ABSTRACT
Adolescence as a stage of development in the individual’s life assumes but little importance, and is unmarked by a ceremony or any other means of social recognition. By the age of thirteen or fourteen the child’s maturing of sex organs is referred to as ‘bulough—maturation’ (literally the stage when one reaches a peak). Adolescent boys are sometimes referred to as unmarried men (azab), or ‘he whose sweat has become odorous’, or ‘he unto whom life has entered’ (khashu al ‘aish). For the parents, adolescent boys and girls do not present any specific problems, except for the fact that they are approaching the marriageable age.
