DeMeo (1989) theorized male and female child genital cutting had a common origin most likely in Northeast Africa or the Middle East three to four millennia ago. From there, male and female genital cutting spread together across South Asia and Oceania. The most destructive forms of genital cutting surround its putative origin, Northeast Africa (where infibulation is popular), with a dilution to less destructive forms as the practice spread through cultures (taking the minimally destructive form of non-excisive "sunna light" in some Asian and Oceanic cultures).