Editing Emasculation (section)

=== Cultural ===
==== Imperial China ====
{{See also|Castration#China}}
[[File:A eunuch of Qing Dynasty.JPG|left|thumb|upright=1.1|An emasculated Chinese eunuch from the Qing dynasty]]
Emasculation was performed in China on men to create palace [[eunuch]]s for the imperial court.{{Sfnm|1a1=Bullough|1y=2001|1p=248|2a1=Majno|2y=1991|2p=254|3a1=Scheidel|3y=2009|3pp=84–85}} The practice dates back to the [[Shang dynasty]] (1600–1046 BC){{sfn|Dale|2018|p=1}} and continued up until 1924,{{sfnm|1a1=Emeliantseva|1y=2009|1p=190|2a1=Bellringer|2y=2017a|2p=248}} when the eunuch system was abolished by the last emperor of China, [[Puyi]].{{sfnm|Chiang|2012|pp=52–54}} The last living palace eunuch, [[Sun Yaoting]], died in 1996.{{sfnm|1a1=Chatterton|1a2=Bultitude|1y=2008|2a1=Chiang|2y=2012|2p=26}}

Originally, palace eunuchs were prisoners who were involuntarily emasculated. In the [[Qing dynasty]], men began volunteering to undergo the procedure in order to gain employment, although instances of forced emasculation still occurred.{{Sfn|Dale|2018|pp=2, 19–20, 195}} One reason why recipients willingly underwent emasculation is that they saw employment as a palace eunuch as a way to acquire wealth and power. Alternatively, poverty was a reason why fathers forced their sons to undergo emasculation, and the desire for financial benefit motivated human traffickers to force emasculation on their victims.{{Sfn|Dale|2018|pp=19, 195}}

There were several reasons why the Imperial court required its civil servants to be emasculated. Emasculation was thought to ensure a recipient's undivided loyalty to the emperor, as it severs the recipient's existing familial or social bonds and destroys their ability to produce future heirs.{{Sfn|Dale|2018|pp=1–2, 15–16, 194}} The choice to hire emasculated eunuchs also ensured the legitimacy of the emperor's lineage.{{Sfn|Dale|2018|p=15}} The choice to emasculate, rather than merely castrate, was motivated by a desire to protect the chastity of women in the court, as emasculation rendered a recipient incapable of sexual intercourse.{{Sfn|Dale|2018|pp=1, 16,}} While emasculation was a pre-requisite for gaining employment as a palace eunuch, it did not guarantee employment.{{sfnm|1a1=Dale|1y=2010|1p=39|2a1=Dale|2y=2018|2p=2}}

The emasculation procedure was typically performed by a trained 'knifer', or 'knife expert'.{{sfnm|1a1=Dale|1y=2010|1p=39|2a1=Dale|2y=2018|2p=x|3a1=Chiang|3y=2012|3pp=29–30|4a1=Wilson|4a2=Roehrborn|4y=1999|4p=4326}} To prepare for the operation, the recipient was bathed in cold water to numb his senses and, in some instances, his genitals were twisted to reduce blood flow.{{Sfn|Dale|2010|pp=40, 43}} The recipient was then asked if he consented to the procedure, and if he answered yes the knifer excised the genitals with a single cut.{{Sfn|Dale|2010|pp=40–41}} [[Antihemorrhagic|Styptic powder]] was then applied to the wound to stop bleeding, and a [[pewter]] needle or spigot was inserted into the urethra to prevent stenosis (narrowing).{{Sfn|Dale|2010|pp=41, 43}}

Some Chinese emasculates were the great historian [[Sima Qian]]; [[Cao Teng]], the foster grandfather of [[Cao Cao]]; [[Zheng He]], a [[Ming dynasty]] admiral of the imperial navy who sailed to Africa; and the surviving sons and grandson of rebel [[Yakub Beg of Yettishar|Yaqub Beg]].<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Yjg1AQAAIAAJ&pg=PA83|title=Translations of the Peking Gazette|year=1880|page=83|access-date=12 May 2011|via=[[Google Books]]}}{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DqYoAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA145|title=The American annual cyclopedia and register of important events of the year ..., Volume 4|publisher=D. Appleton and Company|year=1888|page=145|access-date=12 May 2011|via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref>

==== West Asia ====
To create eunuchs for the [[Arab slave trade]], young black boys from South East Africa typically had their penis and scrotum amputated.{{Sfn|Murray|1989|p=96}} White boys, by comparison, were usually only castrated.{{Sfn|Murray|1989|p=96}}