Nsaney's Girlfriend
The word girlfriend
was first used in 1863 as "a woman's female friend in youth.” In 1922, the
word girlfriend was used to mean a man’s sweetheart.[
A girlfriend is a
female partner one is romantically and/or sexually involved with. It can also
refer to a female friend.[1]
This term is often
used loosely, and there is some debate over what exactly constitutes a
girlfriend.
Scope
Partners in
committed non-marital relationships are also sometimes described as a
significant other or simply partner, especially if the individuals are
cohabiting.[2]
Girlfriend and
partner mean different things to different people; the distinctions between the
terms are subjective. How the term is used will ultimately be determined by
personal preference.[3][4]
A 2005 study of 115
people ages 21 to 35 who were either living with or had lived with a romantic
partner notes that the lack of proper terms often leads to awkward situations,
such as someone upset over not being introduced in social situations to avoid
the question.[5]
There exists some
ambiguity between the terms "girl friend," or a friend who is a girl,
and "girlfriend." The transition between the two is a significant
aspect of adolescent development.[6]
Both forms of
"girlfriend" and "girl friend" are used by different people
to mean different things. For example, when the term "girlfriend" is
used by a girl or woman about another female in a non-sexual, non-romantic
context, the two-word form "girl friend" is sometimes used to avoid
confusion with the sexual or romantic meaning; however, this is not a rule. In
this sense of its usage, "girlfriend" is used in terms of very close
friends and has no sexual connotations, unless it is in the case of lesbian,
bisexual, or pansexual women. The term "girlfriend" is also used in
LGBT communities and can refer to people of any sex or sexuality.[7][8]
The term
"girlfriend" does not necessarily imply a sexual relationship, but is
often used to refer to a girl or woman who is dating a person she is not
engaged to without indicating whether she is having sex with him or her. With
differing expectations of sexual mores, the term dating can imply romantic
activity whereas simply using "friend" would likely avoid implying
such intimacy. It is essentially equivalent to the term "sweetheart",
which has also been used as a term of endearment
Word history
Dating entered the
American language during the Roaring Twenties. Prior to that, courtship was a
matter of family and community interest. Starting around the time of the Civil
War, courtship became a private matter for couples. -Wikipedia
