Coming of age

Coming of age is a young person moving on from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this happens takes place sometimes depends on societies and the nature of the change. It can be for legal reasons or can be part of a ritual or spiritual event.

In the past, and in some societies today, such a change is often seen with the age of sexual maturity (puberty), especially menarche and spermarche. In others, it is connected with an age of religious responsibility.

Many cultures have ceremonies to make the coming of age official. This transition has also become well known in cultural media such as through coming-of-age stories that have became genres in movies and stories.