What’s a vulva?

Sophie Howard periods and menstruation, pleasure, vagina and vulva

What the heck is a vulva? Are you even sure which part is the vagina? And which bit gives pleasure? Let’s have a good look

Many of us are familiar with the word vagina, but not enough of us know what a vulva is. In fact, there might have been times when you’ve used the word vagina when you actually meant vulva – but that’s okay! Let’s get to know what the vulva is and what it does together.

The vulva is the external genitalia of people with vaginas. This includes the labia majora, labia minora, clitoris, clitoral hood, urethra and vaginal opening. Have a look at this handy diagram:

The vulva is famous for its role in sexual pleasure by being stimulated using fingers, a tongue or a sex toy and can be achieved with a partner(s) or through masturbation. But it’s also involved in a whole host of other things.

Labia majora and labia minora

The labia majora (the outer labia) and labia minora (the inner labia) are folds of skin which protect the clitoris, urethra, and vaginal opening. The labia can come in a variety of shapes and colours ranging from pale pink to black or brown. Contrary to what is commonly seen in pornography, labia are often protruding and rarely symmetrical.

The top cushiony part of your vulva, known as the mons pubis, is where public hair grows and extends down to the labia and anus. The hair can vary by texture, length, and colour. Some people choose to remove their pubic hair for fashion and cultural reasons by waxing or shaving. But it’s also completely fine to not remove pubic hair and many people choose not to.

Clitoris

The clitoris is essentially the pleasure centre of the vulva. It has over 8,000 nerve endings – more than double that of the penis! When stimulated, it can induce an orgasm. For many people, direct stimulation of the clitoris can be too intense, so non-direct stimulation of the clitoral hood is the way to go.

The clitoris is both internal and external. By far the biggest part of it is hidden under the skin (imagine the giant iceberg in Titanic if you have trouble visualising this). The external part, known as the clitoral glans, is protected by a flap of skin called the clitoral hood. You can find it at the top of the vulva right above the urethra. The internal clitoris extends 7-12 cm into the body and has a wishbone shape.

Interestingly, the clitoris has a lot of anatomical similarities to the penis with the clitoris also getting bigger during arousal, sometimes by up to 300%. In fact, when a foetus is developing, the tissue that becomes the penis or clitoris is identical.

Urethra

The urethra is a small hole above the vaginal opening which we use to pee and it is completely distinct from the vagina. Contrary to popular belief, people with vaginas do not urinate from their vagina! If you’re sceptical, remember that it’s still possible to pee with a tampon or menstrual cup inserted.

Our vulva does so much for us that we don’t even realise, so go show it some love by swotting up on vulva and vagina health.