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[[Image:Female.svg|160px|thumb|The [[hand mirror]] and [[comb]] of the Roman goddess [[Venus (mythology)|Venus]] is often used to represent the female sex.]]
'''Female''' (♀) is the [[sex]] of an [[organism]], or a part of an organism, which produces [[ovum|ova]] (egg cells). The ova are defined as the larger [[gamete]]s in a [[heterogamous]] reproduction system, while the smaller, usually [[motile]] gamete, the [[spermatozoon]], is produced by the [[male]]. A female individual cannot reproduce [[sexual reproduction|sexually]] without access to the gametes of a [[male]] (an exception is [[parthenogenesis]]). Some organisms can reproduce both [[sexual reproduction|sexually]] and [[Asexual reproduction|asexually]].
There is no single genetic mechanism behind sex differences in different species and the existence of two sexes seems to have [[evolution|evolved]] multiple times independently in different [[lineage (evolution)|evolutionary lineages]]. Other than the defining difference in the type of gamete produced, differences between males and females in one lineage cannot always be predicted by differences in another. The concept is not limited to [[animal]]s; egg cells are produced by [[chytrid]]s, [[diatom]]s, [[water mold]]s and [[plant|land plants]], among others. In land plants, ''female'' and ''male'' designate not only the egg- and sperm-producing organisms and structures, but also the structures of the [[sporophyte]]s that give rise to male and female plants.
==Etymology and usage==
The word '''female''' comes from the Latin ''femella'', the diminutive form of ''femina'', meaning "[[woman]]," which is not actually related to the word "male." The word was probably originally ''femella'', meaning "young girl." In the late 14th century, the English spelling was altered so that the word paralleled the spelling of "male."
The phrase ''the female,'' in the sense of ''the female sex'' or the class of all women, figures prominently in the first act of ''[[Henry V]]'', in which Henry's bishops discuss with him the right of the French King to his throne—and Henry's right to usurp it. They conclude that the [[salic law]] cited by the French is not really French, but German, and that Henry can properly invade France, thus prolonging the [[Hundred Years' War]].
==Mammalian female==
The distinguishing characteristic of mammalian species is the presence of [[mammary gland]]s. The mammary glands are modified sweat glands that produce [[milk]], which is used to feed the young during the period of time shortly after birth. Only mammals have the capacity to [[Lactation|produce milk]]. The presence of mammary glands is [[Breast#Other suggested functions|most obvious]] on [[humans]], due to the tendency of the female human body to store large amounts of fatty tissue near the nipples, resulting in prominent [[breast]]s, although today some human females also [[breast implant|surgically augment]] their breast size. However, mammary glands are present in all mammals, although they are [[vestigial organ|vestigial]] in the male of the species.
The mammalian female is characterized by having two copies of the [[X chromosome]] as opposed to the male which carries only one X and one smaller [[Y chromosome]]. To compensate for the difference in size, one of the female's X chromosomes is [[X-inactivation|randomly inactivated]] in each cell. In birds, by contrast, it is the female who is [[heterozygous]] and carries a Z and a W chromosome whilst the male carries two Z chromosomes.
Mammalian females are also unique in that they all bear live young (with the rare exception of [[monotremes]], which lay eggs). However, there are non-mammalian animals (such as [[shark]]s) whose eggs hatch inside their bodies, which gives the appearance that they bear live young.
==Symbol==
A common symbol used to represent the female sex is ♀ ([[Unicode]]: U+2640 [[Alt codes]]: Alt+12), a circle with a small cross underneath. This symbol also represents the planet [[Venus]] and is a stylized representation of the [[Venus (mythology)|goddess Venus']] hand mirror{{Fact|date=January 2008}}. According to Schott<ref>Schott GD. Sex, drugs, and rock and roll: Sex symbols ancient and modern: their origins and iconography on the pedigree.BMJ 2005;331:1509-1510 (24 December), doi:10.1136/bmj.331.7531.1509</ref>, "The most established view is that the male and female symbols "are derived from contractions in Greek script of the Greek names of these planets, namely Thouros (Mars) and Phosphoros (Venus). These derivations have been traced by Renkama<ref>Renkema HW. Oorspong, beteekenis en toepassing van de in de botanie gebuikelijke teekens ter aanduiding van het geslacht en den levensduur. In: Jeswiet J, ed. Gedendenkboek J Valckenier Suringar. Wageningen: Nederlandsche Dendrologische Vereeniging, 1942: 96-108.</ref> who illustrated how Greek letters can be transformed into the graphic male and female symbols still recognised today." Thouros was abbreviated by θρ, and Phosphoros by Φκ, which were contracted into the modern symbols.
==Sex determination==
{{main|Sex-determination system}}
The [[sex]] of a particular organism may be determined by a number of factors. These may be genetic or environmental, or may naturally change during the course of an organism's life. Although most species with male and female sexes have individuals that are either male or female, [[hermaphrodite|hermaphroditic]] animals have both male and female reproductive organs.
===Genetic determination===
Most [[mammal]]s, including [[human]]s, are genetically determined as such by the [[XY sex-determination system]] where males have an XY (as opposed to XX) sex [[chromosome]]. During [[reproduction]], a male can give either an X sperm or a Y sperm, while a female can only give an X egg. A Y sperm and an X egg produce a [[boy]], while an X sperm and an X egg produce a [[girl]]. The [[ZW sex-determination system]], where males have a ZZ (as opposed to ZW) sex chromosome may be found in [[bird]]s and some [[insect]]s and other organisms. Members of [[Hymenoptera]], such as [[ant]]s and [[bee]]s, are determined by [[haplodiploidy]], where most males are [[haploid]] and females and some sterile males are [[diploid]].
===Environmental determination===
Some species develop into one sex or the other depending on local environmental conditions, e.g. many crocodilians' sex is influenced by the temperature of their eggs. Other species (such as the [[goby]]) are capable of transforming, as adults, from one sex to the other in response to local reproductive conditions (such as a shortage of males). In humans and most mammals, sex is determined chromosomally -- a Y sperm will produce a male offspring and an X sperm a female.
==Sources==
Ayers, Donald M. '''English Words from Latin and Greek Elements'''. Second Edition. 1986. University of Arizona Press. United States.
== References ==
<references/>
==See also==
{{Wiktionary}}
* [[Woman]]
* [[Girl]]
* [[Feminine side]]
* [[Feminism]]
* [[Gestation]]
* [[Lactation]]
* [[Transwoman]]
* [[Transman]]
* [[Womyn]]
* [[Male]]
[[Category:Gender]]
[[Category:Sex]]
[[ar:أنثى]]
[[ay:Qachu]]
[[be-x-old:Самка]]
[[ca:Femella]]
[[cv:Ама]]
[[de:Weibliches Geschlecht]]
[[el:Θηλυκό]]
[[es:Hembra]]
[[eo:Ina sekso]]
[[fr:Femelle]]
[[gd:Boireannach]]
[[gl:Femia]]
[[id:Betina]]
[[is:Kvenkyn]]
[[it:Femmina (biologia)]]
[[he:נקבה]]
[[hu:Nőnem (biológia)]]
[[nl:Vrouw]]
[[ja:メス (動物)]]
[[oc:Femèla]]
[[pl:Samica]]
[[pt:Fêmea]]
[[ru:Самка]]
[[simple:Female]]
[[sk:Samica]]
[[su:Bikang]]
[[fi:Naaras]]
[[sv:Hona]]
[[tr:Kadın]]
[[yi:נקיבה]]
[[zh-yue:乸]]
[[zh:雌性]]