Human sexual activity

Like other primates, Homo sapiens uses sexuality for reproduction and for maintainance of social bonds. Even as our other behaviors, our high intelligence and complex societies have produced in us the most complicated sexual behaviors of any animal.

Most people enjoy some sexual activities, however most societies have defined some sexual activities as inappropriate (wrong person, wrong activity, wrong time, etc.) Many sexual activities can be engaged in by partners of either sex, however some, (most notably sexual intercourse), can only be engaged in by partners of opposite sexes.

Most people have a few specific sexual activities that they particularly enjoy, though most people have experimented with a range of sexual activities at one time or another. Some people enjoy many different sexual activities, while others avoid sexual activities altogether for religious reasons (chastity) or by personal preference (see abstinence).

Problems may occur when a person particularly desires a particular sexual activity, but a temporary or long-term partner does not. Apart from the law, that generally in most of the cultures protects the right of each individual not to be forced to perform not wanted sexual acts (rape), rules of etiquette similar to those of other areas of social activity seem to apply. Filtered by the respective cultural approaches to sexual matters, in fact, ethnical or cultural groups may develop some (often only rough, hardly ever written) rules of behaviour to respect when practicing sex between (or among) partners, presumed to be transmitted by oral tradition.

Note that some activities are actually illegal in some jurisdictions even between (or among) consenting people (see sodomy law).

Many people enjoy fantasizing about, or reading or viewing depictions of, sexual activities that they do not wish to engage in in their own lives, or that they would be unable to engage in in their own lives (see pornography and erotica).

Some people engage in various sexual activities as a business transaction; this is called prostitution.

The quality of the individual determination, and of the effective consent to have sex is generally a matter of debate in the different cultures and affects the legal right to practice it (mainly referred to a minimum required age), in a general local scheme of sexual morality.

Common sexual activities include:

Masturbation
Sexual intercourse
Oral sex (cunnilingus, fellatio, rimming)
Anal sex

Generally less common, but still widespread, are the various paraphilas. Some of the more common ones are:

All sexual behaviors that result in the contact of semen with the vagina or vulva may result in pregnancy at any time unless adequate contraceptive (birth control) measures are in force. Sexual intercourse is generally a very effective cause of pregnancy and should be avoided (see abstinence) unless either pregnancy is desired or adequate contraceptive measures are in force.

Note that all sexual behaviors that involve contact with another person or the body fluids of another person should be considered to contain some risk of transmission of sexually transmitted diseases.