menarche

See also: Menarche

English

Etymology

First attested 1900, from German Menarche, formed from New Latin meno- (“menstruation”), from Attic Greek μήν (mḗn, “month”) + Ancient Greek ἀρχή (arkhḗ, “beginning”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mɛˈnɑːki/

Noun

menarche (plural menarches)

1. The onset of menstruation; a girl's first period.

   Antonym: menopause

   Coordinate terms: spermarche, thelarche

   • 1973, Patrick O'Brian, HMS Surprise:

     How old is she? Nine? Ten? The menarche is not far off – a hint of a bosom, poor child.

   • 1978, Benjamin Walker, Encyclopedia of Metaphysical Medicine, Routledge 1978, p. 252:

     The most potent and indeed dangerous of all menstrual blood was the menarche, the first day's flow of the first menstruation of a virgin girl.

Translations

first menstruation

• Basque: menarkia
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 初潮 (zh) (chūcháo), 初經／初经 (chūjīng), 初经 (chūjīng)

• Finnish: menarke
• French: ménarche (fr) f
• German: Menarche (de) f
• Icelandic: fyrstu tíðir f or pl
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Japanese: 初潮 (しょちょう, shochō), 初経 (しょけい, shokei)
• Portuguese: menarca (pt) f
• Russian: мена́рхе (ru) n (menárxe), пе́рвая менструа́ция f (pérvaja menstruácija)
• Spanish: menarquia f
• Tagalog: abot-tubo

Further reading

• menarche on Wikipedia.Wikipedia