Surfing The Crimson Wave: Period Euphemisms From Around The World

It’s that time of the month again. Period sibs, you know what that means. You’ve been feeling all over the place, craving chocolate, and noticing your moods vary. Hey, that is totally normal and we all know that these symptoms signal the arrival of our beloved visitor.

Although she can sometimes be fickle, we know that this special guest is quite interesting. For one, she has a lot of names – 5,000 to be specific. Replacing menstruation with creative codes makes the subject more acceptable and less of a taboo.

In case you're wondering, here's a list of names that the rest of the world uses to refer to our adored Red Lady Friend.

French

• Les Ragnagnas – Grumbling
• La semaine Ketchup – Ketchup Week
• La saison des fraises – Strawberry Season
• Le petit clown qui saigne du nez – The Little Clown With A Nose Bleed
• Les petits lutins rouges – The Small Little Elves
• Les carottes sont cuites – The Carrots Are Cooked

German

• Rote Welle – Red Wave
• Erdbeertage – Strawberry Week
• Alarmstufe Rot – Code Red Alarm
• Tomatensaft – Tomato Juice
• Besuch von Tante Rosa – Aunt Rose Is Visiting

Italian

• Il marchese – The Marquis
• Semaforo rosso – Red Light
• Palloncino rosso – Red Balloon
• E' arrivato Giorgio – Giorgio has arrived

Spanish

• Estar del Tomate – Be Like A Tomato
• Caperucita Roja – Little Red Riding Hood
• La luna – The Moon
• Andres – Andrew (que viene una vez al mes)
• El Vampiro – The vampire

Portuguese

• Vermelho – Red
• Chovendo na horta – It's Raining In The Farm
• Maré vermelha – Red Tide
• Sinal vermelho – Red Traffic Light

English

• Shark week
• Aunt Flo
• The Red Baron
• Girl Flu
• Monthly Friend

Chinese

• 紅茶 – Red Tea
• 小紅 – Little Red
• 好朋友 – Good Friend
• 蘋果麵包 – Apple Bread