Chronological age
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Chronological age refers to the lifespan of a human, animal, or other thing measured with the units of time conveying a natural number. It is most commonly applied using calendar years, to match the four-digit year currently representing the present time in the century. Of all forms of life, it is most commonly applied to humans since they have the longest recorded life expectancy (with the oldest recorded person to have ever lived being Jeanne Calment with a recorded lifespan of 122 years).[1]
As a social construct, a person's chronological age proceeds to a year higher on their birthday, the respective month and day they were born on being a milestone for every following year until their life expectancy has ceased. Birthdays are typically documented on birth certificates or other legal identification documents. Although a birthday is technically the moment an infant is born, most cultures do not celebrate the first birthday in a human until a year after their birth, because newborns have yet to live for a year, making the number representing their age 0 from birth up until 364 days later. The exception to this cultural practice is Korean age, which starts counting chronological age from gestation.
Once a person has reached death, their age ceases to be counted as all other ageing processes of their life have permanently ended, and any remembrances of them mourn the age the person would be if they were still alive. The past tense "aged" is typically preceded by the numerical age at which the person died when used on their death records.
Chronological age is distinguished from gestational age, as chronological age can only start to be applied once the mother's offspring is pushed out of the womb and thus the fetus transitions into the neonate.
Etymology and usage[edit]
While age has been in the language since Middle English, it is uncertain whether the concept of a number representing it had existed during medieval history. However, it can best be assumed that biological age was instead used to determine milestones.
The concept of a number representing a person's age is determined by the noun/adjective "X-year-old" (which can also be pluralized to refer to people belonging to a specific year age). It can also be described through "[number] years old", "the age of [number]", or have a lower and upper age limit when categorizing the ranges of a specific age group (e.g. "ages 23-39"). Numbers can also be used as adjectives in reference to chronological age, precisely if they proceed contractions, verbs, and prepositions.
Role in civilization[edit]
Age plays a role in society and culture's designation of milestones, ambiguously arbitrarily chosen, to legal rights and rite of passages. For example, Judaism considers boys to become men at the age of 13, while deeming the milestone 12 for girls.[2] The age of 18 is considered the age of majority in most countries after which parents or guardians no longer have legal custody over minors.[3]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ "Definition of CHRONOLOGICAL AGE". www.merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
- ↑ "Origins of the Bar/Bat Mitzvah". Reform Judaism. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
- ↑ "Age of Majority by State 2022". worldpopulationreview.com. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
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