What is a mature male pig called?

A mature male pig is called a boar. In pig-farming terminology, “boar” usually refers to an adult male kept for breeding, while a female is a sow.

The word distinguishes sex and reproductive status from related terms. A barrow is a male pig castrated before puberty, and a stag is one castrated later in life. Young pigs may be called piglets, shoats, or weaners depending on their age and stage of development.

Boars are important in managed breeding because they contribute genetic traits to pig populations. Domestic pigs descend primarily from the Eurasian wild boar, Sus scrofa, which is also why “boar” remains a familiar term outside farming. In wild-boar biology, the word generally refers to an adult male.

A common mix-up is “hog,” which can refer broadly to a pig or, in some regions, specifically to a mature pig. “Bull,” “stallion,” and “ram” are male-animal terms for cattle, horses, and sheep, respectively—not pigs.