In ancient Greek and Roman mythology, a handsome god named Hermaphroditus was walking by a lake when a water nymph spotted him and immediately fell head over heels in love. He rebuffed her advances, so when he went for a swim, the lovelorn nymph embraced him tightly and prayed that they might never be separated. The gods granted her wish, and their bodies fused into one person with both female and male attributes. Today, a person with physical aspects of both sexes is called a hermaphrodite, in reference to this tale. Many advocates, however, argue that this term is stigmatizing and prefer the use of the word intersex instead.

There are varying degrees of the condition. True hermaphrodites have both ovarian and testicular tissues, while pseudohermaphrodites have the internal reproductive organs of one sex but the outward appearance of the other. (Examples include those with adrenogenital syndrome and testicular feminization.) Most cases of full hermaphroditism can be attributed to a genetic defect. One of the most common is an additional sex chromosome, so that there are 47 chromosomes instead of the normal 46. As a result, these individuals have an XXY set rather than an XX or XY. Rarely, a person may have the internal organs of both sexes, or an ovotestis.

Beginning in the 1960s, babies with this hermaphroditism were assigned to one sex, usually dictated by the more prominent genitalia. They then underwent surgery to remove the inconsistent genitals. However, in the 1990s, a group of psychologists and other experts started a movement against this procedure. They explained that intersex isn’t a medical emergency and that a child who undergoes such surgery may grow up with a sense of loss and misplacement. Ultimately, they argued, the child should make that decision later on in life.

ADDITIONAL FACTS

  1. Intersex conditions occur in about 1 in 1,500 to 2,000 births.
  2. According to 16th-century literature, a hermaphrodite living as a woman was put to death for impregnating her master’s daughter.