Pt1 Fig Metaphors and Female Development: Puberty, Maturity, and Majority (Niddah 47a-b)

This is the first part of a two-part series. The outline of the series is below.

Intro

The Mishna in Niddah 47a-b offers a detailed description of how a woman's legal status changes based on physical signs of puberty, structured around a metaphor comparing female development to the stages of a fig ripening.¹

Compared with modern medical knowledge, the Mishna’s system is rough but not meaningless: it captures real, visible developmental milestones, even if the underlying causality was unknown.

The stages are framed as three distinct phases:

1. Childhood (תינוקת) - no physical signs of puberty

2. Maidenhood (נערה) - signs of puberty appear (two pubic hairs)

3. Adulthood (בוגרת) - physical signs of full maturity

These physical changes trigger sharp shifts in halakhic status:

During childhood and young womanhood, the father has legal rights over the daughter's earnings, found objects, and the authority to annul her vows.

Upon full maturity, those rights disappear.

The physical markers used are blunt:

Pubic hair is the baseline sign.

Beyond that, the sages debate several breast-related signs: the appearance of a fold under the breast, sagging of the breast, darkening of the areola, or the soft depression and slow return of the nipple under pressure.²

The Mishna’s metaphor - unripe fig (child), ripening fig (pubescent girl), ripe fig (adult woman) - is typical of rabbinic use of natural imagery.

The Talmud layers further technical debates on top of the Mishna’s metaphor. It discusses additional tests for maturity, such as examining breast firmness, breast coloration, and even the softening of the pubic mound (כף).

It also discusses whether a visual fold under the breast must be natural or induced by stretching.

One especially revealing passage describes Shmuel testing a slave girl for signs of puberty to determine her halakhic status, then compensating her for the humiliation.³

Overall, this passage offers a valuable but unvarnished look at how classical halakha tried to tie biological maturity to legal maturity, using the best tools available at the time - observation, metaphor, and crude physical tests.

The anatomical signs, and comparison with modern anatomical knowledge

The Mishna’s descriptions of the stages of a woman’s development are framed in terms of observable physical signs related to puberty, based on classical anatomical knowledge.

Stages of Development

In the Mishna, the development of a woman is divided into three stages, associating physical maturity with halachic changes:

1. Childhood (קטנה / תינוקת - age of minority)

2. Maidenhood (נערה)

3. Adulthood (בוגרת / גדולה - age of majority).

Modern science similarly recognizes stages in physical sexual female development: pre-puberty, puberty, and post-puberty (or reproductive adulthood).

In contemporary terms, puberty typically begins around ages 8-13 and marks the onset of sexual maturity, involving both physical and hormonal changes.

Signs of Puberty

The Mishna uses external physical signs, such as the appearance of pubic hair, breast development, and changes in breast shape to mark different stages.

Modern science confirms that these physical signs are indicative of puberty.

The development of secondary sexual characteristics (pubic hair, breast growth) is a major part of puberty.

Physical sexual development in modern anatomy is categorized into stages called the Tanner stages, where stage 2 involves the initial breast "budding" and stage 4 is when the breast has taken on a more mature shape.

The fold or sagging mentioned in the Mishna aligns loosely with the later Tanner stages.

Breast Development

The Mishna describes various ways to determine grown womanhood based on changes in the breast. For example, R' Akiva's focus on breasts sagging onto the chest, or Ben Azzai’s reference to darkening of the areola, and R' Yosei's description of the depression and slow return of the breast upon pressure, all describe physical maturity.

It’s worth pointing out that from a scientific perspective, breast maturation occurs through hormonal changes, primarily driven by estrogen, which leads to the development of breast tissue and the areola.

The sagging of the breasts, as mentioned by R' Akiva, typically occurs later in adulthood, and it may not necessarily be a reliable marker of sexual maturity but rather a result of aging or other factors like pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Areola darkening is recognized as a normal part of breast development, particularly during puberty and pregnancy.

Outline

Intro

The anatomical signs, and comparison with modern anatomical knowledge

1. Stages of Development

2. Signs of Puberty

3. Breast Development

The Passage

1. Mishnah

   1. Metaphor comparing the development of a fig tree to the three stages of a woman's maturation: childhood, maidenhood, and adulthood

   2. Various signs of puberty indicate age of majority: breasts

2. Talmud

   1. Three Stages of a Woman’s Development, Compared to Figs

      1. “Unripe” (פגה) = Girl (תנוקת)

      2. “Ripening” (בוחל) = maiden (נעורים)

      3. “Ripe” (צמל) = “exited complete”

   2. R' Yosei HaGelili: when the breast grows enough to create a fold beneath it

   3. Other opinions of Signs of Female Pubescence: Breasts and pubic mound

Appendix 1 - Table of Anatomical Signs of Female Pubescence, According to the Sugya

Appendix 2 - Amoraic Practices in Regards to their Female Slaves (Niddah 47a:15-16)

1. Shmuel tested anatomical signs (of breasts) on his female slave, then paid her four dinarii (זוזי) for the humiliation

2. Amoraic Practices in Managing the Sexual Lives of their Female Slaves

Appendix 3 - The Definition of “Tyrian Courtyard” in the Context of Agricultural Tithes (Niddah 47b:4-7)

1. Dispute Between Rav Pappa and Rav Ḥinnana

2. The Tyrian Courtyard (Ma’asrot 3:5)

Appendix 4 - Architectural Metaphor for Female Reproductive Anatomy: Room, Corridor, Upper story = Uterus, Vagina, and Bladder (Niddah 17b)

The Passage

Niddah.47a.9-47b.8

Mishnah

Mishnah_Niddah.5.7-8 (=Niddah.47a.9-11)

Metaphor comparing the development of a fig tree to the three stages of a woman's maturation: childhood, maidenhood, and adulthood

The Mishna presents a metaphor (משל) comparing the development of a fig tree to the three stages of a woman's maturation: childhood, maidenhood, and adulthood:⁴

1. The unripe fig (פגה - “pagga”)⁵ represents childhood (תנוקת - “girl” - during which she has not yet developed signs of puberty)

2. The ripening fig (בוחל - “boḥal”) symbolizes maidenhood (נעוריה - when she shows signs of puberty).

   1. During stages #1-2, her father is entitled to any of her lost property that she finds (מציאתה - “lost property”), earnings (מעשה ידיה), and can nullify her vows (הפרת נדריה).

3. The ripe fig (צמל - “tzemel”) represents adulthood (בגרה), where her father no longer has authority (רשות - and thus no longer has the rights listed in the previous item) over her.

משל משלו חכמים באשה:

1. פגה

2. בוחל

3. וצמל

1. פגה -- עודה תנוקת

2. בוחל -- אלו ימי נעוריה

   1. בזו ובזו אמרו: אביה זכאי

      1. במציאתה,

      2. ובמעשה ידיה,

      3. ובהפרת נדריה

3. צמל -- כיון שבגרה, שוב אין לאביה רשות בה

Sages stated a parable based on the development of the fruit of a fig tree with regard to the three stages of development in a woman: Minority, young womanhood, and grown womanhood.

1. An unripe fig,

2. a ripening fig,

3. and a ripe fig.

1. An unripe fig — represents the stage when she is still a child and has not yet developed the signs of puberty;

2. a ripening fig — represents the days of her young womanhood, when she reaches twelve years and one day and has developed two pubic hairs.

   1. With regard to the periods both during this stage, minority, and during that stage, young womanhood, the Sages said that her father is entitled to

      1. any lost object that she finds that cannot be returned to its owner,

      2. and to her earnings,

      3. and to nullification of her vows.

3. A ripe fig — represents the stage of grown womanhood: Once she has reached her majority, her father no longer has authority over her. He can no longer nullify her vows, and he does not have a claim to lost objects found by her and her earnings belong to her.

Various signs of puberty indicate age of majority: breasts

Various signs of puberty indicate age of majority:

1. R' Yosei HaGelili: when a fold (קמט) forms below the breast (דד)

2. R' Akiva: when the breasts sag (יטו)

3. Ben-Azzai: when the areola (פיטומת) darkens (ישחיר)

4. R' Yosei: when the nipple (עוקץ)--when pressed--depresses (שוקע) and slowly (שוהא) returns

איזהו סימנין?

1. ר' יוסי הגלילי אומר: משיעלה הקמט תחת הדד

2. ר"ע אומר: משיטו הדדים

3. בן עזאי אומר: משישחיר הפיטומת

4. רבי יוסי אומר: כדי שיהא נותן ידו על העוקץ, והוא שוקע ושוהא לחזור.

What are the signs that indicate grown womanhood?

1. R' Yosei HaGelili says: Grown womanhood begins from when her breast grows sufficiently so that a fold appears below the breast.

2. R' Akiva says: It begins from when the breasts sag onto the chest.

3. Ben Azzai says: It begins from when the areola at the tip of the breast darkens.

4. R' Yosei says: It begins when the breasts have developed to a size where a person places his hand on the nipple and it depresses and slows to return

1. Like much of classical medicine, these observations are based on external features, without an understanding of hormonal systems or internal biological processes.

And like other places where physiology is discussed—many of them in other places in tractate Niddah—metaphors are used heavily.

See at the end of this piece, Appendix 4 - “Architectural Metaphor for Female Reproductive Anatomy: Room, Corridor, Upper story (=Uterus, Vagina, and Bladder) (Niddah 17b)”, where I cite a Mishnah that appears earlier in the tractate, with another three-part metaphor for female anatomy. The exact same formula is used there:

משל משלו חכמים באשה

Sages (חכמים) stated a metaphor (משל משלו) with regard to a woman (באשה)

It’s unclear if there’s a euphemistic element to this general usage of metaphors, or it’s simply due to the lack of technical terminology available.

2. Modern anatomy confirms that these external signs do correspond loosely to stages of sexual development (the so-called Tanner stages). See my discussion in the next section.

3. This highlights the uncomfortable reality that in at least this one case, a rabbi treated a slave body as an object for study, albeit within limits.

Shmuel’s payment for humiliation signals an awareness of the ethical issue, but not a rejection of the practice.

4. On the related metaphor of sex as food in the Talmud, see my previous piece.

It’s worth noting that the intro that the Mishnah and baraita use - משל משלו חכמים באשה - is correctly translated as “Sages (חכמים) stated a metaphor (משל משלו) about a woman (באשה)”, with no determiner / definite article; there’s no indication that these are specifically Jewish sages / rabbis.

Thus, ed. Steinsaltz’s translation of “the Sages” (bolding and highlighting mine) is imprecise.

5. Cognate with Syriac paggâ.

Notably, the English word fig may be etymologically related, see Wiktionary, “fig”, section “Etymology 1“:

From Middle English fige, fygge [….]

borrowed from Anglo-Norman figue,

borrowed from Old French figue,

from Old Occitan figa,

from Vulgar Latin *fīca (“fig”),

from Latin fīcus (“fig tree”),

from a pre-Indo European language, perhaps Phoenician 𐤐𐤂 (pg, literally “ripe fig”)

(compare Biblical Hebrew פַּגָּה (paggâ, “early fallen fig”),

Classical Syriac ܦܓܐ (paggāʾ),

dialectal Arabic فَجّ (fajj), فِجّ (fijj))

And see Jastrow (my modernization):

פַּגָּה

f[eminine] (preceding)

hard, undeveloped berry, fig, date etc.

Tosefta Shabbat 16 (17):10

פ׳ שטמנה בתבן

unripe fruit which one has put in straw

Yerushalmi Pesahim 2:29b top

Yerushalmi Kilayim 1:27b

(not בטבל)

a. e.—

Sanhedrin 107a

אכלה פ׳

he enjoyed her as an unripe fruit (did not wait until she was his legitimate wife).

Midrash Tanḥuma Vayera 5

איוב בלעה פ׳

Job spoke rashly,

[as] opposed [to]:

בשילה,

see:

בָּשֵׁל

Genesis Rabbah s. 49

אמר פ׳

(correct accordingly).—

Transferred:

undeveloped puberty, childhood.

Niddah 5:7, see:

בּוֹחַל

.—Plural

: פַּגִּים, פַּגִּין.

Leviticus Rabbah s. 31

Sifré Numbers 137.

Ibid.

פַּגֵּי שביעית

bad figs of the Sabbatical year.

Pesahim 53a

a. fr.—

בית פגים,

see:

פָּאגֵי.

As an aside, compare the place name Bethphage, Wikipedia “Bethphage“:

Bethphage […] or Bethsphage, is a Christian religious site on the Mount of Olives east of historical Jerusalem.

And see the parenthetical discussion of the transliteration and translation there:

Ancient Greek: Βηθφαγή, romanized: Bēthpagḗ (E.B. or: Bēthphagḗ, with ‘f / ph’ sound, as opposed to ‘p’);

Imperial Aramaic: בֵּית פַּגִּי, romanized: Bêṯ Paggî,

lit. 'house of unripe figs'

This place is mentioned in Talmudic sources as well (as בית פגי / פאגי), see the discussion here.

And see Jastrow (my modernization):

פָּאגֵי, פַּגֵּי, בֵּית פ׳

proper name of a place

Beth Pagé

(Βηθφαγῆ),

a fortified suburb of Jerusalem.

Pesahim 91a

(Manuscript Munich: 2

פגים,

see: Rabbinowicz, 'Dikdukei Sofrim' there, note 5).

Ibid. 63b

(Manuscript Munich: 2

פגים)

Menahot 78b

Sotah 45a

Sanhedrin 14b

בית פאגי

(Manuscript Munich:

בית הפאגי).