''Gishiri'' or ''gishiri'' cutting is a form of female genital mutilation performed commonly by the peoples of the

Hausa Hausa may refer to: * Hausa people, an ethnic group of West Africa * Hausa language, spoken in West Africa * Hausa Kingdoms, a historical collection of Hausa city-states * Hausa (horse) or Dongola horse, an African breed of riding horse See also ...

and

Fulani The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people ( ff, Fulɓe, ; french: Peul, links=no; ha, Fulani or Hilani; pt, Fula, links=no; wo, Pël; bm, Fulaw) are one of the largest ethnic groups in the Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. ...

regions of northern

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

and southern

Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languagesgynecologic ailments, although there is no scientific basis for this procedure, and it is considered

pseudoscience Pseudoscience consists of statements, beliefs, or practices that claim to be both scientific and factual but are incompatible with the scientific method. Pseudoscience is often characterized by contradictory, exaggerated or unfalsifiable clai ...

Etymology

The word "gishiri" is

for "salt". It refers to the practice of Arab traders who still caravan across the Sahara to cities in northern parts of

West Africa West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, M ...

, such as Kano, Nigeria. When a customer buys a quantity of salt, the trader produces a long knife and cuts a piece off a large block; this knife is similar to the kind used to produce gishiri cuts.

Procedure and risks

A whole range of gynecological complaints, including difficulty in

labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the la ...

, infertility, dyspareunia (pain during sex),

pelvic organ prolapse Pelvic organ prolapse (POP) is characterized by descent of pelvic organs from their normal positions. In women, the condition usually occurs when the pelvic floor collapses after gynecological cancer treatment, childbirth or heavy lifting. In m ...

and

urinary retention Urinary retention is an inability to completely empty the bladder. Onset can be sudden or gradual. When of sudden onset, symptoms include an inability to urinate and lower abdominal pain. When of gradual onset, symptoms may include loss of bladd ...

, are believed to be caused by a vagina that is too narrow in these areas. The traditional treatment is to incise the vagina. A long knife is inserted into the vagina and backward cuts from the vagina's anterior wall into the

perineum The perineum in humans is the space between the anus and scrotum in the male, or between the anus and the vulva in the female. The perineum is the region of the body between the pubic symphysis (pubic arch) and the coccyx (tail bone), includi ...

are made. Serious injuries can result, such as fistulae: holes in the vaginal walls that separate it from the bladder or the rectum. Sometimes the knife is inserted down the

urethra The urethra (from Greek οὐρήθρα – ''ourḗthrā'') is a tube that connects the urinary bladder to the urinary meatus for the removal of urine from the body of both females and males. In human females and other primates, the urethra c ...

to make the cut, laying bare the entire lower urinary tract. Many women also die from

hemorrhage Bleeding, hemorrhage, haemorrhage or blood loss, is blood escaping from the circulatory system from damaged blood vessels. Bleeding can occur internally, or externally either through a natural opening such as the mouth, nose, ear, urethra, v ...

which results from the procedure.

References

{{Violence against women/end Female genital modification Female genital mutilation Pseudoscience Traditional medicine