Intercrural sex, which is also known as coitus interfemoris, thigh sex, thighing, thighjob and interfemoral sex, is a type of

non-penetrative sex Non-penetrative sex or outercourse is Human sexual activity, sexual activity that usually does not include sexual penetration, but some forms, particularly when termed ''outercourse'', include penetrative aspects, that may result from forms of ...

in which the

penis A penis (; : penises or penes) is a sex organ through which male and hermaphrodite animals expel semen during copulation (zoology), copulation, and through which male placental mammals and marsupials also Urination, urinate. The term ''pen ...

is placed between the receiving partner's

thigh In anatomy, the thigh is the area between the hip (pelvis) and the knee. Anatomically, it is part of the lower limb. The single bone in the thigh is called the femur. This bone is very thick and strong (due to the high proportion of bone tissu ...

s and friction is generated via

thrusting Thrust is a reaction force described quantitatively by Newton's third law. When a system expels or accelerates mass in one direction, the accelerated mass will cause a force of equal magnitude but opposite direction to be applied to that syst ...

. It was a common practice in

ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

society prior to the early centuries AD, and was frequently discussed by writers and portrayed in artwork such as vases. It later became subject to

sodomy law A sodomy law is a law that defines certain sexual acts as crimes. The precise sexual acts meant by the term ''sodomy'' are rarely spelled out in the law, but are typically understood and defined by many courts and jurisdictions to include any ...

s and became increasingly seen as contemptible. In the 17th century, intercrural sex was featured in several works of literature and it took cultural prominence, being seen as a part of male-on-male sexual habits following the trial and execution of

Mervyn Tuchet, 2nd Earl of Castlehaven Mervyn Tuchet, 2nd Earl of Castlehaven (1593 – 14 May 1631; also spelled ''Mervin, Touchet''), was an English nobleman who was convicted of rape and sodomy and subsequently executed. A son of George Tuchet, 1st Earl of Castlehaven and 11th ...

, in 1631. In modern times, intercrural sex is commonly practiced in relationships of various orientations; adult women are said to use it to stimulate orgasm and in Paris, it was commonly performed as a part of

prostitution Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, no ...

. In parts of Africa and Asia, the practice is normalised and is carried out among heterosexual and homosexual males. In South Africa, it was used to combat acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS); this practice was eventually phased out. Knowledge of intercrural sex that was extracted from studies and its relationship to AIDS and pregnancy is low. It has been reported as a means of

safe sex Safe sex is sexual activity using methods or contraceptive devices (such as condoms) to reduce the risk of transmitting or acquiring sexually transmitted infections (STIs), especially HIV. "Safe sex" is also sometimes referred to as safer ...

for

human immunodeficiency virus The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause AIDS, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of th ...

(HIV) positive patients and has a lower risk of infection than peno-vaginal sex. Studies have found a fluctuating percentage of sexual assault cases have involved intercrural rape, with little to no physical evidence.

Etymology

Kenneth Dover first introduced the term "intercrural sex" in his 1978 book '' Greek Homosexuality''. Dover used the term to refer to sexual activity between an older man and a young boy. The

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

term for this practice was ' ("to do omethingbetween the thighs"). ''

Webster's Dictionary ''Webster's Dictionary'' is any of the US English language dictionaries edited in the early 19th century by Noah Webster (1758–1843), a US lexicographer, as well as numerous related or unrelated dictionaries that have adopted the Webster's n ...

'' defines intercrural sex as an act in which one partner "plac s hispenis ... between the other partner's losedthighs ... nd thruststo create friction". Synonyms include coitus interfemoris, thigh sex and interfemoral sex. Kang Tchou of

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

notes Dover's definition is similar to the idea of "heavenly love" articulated by Pausanias that "encourages a stable life-long relationship between the boy and the man and enhances the intellectual development of the younger boy".

History and modern practice

Ancient history and the Middle Ages

Intercrural intercourse was a common manifestation of

pederasty in ancient Greece Pederasty in ancient Greece was a socially acknowledged relationship between an older male (the ''erastes'') and a younger male (the '' eromenos'') usually in his teens. It was characteristic of the Archaic and Classical periods. Some s ...

; young men were forbidden from having sex with older men in a manner beyond intercrural. It has been associated with ''

Eromenos In ancient Greece, an ''eromenos'' was the younger and passive (or 'receptive') partner in a male homosexual relationship. The partner of an ''eromenos'' was the ''erastes'', the older and active partner. The ''eromenos'' was often depicted as b ...

,'' although its prominence in such a relationship is undetermined and

anal sex Anal sex or anal intercourse principally means the insertion and pelvic thrusting, thrusting of the Erection, erect human penis, penis into a person's Human anus, anus, or anus and rectum, for sexual pleasure.Sepages 270–271for anal sex inform ...

may have been more common. Intercrural sex was not exclusively executed by homosexual men; by the early-AD era, it fell out of practice as sex with women became more encouraged in Greek society. Intercrural sex has been depicted on artworks such as vases, where they were called "courting scenes", and was much discussed by writers. After the 5th century BC, visual depictions of it were sparse and almost exclusively found on

black-figure pottery Black-figure pottery painting (also known as black-figure style or black-figure ceramic; ) is one of the styles of Ancient Greek vase painting, painting on pottery of ancient Greece, antique Greek vases. It was especially common between the 7th a ...

Zeno of Citium Zeno of Citium (; , ; c. 334 – c. 262 BC) was a Hellenistic philosophy, Hellenistic philosopher from Kition, Citium (, ), Cyprus. He was the founder of the Stoicism, Stoic school of philosophy, which he taught in Athens from about 300 BC. B ...

and

Aristophanes Aristophanes (; ; ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek Ancient Greek comedy, comic playwright from Classical Athens, Athens. He wrote in total forty plays, of which eleven survive virtually complete today. The majority of his surviving play ...

have been said to reference the act; the latter was the first to document intercrural sex being practiced in a heterosexual capacity.

Aeschylus Aeschylus (, ; ; /524 – /455 BC) was an ancient Greece, ancient Greek Greek tragedy, tragedian often described as the father of tragedy. Academic knowledge of the genre begins with his work, and understanding of earlier Greek tragedy is large ...

' play ''

Myrmidons In Greek mythology, the Myrmidons (or Myrmidones; , singular: , ) were an ancient Thessaly, Thessalian tribe. In Homer's ''Iliad'', the Myrmidons are the soldiers commanded by Achilles. Their :wikt:eponym, eponymous ancestor was Myrmidon (hero) ...

'' features the implication of adult men engaging in the act.

Joan Roughgarden Joan Roughgarden (born 13 March 1946) is an American ecologist and evolutionary biologist. She has engaged in theory and observation of coevolution and competition in '' Anolis'' lizards of the Caribbean, and recruitment limitation in the rocky ...

refers to intercrural intercourse as the "gay male missionary position" of Ancient Greece. Historical

s have included intercrural intercourse within their purview. In 15th-century Italy, it was a part of sodomy's infamous reputation; in renaissance Venice,

capital punishment Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence (law), sentence ordering that an offender b ...

was considered against the partner initiating intercrural sex. Medieval

penitential A penitential is a book or set of church rules concerning the Christianity, Christian sacrament of penance, used for regular private confession with a confessor-priest, a "new manner of reconciliation with God in Christianity, God" that was prom ...

s often highlighted intercrural sex as sinful and gave instructions on ways to repent; early Christianity regarded intercrural intercourse as "more respectable" than anal sex. Islamic jurisprudents considered intercrural sex "reprehensible," although its lesser status led to practitioners avoiding harsh punishments.

Modern history

early modern English Early Modern English (sometimes abbreviated EModEFor example, or EMnE) or Early New English (ENE) is the stage of the English language from the beginning of the Tudor period to the English Interregnum and Restoration, or from the transit ...

, writers referred to intercrural sex as "rubbing" or "frigging". Literary works and satire depicted intercrural sex, possibly encouraging people to perform the act. Cases of sodomy, such as the trial of Mervyn Tuchet in 1631 that resulted in his execution, occasionally mentioned intercrural sex. Tuchet's case took on significant cultural prominence and informed many people of gay male sexual habits, likely conjuring a cultural perception of intercrural sex as the main method of sex between men. From 1660, intercrural intercourse was increasingly mentioned in literature.

Richard Ellmann Richard David Ellmann, Fellow of the British Academy, FBA (March 15, 1918 – May 13, 1987) was an American Literary criticism, literary critic and biographer of the Irish writers James Joyce, Oscar Wilde, and W. B. Yeats, William Butler Yeats. ...

believed

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish author, poet, and playwright. After writing in different literary styles throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular and influential playwright ...

solely performed intercrural sex in the hope he could consequently declare his innocence against the allegation of "posing as a sodomite". In 1885, the UK Parliament passed a statute penalizing "gross indecency" between men under the

Labouchere Amendment Labouchere or Labouchère may refer to: * Labouchere (paddle steamer) * François de Labouchère (1917–1942), French aviator * Henry Labouchere, 1st Baron Taunton (1798–1869), British politician * Henry Labouchère (1831–1912), British politi ...

; intercrural sex was within the law's remit because it fell short of sodomy. Nineteenth-century erotic alphabet L cropped

In both the

Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic, officially known as the German Reich, was the German Reich, German state from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional republic for the first time in history; hence it is also referred to, and unofficially proclai ...

and

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

, intercrural sex between men was an indictable offense, although

German South West Africa German South West Africa () was a colony of the German Empire from 1884 until 1915, though Germany did not officially recognise its loss of this territory until the 1919 Treaty of Versailles. German rule over this territory was punctuated by ...

n law did not see it punishable under sodomy. Female prostitutes in 18th-century Paris commonly performed intercrural sex, which was second only to vaginal intercourse.

Malawi Malawi, officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast, and Mozambique to the east, south, and southwest. Malawi spans over and ...

ans and

Mozambique Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Afr ...

an men practiced it in mines, as did South African men in " mine marriages". Before

European colonization The phenomenon of colonization is one that stretches around the globe and across time. Ancient and medieval colonialism was practiced by various civilizations such as the Phoenicians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Han Chinese, and A ...

, Azande warriors would only have intercrural sex with their young partners; it was a popular form of eroticism in pre-colonial Asia. In Zulu intercrural sex is referred to as ''okusoma''. It has a long history as an accepted practice for young people in southern Africa and was often practiced to prevent population growth. Traditional Zulu culture encouraged youth to engage in intercrural sex as a part of sexual socialisation—intercrural sex as practiced by young unmarried couples was also supported. A 1989 report regarding the city of

Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...

stated that in South Africa:

Statistics

Sexual assault

Hickson ''et al.''. (1994) found intercrural sex took place in five of 219 cases of male sexual assault reviewed in England and Wales. In 2014 in Sri Lanka, 270 instances of sexual assault were medically examined; 18 occurrences of intercrural intercourse were reported. No physical injuries to the victims occurred. These assaults reportedly occurred when the victim was between the age of 4 and 19 years. A more specific earlier study of boys between the ages of 14 and 19 living in

Colombo District Colombo District ( ''kol̠am̆ba distrikkaya''; ''Koḻumpu Māvaṭṭam'') is one of the 25 districts of Sri Lanka, the second level administrative division of the country. The district is administered by a District Secretariat headed by a D ...

found intercrural sex to be the second-most common form of abuse before oral sex, as reported by the victims; 20 of the 52 reported cases consisted of intercrural sex. A 1957 analysis of 148 sexual offenders in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

who assaulted children under the age of 14 found that 6 percent committed their offences by means of intercrural intercourse. Another study, two decades later, observed "intercrural ejaculation" as a "common way of sexual expression in paedophiles". In cases of

child sexual abuse Child sexual abuse (CSA), also called child molestation, is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include engaging in Human sexual activity, sexual activit ...

, there are usually no physical signs of intercrural intercourse.

Education

Ripley ''et al.''. (1973), demonstrated only 3 out of every 10 boys and 4 of every 10 girls in the 14-year-old age group surveyed thought intercrural intercourse could not result in pregnancy – according to Ripley ''et al.''. (1973), intercrural sex is not a recommended method of contraception. In

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

, 13 of 298

(HIV) positive respondents said the disease could be transmitted through intercrural sex while a further 30 said "no" and the remaining 255 responded with uncertainty. Intercrural sex has been reported as a safe means of sex that prevents transmission of HIV and is "lower-risk" than peno-vaginal sex. Epprecht (2019) said that as mine marriages involved intercrural sex "there was no danger of sexually transmitted infection". Mistry & Jha (2015) wrote in regards to pregnancy; "Because there is no anal or vaginal penetration, ntercrural sexis regarded as a safe sexual practice". In South Africa, intercrural sex has been seen as a method of preventing the transmission of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). From a 1997 study, 12.5 percent of girls who were asked how to avoid acquiring AIDS responded by suggesting intercrural sex. It was once the most common form of contraception for rural adults in South Africa. By 2012, Mary van der Riet of KwaZulu-Natal University noted; "The shift from intercrural sex to the use of the injectable contraceptive set up particular conditions for condom use in response to HIV and AIDS".

Demographics

Shere Hite's 1976 and 1981 research on female sexuality found some adult women reported being able to achieve

orgasm Orgasm (from Greek , ; "excitement, swelling"), sexual climax, or simply climax, is the sudden release of accumulated sexual excitement during the sexual response cycle, characterized by intense sexual pleasure resulting in rhythmic, involu ...

via intercrural contact to stimulate the

clitoris In amniotes, the clitoris ( or ; : clitorises or clitorides) is a female sex organ. In humans, it is the vulva's most erogenous zone, erogenous area and generally the primary anatomical source of female Human sexuality, sexual pleasure. Th ...

. Intercrural sex is popular in Sri Lanka; in a 2006 study, 4.2 percent of women reported having engaged in it while 20.7 percent of men said they had had homosexual intercrural sex. A 1997 report on the sexual health needs of males who have sex with males in the

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

suburbs found 73 percent of men they asked engaged in intercrural sex, though the frequency varied based on demographic factors. Only 54 percent of sex workers, 50 percent of lower-income men and 40 percent of Muslims reported having had intercrural sex while 82 percent of Hindus and 88 percent of middle-income men reported engaging in it.

Notes

References

External links

Pre-marital intercrural sex known as soma in Zulu tradition

Dan Savage on Abraham Lincoln and femoral intercourse (third letter)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Intercrural Sex Male homosexuality Non-penetrative sex Sexual acts