infibulation

American  

[in-fib-yuh-ley-shuhn] / ɪnˌfɪb yəˈleɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the stitching together of the vulva, often after a clitoridectomy, leaving a small opening for the passage of urine and menstrual blood.

2. the similar stitching of the male prepuce.

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Etymology

Origin of infibulation

First recorded in 1640–50; infibulate ( def. )

Example Sentences

Data also suggest Somalia families have switched from infibulation to less severe forms of the ritual.

From Fox News

Most undergo an extreme form known as infibulation, which involves the removal and repositioning of the labia to narrow the vaginal opening.

From Washington Times

Nearly two-thirds endure infibulation, the most severe form of the procedure.

From The Guardian

In Abraham Verghese’s wrenching novel “Cutting for Stone,” there is a passage in which Verghese, who is a professor at Stanford’s School of Medicine as well as a writer, describes an anglo-Indian surgeon’s fight to save a young Ethiopian woman suffering from a fistula—a hole between her vaginal and anal wall that was probably caused by infibulation, and that can leave a woman constantly leaking feces.

From The New Yorker

The office said the "unspeakable criminal acts" — the beheading, crucifying and hanging of bodies in public places, the "barbaric practice of infibulation," the abduction of women and girls as spoils of war, and the destruction of Christian religious symbols — required a "clear and courageous stance on the part of religious leaders, especially Muslims."

From US News