Femicide

Femicide or feminicide is a term for the hate crime of systematically killing women, girls, or females in general because of their gender and/or sex. In 1976, the feminist author Diana E. H. Russell first defined the term as "the killing of females by males because they are female." Femicides are more often perpetrated by men against women. This is most likely due to unequal power between men and women as well as harmful gender roles, stereotypes, or social norms. Though femicide is not purely male-perpetrated but can be female-perpetrated as well.

A spouse or partner is responsible in almost 40% of homicides involving a female victim. Additionally, femicide may be underreported. Femicide often includes domestic violence and forced or sex-selective abortions.

In some Latin American countries the term femicide is used in reference to the violent killings of women and girls which are frequently perpetrated by gang members in order to stoke fear and compliance among civilians.

Androcide refers to the violence or killing of men. Gendercide may refer to gender specific violence more generally.