koro

American  

[kawr-oh, kohr-oh] / ˈkɔr oʊ, ˈkoʊr oʊ /

noun

Psychiatry.

1. a culture-specific syndrome, occurring chiefly in China and southeastern Asia, characterized by anxiety and the fear of retraction of the penis or breasts and labia into the body.

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koro British  

/ ˈkɒrɒ /

noun

1. 1. an elderly Māori man

   2. a title of respect for an elderly Māori man

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Etymology

Origin of koro

< dialectal Malay (Kedah) kɔrɔ land turtle (standard Malay kura-kura

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

koro

Trying to understand koro, in turn, lead me into a labyrinth of other syndromes, many of which seem unreal to Westerners, though not to those experiencing them.

From Slate ● Nov. 28, 2016

It’s no coincidence that in almost every recorded case of koro, the victim already knew of the condition, so was primed to detect it.

From The Guardian ● May 13, 2016

Sporadic reports of koro, as it came to be known, recurred over the years, and during the late twentieth century the panics proliferated.

From Slate ● Oct. 6, 2012

Even though Mr. A doesn't hail from a society in which koro is ingrained in the cultural grammar, he's still displaying the same symptom profile as more traditional sufferers in China.

From Slate ● Jul. 11, 2011

In the Gulph of Carpentaria, we did not observe any other than the koro, or grey slug.

From A Voyage to Terra Australis — Volume 2 by Flinders, Matthew