Femina cum femina. Theological, Legal and Medical Controversies around Female Sodomy in the Hispanic World (XVI-XVII)

Abstract

This article focus on reconstruct the different knowledge about the female genitals and the problem of so-called “female sperm”, as they were two key issues for defining sodomy in the modern period. From the reconstruction of such knowledge in the Hispanic world —especially its disputes—, this article aims to visualize the theories of generation and the knowledge about female anatomy that could sustain the arguments of theologians, jurists and moralists who used or limited the term “sodomy” to define the sexual exchanges between women.