When speaking to my young son about his makom ha'ervah I have referred to it as his "bris". What would be a proper, lashon naki, term to use when speaking to my young daughter about her makom ha'ervah (until now we have referred to her 'private area' but she wants to know what the Jewish name is). The actual term "makom ervah" seems to be too hard for her to remember.
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Why is 'bris' easier to remember than 'ervah'?– Double AA ♦Commented Aug 3, 2012 at 17:19
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2....just fyi, I understand that modesty is important, but many parents are choosing to teach their kids the medical names for these things so that if, G-d forbid, they are victims of abuse, the kids can describe what happened to adults.– Charles KoppelmanCommented Aug 3, 2012 at 18:17
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@CharlesKoppelman - You don't need explicit anatomical terminology to describe these things; a euphemism will work just fine, as long as it's specific enough.– DaveCommented Aug 3, 2012 at 18:44
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1@Dave, anatomical terminology is not "explicit" in the sense of inappropriate. It is "explicit" in the sense that it does not avoid using the proper vernacular, but that should not be assumed to be the same as the other understanding of the word "explicit", either in definition of the word or in how one reacts to it. What I mean to say is, what makes the scientific name of the thing wrong to teach children?– Seth JCommented Aug 3, 2012 at 19:21
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I completely agree with @SethJ. There are plenty of other slang and vulgar words that exist, but scientific terminology is not that.– Double AA ♦Commented Aug 3, 2012 at 20:06
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1 Answer
In my experience it is called אותו מקום, oto makom - "that place"
