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[[Image:After milah.gif|right|thumb|The penis after original milah.]]
The first stage of a ritual circumcision, the initial cut, is called ''milah'' in Hebrew. The Hebrew word for "covenant," is ''brit'' in the Sephardic pronunciation now used in [[Israel]], or ''bris'' in the Ashkenazic pronunciation used over the centuries by European Jews outside of Spain and Portugal, hence the terms ''brit milah,'' or ''bris milah.'' Most Jewish Americans are familiar with the term "bris," as in "They're having the bris tomorrow." The term bris is well known, but few Jews realize that it means "covenant" rather than [[circumcision]].
Originally, Jewish circumcision, or "milah" only involved the removal of just the [[acroposthion| tip]] of the [[foreskin]]. This was realized by pulling the loose edge of the [[foreskin]] up through a protective device called a ''barzel'' and slicing it off.