`Castrati and Castration`

- Castration, removal of the gonads in humans or animals. Castration has been employed medically to combat some forms of cancer, but this use is declining. At one time castration was used as a means of eugenics. With the advent of newer, less drastic methods of sterilization, this procedure is no longer used as a means of family planning. In China and the Middle East, selected male children were castrated to serve as guards of womens' quarters or as chamberlains, but this practice ceased in the 20th century. In Europe in the 16th through the 18th centuries, boys with fine voices were sometimes castrated to sing in church choirs as castrati because of the Roman Catholic ban on female singers. Earlier operas, the so-called opera seria, frequently were written for adult castrati. The practice ended in the 19th century.

In animal husbandry, castration of male animals is called gelding and castration of females is called spaying. It is used for such purposes as selective breeding, increased docility, and, for pet cats and dogs, simple sterility.

- Eunuch (Greek eunouchos,"keeping the bed"), castrated human male. From ancient times, in the Far and Middle East eunuchs were used to take charge of the women in harems or to serve as chamberlains. They often attained positions of great influence, and in Egypt the term was applied to any court officer whether or not he was castrated. The idea that eunuchs were lacking in courage and intelligence is refuted by the histories of Iran, India, and China, where they were active and effective in public affairs. The employment of eunuchs reached its height in the courts of the Byzantine emperors at Constantinople (present-day İstanbul). Muslim rulers employed eunuchs mainly as harem officials.

Boys who were castrated in order to keep their soprano voices were known as castrati; the Italian soprano Carlo Broschi Farinelli (1705-1782) was one of the most famous castrati. The practice was widespread in Italy until the accession of Pope Leo XIII in 1878. The voluntary practice of castration for religious celibacy appeared early in Christian history and was most prevalent in the 3rd century, but it was never officially approved by the church and came to be violently denounced.