Loin

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The loins are the part of the body on either side of the backbone, between the ribs and pelvis. It is often used when describing the anatomy of humans and quadrupeds (such as horses, pigs or cattle). The anatomical reference also carries over into the description of cuts of meat from some such animals, eg. tenderloin or sirloin steak.

The term also loosely refers to human (particularly male) genitals (due to their prominence in that anatomical region), eg. in William Butler Yeats celebrated poem, Leda and the Swan, where he writes of Helen of Troy's conception in the following way: "A shudder in the loins engenders there the broken wall, the burning roof and tower and Agamemnon dead."

See also:

• loincloth
• Cuts of Beef