By Tim Lambert
Girls in the Ancient World
In Ancient Egypt, girls learned sewing, cooking, and other skills from their mothers. Girls from well-off families were sometimes taught at home. Pottery dolls have been found in Ancient Egyptian tombs.
Girls in Ancient Greece played with dolls made of baked clay or wood. Some of them had movable limbs. Spartan girls learned athletics and dancing, so they would become fit and healthy mothers of more soldiers.
In Ancient Greece, girls were taught by their mothers. They learned skills like weaving. Many girls also learned to read and write at home. Girls married when they were about 15. Marriages were often arranged. In Sparta, girls learned athletics and dancing, so they would become fit and healthy mothers of more soldiers.
In Rome, many girls were taught to read and write at school. Girls also learned skills from their mothers,
Girls in the Middle Ages
In Europe during the Middle Ages, girls from wealthy families were educated at home. Girls also learned the skills they needed to run a household. Wooden dolls dressed in miniature clothes were still popular – if their parents could afford them. Girls from poor families played with crude wooden or rag dolls.
Meanwhile, among the Aztecs of Central America, girls learned skills like cooking and weaving from their mothers. Both boys and girls attended schools. (Although they were taught separately).
Among the Incas of South America, at the age of 10, the most beautiful girls were selected to be chosen women. They were taken from their families and sent to a house of chosen women. They were taught the Inca religion and skills like cooking and weaving. When they were about 14, some of the girls became priestesses or married important Incas.
The rest of the girls learned skills like cooking and weaving from their mothers. When they reached their teens, they were old enough to marry.
Girls in the Years 1500-1800
In the 16th century, girls from well-off families were usually educated at home. Girls learned music, dancing, and needlework. They also learned to read and write. They might also learn languages. Middle-class girls were taught reading, writing, arithmetic, and skills like sewing by their mothers.
In England in the 17th century, boarding schools for girls were founded in towns. Girls were taught writing, music, and needlework.
In the 18th century, girls from well-off families went to boarding schools. Other girls sometimes went to dame schools where they were taught to read and write. Also, in some towns, there were charity schools called blue coat schools because of the colour of the uniforms.
Girls continued to play with wooden or rag dolls. Wax dolls were also popular. At that time, they were called toy babies, and dollhouses were called baby houses. However, by the 18th century, they were called dolls. (Doll was originally short for Dorothy).
Girls in the 19th Century
In 1870, the state began to provide schools in Britain. In 1880, school was made compulsory for 5 to 10-year-olds. However, most girls had to leave school when they were very young and start work. Some girls went to work in factories but many became domestic servants.
There were still many private schools for girls whose parents could afford it. Middle-class girls were taught ‘accomplishments’ like sewing and playing musical instruments. In 1877, a piece of music called ” Chopsticks ” was registered at the British Museum. It was composed by a 16-year-old girl called Euphemia Alten.
In the 19th century, dolls began to be mass-produced. Ragdolls were still made, as were wooden and wax dolls, but in the 19th century, dolls were often made of papier-mache or ceramic. From 1863, dolls were sometimes made of celluloid, a form of plastic. In the 19th century, some girls from well-off families had dollhouses.
In 1884, a girl called Emily Valentine played rugby at a school in Ireland. It was the earliest record of a girl playing the game. Basketball was invented in 1891. Netball evolved from it. Netball was first played in England in 1895.
The Girls Brigade was founded in Ireland in 1893 to provide girls with physical activities.
Girls in the 20th Century
In 1918 in Britain, the minimum school leaving age was raised to 14. In 1948, the school leaving age was raised to 15, and in 1973 it was raised to 16. For most of the 20th century, teachers were allowed to hit children, but it was made illegal in state schools in 1987. It was made illegal in private schools in 1999.
The Girl Guides was founded in 1909. Girl Scouts of America was founded by Juliette Gordon Low in 1912. In the late 20th century, girls’ comics became common in Britain. One, called Bunty, was first published in 1958. Toys also became much more common. In 1959, a new doll was introduced at the New York Toy Fair. She was called Barbie.
In 1930, a newly discovered planet was officially named Pluto. The name was suggested by an 11-year-old English girl named Venetia Burney. She was given 5 pounds for her suggestion.
In 1994, girls were allowed to sing in the choir of Wells Cathedral for the first time.
