Orphan
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Reverted edits by [[Special:Contributions/I can't…contain it…any longer!|I can't…contain it…any longer!]] ([[User talk:I can't…contain it…any longer!|talk]]) to last version by 68.189.51.136
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[[Image:Thomas kennington orphans 1885.jpg|thumb|right|Orphans, by [[Thomas Kennington]]]]
An '''orphan''' (from the [[Greek language|Greek]] ''ορφανός'') is a person (typically a child), who has lost both parents, often through death. One legal definition used in the USA is someone bereft through "death or disappearance of, abandonment or desertion by, or separation or loss from, both parents".<ref>[http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=17f496981298d010VgnVCM10000048f3d6a1RCRD&vgnextchannel=063807b03d92b010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD Iii. Eligibility For Immigration Benefits As An Orphan<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Common usage limits the term to children, (or the young of animals) who have lost both parents. On this basis ''half-orphans'' are those with one surviving parent.
In certain animal [[species]] where the father typically abandons the mother and child at or prior to birth, the child will be called an orphan when the mother dies regardless of the condition of the father.
== Populations ==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Continent
! Number of<br /> orphans (1000's)
! Orphans as percentage <br />of all children
|-
| Africa
| align="right"|34,294
| align="center"| 11.9%
|-
| Asia
| align="right"|65,504
| align="center"|6.5%
|-
| Latin America & Caribbean
| align="right"|8,166
| align="center"|7.4%
|-
| Total
| align="right"|107,964
| align="center"|7.6%
|}
* 2001 figures from 2002 UNICEF/UNAIDS report<ref>{{cite web|title=Children on the Brink 2002: A Joint Report on Orphan Estimates and Program Strategies|url=http://www.usaid.gov/pop_health/aids/Publications/docs/childrenbrink.pdf|year=2002|month=July|publisher=UNAIDS and UNICEF|author=TvT Associates/The Synergy Project}}</ref>
== Significant charities that help orphans ==
Prior to the establishment of state care for orphans in First World countries, many private charities existed to take care of destitute orphans.
*[[SOS Children's Villages]] is the world's largest non-governmental, non-denominational child welfare organization. Its mission is to provide stable homes and loving families for orphaned and abandoned children around the world.
*[[Dr Barnardo|Dr Barnardo's Homes]] (now simply [[Barnardo's]])
==Orphans in literature==
[[Image:Ring36.jpg|right|thumb|Mime offers food to the young Siegfried, an orphan he is raising; Illustration by [[Arthur Rackham]] to [[Richard Wagner]]'s ''[[Siegfried]]'']]
Orphaned characters are extremely common as literary protagonists, especially in [[children's literature|children]]'s and [[fantasy literature]].<ref>Philip Martin, ''The Writer's Guide to Fantasy Literature: From Dragon's Lair to Hero's Quest'', p 16, ISBN 0-87116-195-8</ref> The lack of parents leaves the characters to pursue more interesting and adventurous lives, by freeing them from familial obligations and controls, and depriving them of more prosaic lives. It creates characters that are self-contained and introspective and who strive for affection. Orphans can metaphorically search for self-understanding through attempting to know their roots. Parents can also be allies and sources of aid for children, and removing the parents makes the character's difficulties more severe. Parents, furthermore, can be irrelevant to the theme a writer is trying to develop, and orphaning the character frees the writer from the necessity to depict such an irrelevant relationship{{Fact|date=February 2007}}<!--Need source/example of this being the author's actual reason-->; if one parent-child relationship is important, removing the other parent prevents complicating the necessary relationship. All these characteristics make orphans attractive characters for authors.
Orphans are common in fairy tales, such as some variants of ''[[Cinderella]]''.
Many [[superhero]]es, including [[Superman]], [[Batman]], [[Robin (comics)|Robin]], [[Spider-Man]], [[Wolverine (comics)|Wolverine]], [[Iron Man]], [[Storm (Marvel Comics)|Storm]] and [[Daredevil (Marvel Comics)|Daredevil]], are orphans.
A number of well known authors have written books featuring orphans including [[Charlotte Brontë]], [[Charles Dickens]], [[Mark Twain]], [[Roald Dahl]] and [[J.K. Rowling]] as well as some less well known authors of famous orphans like [[Little Orphan Annie]] and the Baudelaire siblings of the [[Series of Unfortunate Events]]. One recurring storyline has been the relationship that the orphan can have with an adult from outside his or her immediate family. Some of the most emotive works have been those featuring the relationship between a man and a boy, particularly boys that are coming of age.
==Orphans in the Bible==
Many books of the [[Bible]] contain the idea that helping and defending orphans is very important and God-pleasing matter<ref>[http://bibleresources.bible.com/keywordsearchresults.php?multiplemethod=all&numpageresults=25&select=searchBible&keyword=Orphan&Submit.x=&Submit.y=&version=31 Bible Resources]</ref>. Several citations:
* "Do not take advantage of a widow or an orphan." ([[Old Testament]], [[Exodus]] 22:22)
* "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." ([[New Testament]], James 1:27)
* "Leave your orphans; I will protect their lives. Your widows too can trust in me." ([[Old Testament]], [[Jeremiah]] 49:11)
== See also ==
* [[Adoption]]
* [[Orphanage]]
* [[Orphanage.org]]
* [[Orphan Train]]
* [[Single parent]]
* [[Orphans International]]
* [[Street children]]
==References==
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Family]]
[[Category:Child welfare]]
[[Category:Human development]]
[[ar:يتيم]]
[[de:Waise]]
[[eo:Orfo (familio)]]
[[fr:Orphelin]]
[[id:Yatim piatu]]
[[it:Orfano]]
[[he:יתמות]]
[[lt:Našlaitis]]
[[nl:Wees (kind)]]
[[ja:孤児]]
[[pl:Sieroctwo]]
[[pt:Órfão]]
[[ru:Сирота]]
[[simple:Orphan]]
[[fi:Orpo]]
[[uk:Сирота]]
[[yi:יתום]]
[[zh:孤兒]]