.nichd.nih.gov/health/topics/menopause/Pages/default.aspx|archive-date=2 April 2015|access-date=8 March 2015|publisher=Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="PubMed2013">{{cite web|date=29 August 2013|title=Menopause: Overview|url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0072495/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170910181404/https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0072495/|archive-date=10 September 2017|access-date=8 March 2015|publisher=PubMedHealth|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="Tak2015">{{cite journal|vauthors=Takahashi TA, Johnson KM|date=May 2015|title=Menopause|journal=The Medical Clinics of North America|volume=99|issue=3|pages=521–34|doi=10.1016/j.mcna.2015.01.006|pmid=25841598|doi-access=free}}</ref> Symptoms of menopause include hot flashes, night sweats, headaches, and more; both lifestyle changes and medications can help to mitigate these symptoms.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/what-are-the-34-symptoms-of-menopause |title=What are the 34 symptoms of menopause, and what helps? |date=21 June 2021 }}</ref>

=== Morphological and physiological characteristics ===

[[Image:Scheme female reproductive system-en.svg|thumb|The [[human female reproductive system]]|alt=diagram of internal anatomy]]
{{Main|Sex differences in human physiology|Female body shape}}

In terms of [[biology]], the female [[sex organ]]s are involved in the reproductive system, whereas the [[secondary sex characteristic]]s are involved in [[breastfeeding]] children and attracting a mate.<ref name="Buss 2019">{{cite book |doi=10.4324/9780429061417 |title=Evolutionary Psychology |date=2019 |last1=Buss |first1=David M. |isbn=978-0-429-06141-7 |chapter=Evolved Standards of Physical Beauty |pages=283–288 }}</ref> Humans are [[placental mammals]], which means the mother carries the fetus in the uterus and the placenta facilitates the exchange of nutrients and waste between the mother and fetus.<ref>{{Cite web |title=placental mammal {{!}} Characteristics & Facts {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/animal/placental-mammal |access-date=2022-07-25 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Placental Mammals |url=https://ucmp.berkeley.edu/mammal/eutheria/placental.html |access-date=2022-07-25 |website=ucmp.berkeley.edu}}</ref>

The internal female sex organs consist of:<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Ignatavicius |first1=Donna D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zdx2BgAAQBAJ&pg=PA1450 |title=Medical-Surgical Nursing – E-Book: Patient-Centered Collaborative Care |last2=Workman |first2=M. Linda |date=2015-01-30 |publisher=Elsevier Health Sciences |isbn=978-0-323-39269-3 |pages=1450 |language=en}}</ref>
* the [[ovaries]], gonads that produce female gametes called [[ovum|ova]], 
* the [[fallopian tube]]s, tubular structures that transport the egg cells, 
* the [[uterus]], an organ with tissue to protect and nurture the developing fetus and its [[cervix]] to expel it, 
* the accessory glands ([[Bartholin's gland|Bartholin's]] and [[Skene's gland|Skene's]]), two pairs of glands that help [[vaginal lubrication|lubricate]] during intercourse, and 
* the [[vagina]], an organ used in copulating and birthing.

The [[vulva]] (external female genitalia)<ref name="Kirkpatrick">{{cite book |doi=10.1007/978-1-4684-3656-3_9 |chapter=The Misnamed Female Sex Organ |title=Women's Sexual Development |date=1980 |last1=Ash |first1=Mildred |pages=171–179 |isbn=978-1-4684-3658-7 }}</ref> consists of the [[clitoris]], [[labia majora]], [[labia minora]] and [[vulval vestibule|vestibule]]. The vestibule is where the vaginal and urethral openings are located.

The [[mammary gland]]s are hypothesized to have evolved from apocrine-like glands to produce milk, a nutritious secretion that is the most distinctive characteristic of mammals, along with live birth.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Oftedal |first1=Olav T. |title=The mammary gland and its origin during synapsid evolution |journal=Journal of Mammary Gland Biology and Neoplasia |date=2002 |volume=7 |issue=3 |pages=225–252 |doi=10.1023/a:1022896515287 |pmid=12751889 }}</ref> In mature women, the [[breast]] is generally more prominent than in most other mammals; this prominence, not necessary for milk production, is thought to be at least partially the result of [[sexual selection]].<ref name="Buss 2019" />

[[Estrogens]], which are primary female sex hormones, have a significant impact on a female's body shape. They are produced in both men and women, but their levels are significantly higher in women, especially in those of reproductive age. Besides other functions, estrogens promote the development of female [[secondary sexual characteristic]]s, such as breasts and [[hip]]s.<ref name="pmid9393999">{{cite journal | title = A role for estrogens in the male reproductive system | journal=Nature | volume = 390 | issue = 6659 | pages = 447–448 | year = 1997 | pmid = 9393999 | pmc=5719867 | doi = 10.1038/37352 | last1=Hess | first1=R. A. | last2=Bunick | first2=D | last3=Lee | first3=K. H. | last4=Bahr | first4=J | last5=Taylor | first5=J. A. | last6=Korach | first6=K. S. | last7=Lubahn | first7=D. B. | bibcode=1997Natur.390..509H }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Raloff |first1=J |title=Estrogen's Emerging Manly Alter Ego |journal=Science News |date=6 December 1997 |volume=152 |issue=23 |pages=356 |doi=10.2307/3980827 |url=https://www.sciencenews.org/archive/estrogens-emerging-manly-alter-ego |jstor=3980827 |url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref name="titleScience Blog -- Estrogen Linked To Sperm Count, Male Fertility">{{cite web | url = http://www.scienceblog.com/community/older/1997/B/199701564.html | title = Science Blog – Estrogen Linked To Sperm Count, Male Fertility | access-date = 4 March 2008 | publisher = Science Blog | archive-date = 7 May 2007 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070507120938/http://www.scienceblog.com/community/older/1997/B/199701564.html | url-status = dead }}</ref> As a result of estrogens, during [[puberty]], girls develop breasts and their hips widen. Working against estrogen, the presence of [[testosterone]] in a pubescent female inhibits breast development and promotes muscle and facial hair development.<ref name="WebMD">{{cite web | url=http://www.webmd.com/women/guide/normal-testosterone-and-estrogen-levels-in-women?page=2 | title=Normal Testosterone and Estrogen Levels in Women | publisher=WebMD | work=Website | access-date=28 October 2015}}</ref>

===Circulatory system===
Women have lower [[hematocrit]] (the volume percentage of [[red blood cell]]s in blood) than men; this is due to lower testosterone, which stimulates the production of [[erythropoietin]] by the kidney. The normal hematocrit level for a woman is 36% to 48% (for men, 41% to 50%). The normal level of [[hemoglobin]] (an oxygen-transport [[protein]] found in red blood cells) for women is 12.0 to 15.5 g/dL (for men, 13.5 to 17.5 g/dL).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.redcrossblood.org/donate-blood/dlp/hematocrit.html|title=Hematocrit|website=www.redcrossblood.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|title=Comparisons of Blood Parameters, Red Blood Cell Deformability and Circulating Nitric Oxide Between Males and Females Considering Hormonal Contraception: A Longitudinal Gender Study – PMC|year=2018 |pmc=6305760 |last1=Grau |first1=M. |last2=Cremer |first2=J. M. |last3=Schmeichel |first3=S. |last4=Kunkel |first4=M. |last5=Bloch |first5=W. |journal=Frontiers in Physiology |volume=9 |article-number=1835 |doi=10.3389/fphys.2018.01835 |pmid=30618840 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mayoclinic.org/symptoms/high-red-blood-cell-count/basics/definition/sym-20050858|title=High red blood cell count|website=Mayo Clinic}}</ref>

Women's [[heart]]s have finer-grained textures in the muscle compared to men's hearts, and the [[Cardiac muscle|heart muscle]]'s overall shape and surface area also differs to men's when controlling for body size and age.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bhf.org.uk/what-we-do/news-from-the-bhf/news-archive/2020/august/esc-heart-shape-structure-men-women-qmul|title=Architecture of the heart different between women and men and with age|website=www.bhf.org.uk}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.lahey.org/article/differences-between-mens-and-womens-hearts/|title=Differences Between Men's and Women's Hearts|date=February 21, 2019|website=Lahey Health}}</ref> In addition, women's hearts age more slowly compared to men's hearts.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news/media/releases/male_and_female_hearts_dont_grow_old_the_same_way|title=Male and Female Hearts Don't Grow Old the Same Way – 10/20/2015|website=www.hopkinsmedicine.org}}</ref>

=== Sex distribution ===
Girls are born slightly less frequently than boys (the ratio is around 1:1.05).  Out of the total human population in 2015, there were 1018 men for every 1000 women.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic-social/products/dyb/dybsets/2015.pdf |title=2015 Demographic Yearbook |author=United Nations |publication-place=New York |year=2016 |language=en, fr |page=60 |isbn=978-9210511094 |oclc=1028121211 |access-date=29 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210222114154/https://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic-social/products/dyb/dybsets/2015.pdf |archive-date=22 February 2021 |url-status=live |publisher=United Nations Publication}}</ref>

=== Intersex women ===
{{Main|Intersex}}
[[Intersex]] women have an intersex condition, [[Definitions of intersex|usually defined]] as those born with ambiguous genitalia, atypical chromosomes, or atypical gonads.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ohchr.org/en/sexual-orientation-and-gender-identity/intersex-people|title=Intersex people|website=OHCHR|access-date=11 June 2023|archive-date=8 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230708011645/https://www.ohchr.org/en/sexual-orientation-and-gender-identity/intersex-people|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="unfe-fact">{{Cite web |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |publisher=United Nations [[Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights]] |title=Free & Equal Campaign Fact Sheet: Intersex |date=2015 |url=https://unfe.org/system/unfe-65-Intersex_Factsheet_ENGLISH.pdf |access-date=28 March 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304071043/https://unfe.org/system/unfe-65-Intersex_Factsheet_ENGLISH.pdf |archive-date=4 March 2016 }}</ref> Most individuals with ambiguous genitalia [[Definitions of intersex#Assigned sex|are assigned]] female at birth, and most intersex women are [[cisgender]].<ref name="Sumerau">{{cite book |last1=Sumerau |first1=J. E. |title=The Rowman & Littlefield Handbook of Transgender Studies |date=30 January 2023 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing USA |isbn=979-8-8818-7980-8 |page=68 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2ruBEQAAQBAJ&pg=PA68 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Callens |first1=N |last2=Van Kuyk |first2=M |last3=van Kuppenveld |first3=JH |last4=Drop |first4=SLS |last5=Cohen-Kettenis |first5=PT |last6=Dessens |first6=AB |last7=Dutch Study Group on |first7=DSD |title=Recalled and current gender role behavior, gender identity and sexual orientation in adults with Disorders/Differences of Sex Development. |journal=Hormones and Behavior |date=November 2016 |volume=86 |pages=8–20 |doi=10.1016/j.yhbeh.2016.08.008 |pmid=27576114}}</ref> The medical practices to assign [[gender binary|binary]] female to intersex youth is often [[intersex human rights|controversial]].<ref name="Dreger-2009">{{cite journal |last1=Dreger |first1=Alice D. |last2=Herndon |first2=April M. |title=Progress and Politics in the Intersex Rights Movement: Feminist Theory in Action |journal=GLQ |date=2009 |volume=15 |issue=2 |pages=199–224 |id={{Project MUSE|261479}} |doi=10.1215/10642684-2008-134 }}</ref>

Some intersex conditions are associated with typical rates of female [[gender identity]], while others are associated with substantially higher rates of gender transition compared to the general population.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Furtado |first1=Paulo Sampaio |last2=Moraes |first2=Felipe |last3=Lago |first3=Renata |last4=Barros |first4=Luciana Oliveira |last5=Toralles |first5=Maria Betânia |last6=Barroso |first6=Ubirajara |title=Gender dysphoria associated with disorders of sex development |journal=Nature Reviews Urology |date=November 2012 |volume=9 |issue=11 |pages=620–627 |doi=10.1038/nrurol.2012.182 |pmid=23045263 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.thetrevorproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Intersex-Youth-Mental-Health-Report.pdf | title = The Mental Health and Well-being of LGBTQ Youth who are Intersex | work = [[The Trevor Project]] | date = 2021}}</ref>
For example, women with CAIS showed no psychological differences from non-intersex women, including in gender identity or orientation.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hines |first1=Melissa |last2=Ahmed |first2=S. Faisal |last3=Hughes |first3=Ieuan A. |title=Psychological Outcomes and Gender-Related Development in Complete Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome |journal=Archives of Sexual Behavior |date=2003 |volume=32 |issue=2 |pages=93–101 |doi=10.1023/A:1022492106974 |pmid=12710824 }}</ref> Women with other intersex conditions, such as 5alpha-RD-2 or 17beta-HSD-3, showed increased rates of gender transition to live as men.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Cohen-Kettenis |first1=PT |title=Gender change in 46,XY persons with 5alpha-reductase-2 deficiency and 17beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase-3 deficiency. |journal=Archives of Sexual Behavior |date=August 2005 |volume=34 |issue=4 |pages=399–410 |doi=10.1007/s10508-005-4339-4 |pmid=16010463 }}</ref>

== Gender ==
{{Further|Gender roles|Trans woman}}
[[File:Sandro Botticelli - La nascita di Venere - Google Art Project - edited.jpg|thumb|''[[The Birth of Venus (Botticelli)|The Birth of Venus]]'' (1486, [[Uffizi]]) is a classic representation of femininity by [[Sandro Botticelli]].<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=phnkJIUyjmoC&pg=PA93 Manifestations of Venus: art and sexuality pg 93] By Katie Scott, Caroline Arscott pg 93-"...began its consideration of Venus by describing her as .... who presided over all feminine charms, for..."</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=n2Sv0gysRhUC&pg=PA49 The Pacific muse pg 49] By Patty O'Brien  "The young beautiful Venus wringing water from her tresses was a configuration of exotic femininity that was…</ref>

[[Venus (mythology)|Venus]] was a [[Roman mythology|Roman]] [[goddess]] associated with love, beauty and [[sexual reproduction|fertility]].]]
Most cultures use a [[gender binary]] by which women are of one of two genders, the others being men; other cultures have a [[third gender]].<ref name="Nadal-re-binary">Kevin L. Nadal, ''The Sage Encyclopedia of Psychology and Gender'' (2017, {{ISBN|978-1-4833-8427-6}}), p. 401: "Most cultures currently construct their societies based on the understanding of gender binary—the two gender categorizations (male and female). Such societies divide their population based on biological sex assigned to individuals at birth to begin the process of gender socialization."</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Sigelman |first1=Carol K. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M2M1DgAAQBAJ&pg=PA385 |title=Life-Span Human Development |last2=Rider |first2=Elizabeth A. |date=2017 |publisher=Cengage Learning |isbn=978-1-337-51606-8 |page=385 |language=en |access-date=4 August 2021 |archive-date=21 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230721050224/https://books.google.com/books?id=M2M1DgAAQBAJ&pg=PA385 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Maddux |first1=James E. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Q-ChDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT1028 |title=Psychopathology: Foundations for a Contemporary Understanding |last2=Winstead |first2=Barbara A. |date=2019 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-429-64787-1 |language=en |access-date=4 August 2021 |archive-date=21 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230721050212/https://books.google.com/books?id=Q-ChDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT1028 |url-status=live }}</ref> 
''[[Femininity]]'' (also called ''womanliness'' or ''girlishness'') is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles generally associated with women and girls. Different people have held femininity to be socially constructed,<ref name="books.google.com">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F_F1DwAAQBAJ|title=Gale Researcher Guide for: The Continuing Significance of Gender|isbn=978-1535861175|last1=Shehan|first1=Constance L.|date= 2018|publisher=Gale, Cengage Learning }}</ref> biologically influenced,<ref name="books.google.com"/><ref name="Gender, Nature, and Nurture">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R6OPAgAAQBAJ&q=%22biology+contributes%22+%22masculinity+and+femininity%22|title = Gender, Nature, and Nurture|isbn = 978-1135604257|last1 = Lippa|first1 = Richard A.|year=2005| publisher=Routledge }}</ref><ref name="ReferenceA">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5KLPlmr9T7MC&q=%22what+masculinity+and+femininity+are%22|title = Masculinity and Femininity in the MMPI-2 and MMPI-A| year=2010 | publisher=U of Minnesota Press |isbn = 978-1452900032}}</ref><ref name="ReferenceC">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SOTqzUeqmNMC&q=%22+biological+or+genetic+contributions%22|title = The Sociology of Gender: An Introduction to Theory and Research|isbn = 978-1405143431|last1 = Wharton|first1 = Amy S.|year= 2009| publisher=John Wiley & Sons }}</ref> or on some point in the spectrum between "nature" and "nurture".<ref name="ReferenceA"/><ref name="Gender, Nature, and Nurture"/><ref name="ReferenceC"/> It is distinct from the definition of the biological female sex,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.who.int/gender/whatisgender/en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140923045700/http://www.who.int/gender/whatisgender/en|archive-date=2014-09-23|title=Gender, Equity and Human Rights}}</ref><ref>Ferrante, Joan (January 2010). Sociology: A Global Perspective (7th ed.). Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth. pp. 269–272. {{ISBN|978-0-8400-3204-1}}.</ref> as both men and women can exhibit feminine traits.

Most women are [[cisgender]], meaning their [[assigned female at birth|female sex assignment at birth]] corresponds with their female [[gender identity]]. Some women are [[transgender]], meaning they were [[assigned male at birth]].<ref name="apa.org"/> [[Trans woman|Trans women]] may experience [[gender dysphoria]], the distress brought upon by the discrepancy between a person's gender identity and their sex assigned at birth.<ref>{{cite web|title=Standards of Care for the Health of Transsexual, Transgender, and Gender Nonconforming People (version 7) |publisher=The World Professional Association for Transgender Health |page=96 |url=http://admin.associationsonline.com/uploaded_files/140/files/Standards%20of%20Care,%20V7%20Full%20Book.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140924061804/http://admin.associationsonline.com/uploaded_files/140/files/Standards%20of%20Care%2C%20V7%20Full%20Book.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=2014-09-24 }}</ref> Gender dysphoria may be treated with [[Transgender health care|gender-affirming care]], which may include social or medical [[Gender transition|transition]]. Social transition may involve changes such as [[Name change|adopting a new name]], [[Hairstyle#Gender|hairstyle]], [[Clothing#Gender differentiation|clothing]], and [[Preferred gender pronoun|pronoun]] associated with the individual's affirmed female gender identity.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Sherer |first=Ilana |date=2016-03-01 |title=Social Transition: Supporting Our Youngest Transgender Children |journal=Pediatrics |language=en |volume=137 |issue=3 |article-number=e20154358 |doi=10.1542/peds.2015-4358 |pmid=26921284 |doi-access=free }}</ref> A major component of medical transition for trans women is [[feminizing hormone therapy]], which causes the development of female [[secondary sex characteristic]]s (such as [[breast]]s, redistribution of body fat, and lower [[waist–hip ratio]]). Medical transition may also involve [[gender-affirming surgery]], and a trans woman may undergo one or more feminizing procedures which result in anatomy that is typically gendered female.<ref name="Beidel-2014">{{cite book |last1=Beidel |first1=Deborah C |author-link1=Deborah Beidel |last2=Frueh |first2=B. Christopher |last3=Hersen |first3=Michel |title=Adult Psychopathology and Diagnosis |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rF3OAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA618 |access-date=12 December 2017 |edition=7th |date=30 June 2014 |publisher=Wiley |location=New York |isbn=978-1-118-92791-5 |page=618 |oclc=956674391 |archive-date=30 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330190955/https://books.google.com/books?id=rF3OAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA618 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Koellen-2016">{{cite book |last=Köllen |first=Thomas |title=Sexual Orientation and Transgender Issues in Organizations: Global Perspectives on LGBT Workforce Diversity |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=60kWDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA138 |access-date=12 December 2017 |date=25 April 2016 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-3-319-29623-4 |page=138 |oclc=933722553 |archive-date=30 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330195550/https://books.google.com/books?id=60kWDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA138 |url-status=live }}</ref>

== Health ==
{{further|Women's health|Reproductive health}}

Factors that specifically affect the health of women in comparison with [[men's health|men]] are most evident in those related to [[reproductive health|reproduction]], but [[sex differences in medicine|sex differences]] have been identified from the molecular to the behavioral scale. Some of these differences are subtle and difficult to explain, partly due to the fact that it is difficult to separate the health effects of inherent biological factors from the effects of the surrounding environment they exist in. [[Sex chromosomes]] and hormones, as well as sex-specific lifestyles, metabolism, immune system function, and sensitivity to environmental factors are believed to contribute to sex differences in health at the levels of physiology, perception, and cognition. Women can have distinct responses to drugs and thresholds for diagnostic parameters.<ref>{{cite book |title=Exploring the Biological Contributions to Human Health: Does Sex Matter? |series=The National Academies Collection: Reports funded by National Institutes of Health |date=2001 |publisher=National Academies Press (US) |location=Washington, D.C. |pmid=25057540 |isbn=978-0-309-07281-6 |url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK222288/|author1=Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Understanding the Biology of Sex Gender Differences |last2=Wizemann |first2=T. M. |last3=Pardue |first3=M. L. }}</ref>{{page needed|date=July 2022|reason=Book has 288 pages, 6 chapters, and 4 appendices}}

The medical practice dealing with female reproduction and reproductive organs is called [[gynaecology]] (etymologically, "science of women").<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.lexico.com/definition/gynaecology |title=gynaecology  |website=[[Lexico]] |access-date=29 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220218193620/https://www.lexico.com/definition/gynaecology |archive-date=18 February 2022 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Moscucci |first=Ornella |title=The science of woman: gynaecology and gender in England 1800 – 1929 |date=2005 |publisher=Cambridge Univ. Press |isbn=978-0-521-44795-9 |edition=1. paberpack ed., transf. to digital print |series=Cambridge history of medicine |location=Cambridge}}</ref>

===Disease Risk===

Women have higher rates of some diseases, such as osteoporosis, auto-immune diseases, Alzheimer’s,<ref name="Europa"></ref> and breast cancer.<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36789830/ |title=Risk and incidence of breast cancer in transgender individuals: a systematic review and meta-analysis |journal=European Journal of Cancer Prevention |year=2023}}</ref> 

Women have lower rates of other diseases, such as lung cancer, Parkinson's, chronic liver disease,<ref name="Europa">{{Cite web |url=https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/horizon2020/en/news/advancing-case-gender-based-medicine |title=Advancing the case for gender-based medicine |website=[[Horizon 2020]] |publisher=[[European Commission]] |date=30 October 2015 |access-date=29 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151109143057/https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/horizon2020/en/news/advancing-case-gender-based-medicine |archive-date=9 November 2015 |url-status=deviated |language=en}}</ref> hypertension, diabetes, and HIV/AIDS.<ref>{{cite journal |journal=PLoS Medicine |url=https://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1004592 |title=Sex-disaggregated data along the gendered health pathways: A review and analysis of global data on hypertension, diabetes, HIV, and AIDS |year=2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/men-are-more-likely-to-get-sick-and-less-likely-to-seek-care-for-3-common-diseases-study-finds/ar-AA1ElBTH |title=Men are more likely to get sick and less likely to seek care for 3 Common Diseases |last=Freedman |first=Ani}}</ref>

Some female-specific diseases include [[endometriosis]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/10857-endometriosis |title=Endometriosis |publisher=Cleveland Clinic}}</ref> PCOS,<ref name="Common Concerns">{{cite web |url=https://www.cdc.gov/reproductive-health/women-health/common-concerns.html |title=Common Reproductive Health Concerns for Women |date=15 may 2024}}</ref> and gynecologic cancers such as uterine or cervical cancer.<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12520385/ |title=Disparities and trends of the incidence and mortality of female-specific cancers in the United States |journal=PLoS One |year=2025}}</ref>

=== Maternal mortality ===
{{Main|Maternal mortality}}

[[Maternal mortality]] or maternal death is defined by WHO as "the death of a woman while pregnant or within 42 days of termination of pregnancy, irrespective of the duration and site of the pregnancy, from any cause related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its management but not from accidental or incidental causes."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.who.int/healthinfo/statistics/indmaternalmortality/en/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130507115424/http://www.who.int/healthinfo/statistics/indmaternalmortality/en/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=7 May 2013 |title=Maternal mortality ratio (per 100 000 live births) |website=[[World Health Organization]] |access-date=19 April 2014}}</ref> 

Between 2000 and 2023, the rate of maternal mortality dropped by 40% worldwide. In 2023, around 260,000 women died from complications of pregnancy, delivery, or abortion. Over 90% of maternal mortality deaths occurred in low-income or lower-middle income countries, with sub-Saharan African and South Asian women accounting for 87% of the deaths. Most of these deaths were preventable. Maternal mortality can be reduced by ensuring pregnant women have adequate healthcare access, administering medications for [[preeclampsia]] and hemorrhage, and using good sanitation practices during delivery.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/maternal-mortality |title=Maternal mortality |date=7 April 2025 |publisher=World Health Organization |access-date=19 November 2025}}</ref>

=== Life expectancy ===
{{Main|Life expectancy#Sex differences}}

[[File:LifeExpectancyBetweenFemaleAndMales.jpg|thumb|Pink: Countries where female life expectancy at birth is higher than males. Blue: A few countries in southern Africa where females have shorter lives due to AIDS.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://smart-unit-converter.com/life-expectancy.php|title=How long will I live? Estimate remaining life expectancy for all countries in the world|first=Laurent|last=PELE}}</ref>]]
The [[life expectancy]] for women is generally longer than men's.  This advantage begins from birth, with newborn girls more likely to survive the first year than boys.  Worldwide, women live six to eight years longer than men.<ref name="WHO2019">{{cite web |title=Female Life Expectancy |url=https://www.who.int/gho/women_and_health/mortality/situation_trends_life_expectancy/en/ |url-status=deviated |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190725170324/https://www.who.int/gho/women_and_health/mortality/situation_trends_life_expectancy/en/ |archive-date=25 July 2019 |access-date=August 24, 2019 |website=[[World Health Organization]]}}</ref> However, this varies by place and situation.  For example, [[discrimination against women]] has lowered female life expectancy in some parts of Asia so that men there live longer than women.<ref name="WHO2019" />

The difference in life expectancy are believed to be partly due to biological advantages and partly due to gendered behavioral differences between men and women.<ref name="WHO2019" /><ref name="SciAm-2004">{{cite magazine |date=30 August 2004 |title=Why is life expectancy longer for women than it is for men? |url=http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=why-is-life-expectancy-lo |url-status=live |magazine=[[Scientific American]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415161346/https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-is-life-expectancy-lo/ |archive-date=15 April 2021 |access-date=17 October 2009}}</ref> On average, women are less likely to engage in unhealthy behaviors like smoking and alcohol use, and consequently have fewer [[Preventable causes of death|preventable premature deaths]] from such causes.<ref name="WHO2019" />

In some developed countries, the life expectancy is evening out.  This is believed to caused both by worse health behaviors among women, especially an increased rate of [[Women and smoking|smoking tobacco by women]], and improved health among men, such as less [[cardiovascular disease]].<ref name="WHO2019" /> The [[World Health Organization]] (WHO) writes that it is "important to note that the extra years of life for women are not always lived in good health."<ref name="WHO2019" />

The fact that humans live a significant amount past reproductive age is unusual for mammals.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Hawkes |first1=K. |last2=O’Connell |first2=J. F. |last3=Jones |first3=N. G. Blurton |last4=Alvarez |first4=H. |last5=Charnov |first5=E. L. |date=1998-02-03 |title=Grandmothering, menopause, and the evolution of human life histories |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences |volume=95 |issue=3 |pages=1336–1339 |doi=10.1073/pnas.95.3.1336 |pmc=18762 |pmid=9448332|bibcode=1998PNAS...95.1336H |doi-access=free }}</ref> Many elderly women contribute to the care of grandchildren and other family members,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Increasingly Indispensable Grandparents {{!}} YaleGlobal Online |url=https://archive-yaleglobal.yale.edu/content/increasingly-indispensable-grandparents |access-date=2022-07-28 |website=archive-yaleglobal.yale.edu |language=en}}</ref> and many biologists believe that the extended human lifespan is evolutionarily driven by [[kin selection]], though other theories have also been proposed.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Kaptijn |first1=Ralf |last2=Thomese |first2=Fleur |last3=van Tilburg |first3=Theo G. |last4=Liefbroer |first4=Aart C. |date=December 2010 |title=How Grandparents Matter: Support for the Cooperative Breeding Hypothesis in a Contemporary Dutch Population |journal=Human Nature |language=en |volume=21 |issue=4 |pages=393–405 |doi=10.1007/s12110-010-9098-9 |pmid=21212819 |pmc=2995872 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Peccei |first=Jocelyn Scott |title=Menopause: Adaptation or epiphenomenon? |journal=Evolutionary Anthropology: Issues, News, and Reviews |date=2001 |volume=10 |issue=2 |pages=43–57 |doi=10.1002/evan.1013 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Kyriazis |first=Marios |title=Ageing Throughout History: The Evolution of Human Lifespan |journal=Journal of Molecular Evolution |date=2020 |language=en |volume=88 |issue=1 |pages=57–65 |doi=10.1007/s00239-019-09896-2 |pmid=31197416 |bibcode=2020JMolE..88...57K }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |doi=10.1002/9781118924396.wbiea2162 |chapter=Grandmother Hypothesis, Grandmother Effect, and Residence Patterns |title=The International Encyclopedia of Anthropology |date=2018 |last1=Blell |first1=Mwenza |pages=1–5 |isbn=978-0-470-65722-5 }}</ref>

=== Reproductive rights ===
{{Main|Reproductive rights}}

[[File:Sterilization states.jpg|thumb|A poster from a 1921 [[eugenics]] conference displays the U.S. states that had implemented sterilization legislation.|alt=Monochrome photo of a map titled "Eugenical Sterilization Legislation"; with notes on each state; refer to caption]]

[[Reproductive rights]] are [[legal right]]s and freedoms relating to [[human reproduction|reproduction]] and [[reproductive health]]. The [[International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics]] has stated that:<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.figo.org/projects/reproductive_and_sexual_health |title=Resolution on Reproductive and Sexual Health &#124; International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics |publisher=Figo.org |access-date=2014-04-19 |archive-date=2014-02-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140223203421/http://www.figo.org/projects/reproductive_and_sexual_health |url-status=dead }}</ref>

:... the human rights of women include their right to have control over and decide freely and responsibly on matters related to their sexuality, including sexual and reproductive health, free of coercion, discrimination and violence. Equal relationships between women and men in matters of sexual relations and reproduction, including full respect for the integrity of the person, require mutual respect, consent and shared responsibility for sexual behavior and its consequences.

The World Health Organization reports that based on data from 2010 to 2014, 56 million induced abortions occurred worldwide each year (25% of all pregnancies). Of those, about 25&nbsp;million were considered as [[Unsafe abortions|unsafe]]. The WHO reports that in developed regions about 30 women die for every 100,000 unsafe abortions and that number rises to 220 deaths per 100,000 unsafe abortions in developing regions and 520 deaths per 100,000 unsafe abortions in sub-Saharan Africa. The WHO ascribes these deaths to:
*restrictive laws
*poor availability of services
*high cost
*stigma
*conscientious objection of health-care providers 
*unnecessary requirements, such as mandatory waiting periods, mandatory counseling, provision of misleading information, third-party authorization, and medically unnecessary tests that delay care.<ref>{{cite web |title=Preventing unsafe abortion |url=https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/preventing-unsafe-abortion |website=World Health Organization |access-date=August 24, 2019}}</ref>

== History ==
The earliest women whose names are known include:
* [[Neithhotep]] (c. 3200 BCE), the wife of [[Narmer]] and the first queen of ancient Egypt.<ref>Aidan Dodson & Dyan Hilton (2004). ''The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt''. Thames & Hudson. {{ISBN|0-500-05128-3}}.</ref><ref>J. Tyldesley, ''Chronicle of the Queens of Egypt'', 2006, Thames & Hudson.</ref>
* [[Merneith]] (c. 3000 BCE), [[Queen consort|consort]] and regent of ancient Egypt during the [[First Dynasty of Egypt|first dynasty]]. She may have been ruler of Egypt in her own right.<ref name="books.google.co.uk">{{Cite book |author=Wilkinson, Toby A.H. |author-link=Toby Wilkinson |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AR1ZZO6niVIC&q=merneith+wife+daughter&pg=PA74 |title=Early dynastic Egypt |publisher=Routledge |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-415-26011-4 |page=74 }}{{Dead link|date=May 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref>Aidan Dodson & Dyan Hilton (2004). ''The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt''. p. 140. Thames & Hudson. {{ISBN|0-500-05128-3}}.</ref>
* [[Peseshet]] (c. 2600 BCE), a physician in [[Ancient Egypt]].<ref>Plinio Prioreschi, ''A History of Medicine'', Horatius Press 1996, p. 334.</ref><ref>Lois N. Magner, ''A History of Medicine'', Marcel Dekker 1992, p. 28.</ref>
* [[Puabi]] (c. 2600 BCE), or Shubad&nbsp;– queen of [[Ur]] whose tomb was discovered with many expensive artifacts. Other known pre-Sargonic queens of Ur (royal wives) include Ashusikildigir, Ninbanda, and Gansamannu.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Women, Crime, and Punishment in Ancient Law and Society: The ancient Near East |author=Elisabeth Meier Tetlow |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ONkJ_Rj1SS8C&pg=PA221|publisher=[[Continuum International Publishing Group]] |isbn=978-0-8264-1628-5 |year=2004 |access-date=29 July 2011|page=221}}</ref>
* [[Kubaba|Kugbau]] (c. 2500 BCE), a taverness from [[Kish (Sumer)|Kish]] chosen by the [[Nippur]] priesthood to become hegemonic ruler of [[Sumer]], and in later ages deified as "Kubaba".
* [[Tashlultum]] (c. 2400 BCE), [[Akkadian Empire|Akkadian]] queen, wife of [[Sargon of Akkad]] and mother of Enheduanna.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Women, Crime, and Punishment in Ancient Law and Society: The ancient Near East |author=Elisabeth Meier Tetlow |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ONkJ_Rj1SS8C&q=Tashlultum&pg=PA245 |publisher=[[Continuum International Publishing Group]] |isbn=978-0-8264-1628-5 |year=2004 |access-date=29 July 2011}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=Mesopotamia and the ancient Near East |author=Michael Roaf |author-link=Michael Roaf |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SapVAAAAYAAJ&q=Tashlultum |publisher=Stonehenge Press |isbn=978-0-86706-681-4 |year=1992 |access-date=29 July 2011}}</ref>
* [[Baranamtarra]] (c. 2384 BCE), prominent and influential queen of [[Lugalanda]] of [[Lagash]]. Other known pre-Sargonic queens of the first Lagash dynasty include Menbara-abzu, Ashume'eren, Ninkhilisug, Dimtur, and Shagshag, and the names of several princesses are also known.
* [[Enheduanna]] (c. 2285 BCE),<ref>{{cite web |author=Samuel Kurinsky |title=Jewish Women Through The Ages&nbsp;– The Proto-Jewess En Hedu'Anna, Priestess, Poet, Scientist |url=http://www.hebrewhistory.info/factpapers/fp036_women.htm |publisher=Hebrew History Federation}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=Jennifer Bergman |title=Windows to the Universe |url=http://www.windows2universe.org/people/ancient_epoch/enhedu.html |website=www.nestanet.org |publisher=National Earth Science Teachers Association |date=19 July 2001}}</ref> the [[Ordination of women#Sumer and Akkad|high priestess]] of the temple of the [[Sin (mythology)|Moon God]] in the [[Sumer]]ian city-state of [[Ur]] and possibly the first known poet and first named author of either gender.<ref>{{cite book |first1=J.M. |last1=Adovasio|first2=Olga |last2=Soffer|first3=Jake |last3=Page |title=The Invisible Sex: Uncovering the True Roles of Women in Prehistory |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MBFNkKKypdMC&q=The+Invisible+Sex:+Uncovering+the+True+Roles+of+Women+in+Prehistory |publisher=Smithsonian Books & Collins (Harper Collins Publishers) Smithsonian Books |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-06-117091-1 |pages=278–279}}</ref>
* [[Shibtu]] (c. 1775 BCE), king [[Zimrilim]]'s consort and queen of the Syrian city-state of [[Mari, Syria|Mari]]. During her husband's absence, she ruled as regent of Mari and enjoyed extensive administrative powers as queen.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Women, Crime, and Punishment in Ancient Law and Society: The ancient Near East |author=Elisabeth Meier Tetlow|publisher=[[Continuum International Publishing Group]] |isbn=978-0-8264-1628-5 |page=84|date=2004}}</ref>

The glyph (♀) for the [[Venus|planet]] and Roman goddess [[Venus (mythology)|Venus]], or [[Aphrodite]] in Greek, is the [[Gender symbol|symbol]] used to represent the female sex.<ref>{{cite book |title=Encyclopedia of Theory & Practice in Psychotherapy & Counseling |date=2014 |publisher=LuLu Press |isbn=978-1312078369 |editor1-last=Fadu |editor1-first=Jose A. |page=337}}</ref><ref name="Stearn1962">{{cite journal |last1=Stearn |first1=William T. |author-link=William T. Stearn |date=May 1962 |title=The Origin of the Male and Female Symbols of Biology |journal=Taxon |volume=11 |issue=4 |pages=109–113 |doi=10.2307/1217734 |jstor=1217734 |bibcode=1962Taxon..11..109S }}</ref><ref name="Schott2005">{{cite journal |last1=Schott |first1=GD |date=December 2005 |title=Sex symbols ancient and modern: their origins and iconography on the pedigree |url= |journal=[[The BMJ]] |volume=331 |issue=7531 |pages=1509–10 |doi=10.1136/bmj.331.7531.1509 |pmc=1322246 |pmid=16373733}}</ref> In ancient alchemy, the Venus symbol stood for copper and was associated with [[femininity]].<ref name="Schott2005" />

== Culture and gender roles ==
{{Main|Gender role}}
{{see also|Women in the workforce|Women in the military}}
[[File:Abeer Mostafa at work.jpg|thumb|An Egyptian Muslim woman who works as a men's hairdresser to "confront the customs and traditions of her society and conquer their criticism."|alt=woman wearing a headscarf prepares to cut a man's hair]]
In recent history, gender roles have changed greatly. At some earlier points in history, children's occupational aspirations starting at a young age differed according to gender.<ref>{{cite book| last1=Sharpe| first1=S. |title=Just like a Girl |date=1976 |publisher=Penguin| location=London|isbn=978-0140219531}}</ref> Traditionally, middle class women were involved in domestic tasks emphasizing child care. For poorer women, economic necessity compelled them to seek employment outside the home even if individual poor women may have preferred domestic tasks. Many of the occupations that were available to them were lower in pay than those available to men.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hartmann |first=Heidi I. |date=1976 |title=Women's Work in the United States |journal=Current History |volume=70 |issue=416 |pages=215–229 |jstor=45313850 }}</ref>

[[File:Defense.gov News Photo 100806-M-0301S-111 - U.S. Marine Cpl. Mary E. Walls right an ammunition technician and linguist Sahar both with a female engagement team patrol with 1st Battalion.jpg|thumb|Two women U. S. Marines [[patrolling]] in Afghanistan, 2010]]
As changes in the labor market for women came about, availability of employment changed from only "dirty", long hour factory jobs to "cleaner", more respectable office jobs where more education was demanded. Married women's participation in the U.S. labor force rose from 5.6–6% in 1900 to 23.8% in 1923.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The First Measured Century: Book: Section 2.8 |url=https://www.pbs.org/fmc/book/2work8.htm |access-date=2023-12-20 |website=www.pbs.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Fosu |first=Augustin Kwasi |author-link=Augustin Fosu |date=1990 |title=Labor Force Participation by Married Women: Recent Intercity Evidence |journal=Eastern Economic Journal |volume=16 |issue=3 |pages=229–238 |jstor=40326204 }}</ref>

In the 1970s, many female academics, including scientists, avoided having children. Throughout the 1980s, institutions tried to equalize conditions for men and women in the workplace. Even so, the inequalities at home hampered women's opportunities: professional women were still generally considered responsible for domestic labor and child care, which limited the time and energy they could devote to their careers. Until the early 20th century, U.S. women's colleges required their women faculty members to remain single, on the grounds that a woman could not carry on two full-time professions at once. According to Schiebinger, "Being a scientist and a wife and a mother is a burden in society that expects women more often than men to put family ahead of career." (p.&nbsp;93).<ref>{{cite book| last=Schiebinger |first=Londa| title=Has Feminism Changed Science? : Science and Private Life| year=1999| publisher= Harvard University Press| location=[[Cambridge, Massachusetts]] |pages=92–103}}</ref>

Movements advocate [[equality of opportunity]] for both sexes and [[civil rights|equal rights]] irrespective of gender. Through a combination of economic changes and the efforts of the [[feminist movement]], in recent decades women in many societies have gained access to careers beyond the traditional [[homemaker]]. Despite these advances, modern women in Western society still face challenges in the workplace as well as with the topics of education, violence, health care, politics, and motherhood, and others. [[Sexism]] can be a main concern and barrier for women almost anywhere, though its forms, perception, and gravity vary between societies and social classes.

The [[Gender Parity Index]] in school enrollment varies by country.<ref>{{Cite web |title=School enrollment, gender parity index |url=https://genderdata.worldbank.org/indicators/se-enr/?education=Primary |access-date=2023-06-22 |website=World Bank Gender Data Portal}}</ref> The [[gender gaps in mathematics and reading]] show girls tend to have higher reading skills. The [[gender pay gap]] varies between countries and age groups.<ref name="p218">{{cite web | title=Gender pay gap statistics | website=Eurostat | url=https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Gender_pay_gap_statistics | access-date=30 March 2025}}</ref>

=== Violence against women ===
{{main|Violence against women}}

[[File:Campaign road sign against female genital mutilation (cropped).jpg|thumb|A campaign against [[female genital mutilation]]&nbsp;– a road sign near [[Kapchorwa]], [[Uganda]]|alt=Roadside billboard saying "Stop female circumcision. It's dangerous to Women's health. Family Planning Association of Uganda." Displaying a crossed out razorblade and knife on the left.]]

The UN [[Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women]] defines "violence against women" as:<ref>{{cite web| url= https://www.un.org/documents/ga/res/48/a48r104.htm |title=A/RES/48/104. Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women |publisher=Un.org |access-date=2014-04-19}}</ref>

{{blockquote|...any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or mental harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life.}}

It identifies three forms of such violence: that which occurs ''in the family'', that which occurs ''within the general community'', and that which is perpetrated or condoned ''by the State''. It also states that "violence against women is a manifestation of historically unequal power relations between men and women".<ref>{{cite web| author= United Nations General Assembly |url= http://www.un-documents.net/a48r104.htm |title=A/RES/48/104 – Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women&nbsp;– UN Documents: Gathering a body of global agreements |publisher=UN Documents |access-date=2014-04-19}}</ref>

Violence against women remains a widespread problem, fueled, especially outside the West, by patriarchal social values, lack of adequate laws, and lack of enforcement of existing laws. Social norms that exist in many parts of the world hinder progress towards protecting women from violence. For example, according to surveys by [[UNICEF]], the percentage of women aged 15–49 who think that a husband is justified in hitting or beating his wife under certain circumstances is as high as 90% in [[Afghanistan]] and [[Jordan]], 87% in [[Mali]], 86% in [[Guinea]] and [[Timor-Leste]], 81% in [[Laos]], and 80% in the [[Central African Republic]].<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.childinfo.org/attitudes_data.php |title= Statistics by Area&nbsp;– Attitudes towards wife-beating&nbsp;– Statistical table |publisher=Childinfo.org |access-date=2014-04-19 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20140704112113/http://www.childinfo.org/attitudes_data.php |archive-date=2014-07-04 |url-status=dead}}</ref> A 2010 survey conducted by the [[Pew Research Center]] found that [[stoning]] as a punishment for [[adultery]] was supported by 82% of respondents in [[Egypt]] and [[Pakistan]], 70% in [[Jordan]], 56% [[Nigeria]], and 42% in [[Indonesia]].<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.pewglobal.org/2010/12/02/muslims-around-the-world-divided-on-hamas-and-hezbollah/ |title=Muslim Publics Divided on Hamas and Hezbollah |work=Pew Research Center's Global Attitudes Project |date=2 December 2010 |publisher=Pewglobal.org |access-date=2014-04-19}}</ref>

Specific forms of violence that affect women include [[female genital mutilation]], [[sex trafficking]], [[forced prostitution]], [[forced marriage]], rape, [[sexual harassment]], [[honor killings]], [[acid throwing]], and [[dowry death|dowry related violence]]. Laws and policies on violence against women vary by jurisdiction. In the European Union, sexual harassment and human trafficking are subject to [[Directive (European Union)|directives]].<ref>Directive 2002/73/EC&nbsp;– equal treatment of 23 September 2002 amending Council Directive 76/207/EEC on the implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women as regards access to employment, vocational training and promotion, and working conditions [http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CONSLEG:1976L0207:20021005:EN:PDF]</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2011:101:0001:0011:EN:PDF|title=Directive 2011/36/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 April 2011 on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings and protecting its victims, and replacing Council Framework Decision 2002/629/JH}}</ref> Governments can be complicit in violence against women, such as when stoning is used as a legal punishment, mostly for women accused of adultery.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Batha |first1=Emma |title=Special report: The punishment was death by stoning. The crime? Having a mobile phone |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/politics/special-report-punishment-was-death-stoning-crime-having-mobile-phone-8846585.html |access-date=13 May 2021 |work=The Independent |date=28 September 2013}}</ref>

There have also been many forms of violence against women which have been prevalent historically, notably the [[Witch-hunt|burning of witches]], the sacrifice of [[widows]] (such as [[Sati (practice)|sati]]) and [[foot binding]]. The prosecution of women accused of [[witchcraft]] has a long tradition; for example, during the early modern period (between the 15th and 18th centuries), [[witch trials in the early modern period|witch trials]] were common in Europe and in the European colonies in North America. Today, there remain regions of the world (such as parts of Sub-Saharan Africa, rural North India, and Papua New Guinea) where belief in witchcraft is held by many people, and women accused of being witches are subjected to serious violence.<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://scholarship.law.duke.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1129&context=djcil#H2N1 |title=Conflict Between State Legal Norms and Norms Underlying Popular Beliefs: Witchcraft In Africa As A Case Study* |last=Diwan |first=Mohammed A. |journal=Duke Journal of Comparative & International Law |volume=14 |date=2004 |pages=351–387 |access-date=11 August 2021 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Ally |first=Yaseen |date=June 2009 |title=Witch hunts in modern South Africa: an under-represented facet of gender-based violence |url=http://www.mrc.ac.za/crime/witchhunts.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170506125641/http://www.mrc.ac.za/crime/witchhunts.pdf |archive-date=2017-05-06 |access-date=2014-01-08 |website=South African Medical Research Council}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-21363894 | work=BBC News | title=Woman burned alive for 'sorcery' in Papua New Guinea | date=7 February 2013}}</ref> In addition, there are also countries which have criminal legislation against the practice of witchcraft. In [[Saudi Arabia]], witchcraft remains a crime [[punishable by death]], and in 2011 the country beheaded a woman for 'witchcraft and sorcery'.<ref>{{cite web| url= https://www.amnesty.org/en/news/saudi-arabia-beheading-sorcery-shocking-2011-12-12 |title=Saudi Arabia: Beheading for 'sorcery' shocking &#124; Amnesty International |publisher=Amnesty.org |access-date=2014-04-19}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| url= https://edition.cnn.com/2011/12/13/world/meast/saudi-arabia-beheading/ | work=CNN.com | title=Saudi woman beheaded for 'witchcraft and sorcery'| date=14 December 2011}}</ref>

It is also the case that certain forms of violence against women have been recognized as criminal offences only during recent decades, and are not universally prohibited, in that many countries continue to allow them. This is especially the case with [[marital rape]].<ref>In 2006, the UN Secretary-General's ''In-depth study on all forms of violence against women'' found that (p. 113): "Marital rape may be prosecuted in at least 104 States. Of these, 32 have made marital rape a specific criminal offence, while the remaining 74 do not exempt marital rape from general rape provisions. Marital rape is not a prosecutable offence in at least 53 States. Four States criminalize marital rape only when the spouses are judicially separated. Four States are considering legislation that would allow marital rape to be prosecuted."[https://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/vaw/publications/English%20Study.pdf]</ref><ref>In [[England and Wales]], marital rape was made illegal in 1991. The views of Sir Matthew Hale, a 17th-century jurist, published in ''The History of the Pleas of the Crown (1736)'', stated that a husband cannot be guilty of the rape of his wife because the wife "''hath given up herself in this kind to her husband, which she cannot retract''"; in England and Wales this would remain law for more than 250 years, until it was abolished by the [[Appellate Committee of the House of Lords]], [http://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKHL/1991/12.html in the case of ''R v R'' in 1991.]</ref> In the Western World, there has been a trend towards ensuring [[gender equality]] within marriage and prosecuting [[domestic violence]], but in many parts of the world women still lose significant legal rights when entering a marriage.<ref>For example, in [[Yemen]], marriage regulations state that a wife must obey her husband and must not leave home without his permission.[http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrc/docs/ngos/Yemen%27s%20darkside-discrimination_Yemen_HRC101.pdf] In [[Iraq]] husbands have a legal right to "punish" their wives. The criminal code states at Paragraph 41 that there is no crime if an act is committed while exercising a legal right; examples of legal rights include: "The punishment of a wife by her husband, the disciplining by parents and teachers of children under their authority within certain limits prescribed by law or by custom".{{cite web |title=The Penal Code – With Amendments |url=http://law.case.edu/saddamtrial/documents/Iraqi_Penal_Code_1969.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021100954/http://law.case.edu/saddamtrial/documents/Iraqi_Penal_Code_1969.pdf |archive-date=2012-10-21 |access-date=2012-10-21 |publisher=Iraqi Ministry of Justice}} In the [[Democratic Republic of Congo]] the Family Code states that the husband is the head of the household; the wife owes her obedience to her husband; a wife has to live with her husband wherever he chooses to live; and wives must have their husbands' authorization to bring a case in court or to initiate other legal proceedings.[https://www.hrw.org/reports/2002/drc/Congo0602-09.htm]</ref>

Sexual violence against women greatly increases during times of war and [[armed conflict]], during [[military occupation]], or [[ethnic conflict]]s; most often in the form of [[war rape]] and [[sexual slavery]]. Contemporary examples of sexual violence during war include [[rape during the Armenian genocide]], [[rape during the Bangladesh Liberation War]], [[rape in the Bosnian War]], [[rape during the Rwandan genocide]], and [[War rape#Democratic Republic of the Congo|rape during Second Congo War]]. In Colombia, the armed conflict has also resulted in increased sexual violence against women.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/news/colombian-authorities-fail-stop-or-punish-sexual-violence-against-women-2012-10-04 |title=Colombian authorities fail to stop or punish sexual violence against women &#124; Amnesty International |publisher=Amnesty.org |access-date=2014-04-19}}</ref> The most recent case was the [[sexual jihad]] done by [[ISIL]] where 5000–7000 Yazidi and Christian girls and children were sold into sexual slavery during the [[Sexual violence in the Iraqi insurgency|genocide and rape of Yazidi and Christian women]], some of whom jumped to their death from [[Mount Sinjar]], as described in a witness statement.<ref name=rudaw-26082014>{{cite news|last=Ahmed|first=Havidar|title=The Yezidi Exodus, Girls Raped by ISIS Jump to their Death on Mount Shingal|date=14 August 2014|url=http://rudaw.net/english/kurdistan/140820142|publisher=[[Rudaw Media Network]]|access-date=26 August 2014}}</ref>

== Fertility and family life ==
{{Further|Mother}}

[[File:Total Fertility Rate Map by Country.svg|thumb|Map of countries by fertility rate (2020), according to the [[Population Reference Bureau]]]]
[[File:Percentage of birth to unmarried women, selected countries, 1980 and 2007.png|thumb|Percentage of births to unmarried women, selected countries, 1980 and 2007<ref name="non_mar1">{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db18.htm|title=Changing Patterns of Nonmarital Childbearing in the United States |work=CDC/National Center for Health Statistics|date=May 13, 2009|access-date=September 24, 2011}}</ref>]]

The [[total fertility rate]] (TFR)&nbsp;– the average number of children born to a woman over her lifetime&nbsp;– differs significantly between different regions of the world. In 2016, the highest estimated TFR was in [[Niger]] (6.62 children born per woman) and the lowest in Singapore (0.82 children/woman).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2127rank.html|title=The World Factbook&nbsp;– Central Intelligence Agency|access-date=2014-01-08|archive-date=2009-10-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091028133713/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2127rank.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> While most Sub-Saharan African countries have a high TFR, which creates problems due to lack of resources and contributes to [[overpopulation]], most Western countries currently experience a [[sub replacement fertility rate]] which may lead to [[population ageing]] and [[population decline]].

In many parts of the world, there has been a change in family structure over the past few decades. For instance, in the West, there has been a trend of moving away from living arrangements that include the [[extended family]] to those which only consist of the [[nuclear family]]. There has also been a trend to move from marital fertility to non-marital fertility. Children born outside marriage may be born to [[cohabitation|cohabiting couples]] or to [[single parent|single women]]. While births outside marriage are common and fully accepted in some parts of the world, in other places they are highly stigmatized, with unmarried mothers facing ostracism, including violence from family members, and in extreme cases even [[honor killings]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.mrt-rrt.gov.au/CMSPages/GetFile.aspx?guid=91cf943a-3fa6-4fce-afec-4ab2c2a356fd|date=2013-05-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130501013343/http://www.mrt-rrt.gov.au/CMSPages/GetFile.aspx?guid=91cf943a-3fa6-4fce-afec-4ab2c2a356fd|access-date=2019-06-28|archive-date=2013-05-01|publisher=Refugee Review Tribunal Australia |title=RRT Research Response}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3523123.stm | work=BBC News | title=Turkey condemns 'honour killings' | date=1 March 2004}}</ref> In addition, [[sex outside marriage]] remains illegal in many countries (such as Saudi Arabia, Pakistan,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eyeontheun.org/voices.asp?p=632 |title=Human Rights Voices&nbsp;– Pakistan, August 21, 2008 |publisher=Eyeontheun.org |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130121175822/http://www.eyeontheun.org/voices.asp?p=632 |archive-date=January 21, 2013 }}</ref> Afghanistan,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aidsportal.org/news_details.aspx?ID=4236 |title=Home |publisher=AIDSPortal |url-status=dead |archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20081026065259/http://www.aidsportal.org/news_details.aspx?ID=4236 |archive-date=2008-10-26 }}</ref><ref name="travel.state.gov">{{cite web|url=https://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1142.html |title=Iran |publisher=Travel.state.gov |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130801084310/http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1142.html |archive-date=2013-08-01 }}</ref> Iran,<ref name="travel.state.gov"/> Kuwait,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/0/2f5665ae20b956cb8025675a0033cafb?Opendocument |title=United Nations Human Rights Website&nbsp;– Treaty Bodies Database&nbsp;– Document&nbsp;– Summary Record&nbsp;– Kuwait |publisher=Unhchr.ch}}</ref> Maldives,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/places/asia/indian-political-geography/maldives|first=Rajasundram|last=Sathuendrakumar|title=Maldives – Countries and Their Cultures|website=Encyclopedia.com|date=21 June 2022|access-date=21 July 2022}}</ref> Morocco,<ref>{{cite news|last=Fakim |first=Nora |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-19049000 |title=BBC News&nbsp;– Morocco: Should pre-marital sex be legal? |work=BBC |date=9 August 2012}}</ref> Oman,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.interpol.com/Public/Children/SexualAbuse/NationalLaws/csaOman.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071215043802/http://www.interpol.com/Public/Children/SexualAbuse/NationalLaws/csaOman.pdf |archive-date=15 December 2007 |title=Legislation of Interpol member states on sexual offences against children&nbsp;– Oman |publisher=Interpol}}</ref> Mauritania,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/2010/af/154358.htm |title=2010 Human Rights Report: Mauritania |publisher=State.gov |date=8 April 2011}}</ref> United Arab Emirates,<ref>{{cite web|author=Dubai FAQs |url=http://www.dubaifaqs.com/education-dubai.php |title=Education in Dubai |publisher=Dubaifaqs.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Judd |first=Terri |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/briton-faces-jail-for-sex-on-dubai-beach-863918.html |title=Briton faces jail for sex on Dubai beach&nbsp;– Middle East&nbsp;– World |work=The Independent |date=10 July 2008 |location=London}}</ref> Sudan,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/2007/06/28/idUSL28849488._CH_.2400 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121209050025/http://www.reuters.com/article/2007/06/28/idUSL28849488._CH_.2400 |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 9, 2012 |title=Sudan must rewrite rape laws to protect victims |work=Reuters |date=28 June 2007}}</ref> and Yemen<ref>{{cite web|author=United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees |url=http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/47387b712f.html/ |title=Refworld &#124; Women's Rights in the Middle East and North Africa&nbsp;– Yemen |publisher=UNHCR}}</ref>).

The social role of the mother differs between cultures. In many parts of the world, women with dependent children are expected to stay at home and dedicate all their energy to child raising, while in other places mothers most often return to paid work (see [[Working parent|working mother]] and [[Housewife|stay-at-home mother]]).{{citation needed |date=October 2025}}

== Education ==
{{Main|Female education}}

[[File:Bolivia la paz literacy LOC.jpg|thumb|right|upright=0.8|Women attending an adult literacy class in the [[El Alto]] section of [[La Paz]], [[Bolivia]]]]
[[Single-sex education]] has traditionally been dominant and is still highly relevant.{{cn |reason=traditional where? relevant where? |date=November 2025}} Universal education, meaning state-provided primary and secondary education independent of gender, is not yet a global norm, even if it is assumed in most developed countries.{{cn |date=November 2025}} In some Western countries, women have surpassed men at many levels of education. For example, in the United States in 2005/2006, women earned 62% of associate degrees, 58% of bachelor's degrees, 60% of master's degrees, and 50% of doctorates.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d07/tables/dt07_178.asp |title=Historical summary of faculty, students, degrees, and finances in degree-granting institutions: Selected years, 1869–70 through 2005–06 |publisher=National Center for Education Statistics |access-date=2014-08-22}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author1=Eisenhart, A. Margaret |author2=Finkel, Elizabeth |title=Women (Still) Need Not Apply:The Gender and Science Reader|year=2001|publisher=Routledge|location=New York|pages=13–23}}</ref>

In 2020, 87% of the world's women were literate, compared to 90% of men; at the same time, only 59% of women in sub-Saharan Africa were literate.<ref>{{Cite web |title=This is how much global literacy has changed over 200 years |url=https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2022/09/reading-writing-global-literacy-rate-changed/ |access-date=2023-03-10 |website=World Economic Forum |date=12 September 2022 |language=en}}</ref> The educational [[Sex ratio|gender gap]] in [[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development]] (OECD) countries has been reduced over the last 30 years. Younger women today are far more likely to have completed a tertiary qualification: in 19 of the 30 OECD countries, more than twice as many women aged 25 to 34 have completed tertiary education than have women aged 55 to 64. In 21 of 27 OECD countries with comparable data, the number of women graduating from university-level programmes is equal to or exceeds that of men. 15-year-old girls tend to show much higher expectations for their careers than boys of the same age.<ref>[http://www.oecd.org/document/31/0,2340,en_2649_201185_33710751_1_1_1_1,00.html Education Levels Rising in OECD Countries but Low Attainment Still Hampers Some, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development], Publication Date: 14 September 2004. Retrieved December 2006.</ref>
While women account for more than half of university graduates in several OECD countries, they receive only 30% of tertiary degrees granted in science and engineering fields, and women account for only 25% to 35% of researchers in most OECD countries.<ref>[http://www.oecd.org/document/13/0,2340,en_2649_33703_37682893_1_1_1_1,00.html Women in Scientific Careers: Unleashing the Potential, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070210190113/http://www.oecd.org/document/13/0,2340,en_2649_33703_37682893_1_1_1_1,00.html |date=2007-02-10 }}, {{ISBN|92-64-02537-5}}, 2006. Retrieved December 2006.</ref>

Research shows that while women are studying at prestigious universities at the same rate as men they are not being given the same chance to join the faculty.{{cn |reason=says who? |date=November 2025}} Sociologist [[Harriet Zuckerman]] has observed that the more prestigious an institute is, the more difficult and time-consuming it will be for women to obtain a faculty position there. In 1989, Harvard University tenured its first woman in chemistry, Cynthia Friend, and in 1992 its first woman in physics, Melissa Franklin.{{cn |reason=this is not common knowledge and so should be cited |date=November 2025}} She also observed that women were more likely to hold their first professional positions as instructors and lecturers while men are more likely to work first in tenure positions.{{cn |reason=who is "she"? is this a continuation from the note on harriet zuckerman? |date=November 2025}} According to Smith and Tang, as of 1989, 65% of men and only 40% of women held tenured positions and only 29% of all scientists and engineers employed as assistant professors in four-year colleges and universities were women.{{cn |reason=who are smith and tang?? what study? |date=November 2025}} Women show a drop in self-esteem in the first year of college.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Brainard |first1=Suzanne G. |last2=Carlin |first2=Linda |title=A Six-Year Longitudinal Study of Undergraduate Women in Engineering and Science |journal=Journal of Engineering Education |date=October 1998 |volume=87 |issue=4 |pages=369–375 |id={{ProQuest|217940422}} |doi=10.1002/j.2168-9830.1998.tb00367.x }}</ref> In the Soviet Union, 40% of chemistry PhDs went to women in the 1960s.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Magazine |first1=Smithsonian |last2=Eveleth |first2=Rose |title=Soviet Russia Had a Better Record of Training Women in STEM Than America Does Today |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/soviet-russia-had-a-better-record-of-training-women-in-stem-than-america-does-today-180948141/?no-ist |access-date=2025-01-17 |website=Smithsonian Magazine |language=en}}</ref>

In 1992, women earned 9% of the PhDs awarded in engineering, but only one percent of those women became professors. In 1995, 11% of professors in science and engineering were women. In relation, only 311 deans of engineering schools were women, which is less than 1% of the total. Even in psychology, a degree in which women earn the majority of PhDs, they hold a significant amount of fewer tenured positions, roughly 19% in 1994.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Schiebinger |first1=Londa |title=Has Feminism Changed Science? |date=1999 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-674-38113-1 |pages=33–53 |chapter=Meters of Equity |doi=10.2307/j.ctv1msswnm.6 |jstor=j.ctv1msswnm.6 }}</ref>

== Government and politics ==
{{main|Timeline of women's suffrage|List of elected and appointed female heads of state and government}}

[[File:Map3.8Government Participation by Women compressed.jpg|thumb|A world map showing female governmental participation by country, 2010|alt=A world map showing female governmental participation by country, 2010.]] Women are underrepresented in government in most countries. In January 2019, the global average of women in national assemblies was 24.3%.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ipu.org/wmn-e/world.htm |title=Women in Parliaments: World and Regional Averages |publisher=Ipu.org |date=2011-02-14 |access-date=2014-04-19}}</ref> 
[[File:Sirimavo Bandaranaike, Prime Minister of Ceylon 1960.PNG|left|thumb|[[Sirimavo Bandaranaike]] was the first female prime minister; she was democratically elected in [[Sri Lanka]] in 1960.]]

Suffrage is the civil right to vote, and [[women's suffrage]] movements have a long [[Timeline of women's suffrage|historic timeline]]. As an early example, in districts of [[Friesland]], in the Netherlands, women began voting in 1689.<ref>{{cite web |author=Wierdsma Schik, P. |date=1857 |title=Akademisch proefschrift over de staatsregtelijke geschiedenis der Staten van Friesland van 1581 tot 1795 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XYw6AAAAcAAJ&q=staten+van+friesland+geschiedenis |access-date=11 June 2018 |website=Google Books |publisher=W. Eekhoff |page=18 |language=nl}}</ref> On the other end of the spectrum, in [[Kuwait]] women gained the right to vote in 2005,<ref>{{cite news |date=16 May 2005 |title=Kuwait grants women right to vote |first=Kianne |last=Sadeq |url=http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/05/16/kuwait.women/ |access-date=20 November 2025 |newspaper=CNN}}</ref> and in [[Saudi Arabia]] women gained the right to vote in 2015.<ref>{{cite news|title=Saudis vote in municipal elections, results on Sunday |date=30 September 2011 |work=[[Oman Observer]] |agency=Agence France-Presse |url=http://main.omanobserver.om/node/66706 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120119050656/http://main.omanobserver.om/node/66706 |archive-date=19 January 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Organizations that fought for women's right to vote in different countries are numerous, from Switzerland's [[Association internationale des femmes]] (which was formed in 1868) to Liechtenstein's [[Komitée für das Frauenstimmrecht]] (founded in 1969).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://historisches-lexikon.li/Komitee_für_das_Frauenstimmrecht |title= Komitee für das Frauenstimmrecht |last=Frick |first=Julia |date=17 September 2024}}</ref> As of 2025, the [[Vatican City]] only allows women to vote in limited lay capacity,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.npr.org/2023/04/26/1172201884/pope-francis-women-vote-bishops-meetings |publisher=NPR |title=In a historic shift, Pope Francis allows women to vote at bishops' meetings |date=26 April 2023}}</ref> and other countries such as [[Afghanistan]] lack functional democracies entirely.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://redyellowblue.org/data/af/wdaf/ |title=Women’s Right to Vote in Afghanistan}}</ref>

== Science, literature and art ==

=== Science and medicine ===
{{Main|Women in science}}
[[File:Marie Curie 1903.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Chemist and physicist [[Marie Curie]] was the first woman to be awarded a Nobel Prize, and the only person to win a Nobel Prize in two different scientific fields.<ref>{{cite web |date=16 April 2021 |title=Marie Curie |url=https://www.awis.org/historical-women/marie-curie/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211201083418/https://www.awis.org/historical-women/marie-curie/ |archive-date=1 December 2021 |accessdate=1 December 2021 |publisher=[[AWIS]]}}</ref>]]

Women have historically had access to practice [[midwifery]], [[obstetrics]] and [[gynecology]]. In Europe, prior to the 18th century, caring for pregnant women was undertaken by other women. However, from the mid-18th century onwards, society began to require rigorous formal education to practice medicine. Since women were prohibited from higher education, women's reproductive healthcare was transferred to male practitioners.<ref name="Gelis">Gelis, Jacues. History of Childbirth. Boston: Northern University Press, 1991: 96–98</ref><ref>Bynum, W.F., & Porter, Roy, eds. Companion Encyclopedia of the History of Medicine. London and New York: Routledge, 1993: 1051–1052.</ref>

Early women in other scientific fields include [[Hypatia]] (b. 350-370 CE), a mathematician and astronomer who edited the ''[[Almagest]]''.

=== Literature ===
{{Main|Women writers}}
The earliest author known by name was an Akkadian woman named [[Enheduanna]], who wrote in the 23rd century BCE.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.worldhistory.org/Enheduanna/ |last=Mark |first=Joshua |title=Enheduanna |date=24 March 2014 |access-date=19 November 2025}}</ref> [[Ghosha]], an Indian composer of hymns in the [[Rigveda]], was active around 1500-900 BCE.<ref>{{cite web |title=GHOSHA |access-date=19 November 2025 |url=https://www.hinduscriptures.in/gurus/rushi-women/ghosha}}</ref> The first recorded female Chinese poet was [[Duchess Mu of Xu]], who wrote in the 7th century BCE.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=x91oDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA22 |title=The Most Influential Female Writers |author= Anne Cunningham|page=22 |publisher=Rosen Young Adult|date=2018 |isbn=978-1508179665}}</ref> The [[Tale of Genji]], one of the earliest novel-like works and sometimes called "the first novel", was written by the Japanese [[Murasaki Shikibu]] in the 11th century CE.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Tale of Genji|first=Royall|last=Tyler|publisher=[[Penguin Classics]]|year=2003|isbn=0-14-243714-X|pages=i–ii & xii}}</ref> 

In Western society, writing was generally considered acceptable for upper-class women. However, achieving success as a female writer in a male-dominated world could be very difficult; as a result, some women writers adopted male pen names (e.g. [[George Sand]], [[George Eliot]], [[Currer Bell]], [[Ellis Bell]], [[Acton Bell]], and [[Vernon Lee]]).<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Jung |first1=Daun |title=Critical Names Matter: 'Currer Bell,' 'George Eliot,' and 'Mrs. Gaskell' |journal=Victorian Literature and Culture |date=December 2017 |volume=45 |issue=4 |pages=763–781 |doi=10.1017/S1060150317000201 }}</ref> This has continued into more modern times, with 20th-century writers such as [[Andre Norton]] and [[James Tiptree Jr]]<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=The Secret Sci-Fi Life of Alice B. Sheldon. (Transcript). |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6468136 |website=NPR.org}}</ref> adopting male pseudonyms, and some authors such as [[J.K. Rowling]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.teenvogue.com/story/jk-rowling-reason-pen-name |title=J.K. Rowling Explains the Reason Behind Her Pen Name |last=Elizabeth |first=De |date=10 July 2017}}</ref> and [[Harper Lee]]  adopting purposefully unisex pen names.

=== Music ===
{{Main|Women musicians}}
Women have been composers, songwriters, [[Musician|instrumental performers]], singers, conductors, [[musicology|music scholars]], [[music teacher|music educators]], [[music criticism|music critics]]/[[music journalist]]s and other musical professions. There are music movements,{{clarify|date=December 2018}} events and genres related to women, [[women's rights|women's issues]] and [[feminism]].{{citation needed|date=December 2018}} In the 2010s, while women comprise a significant proportion of [[popular music]] and classical music singers, and a significant proportion of songwriters (many of them being singer-songwriters), there are few women record producers, [[music journalist|rock critics]] and rock instrumentalists. Although there have been a huge number of [[List of women composers|women composers]] in classical music, from the Medieval period to the present day, women composers are significantly underrepresented in the [[Western canon|commonly performed classical music repertoire]], music history textbooks and music encyclopedias; for example, in the ''Concise Oxford History of Music'', [[Clara Schumann]] is one of the only female composers who is mentioned.{{citation needed |date=October 2025}}

Women comprise a significant proportion of instrumental soloists in classical music and the percentage of women in orchestras is increasing. A 2015 article on concerto soloists in major Canadian orchestras, however, indicated that 84% of the soloists with the [[Montreal Symphony Orchestra]] were men. In 2012, women still made up just 6% of the top-ranked [[Vienna Philharmonic]] orchestra. Women are less common as instrumental players in popular music genres such as rock and [[Heavy metal music|heavy metal]], although there have been a number of notable female instrumentalists and [[all-female band]]s. Women are particularly underrepresented in [[extreme metal]] genres.<ref>Julian Schaap and Pauwke Berkers. "Grunting Alone? Online Gender Inequality in Extreme Metal Music" in ''IASPM Journal''. Vol. 4, no. 1 (2014) p. 103</ref> Women are also underrepresented in orchestral conducting, music criticism/music journalism, [[Music producer|music producing]], and [[sound engineering]]. While women were discouraged from composing in the 19th century, and there are few women [[musicology|musicologists]], women became involved in [[music education]] "... to such a degree that women dominated [this field] during the later half of the 19th century and well into the 20th century."<ref name="parlorsongs.com">{{cite web|url=http://parlorsongs.com/issues/2002-9/thismonth/feature.php |title=Women Composers In American Popular Song |page= 1 |publisher=Parlorsongs.com |date=1911-03-25 |access-date=2016-01-20}}</ref>

According to [[Jessica Duchen]], a music writer for London's ''[[The Independent]]'', women musicians in classical music are "... too often judged for their appearances, rather than their talent" and they face pressure "... to look sexy onstage and in photos."<ref name="music.cbc.ca">{{cite web|url=http://music.cbc.ca/#!/blogs/2014/3/Classical-musics-shocking-gender-gap |title=CBC Music |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160301002442/http://music.cbc.ca/ |archive-date=2016-03-01 }}</ref> Duchen states that while "[t]here are women musicians who refuse to play on their looks, ... the ones who do tend to be more materially successful."<ref name="music.cbc.ca" />

According to the UK's Radio 3 editor, Edwina Wolstencroft, the classical music industry has long been open to having women in performance or entertainment roles, but women are much less likely to have positions of authority, such as being the [[Conducting|leader of an orchestra]].<ref name="theguardian.com">{{cite news|author=Jessica Duchen |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/feb/28/why-male-domination-of-classical-music-might-end |title=Why the male domination of classical music might be coming to an end &#124; Music |newspaper=The Guardian |access-date=2016-01-20}}</ref> In popular music, while there are many women singers recording songs, there are very few women behind the [[Audio mixer|audio console]] acting as music producers, the individuals who direct and manage the recording process.<ref name="ReferenceB">{{cite journal |last=Ncube |first=Rosina |title=Sounding Off: Why So Few Women In Audio? |url=http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/sep13/articles/sounding-off-0913.htm |journal=Sound on Sound |date=September 2013}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Flex columns
|1 ='''General'''
*[[Lists of women]]
* [[UN Women]]
'''Sociological:'''
* [[Women's studies]]
|3 = '''Medical:'''
* [[Feminine psychology]]
|2 = '''Dynamics:'''
* [[Feminization (sociology)]]
* [[Matriarchy]]
|4 = '''Other:'''
* [[Womyn]] / [[Womxn]]
}}{{clear}}

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=lower-alpha}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
* [http://www.aas.duke.edu/admin/deans/faculty/ Chafe, William H.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090113175123/http://www.aas.duke.edu/admin/deans/faculty/ |date=2009-01-13 }}, ''The American Woman: Her Changing Social, Economic, And Political Roles, 1920–1970'', Oxford University Press, 1972. {{ISBN|0-19-501785-4}}
* {{cite book |editor=Rosalie Maggio |date=1996 |title=The New Beacon Book of Quotations by Women |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780807067833|url-access=registration|location=Boston |publisher=Beacon Press |isbn=0-8070-6783-0}} 
* ''Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women'', 4 vls., ed. by Cheris Kramarae and Dale Spender, Routledge 2000
* ''[[Women in World History|Women in World History : a biographical encyclopedia]]'', 17 vls., ed. by [[Anne Commire]], Waterford, Conn. [etc.] : Yorkin Publ. [etc.], 1999–2002
* [http://www.gutenberg.org/files/32937/32937-h/32937-h.htm ''Woman In all ages and in all countries in 10 volumes'']. Illustrated edition deluxe limited to 1,000 numbered copies with an index by Rénald Lévesque

== External links ==
{{Wiktionary|woman|muliebrity}}
{{Wiktionary|Wikisaurus:woman}}
* {{Wikiquote-inline|Women}}
* {{Commons category-inline|Women}}

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