Definitions
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A
dark vertical line running up theabdomen from thepubis to thenavel that forms duringpregnancy .
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treeseed commented on the word linea nigra
Linea nigra (Latin for "black line") or línea negra (altered by influence of Spanish negra) refers to the dark vertical line that appears on the abdomen during pregnancy. The brownish streak is usually about a centimeter in width. The line runs vertically along the midline of the abdomen from the pubis to the xiphoid process - the bottom-most part of the rib cage in the center or tip of the sternum.
It is caused by pregnancy hormones that increase production of the pigment melanin, also known as hyperpigmentation. Why this process of hyperpigmentation occurs in a straight vertical line is uncertain.
There is an old wives' tale associated with línea negra: if the línea negra runs to the navel, it's a girl, and if it goes all the way up to the xiphoid, it's a boy.
_Wikipedia
February 4, 2008