Pederasty
/ˈpɛd.ər.ə.sti/noun
Sexual relations between an adult man and an adolescent boy, especially as practiced in some ancient cultures.
Did you know?Pederasty comes from Greek παιδεραστία (paiderastia), a compound that openly named a socially structured sexual practice in parts of the ancient Greek world, showing how bluntly some ancient languages encoded power and desire into a single word.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
παιδεραστία (paiderastia)
“sexual desire or love for boys; a culturally specific social-sexual practice”
Late Greek
Greek
παιδεραστής (paiderastēs)
“a man who desired or loved boys”
Late Latin
Latin
pederastia
“pederasty; sexual relations between a man and a boy”
16th Century
English
pederastie / pederasty
“the practice or act of pederasty”
Modern English
English
pederasty
“sexual relations between an adult man and an adolescent boy”
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