Elongated labia

closeup of enlarged labia, standing

Elongated labia (also known as Sinus pudoris or macronympha^[1] and albeit nonmedically, as khoikhoi apron or hottentot apron) are a feature of certain Khoisan groups, whose female members develop relatively elongated labia minora, hanging up to four inches outside their vulva when they are standing in an upright position. The "apron" moniker was apparently gained from the tendency of early European descriptions to misidentify the pair of labia as a single, wide organ, which they called, in French, a tablier, or "apron".^[2]

This trait was first noted as far back as the 17th century, but became extensively documented in the last part of the 18th and the 19th century.^[3] It was Sarah Baartman’s 19th century case that brought the elongated labia back out for discussion. For many years, the identification of Baartman was questioned because she demonstrated this feature. In the Gender and Science Reader, elongated labia minora were said to be portrayed by a “Negro.” So it is because of this trait that Baartman was considered to be part of the inferior race, being that the superior race (whites), had "normal" sized labia. ^[4]

Labia may also be shaped by intentional labia stretching, usually done by an older aunt on girls beginning at the age of five, a practice formerly falling into the category of Type IV female genital mutilation.^[5] In 2008 The World Health Organisation reclassified the practice as a body modification due to a perceived lack of harm and a reported much more positive perception of women's sexuality by those who practice it.^[6]

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  closeup of enlarged labia, spread

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  Khoisan women with pendulous labia visible

See also

• Labia stretching
• Steatopygia
• Sarah Baartman

References