A son is a male offspring; a boy, man, or male animal in relation to either or both of his parents. The female equivalent is a daughter. Social issues regarding sons In many pre-industrial societies and some current countries with agriculture-based economies, a higher value was, and still is, assigned to sons rather than daughters, giving males higher social status, because males were physically stronger, and could perform farming tasks more effectively. In China, a One-child Policy is in effect in order to address rapid population growth. Official birth records have shown a rise in the level of male births since the policy was brought into law. This has been attributed to a number of factors, including the illegal practice of sex-selective abortion and widespread under-reporting of female births. In some societies that practice primogeniture, sons will customarily inherit before daughters. Specialised use o