Tongue bifurcation, or tongue splitting, is a type of body modification in which the tongue is cut centrally from its tip part of the way towards its base, forking the end. Most who have had the procedure report that it enhances the pleasure of kissing. With a bit of practice, one learns to move the forks of the tongue independently. In addition to being covered under laws prohibiting the unlicensed practice of medicine, tongue splitting is now explicitly illegal in some U.S. states (and banned in the U.S. military) and effectively all surgeons refuse to do it,^{[citation needed]} so by necessity it is an underground practice. Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 400 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1152 × 1728 pixel, file size: 291 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 400 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1152 × 1728 pixel, file size: 291 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... The Kiss by Francesco Hayez, 19th century. ... A cardiothoracic surgeon performs a mitral valve replacement at the Fitzsimons Army Medical Center. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Tongue bifurcation is, however, not necessarily a surgical procedure. Self modifiers often choose to achieve a split by gradually tightening nylon bindings inserted through an existing tongue piercing over a long period of time. A fully healed tongue piercing. ...

It is not rare that a some of the inner area grows back while healing. For this reason, some have a relatively thich tounge piercing where the base of the split is supposed to be, and wait till this is fully healed before going through the splitting procedyre.

To achieve a more rounded and natural look, the upper and lower part of the cutting area in both halves are often fused together with stitches during the healing process. This prevents sharp edges on the split parts which would otherwise occur.

In popular culture

Hitomi Kanehara's Akutagawa Prize-winning novel Hebi ni Piasu (A Pierced Snake, English title Snakes and Earrings) tells the story of a young Japanese woman whose exploits in sex and body modification involve an endeavor to have her tongue bifurcated. Kanehara Hitomi (金原 ひとみ Kanehara Hitomi, born August 8, 1983) is an award-winning Japanese novelist. ... The Akutagawa Prize (芥川龍之介賞 Akutagawa Ryūnosuke Shō) is Japans most prestigious literary award. ... A novel (from French nouvelle Italian novella, new) is an extended, generally fictional narrative, typically in prose. ... Snakes and Earrings (2003) is the English language translation of Hebi ni Piasu (A Pierced Snake) (ISBN 0525948899), a novel by Japanese author Kanehara Hitomi, which won the 2003 Akutagawa Prize for literature. ... Snakes and Earrings (2003) is the English language translation of Hebi ni Piasu (A Pierced Snake) (ISBN 0525948899), a novel by Japanese author Kanehara Hitomi, which won the 2003 Akutagawa Prize for literature. ... Diverse women. ...

The September 19, 2003, episode of the FOX television series Boston Public involved a group of students who had undertaken tongue bifurcation. The school's administration took a negative stance on the practice. is the 262nd day of the year (263rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Fox Broadcasting Company, usually referred to as just Fox (the company itself prefers the capitalized version FOX), is a television network in the United States. ... This article or section is not written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia article. ...

See also

• The Lizardman