Background: In Turkey, circumcision is a necessity for boys to gain a masculine identity. In contrast to Western societies, where circumcision is performed in the neonatal period, it is performed at older ages in our population, and the timing may affect the psychosocial well-being of males.
Although female circumcision has never been performed among Turkish tribes, male circumcision is generally performed in Turkey (prevalence @ 99%) at any time between the period of birth and marriage, generally before the school age according to the Islamic and traditional points of view (3).
It's now illegal in Turkey to perform circumcision on boys between the ages of two and six to prevent psychological trauma: “If the children don't understand why it's happening, they just remember the pain,” Dr Özkan says.
Al-Mawardi stated that the chosen time is the 7th day after birth, but it can be carried out up to 40 days after birth or thereafter until the age of 7 years, depending upon the health of the infant or child at the time.
Most boys born in Australia around 1950 were circumcised. Since then, there has been a big move away from circumcision. Now less than 20% of Australian boys are circumcised. The only major western country where circumcision is very common is the United States.
However, in China, MC is not a common practice; less than 5% males are circumcised and many of these procedures were carried to alleviate medical complaints such as tight foreskin [12].
The rate of circumcision in Muslim nations is between 90 and 100 percent. This includes the Christians who form a significant part of some Arab states. Studies indicate that the rate of circumcision in the USA is between 58 and 70 percent.
In Islam there is no fixed age for circumcision. The age at which it is performed varies depending on family, region and country. The preferred age is often seven although some Muslims are circumcised as early as the seventh day after birth and as late as puberty.
Ritual male circumcision is known to have been practised by South Sea Islanders,Australian Aborigines, Sumatrans, Incas, Aztecs, Mayans and Ancient Egyptians. Today it is still practised by Jews, Muslims and many tribes in East and Southern Africa (see Table 1).
According to Shāfiʿī and Ḥanbalī jurists both male and female circumcision are legally obligatory for Muslims, while Ḥanafī jurists consider circumcision to be recommendable exclusively for Muslim males on the seventh day after birth.
Circumcision is not practiced among Italy's Roman Catholic majority. Many immigrants in Italy are Muslim and practice circumcision for cultural and religious reasons, but sometimes have trouble accessing the practice in hospitals. For some, the hospital costs are too high.
About 80 percent of the world's population do not practice circumcision, nor have they ever done so. Among the non-circumcising nations are Holland, Belgium, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Scandinavia, the U.S.S.R. , China, and Japan.
Present. Rates vary widely, from over 90% in Israel and many Muslim-majority countries, 86.3% in South Korea, to 80% in the United States, to 58% in Australia, to 45% in South Africa, to 20.7% in the United Kingdom, to under 1% in Japan and Honduras.
Sikh infants are not circumcised. Sikhism does not require circumcision of either males or females, and criticizes the practice.
In the case of Christ, the beneficiary of the grace bestowed in circumcision is not one child only but the entire human race. Catholic theology understands the significance of the circumcision of Christ in relation to his death when the whole law would be fulfilled.
According to Jewish law, circumcision is the physical representation of the covenant between God and Abraham described in the Old Testament and is required for the inclusion of males in the Jewish faith.
Circumcision is the most common surgery among males. In the United States, up to 60% of baby boys are circumcised. Around the world, the rate is about 33% of males. The highest rates of circumcision are in the U.S., Middle East and South Korea.
Most Israeli men are circumcised, reflecting the Biblical commandment to perform brit mila – Convent with G-d – for Jews and religious tradition for Muslims and Druze (Wyner Mark 2003. 2003. The Covenant of Circumcision: The New Perspectives on an Ancient Jewish Rite.
Today, the procedure is performed less commonly in New Zealand (estimated at less than 10% of boys), mostly for social, cultural or religious reasons. It is generally agreed among medical professionals that, except in a few instances, there is no medical reason for routine circumcision.
Circumcision is prevalent among 92% of men in North Africa and around 62% in Sub-Saharan Africa. In western and northern parts of Africa it is mainly performed for religious reasons, whereas in southern parts of Africa it rarely performed in neonates, instead being a rite of passage into manhood.
l The Lebanese population is divided into two main religious groups: Christians and Moslems who are living under more or less the same general conditions. The cir- cumcision status of men is different in the two groups, for Moslems practice circumcision of their boys early in life; Christians rarely do so.
Although circumcision in South Korea is not of a religious nature and has been strongly influenced by Americans, it has never been predominantly neonatal. The circumcision age has continued to decrease, and boys are now circumcised at around age 12.
Male circumcision is strongly identified with religion in India. It is only practised among Muslims, who constitute over 13% of the population, which amounts to a large number in a country of over one billion people.