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Undergarment

Undergarment

] Undergarments, also called "underwear", "undercrackers", "lingerie" (undergarments for women), or sometimes "intimate clothing", are clothes worn next to the skin, usually under other clothes. Some clothing is specifically underwear, while T-shirts and some shorts are suitable as underwear as well as outer clothing. Suitability as outer clothing is, apart from outdoor or indoor climate, largely a social and sometimes even a legal matter. One of the criteria for shorts not to be suitable as outer clothing may be that it has a fly that avoids exposure of the genitals just by an overlap of cloth, without buttons, etc. In addition to keeping outer garments from soiling, undergarments are worn for a variety of reasons: warmth, comfort and hygiene being the most common. Undergarments are often used for modesty or erotic display; sometimes both of these motivations are simultaneously present. Undergarments can also have religious significance, as in the special temple garment worn by followers of the LDS Church (Mormons). Some Jews use clothing that should neither touch the skin, nor be used as outer clothing: tallit katan or tallet ketannah or tzitzit ("Every Jewish boy and man is supposed to wear Tzitzis every day. If this is not possible, try and wear it every time you go to synagogue. Tzitzis is an undergarment." [http://jewishbazaar.com/BAZAAR/TzizitInfo.HTM]). The two major types of men's underpants are boxer shorts (shorts-length and loose) and briefs (smaller and tighter), which are also referred to as Y-fronts in British English. See lingerie for the types and various styles of women's undergarments.

History

Ancient history

The loincloth is the simplest form of underwear; it was probably the first undergarment worn by human beings. A loincloth may take three major forms. The first, and simplest, is simply a long strip of material which is passed between the legs and then around the waist. The ancient Hawaiian malo was of this form, as are several styles of the Japanese fundoshi. Another form is usually called a cache-sexe: a triangle of cloth is provided with strings or loops, which are used to fasten the triangle between the legs and over the genitals. The alternate form is more skirt-like: a cloth is wrapped around the hips several times and then fastened with a girdle. In warmer climates, the loincloth may be the only clothing worn (making it effectively not an undergarment), but in colder temperatures, the loincloth often forms the basis of a person's clothing and is covered by other garments. In most ancient civilizations, this was the only undergarment available (King Tutankhamun was buried with 145 of them). The loincloth continues to be worn by people around the world (it is the traditional form of undergarment in many Asian societies, for example). Men are said to have worn loincloths in ancient Greece and Rome. It is not clear whether or not Greek women wore undergarments. Roman women sometimes wore wrapped breastcloths or brassieres made of soft leather. They also seem to have worn loincloths and possibly something like panties. Decorative frescoes survive showing semi-nude women cavorting in breastwraps and loincloths [http://www.villaivlilla.com/underwear-w.htm]. Any cloth used may have been wool, linen, or linsey-woolsey blend. Only the upper classes could have afforded imported silk.

Middle Ages and Renaissance

Male undergarments

In the Middle Ages, men's underwear became looser fitting. The loincloth was replaced by loose, trouser-like clothing called braies, which the wearer stepped into and then laced or tied around the waist and legs at about mid-calf. Wealthier men often wore chausses as well, which only covered the legs. By the Renaissance, the chausses became form-fitting like modern Hose, and the braies became shorter to accommodate longer styles of chausses. However, chausses and many braies designs were not intended to be covered up by other clothing, so they are not actually underwear in the strictest sense. Braies were usually fitted with a flap in the front that buttoned or tied closed. This codpiece allowed men to urinate without having to remove the braies completely. Henry VIII of England began padding his own codpiece, which caused a spiraling trend of larger and larger codpieces that only ended by the end of the 16th century. The modern men's shirt appeared during this era, but it was originally an undergarment. Renaissance noblemen also adopted the doublet, a vest-like garment tied together in the front and worn under other clothing.

Female undergarments

Medieval women usually wore a close-fitting garment called a shift, smock, or chemise, sometimes coupled with braies-like leg wrappings. They may have worn petticoats over the shift and under the dress. Quilted petticoats could be worn during the winter. Elaborately-quilted petticoats might be displayed by a cut-away dress, in which case they became a skirt rather than an undergarment. During the 16th century, the farthingale was popular. This was a petticoat stiffened with reed or willow rods so that it stood out from a woman's body, like a cone extending from the waist. Corsets also began to be worn about this time. At first they were called pair of bodies, which may refer both to a stiffened bodice designed to be seen, and a bodice stiffened with buckram, reeds, canes, whalebone, etc., worn underneath another, decorative, bodice. These were not the small-waisted, curvy corsets familiar from the Victorian period, but straight-lined corsets that flattened the bust. There is a myth that Crusaders worried about the fidelity of their wives forced them to wear chastity belts. There is no reference, image, or surviving belt to support this story.

Enlightenment and Industrial Age

The inventions of the spinning jenny machines and the cotton gin in the second half of the 18th century made cotton fabrics widely available. This allowed factories to mass-produce underwear, and for the first time, people began buying undergarments in stores rather than making them at home. The standard undergarment of the 19th century for men, women, and children was the union suit, which provided coverage from the wrists to the ankles (this "second skin" style is more commonly known as long johns today). The union suits of the era were usually made of knitted material and included a drop flap in the back to ease visits to the toilet. In the 18th century, women began wearing stays http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_corset_periods#Stays.2C_1550.3F_to_about_1890, a type of undergarment that wraps around the torso from behind and ties closed in the front. These stays were often stiffened in the 1750s and 1760s, when they became known as the corset. Different colors became available (though linings remained white). The corset remained popular with aristocratic women well into the 19th century, when the design was modified to fit much more tightly. A tiny waist came to be seen as a symbol of beauty, and the corsets were laced with whalebone or steel to accomplish this. This caused great pain to most women, and some even suffered damage to internal organs and bones as a result. These later corsets did not wrap around the breasts as their predecessors had. Breasts were thrust outward by many corset designs, but were otherwise allowed to hang loose. The corset was usually worn over a thin shirt-like garment of cotton or muslin called a shift. In the latter half of the 19th Century, long drawers called pantalettes or pantaloons often accompanied the shift to keep the legs out of sight as skirts styles got shorter. The other major female undergarment of this period was the Crinoline petticoat. This underskirt served a similar purpose to the farthingales of the Renaissance, only the petticoat kept skirts full by means of stiff fabrics and numerous layers rather than hoops. It also differed in that it was fairly inexpensive, and therefore commoners and aristocrats alike could afford to wear it (though wealthy women could usually afford petticoats of finer material and of more elaborate design). The bustle, a frame or pad worn over the buttocks to enhance their shape, had been used off and on by women for two centuries, but it reached the height of its popularity 1880, and went out of fashion for good in the 1890s.

1900s

By the early 20th century, the mass-produced undergarment industry was booming, and competition forced producers to come up with all sorts of innovative and gimmicky designs to compete. The Hanes company emerged from this boom and quickly established itself as a top manufacturer of union suits. Textile technology continued to improve, and the time to make a single union suit dropped from days to minutes. Meanwhile, designers of women's undergarments relaxed the corset. The invention of new, flexible but supportive materials allowed them to remove the whalebone and steel while still providing support.

1910s

The increase in the number of underwear manufacturers necessitated the birth of undergarment advertising. The first underwear print advertisement in the United States ran in the Saturday Evening Post in 1911 and featured oil paintings by J.C. Leyendecker of the "Kenosha Klosed Krotch". Early underwear advertisements placed emphasis on durability and comfort; fashion was never a selling point. By the end of the 1910s, Chalmers Knitting Company split the union suit into upper and lower sections, effectively inventing the modern undershirt and drawers. Women wore lacier versions of this basic duo known as the camisole and drawers. In 1913, a New York socialite named Mary Phelps Jacob changed women's fashion forever when she cobbled the first brassiere together by tying two handkerchiefs together with ribbon. Jacob's original intention was to cover the whalebone sticking out of her corset, which was visible through her sheer dress. Jacob began making brassieres for her family and friends, and word of mouth soon spread about the garment. By 1914, Jacob had a patent for her design and was marketing it throughout the United States. Although women had worn brassiere-like garments years past, Jacob's was the first to be successfully marketed and widely adopted. By the end of the decade, trouser-like "bloomers" (popularized by Amelia Jenks Bloomer [1818-1894] but invented by Elizabeth Smith Miller) gained popularity with the so-called Gibson girls who enjoyed more athletic pursuits such as bicycling and tennis. This new female athleticism helped push the corset out of style, as well. The other major factor in the corset's demise was the fact that metal was in short supply in much of the world during World War I. Steel-laced corsets were dropped in favor of the brassiere. Meanwhile, the soldiers of World War I were issued button-front shorts as underwear. The buttons attached to a separate piece of cloth, or yoke, sewn to the front of the garment, and tightness of fit was adjusted by means of ties on the sides. This design proved so popular that it began to supplant the union suit in popularity by the end of the war. Garments of rayon also became widely available in the post-war period.

1920s

In the 1920s, manufacturers shifted emphasis from durability to comfort. Union suit ads raved about "patented" new designs that reduced the number of buttons and increased accessibility. Most of these experimental designs had to do with new ways to hold closed the crotch flap common on most union suits and drawers. A new woven cotton fabric called nainsook gained popularity in the 1920s for its durability. Retailers also began selling preshrunk undergarments. Women's bloomers became much shorter and stockings covered the legs instead. The shorter bloomers became looser and less supportive as the boyish flapper look came into fashion. By the end of the decade, they came to be known as step-ins, very much like modern panties but with wider legs, worn for the increased flexibility they afforded. As dancing became a favorite pastime of young flappers, the garter belt was invented to keep stockings from falling. Nevertheless, the increased sexuality of the flapper also made underwear sexier than ever before. It was the flappers who ushered in the era of lingerie. A Russian immigrant named Ida Rosenthal further developed the brassiere in this decade when she introduced modern cup sizes in 1928 for her company, Maidenform.

1930s

Modern men's underwear was largely an invention of the 1930s. On January 19, 1935 Coopers Inc. sold the world's first briefs in Chicago, Illinois. The company placed a Y-shaped front and overlapping fly on knitted drawers in both short and long styles. They dubbed the design the "Jockey" since it offered a degree of support that had previously only been available from the jockstrap (the company itself would later adopt the name Jockey, as well). Jockey briefs proved so popular that over 30,000 pairs were sold within three months of their introduction. Meanwhile, other companies began selling buttonless drawers fitted with an elastic waistband, the first true boxer shorts (named for their resemblance to the shorts worn by professional fighters). Scovil Manufacturing also introduced the snap fastener at this time, which became a popular addition to various kinds of undergarments. Women of this decade brought the corset back, now called the girdle. The garment lacked the whalebone and metal supports and usually came with a brassiere (now usually called a bra) and often garters attached.

1940s

During World War II, elastic waistbands and metal snaps gave way once again to button fasteners due to rubber and metal shortages. Undergarments were harder to find, as well, since soldiers abroad had priority to get them. At war's end, Jockey and Hanes remained the industry leader in the United States, but Cluett, Peabody and Company would make a name for itself when it introduced a preshrinking process called Sanforization, which came to be licensed by most major manufacturers. Meanwhile, some women readopted the corset once again, now called the waspie for the wasp-shaped waistline it gave the wearer. Many women began wearing the strapless bra, as well, which gained popularity for its ability to push the breasts up and enhance cleavage.

1950s and 1960s

In the 1950s, underwear manufacturers began marketing printed and colored garments. What had once been a simple, white piece of clothing not to be shown in public suddenly became a fashion statement. The manufacturers also experimented with rayon and newer fabrics like dacron and nylon. By 1960, men's underwear was regularly printed in loud patterns or with images ranging from messages to cartoon characters. Women's undergarments began to emphasize the breasts instead of the waist in the 1950s. The decade saw the introduction of the bullet bra, which featured pointed cups. Fredericks of Hollywood's push-up bra finally hit it big in this decade as well. Meanwhile, women's panties had become even more colorful and decorative, and by the mid-Sixties were also available in two smaller, more abbreviated styles called the hip-hugger and the bikini (after the island of that name), frequently in sheer nylon fabric. Panty hose, also called "tights" in British English, which combined panties and hose into one garment, made their first appearance in 1959, invented by Glen Raven Mills of North Carolina. The company later introduced seamless panty hose in the 1965, spurred by the popularity of the miniskirt.

Present day

Underwear as fashion matured in the 1970s and 1980s, and underwear advertisers forgot about comfort and durability, at least in advertising. Sex became the main selling point, bringing to fruition a trend that had been building since at least the flapper era (underwear is the last barrier before nudity, and thus it acts as a sort of gatekeeper to sex).
- Performers in the 1980s such as Madonna and Cyndi Lauper also got into the act, often wearing undergarments on top of other clothes. Later, in the 1990s, hip hop stars would popularize a similar style, known as the sag, which allowed loosely fitting blue jeans or shorts to droop low, exposing the underwear. In fact, in the case of Mark Wahlberg, it was his success as underwear model for Calvin Klein (pioneering in sexy exposure of male flesh) that allowed him a double launch to showbiz fame as the first white hip hop star and as a respectable Hollywood hunk.
- Although it was worn for decades by exotic dancers, the thong first gained popularity in South America, particularly in Brazil, in the 1980s. It was originally a style of swimsuit made so that the back of the suit is so thin that it disappears between the buttocks. By the 1990s, the design had made its way to most of the Western World, and thong underwear became popular. Today, thong underwear is one of the fastest selling styles available among women and is even gaining some popularity among men.
- In the 1990s, retailers started selling boxer briefs, which take the longer shape of boxers but maintain the tightness of briefs. Though marketed as a new design, these are actually quite similar to the bottom half of the two-part union suits worn in the 1910s.

Underwear styles and function

Today, there are many options in underwear available to men. These include:
- boxer style (at or near true waist, leg sections extending to thighs)
- woven boxer (traditional)
- knit boxer (like traditional but with more fabric give)
- boxer brief (also knit; more form-fitting)
- pouch boxer brief (boxer briefs but with pouch for genitals rather than access flap)
- athletic-style (skin-tight, usually with no access pouch or flap; like short tights; a variety also is bike shorts)
- brief style (knit fabric, with access pouch or flap; usually at or near true waist, leg bands at tops of thighs)
- traditional brief (vertical flap)
- double seat brief or double back brief
- diagonal flap brief
- pouch brief
- low-cut/low-rise brief
- bikini brief (usually lower than true waist, often at hips, usually no access pouch or flap, legs bands at tops of thighs)
- high-side bikini brief
- low-side bikini brief
- string bikini brief (the front and rear sections meet in the crotch but not at the waistband, with no fabric on the side of the legs)
- g-string type (with a front pouch for the genitals but no rear coverage)
- thong (with a strap securing the pouch at the bottom rear, passing up the crack between the buttocks to the waistband)
- athletic supporters, also known as jockstraps (with two straps securing the pouch at the bottom rear, passing around the bases of the buttocks up to the waistband at the sides)
- strapless pouches (with a front pouch and waistband only, no securing straps) There are also many types of long underwear, union suits, and other variations of men's underwear. Today, there are many other specialized types of underwear made for sexual purposes, such as edible underwear. Most of these are meant simply to display the body or genitals in certain ways, while some are intended to provide genital stimulation as well. Frederick's of Hollywood is an example of a business centered around manufacturing and selling such underwear.

Not wearing undergarments

Frederick's of Hollywood Not wearing undergarments under one's outer clothing is known in American slang as freeballing (or freebuffing for females); going commando and going bareback are also used for both sexes [http://www.wordspy.com/words/gocommando.asp]. This trend shows that not everybody considers underwear essential for hygiene, especially for modern people who bathe every day. There may be sexual motives: with underwear as the final barrier to sex, not wearing it at all is a powerful turn-on for many people. Without sexual connotation, it may be preferred by some nudists in situations where a certain amount of body coverage is required, as the state that comes closest to nudity. Cycling shorts are usually worn without underwear. Often the same applies for a kilt; the uniforms of several Scottish military regiments mandate wearing no underwear with the kilt except at specified occasions.

Underwearing

Being in public wearing nothing but underwear. Wearing just underwear in public is considered an intermediate form between being socially acceptably dressed and being nude. Deliberately exposing one's bare flesh (completely naked or at least more than socially acceptable) in public as a provocation and/or for the kick is known as streaking. People are often arrested if found wearing only their underwear. Some prisons issue inmates specially dyed underwear, which often helps in catching escapees, who might strip off their prison jumpsuit and walk off a job site wearing only their underwear. Police response to underwearing depends on context and public (generally considered most offensive if visible to young children). For example, in a public fountain that has been specifically designed for waterplay, it is often acceptable to run through it wearing only underwear, because of the recognized spontaneity of such activities on a hot day (people can't be expected to carry a bathingsuit with them everywhere they go). Thus cooling off in a fountain or lake is considered acceptable underwearing, because the underwearing serves a necessary purpose. Deliberate acts of underwearing are often done as a form of protest (e.g. "I'd rather be caught in my underwear than be caught wearing fur"). In such cases, the underwearers are usually thought of kindly, and often end up getting off once the matters work their way though the court system. It is thus mainly the inconvenience of arrest that keeps underwearing under wraps. In other cases, corporations have used underwearing as a form of sensationalism for advertising. For example, freshpair.com had a number of models parading around New York's Times Square wearing nothing but their underwear. None of the models were arrested. Some feel that cops turning a "blind eye" to this activity is biased toward commerce (i.e. underwearers are OK as long as their cause is commerce, and not performance art or protest). Charges filed, pending arrest for underwearing are typically "disorderly conduct" rather than public indecency. Of course a person is not underwearing when wearing only shirts and shorts that are designed to function as both underwear and outerwear. As a hyperbole, and since there is no other word for underwearing, (i.e. nude, naked, and stripped usually refer to being completely naked), sometimes people who are wearing only underwear are referred to as naked. For example, the "Naked Cowboy" is a celebrity who often wears only underwear, boots, and a cowboy hat. Historically T-shirts were originally considered underwear. Thus at one time, it was unacceptable to be seen in public in a T-shirt. People were required to wear at least two shirts in public: an outershirt, and an undershirt. More recently, T-shirts were re-interpreted as outerwear, and it is now acceptable to wear only one shirt in public. These social constraints apply only to mixed-gendered spaces. For example, it is acceptable for a person to be with other people of the same gender when they are in a changeroom or other space that has been specifically designated for changing clothes. Some gay bars have started a tradition of having a weekly underwear night where men can check their pants. It is acceptable and very common to wear just underwear in a private place. Some people, especially men, choose to sleep in their underwear, instead of pajamas. The animated cartoon character Homer Simpson is often depicted sitting on his couch in his briefs drinking beer. Underwear is an option in bed - see nightwear and nightgown

External links

- [http://www.mum.org/underhis.htm History of Underwear on mum.org]
- [http://www.lingerie-uncovered.com/past/lingerie.htm Past Lingerie Fashions]
- [http://www.vintageskivvies.com/pages/archives/history.html A thorough history of 20th century underwear] Category:History of fashion Category:Underwear ja:下着

Clothes

(See also List of types of clothing and Clothing terminology) Humans nearly universally wear articles of clothing (also known as dress, garments, or attire) on the body. In its broadest sense, clothing is defined as coverings for the torso and limbs as well as coverings for the hands (gloves), feet (shoes, sandals, boots), and head (hats, caps). For the alternative, see nudity. Articles carried rather than worn (such as purses, canes, and umbrellas) are normally counted as accessories rather than as clothing. Jewelry and eyeglasses are usually counted as accessories as well, even though in common speech these items are described as worn rather than carried. Humans also decorate their bodies with makeup or cosmetics, perfume, and other ornamentation; they also cut, dye, and arrange the hair of their heads, faces, and bodies (see hairstyle), and sometimes also mark their skin (by tattoos, scarifications, and piercings). All these decorations contribute to the overall effect and message of clothing, but do not constitute clothing per se. People wear clothing for functional as well as for social reasons. Clothing protects the body from the extremes of weather and other features of our environment. But every article of clothing also carries a cultural and social meaning.

Functional clothing

Practical functions of clothing include providing the human body protection against weather — strong sunlight, extreme heat or cold, and precipitation — also protection against insects, noxious chemicals, weapons, and contact with abrasive substances. In sum, clothing protects against anything that might injure the naked human body. Humans have shown extreme inventiveness in devising clothing solutions to practical problems. See: armor, diving suit, bee-keeper's costume, motorcycle leathers, high-visibility clothing, and protective clothing.

Clothing as social message

protective clothing is a social message]] Social messages sent by clothing, accessories, and decorations can involve social status, occupation, ethnic and religious affiliation, marital status and sexual availability, etc. Humans must know the code in order to recognize the message transmitted. If different groups read the same item of clothing or decoration with different meanings, the wearer may provoke unanticipated responses.

Social status

In many societies, people of high rank reserve special items of clothing or decoration for themselves as symbols of their social status. In ancient times, only Roman senators could wear garments dyed with Tyrian purple; only high-ranking Hawaiian chiefs could wear feather cloaks and palaoa or carved whale teeth. In China before the establishment of the republic, only the emperor could wear yellow. In many cases throughout history, there have been elaborate systems of sumptuary laws regulating who could wear what. In other societies (including most modern societies), no laws prohibit lower-status people from wearing high-status garments, but the high cost of status garments effectively limits purchase and display. In current Western society, only the rich can afford haute couture. The threat of social ostracism may also limit garment choice.

Occupation

Military, police, and firefighters usually wear uniforms, as do workers in many industries. School children often wear school uniforms, while college and university students sometimes wear academic dress. Members of religious orders may wear uniforms known as habits. Sometimes a single item of clothing or a single accessory can declare one's occupation or rank within a profession — for example, the high toque or chef's hat worn by a chief cook.

Ethnic, political, and religious affiliation

In many regions of the world, national costumes and styles in clothing and ornament declare membership in a certain village, caste, religion, etc. A Scotsman declares his clan with his tartan. A Sikh may display his religious affiliation by wearing a turban and other traditional clothing. A French peasant woman may identify her village with her cap or coif. Clothes can also proclaim dissent from cultural norms and mainstream beliefs, as well as personal independence. In 19th-century Europe, artists and writers lived la vie de Bohème and dressed to shock: George Sand in men's clothing, female emancipationists in bloomers, male artists in velvet waistcoats and gaudy neckcloths. Bohemians, beatniks, hippies, Goths, punks and Skinheads have continued the (countercultural) tradition in the 20th-century West. Now that haute couture plagiarizes street fashion within a year or so, street fashion may have lost some of its power to shock, but it still motivates millions trying to look hip and cool.

Marital status

Hindu women, once married, wear sindoor, a red powder, in the parting of their hair; if widowed, they abandon sindoor and jewelry and wear simple white clothing. Men and women of the Western world may wear wedding rings to indicate their marital status. See also Visual markers of marital status.

Sexual availability

Some clothing indicates the modesty of the wearer. For example, many Muslim women wear a head or body covering (see hijab, burqa or bourqa, chador and abaya) that proclaims their status as respectable women. Other clothing may indicate flirtatious intent. For example, a Western woman might wear extreme stiletto heels, close-fitting and body-revealing black or red clothing, exaggerated make-up, flashy jewelry and perfume to show sexual availability. What constitutes modesty and allurement varies radically from culture to culture, within different contexts in the same culture, and over time as different fashions rise and fall. Moreover, a person may choose to display a mixed message. For example, a Saudi Arabian woman may wear an abaya to proclaim her respectability, but choose an abaya of luxurious material cut close to the body and then accessorize with high heels and a fashionable purse. All the details proclaim sexual desirability, despite the ostensible message of respectability.

Sexual fetishes involving clothing

Because clothing and adornment are closely related to ideas of human sexuality and sexual display, humans may develop clothing fetishes. They may be strongly aroused by the sight of another person wearing clothing and accessories they consider arousing or sexually exciting. Sometimes the object of clothing becomes the object of arousal itself. Fetishes have been documented in every culture and have been recorded throughout history. Common fetishes involving clothing include arousal by or involving shoes, leather, uniforms, or lingerie. Fetishes vary as much as fashion. Sometimes the clothing itself becomes the object of fetish, such as in case with used girl panties in Japan.

Religious habits and special religious clothing

Religious clothing might be considered a special case of occupational clothing. Sometimes it is worn only during the performance of religious ceremonies. However, it may also be worn everyday as a marker for special religious status.
- Christian liturgical clothing (vestments)
- Christian clerical clothing (non-liturgical dress)
- Christian monastic habits
- Buddhist monastic dress
- Orthodox Jewish dress
- Hindu religious dress
- Muslim religious dress

Clothing materials

Common clothing materials include:
- Cloth, typically made of cotton, flax, wool, hemp, ramie, or silk
- Down for down-filled parkas
- Fur
- Leather
- Nylon Less-common clothing materials include:
- Bark
- Paper
- Rubber
- PVC Reinforcing materials such as wood, bone, plastic and metal may be used to stiffen garments such as corsets, bodices, or swimsuits.

Clothing maintenance

Clothing, once manufactured, suffers assault both from within and from without. The human body inside sheds skin cells and body oils, and exudes sweat, urine, and feces. From the outside, sun damage, damp, abrasion, dirt, and other indignities afflict the garment. Fleas and lice take up residence in clothing seams. Well-worn clothing, if not cleaned and refurbished, will smell, itch, look scruffy, and lose functionality (as when buttons fall off and zippers fail). In some cases, people simply wear an item of clothing until it falls apart. Cleaning leather presents difficulties; one cannot wash bark cloth (tapa) without dissolving it. Owners may patch tears and rips, and brush off surface dirt, but old leather and bark clothing will always look old. But most clothing consists of cloth, and most cloth can be laundered and mended (patching, darning, but compare felt). Humans have developed many specialized methods for laundering, ranging from the earliest "pound clothes against rocks in running stream" to the latest in electronic washing machines and dry cleaning (dissolving dirt in solvents other than water). In past times, mending was an art. A meticulous tailor or seamstress could mend rips with thread raveled from hems and seam edges so skillfully that the darn was practically invisible. When the raw material — cloth — was worth more than labor, it made sense to expend labor in saving it. Today clothing is considered a consumable item. Mass-manufactured clothing is less expensive than the time it would take to repair it. Many people prefer to buy a new piece of clothing rather than to spend their time mending old clothes. But the thrifty still replace zippers and buttons and sew up ripped hems.

The life cycle of clothing

Used, no-longer-wearable clothing was once desirable raw material for quilts, rag rugs, bandages, and many other household uses. It could also be recycled into paper. Now it is usually just tossed into the trash. Used but still wearable clothing can be sold at consignment shops, flea markets, online auction, or just donated to charity. Charities usually skim the best of the clothing to sell in their own thrift stores and sell the rest to merchants, who bale it up and ship it to poor Third World countries, where vendors bid for the bales and then make what profit they can selling used clothing.

Early 21st-century clothing styles

Western fashion has to a certain extent become international fashion, as Western media and styles penetrate all parts of the world. Very few parts of the world remain where people do not wear items of cheap, mass-produced Western clothing. Even people in poor countries can afford used clothing from richer Western countries. However, people may wear ethnic or national dress on special occasions or if carrying out certain roles or occupations. For example, most Japanese women have adopted Western-style dress for daily wear, but will still wear expensive silk kimonos on special occasions. Items of Western dress may also appear worn or accessorized in distinctive, non-Western ways. A Tongan man may combine a used T-shirt with a Tongan wrapped skirt, or tupenu. Western fashion, too, does not function monolithically. It comes in many varieties, from expensive haute couture to thrift store grunge.

Mainstream Western or international styles

- International standard business attire -- global in influence, just as business functions globally.
- Haute couture

Regional styles

- Clothing of Europe and Russia
- Clothing in the Americas
- United States mainstream fashion :For example: "Catalogue" fashion, regional styles such as preppy or Western wear.
- United States alternative fashion :These fashions are often associated with fans of various musical styles. :See also Goth, Hippie, Grunge, Hip-hop, and Fetish-wear
- Clothing in Asia
- Clothing in Africa
- Clothing in Oceania

Origin and history of clothing

Clothing in Oceania]] According to archaeologists and anthropologists, the earliest clothing probably consisted of fur, leather, leaves or grass, draped, wrapped or tied about the body for protection from the elements. Knowledge of such clothing remains inferential, since clothing materials deteriorate quickly compared to stone, bone, shell and metal artifacts. Archeologists have identified very early sewing needles of bone and ivory from about 30,000 BC, found near Kostenki, Russia, in 1988. Ralf Kittler, Manfred Kayser and Mark Stoneking, anthropologists at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, have conducted a genetic analysis of human body lice that indicates that they originated not more than about 72,000 +/- 42,000 years ago. Since most humans have very sparse body hair, body lice require clothing to survive, so this suggests a surprisingly recent date for the invention of clothing. Its invention may have coincided with the spread of modern Homo sapiens from the warm climate of Africa, thought to have begun between 50,000 and 100,000 years ago. (Note that some religions dispute the scientific accounts of human evolution and early history, and embrace accounts of human origins, including the origins of clothing, based on sacred texts or myths. See Traditional accounts of the origin of clothing.) Some human cultures, such as the various peoples of the Arctic Circle, until recently made their clothing entirely of furs and skins, cutting clothing to fit and decorating lavishly. Other cultures have supplemented or replaced leather and skins with cloth: woven, knitted, or twined from various animal and vegetable fibres. See weaving, knitting, and twining. Although modern consumers take clothing for granted, making the fabrics that go into clothing is not easy. One sign of this is that the textile industry was the first to be mechanized during the Industrial Revolution; before the invention of the powered loom, textile production was a tedious and labor-intensive process. Therefore, methods were developed for making most efficient use of textiles. One approach simply involves draping the cloth. Many peoples wore, and still wear, garments consisting of rectangles of cloth wrapped to fit — for example, the Scottish kilt or the Javanese sarong. Pins or belts hold the garments in place. The precious cloth remains uncut, and people of various sizes can wear the garment. Another approach involves cutting and sewing the cloth, but using every bit of the cloth rectangle in constructing the clothing. The tailor may cut triangular pieces from one corner of the cloth, and then add them elsewhere as gussets. Traditional European patterns for men's shirts and women's chemises take this approach. Modern European fashion treats cloth much more prodigally, typically cutting in such a way as to leave various odd-shaped cloth remnants. Industrial sewing operations sell these as waste; home sewers may turn them into quilts. In the thousands of years that humans have spent constructing clothing, they have created an astonishing array of styles, many of which we can reconstruct from surviving garments, photos, paintings, mosaics, etc., as well as from written descriptions. Costume history serves as a source of inspiration to current fashion designers, as well as a topic of professional interest to costumers constructing for plays, films, television, and historical reenactment.

Future trends

As technologies change, so will clothing.
- Man-made fibers such as nylon, polyester, Lycra, and Gore-Tex already account for much of the clothing market. Many more types of fibers will certainly be developed, possibly using nanotechnology. For example, military uniforms may stiffen when hit by bullets, filter out poisonous chemicals, and treat wounds.
- "Smart" clothing will incorporate electronics. Clothing may incorporate wearable computers, flexible wearable displays (possibly leading to fully animated clothing and some forms of invisibility cloaks), medical sensors, etc.
- Present-day ready-to-wear technologies will presumably give way to computer-aided custom manufacturing. Harmless laser beams (usually white light) will measure the customer; computers will draw up a custom pattern and execute it in the customer's choice of cloth.

Clothing industry

The clothing industry is concentrated outside of western Europe and America, and garment workers often have to labor under poor conditions. Coalitions of NGO's and trade unions like the Clean clothes campaign (CCC) seek to improve these conditions as much as possible by sponsoring awareness-raising events, which draw the attention of both the media and the general public to the workers' plight.

External links

- [http://ipl.si.umich.edu/div/pf/entry/48452 The Internet Public Library - Clothing resources]
- [http://www.marquise.de La Couturière Parisienne]
- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/2777111.stm Japanese scientist invents 'invisibility coat' - BBC News]
- [http://www.german-hosiery-museum.de/hosiery-museum.htm German Hosiery Museum (English language)]
- [http://ejrs.com/converters/clothesizes.html International Clothes Sizes]
- [http://www.eva.mpg.de/genetics/pdf/Kittler.CurBiol.2003.pdf Molecular Evolution of Pediculus humanus and the Origin of Clothing] by Ralf Kittler, Manfred Kayser and Mark Stoneking (PDF file) Category:Human appearance Category:Clothing Category:Consumer goods ja:衣類 simple:Clothing

T-shirt

A T-shirt (or tee shirt) is a shirt, usually buttonless, collarless and pocketless, with a round neck and short sleeves, pulled on over the head. There are also long-sleeved T-shirt and sleeveless T-shirt variants. T-shirts were originally worn as undershirts. This still occurs, but T-shirts are now also frequently worn as the only piece of clothing on the top half of the body (except that women usually wear a bra beneath it). A T-shirt typically extends to the waist, although one fashion is for "oversized" T-shirts. A more recent trend in women's clothing involves tight-fitting "cropped" T-shirts that are short enough to reveal the lower abdomen including the belly button. T-shirt fashions include styles for men and women, and for all age groups, including baby, youth and adult sizes. T-shirts are often decorated with text and/or pictures. T-shirts are manufactured by the textile industry. They are typically made of cotton or polyester fibers (or a mix of the two), knitted together in a jersey stitch that gives a T-shirt its distinctive soft texture.

T-shirt history

textile industry The idea of the T-shirt came to the USA during WWI when US soldiers noticed the light cotton undershirts European soldiers were using while the US soldiers sweated in their wool uniforms. Since they were so much more comfortable they quickly became popular among the Americans, and because of their design they got the name T-shirt. During WWII the T-shirt had become standard issue underwear in both the US army and navy. After WWII the T-shirt started appearing without a shirt covering it. John Wayne, Marlon Brando and James Dean all wore them on national TV. At first the public was shocked but by 1955 it had become acceptable. The T-shirt became cool when James Dean wore it in the film Rebel Without A Cause.

T-shirt decoration

Rebel Without A Cause In the 1960s, the Ringer T-shirt appeared and became a staple fashion for youth and rock-n-rollers. People also started to tie-dye and screen-print the basic T-shirt and variants such as the tank top, wife beater, muscle shirt, scoop neck, V-neck etc. became popular. Since then T-shirts have become a medium for self-expression and advertising, with any imaginable combination of words, art and even photographs on display. Other methods of decoration used on T-shirts include airbrush, applique, embroidery, and the ironing on of either flock lettering, heat transfers, or Dye sublimation transfers. Laser printers are capable of printing on plain paper using a special [http://blacklightning.com/ Transfer Toner] containing sublimation dyes which can then be permanently heat-transferred to T-shirts. In the 1980s, thermochromatic dyes were used to produce T-shirts that changed colour when subjected to heat. This brand of T-shirt, Global Hypercolour, was a common sight on the streets of the UK for a few years, but has since mostly disappeared. These kind of T-shirts are still being produced, however, and are available to buy over the internet. Since the late 1980s and especially the 1990s, T-shirts with prominent brand-name logos have been popular, especially with teenagers and young adults. These garments allowed consumers to flaunt their taste in designer brands in an inexpensive way, in addition to being decorative. While critics claim that wearing such logos serve only to advertise for clothing designers without being paid, brand-name T-shirts remain popular. Examples: Calvin Klein, FUBU, Ralph Lauren, The Gap The late 1990s saw the renewed popularity of T-shirts with simple slogans and designs. The trend was most visible in 2004 when popularized by celebrities such as Britney Spears and Paris Hilton. Also notable that year was the popularity of political slogans and messages on T-shirts, coinciding with a presidential election.

External links

- [http://www.howtofoldashirt.net/ How to fold a T-shirt]. Comedic website involving T-shirts. Category:Tops

Hygiene

Hygiene is the maintenance of healthy practices. In modern terminology, this is usually regarded as a particular reference to cleanliness. Outward signs of good hygiene include the absence of visible dirt (including dust and stains on clothing) or of bad smells. Since the development of the germ theory of disease, hygiene has come to mean any practice leading to the absence of harmful levels of bacteria. Good hygiene is an aid to health, beauty, comfort and social interactions. It directly aids in disease prevention and/or disease isolation. (That is, good hygiene will help keep you healthy and thus avoid illness. If you are sick, good hygiene can reduce your contagiousness to others.) Washing (with water) is the most common example of hygienic behavior. Washing is often done with soap or detergent which helps to remove oils and to break up dirt particles so they may be washed away. Hygienic practices -- such as frequent hand washing or the use of boiled (and thus sterilized) water in medical operations -- have a profound impact on reducing the spread of disease. This is because they kill or remove disease-causing microbes (germs) in the immediate surroundings. For instance, washing one's hands after using the toilet and before handling food reduces the chance of spreading E. coli bacteria and hepatitis A, both of which are spread from fecal contamination of food.

Some hygienic practices

Personal hygiene

- Daily washing of the body and hair
- More frequent washing of hands and/or face
- Brushing teeth one to three times daily
- Cleaning of the clothes and living area
- General avoidance of body fluids
- General avoidance of unhygienic people
- Holding a hand in front of the mouth when sneezing or coughing
- Suppression of habits such as spitting or nose-picking
- Use of condoms in sexual relations
- Washing hands before eating
- Not licking fingers before picking up sheets of paper
- Not touching feces.

Food preparation and consumption

- Cleaning of food preparation areas and equipment
- Washing of hands after touching uncooked food when preparing meals
- Not using the same utensils to prepare different foods
- Non-sharing of cutlery when eating
- No licking of fingers or hands while or after eating
- Refrigeration of foods (and avoidance of certain foods in environments where refrigeration is or was not feasible)
- The labeling of food to indicate when it was produced (or, as food manufacturers prefer, to indicate its best before date)
- Proper storage of food so as to prevent contamination by vermin
- Disposal of uneaten food and packaging
- Institutional dish sanitizing

Medicine

- Use of sterile bandaging and dressing of wounds
- Use of protective clothing such as masks, gowns, caps, eyewear and gloves.
- Sterilisation of instruments used in surgical procedures
- Safe disposal of medical waste

Personal services

- Sterilization of instruments used by hairdressers
- Sterilization by autoclave of instruments used in body piercing ja:衛生

Modesty

Modesty describes a set of culturally determined values that relate to the presentation of the self to others. It can describe:
- Moderation in one's actions or appearance, not wishing to attract undue attention to oneself;
- Downplaying one's accomplishments (see Humility);
- False or Sham modesty, a form of boasting through excessive self-denigration;
- Modesty about clothing and the human body, especially the taboo against nudity in most social situtations in Western culture. For some people, modesty is closely related to shame. The rest of this article deals with this more limited concept of modesty, which can be a topic of great importance to some people.

Body Modesty

Body modesty is the wish or requirement not to expose too much of the human body; this applies to the bare skin, but also to hair and to the display of undergarments, and especially to the intimate parts; it does not only involve covering body parts, but also obscuring their shape. It is accomplished by suitable clothing, special ways of changing clothes (see beach), closing or locking the door when changing or taking a shower, etc.; it varies according to who could see it, with categories such as
- spouse, partner,
- friend or family of the same sex,
- strangers of the same sex,
- friends or family including those of the opposite sex,
- people of the same social class,
- people in general.

Controversy

Body modesty is controversial. Modesty is sometimes said by its critics to be a form of prudishness. An alternative term for modesty used by some critics is body shame. Proponents of Body Modesty see it as respect for their bodies and the feelings of themselves and others. Some proponents also think it can reduce sexual crimes. Body modesty is conditioned by culture, and also by occasion and who is present; for example, a Finnish person who might happily take all one's clothes off in a mixed sauna would not want to walk down the street naked. Similarly, someone who might wear a bikini to the beach would not wear it to a business meeting.

Islamic concept of modesty

In Islamic terminology, the word modesty is processed in a far more wider perspective than its literary meanings. In Islam, modesty refers to a feeling of disgust, hatred or intolerance towards anything that is immoral, impious, or that defies the etiquettes of a society. Thus, modesty means to abstain from all kinds of evils and malicious practices, and follow the path of goodness. Therefore, modesty is the spearhead of all virtues.

Western norms of body modesty

Western culture in general requires the intimate parts of the body to be covered in public places at all times. Exceptions are made for situations such as public changing rooms, which tend to be single-sex venues, and saunas, which tend to be mixed-sex venues. Traditionally, there is an expectation that shoes, shirt and trousers or dress etc. be worn in public places. In particular, it is generally unacceptable to be barefoot or shirtless in most public spaces, except places designated for bathing or in the vicinity of these places (such as beaches, and on deck near a pool). However, it is common for formal spaces like restaurants, etc., to overlook a beach or pool, in which case the boundary of modesty is spatial, but not visually segregated. For example, at a poolside or beachside outdoor patio restaurant, there is usually a railing. On one side of the railing, barefoot and shirtless people can converse with those dining on the other side, and may even be part of the same group. More recently, multi-use spaces such as urban beaches are beginning to emerge, washing away even the above mentioned boundaries between more and less modest space. Thus it is now, in many places, acceptable to sunbathe in beachwear next to waterplay fountains located in the heart of a city or business district. In private homes, the rules are somewhat different. For instance, nudity among immediate family who cohabitants of the home is usually permitted, especially in the bedroom and bathroom. Elsewhere in the home, particularly when visitors are present, some simple casual clothing is expected like a bathrobe which can be quickly donned when full clothing is not required.

Wearing less than the Western norm

Other cultures, such as some African cultures and traditional Australian aboriginal culture have far less requirement for body modesty, though how much exposure is acceptable varies greatly, from nothing for some women, to everything except the glans penis for men of some tribes (see foreskin). In other African cultures, body painting is used for body "coverage" as well and is an "attire" considered by many. In the West, the subculture of nudism regards complete nudity as acceptable within the nudist community.

Wearing more than the Western norm

Many religious and cultural traditions have greater restrictions. Islam, and the Amish culture, for example, require "modest dress" to be worn by both sexes. Many Muslim women wear the Islamic headscarf, or hijab, as a way of expressing modesty. In some Islamic sub-cultures, this is taken to extremes, in particular in some Islamic countries where some women wear the burqa, an all-encompassing garment intended to conceal every part of the body, including the eyes. Wearing a burqa or abaya as it is called is quite common in many Islamic countries. However, not all women cover their eyes. Instead, they wear the 'abaya to cover their bodies. Most Islamic interpretations require a women to cover everything with the exception of hands (from wrist) and face. In most Islamic countries, such expressions of modesty are voluntary. In others, such as Afghanistan under the Taliban, they were enforced under pain of death. Orthodox Judaism and Sikhism both require men to wear a head covering, in the form of a yarmulke or turban respectively. Orthodox Judaism expects married women to cover their hair; this is achieved by scarves, hats, or — in many communities — wigs ("sheitel"). The Jewish "dress code" is referred to as Tzeniut. Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints also live by a modesty code.

Modest versions of nudity

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), by William-Adolphe Bouguereau, 1875; the tip of the right wing "happens to cover" the boy's genitals.]] In art, ways of reducing the depiction of nudity include:
- fig leaves
- a piece of cloth (or something else) seemingly by chance covering the genitals
- in a movie, filming a supposedly nude person from the waist up (or from the shoulders up, for women)
- in a movie, manoeuvering (turning, having objects in front) and film editing in such a way that no genitals are seen

External links

- [http://www.fisheaters.com/modesty.html The Traditional Catholic view of Modesty] (see also the Catholic view of [http://www.fisheaters.com/theveil.html Veiling])
- [http://www.chabad.org/library/article.asp?AID=72865 Modesty in Concept and Dress from a Jewish perspective as Taught by the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson] chabad.org
- [http://www.rejectshame.com/ On the harm of body shame from a Christian perspective]
- [http://groups.msn.com/CentralParkattacks/discussion.msnw?action=get_message&mview=0&ID_Message=292&LastModified=4675373241768317110 "We'd rather die than take our clothes off." disaster planners say.]
- [http://www.hilalplaza.com/ Islamic Clothing]
- [http://www.hayaa.co.uk/ Modest Clothing]
- [http://www.jenmagazine.com Modest fashion site for Latter-day Saint young women]
- [http://www.examinethetruth.com/ahmed_beaumont_debate.htm Christian modesty debate] Category:Nudity

Eroticism

:Erotic redirects here. For the band see E-Rotic Eroticism is an aesthetic focused on sexual desire, especially the feelings of anticipation of sexual activity. See also:
- Erotica fiction or other material intended to stimulate sexual desire.
- Human sexuality
- Paraphilia
- Pornography
- Romance
- Sensual
- Sexual fantasy Category:Human sexuality [Erotic Literature[http://eu.nifty.org]]

Temple garment

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and a few other sects of Mormonism, the temple garment is a set of sacred underclothing worn by male and female Latter-day Saints who have taken part in the washing and anointing ceremony in Latter-day Saint temples.

Symbolism and purpose

The temple garment (formally the Garment of the Holy Priesthood or informally, the garment or garments) symbolizes the "coats of skins" which Jehovah (Yahweh) made for Adam and Eve before casting them out of the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:21). Latter-day Saints who have been endowed in the temple are expected to wear the garment to remind them of special promises or covenants to God. Latter-Day Saints are commonly clothed in them and the outer temple clothing for burial. The garment is believed to be a spiritual "shield and protection" against the powers of evil, (and sometimes against physical harm, according to some Latter-Day Saints).

Construction of the temple garment

In the 19th century, the temple garment was a long, single-piece article of clothing resembling a union suit, with special markings over the breasts, navel, and right knee. Originally, garments were made in a number of colors, but in 1893 the LDS Church expressed an official preference for the color white. Subsequently, the garment has undergone style changes, to reflect changes in lifestyle and modesty. In 1923, the Church offered a garment design that was shortened to the knees and shoulders. In 1979, the Church offered a two-piece garment. While normally white, the garment is currently made in the color brown for regulation military use. Sold online, in temples, and various outlets called "Beehive Clothing", the garment is available in several fabrics and styles; however, new styles must be approved by the Church leadership. It is also possible to make one's own garments based upon one of a small number of Church-authorized patterns. The garment contains four special symbolic marks: one on each breast, one at the navel, and one over the right knee. A change in the 1930 version of the LDS endowment added a brief explanation of what the marks meant, and still exists in the current version.

Receiving the garment

The temple garment is given during the washing and anointing ceremony in Latter-day Saint temples. This ceremony is a prelude to the Endowment ceremony, and in it, the person being washed and anointed is ceremonially given the garment.

The garment as a shield

In general, Latter-day Saints view the garment as a symbolic and spiritual shield against the powers of evil. Some Latter-day Saints, moreover, believe that the garment provides the wearer with special physical protection. For example, in an April 1996 interview with Mike Wallace on the show 60 Minutes, Latter-day Saint Bill Marriott, CEO of Marriott International, claimed his garments protected him from being burned during a boating accident. This, however, is not an official doctrine taught by leaders within the church.

Unauthorized sale and use

Church leaders have publicly discussed the above principles and beliefs since the mid-1840s, however, because of the sacredness surrounding temple rites and the garment, some outspoken critics of the Latter-day Saints have utilized it as a source of humor and parody. Due to the considerable number of temple garments in existence, there have been several cases where people (including some ex-Mormons) have distributed photographs of models wearing temple garments in a manner contrary to accepted LDS practice. For example, a model wearing a temple garment was published in a popular adult magazine during the 1940s and in another adult periodical in the 1960s. Garments are featured in a book about undergarments published in the 1990s, and also in various anti-Mormon books during the 1980s. In 2004, photos which hinted at people engaged in sexual acts dressed as Mormon missionaries wearing garments were showcased in a Salt Lake area art display, which incited considerable protest by college students who were returned missionaries. The four photos in question were moved to a room apart from the public display. They were subsequently stolen. With the advent of the Internet, there are additional sites that publish photographs of garments for educational, parody or other use. A more recent controversy surrounds the open sales of temple garments on the eBay auction web site multiple times since 2000. Typically the garments are removed for a violation of eBay policy unrelated to its religious context. During the October 2003 General Conference of the Church, some anti-Mormon demonstrators wore garments around their necks and defaced them in ways that were extraordinarily offensive to those in attendance. In light of the violence that resulted during the 2003 Conference, the municipality of Salt Lake City planned stronger enforcement of fighting words and hate speech laws for the April 2004 Conference in Salt Lake City with new protest buffer zones.

The sacred nature of the garment

To members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the temple garment represents the sacred and personal aspects of their relationship with God. For this reason, Church members do not discuss the garment in a casual or disrespectful manner. In a Church publication entitled Preparing to Enter the Holy Temple, the story is told of a church leader who answered questions from a group of US Navy Chaplains representing various faiths. The chaplains asked about distinctive practices of the LDS Church. One chaplain asked about the special underwear that LDS sailors wear. The church leader responded by asking the chaplain if he wore clerical clothing as he performed his duties as an ordained minister. The chaplain responded that he did. The church leader surmised that this action probably held some significance, as it set the priest apart from the unordained members of the congregation. The following paragraphs are quoted from that work: "He then told them: 'You should be able to understand at least one of our reasons why Latter-day Saints have a deep spiritual commitment concerning the garment. A major difference between your churches and ours is that we do not have a professional clergy, as you do. The congregations are all presided over by local leaders. They are men called from all walks of life. Yet they are ordained to the priesthood. They hold offices in the priesthood. They are set apart to presiding positions as presidents, counselors, and leaders in various categories. The women, too, share in that responsibility and in those obligations. The man who heads our congregation on Sunday as the bishop may go to work on Monday as a postal clerk, as an office worker, a farmer, a doctor; or he may be an air force pilot or a naval officer. By our standard he is as much an ordained minister as you are by your standard. He is recognized as such by most governments. We draw something of the same benefits from this special clothing as you would draw from your clerical vestments. The difference is that we wear ours under our clothing instead of outside, for we are employed in various occupations in addition to our service in the Church. These sacred things we do not wish to parade before the world.' "He then explained that there are some deeper spiritual meanings as well, connecting the practice of wearing this garment with covenants that are made in the temple. We wouldn’t find it necessary to discuss these—not that they are secret, he repeated, but because they are sacred." Preparing to Enter the Holy Temple

References

- [http://library.lds.org/nxt/gateway.dll/Magazines/Ensign/1997.htm/ensign%20august%201997.htm/the%20temple%20garment%20an%20outward%20expression%20of%20an%20inward%20commitment.htm?f=templates$fn=document-frame.htm$3.0$q=$x=|The Temple Garment: “An Outward Expression of an Inward Commitment” By Elder Carlos E. Asay]
- McDannell, Colleen. "Mormon Garments: Sacred Clothing and the Body." [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0300074999/102-3127905-0123317?v=glance&n=283155&s=books&v=glance Material Christianity: Religion and Popular Culture in America] (Yale University Press, 1995), pp. 198-221.

Boxer shorts

Boxer shorts (also known as boxers or loose boxers) are a type of underwear, worn usually by men. They are all-around-elastic shorts named after the shorts worn by pugilists. They originated in the 1930s, but were obscured by the popular briefs. Around 1947, boxers started to gain in popularity. Boxer shorts gained massive popularity in the 1980s when Nick Kamen appeared wearing them in a Levis advertisement. Although briefs outsell boxer shorts, it is apparent that more and more young men prefer the latter. Since the 1990s, many men also opt for boxer briefs as a compromise between the two. Most boxer shorts have flies for urinating. Boxer shorts manufacturers have different designs for closing up the fly. Some styles include a button or a metal clasp for the fly. However, most of the boxer shorts on the market do not have a mechanism to close up the fly. Usually, they are available in solid colors, but they also come in a variety of patterns and prints. Most television programs prefer displaying men in boxer shorts rather than other types of underwear. This is mainly because it is the more socially acceptable underwear type to see in mass media. In 1975, an advertisement for boxer shorts created a recurring urban legend. The fall/winter Sears catalogue displayed two underwear models, one wearing briefs and another wearing boxer shorts. The model wearing the boxer shorts appears to have part of his penis exposed. At the time, this caused a stir because of possible indecent exposure. However, Sears states that it is a printing defect and the same ad reappeared in color in a later catalogue, where no penis is shown. Despite the publicity, Sears did not release a copy of the colored ad to allow the public to verify its statement. Without the proof, the urban legend still persists in popular culture. [http://www.snopes.com/business/hidden/sears.asp]

Advantages and disadvantages

Fans of boxer shorts claim there are certain advantages to wearing boxer shorts compared to other types of underwear.
- The opening in front of the boxer shorts gives males easier access to their penis when the need to urinate is urgent.
- Boxer shorts can be worn as loungewear in a private setting.
- The majority of surveys show that women prefer seeing them on men.
- Boxer shorts appear in more different styles, colors, and patterns.
- Boxer shorts do not reveal a lot of details of the man's covered region.
- Some people claim boxer shorts can be more comfortable for well-endowed men.
- Many men claim boxer shorts are the easiest type of underwear to take off. Critics of boxer shorts claim there are certain disadvantages to wearing shorts compared to other types of underwear.
- There are very wide openings for the leg holes, which can result in accidental exposure of genitals.
- The genitals are not supported and tend to move around a lot.
- The wider and thicker waistband found on most boxer shorts compared to other types of underwear has a higher chance of irritating the skin.
- An erection is much more noticeable when wearing boxers.
- Wearing certain kinds of pants over boxer shorts looks awkward.
- The loose fitting can move the underwear into awkward positions, such as causing a wedgie.
- When worn with loose fitting clothing, such as school gym shorts, boxer shorts come down more easily in a common prank known as "(de)pantsing", where the prankster attempts to pull down the target's pants and may inadvertently also pull down target's boxer shorts, exposing the intimate parts.
- At times, protrusion of the penis through the fly opening occurs. This can happen anytime even when the boxers are the proper fit - not tight or loose. Once the penis is protruding, trying to move the penis back inside the boxers may cause a multitude of embarrasing situations, especially if there is no nearby bathroom. These include manually moving the penis back in while in public, getting an unexpected erection and/or not having the pants fly zipped up. Category:Underwear simple:Boxer shorts

Y-Fronts

briefs

Lingerie

Lingerie is a term, derived from the French language, for women's undergarments. These garments are heavily eroticised in Western culture. Examples of types of items of lingerie include
- Babydoll
- Basque
- Bedjacket
- Bloomers
- Bodystocking
- Bodysuit
- Brassiere
- Camisole
- Chemise
- Corset by bone
- Corselet
- Corsage by elastic
- French maid
- Garter
- Hosiery
- Jersey nightshirt - A long, loose T-shirt made of cotton, polyester, nylon or diaphanous chiffon that can be worn like a Babydoll.
- Knickers
- Leotard
- Merry widow
- Naughty & Nice
- Negligee
- Nightie
- Nightgown
- Nightshirt
- Panties
- Peignoir
- Petticoat
- Undergarment
- Robe
- Slip (Full slip and Half slip)
- Stockings
- Stringbody
- Suspender belt (British), aka Garter belt (US)
- Teddy
- Unitard See also: Hosiery Category:Underwear ja:ランジェリー

Malo

Malo was a Latin based Rock and Roll group. Sounding somewhat similar to Santana, but not nearly as commercially successful, they did achieve a Top 20 hit with the song "Suavecito" in 1972.

External link

- [http://www.malomusic.com/ Malo's official website]
- Category:American musical groups

Fundoshi

The fundoshi (褌) is a traditional Japanese male loincloth. It is made from a strip of cotton cloth 14 inches wide and about 92 to 96 inches long. The cloth is twisted to create a thong effect at the back. Fundoshi are often worn with hanten (a short cotton jacket with straight sleeves) during summer festivals by men who carry mikoshi (portable shrines) in parades.

External links

- [http://www.geocities.com/sg_tiger.geo/fundoshi.html How to tie a Fundoshi]
- [http://web.archive.org/web/20040219121242/http://plaza18.mbn.or.jp/~yoshiki/akaba/index23.htm An Internet Archive copy of Fundoshi- Japanese Loincloth] about the types of fundoshi Category:Underwear Category:Japanese clothing ja:%E3%81%B5%E3%82%93%E3%81%A9%E3%81%97

Tutankhamun

Tutankhamun (alternate transcription Tutankhamen), named Tutankhaten early in his life, was Pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt (ruled 1334 BC/1333 BC – 1323 BC, lived ca. 1341 BC – 1323 BC), during the period known as the New Kingdom. His original name, Tutankhaten, meant "Living Image of Aten", while Tutankhamun meant "Living Image of Amun". He is possibly also the Nibhurrereya of the Amarna letters. In historical terms, Tutankhamun is of only moderate significance, primarily as a figure managing the beginning of the transition from the heretical Atenism of his predecessor Akhenaten back to the familiar Egyptian religion. As Tutankhamun began his reign at age 9, a considerable responsibility for his reign must also be assigned to his vizier and eventual successor, Ay. Nonetheless, Tutankhamun is in modern times the most famous of the Pharaohs, and the only one to have a nickname in popular culture ("King Tut"). The 1922 discovery by Howard Carter of his (nearly) intact tomb received worldwide press coverage and sparked a renewed public interest in Ancient Egypt, of which Tutankhamun remains the popular face.

Life

Family

Tutankamun's parentage is uncertain. An inscription calls him a king's son, but it is debated which king was meant. Most scholars think that he was probably a son either of Amenhotep III (though probably not by his Great Royal Wife Tiye), or of Amenhotep III's son Amenhotep IV (better known as Akhenaten), perhaps with his enigmatic second queen, Kiya. It should be noted that when Tutankhaten succeeded Akhenaten to the throne, Amenhotep III had been dead for some time; the duration is thought by some Egyptologists to have been seventeen years, although on this, as on so many questions about the Amarna period, there is no scholarly consensus. Tutankhamun ruled Egypt for eight to ten years; examinations of his mummy show that he was a young adult when he died. Recent CT scans place Tut at age 19. This conclusion was reached after images of Tut's teeth were examined, and were found to be consistent with the teeth of a 19 year old. That would place his birth around 1342 BC-1340 BC, and would make it less likely that Amenhotep III was his father. Tutankhamun was married to Ankhesenpaaten, a daughter of Akhenaten. Ankhesenpaaten also changed her name from the -aten endings to the -amun ending, becoming Ankhesenamun. They had two known children, both stillborn girls – their mummies were discovered in his tomb.

Reign

During Tutankhamun's reign, Akhenaten's Amarna revolution (Atenism) began to be reversed. Akhenaten had attempted to supplant the existing priesthood and gods with a god who was until then considered minor, Aten. In year 3 of Tutankhamun's reign (1331 BC), when he was still a boy of about 11 and probably under the influence of two older advisors (notably Akhenaten's vizier Ay), the ban on the old pantheon of gods and their temples was lifted, the traditional privileges restored to their priesthoods, and the capital moved back to Thebes. The young pharaoh also adopted the name Tutankhamun, changing it from his birth name Tutankhaten. Because of his age at the time these decisions were made, it is generally thought that most if not all the responsibility for them falls on his vizier Ay and perhaps other advisors.

Events after his death

A now-famous letter to the Hittite king Suppiluliumas I from a widowed queen of Egypt, explaining her problems and asking for one of his sons as a husband, has been attributed to Ankhesenamun (among others). Suspicious of this good fortune, Suppiluliumas I first sent a messenger to make inquiries on the truth of the young queen's story. After reporting her plight back to Suppilulumas I, he sent his son, Zannanza, accepting her offer. However, he got no further than the border before he died, perhaps murdered. If Ankhesenamun were the queen in question, and his death a murder, it was probably at the orders of Horemheb or Ay, who both had the opportunity and the motive. In any event, after Tutankhamun's death Ankhesenamun married Ay (a signet ring, with both Ay and Ankehesenamun's name was found), possibly under coercion, and shortly afterwards disappeared from recorded history. Tutankhamun was briefly succeeded by the elder of his two advisors, Ay, and then by the other, Horemheb, who obliterated most of the evidence of the reigns of Akhenaten, Tutankhamun, and Ay.

Name

Akhenaten Under Atenism, Tutankhamun was named Tutankhaten, which in Egyptian hieroglyphs is: <-i-t:n:ra-t:w:t-anx-> Technically, this name is transliterated as twt-ˁnḫ-ỉtn. At the reintroduction of the old pantheon, his name was changed. It is transliterated as twt-ˁnḫ-ỉmn ḥq3-ỉwnw-šmˁ, and often realised as Tutankhamun Hekaiunushema, meaning "Living image of Amun, ruler of Southern Heliopolis". On his ascension to the throne, Tutankhamun took a praenomen. This is transliterated as nb-ḫprw-rˁ, and realised as Nebkheperure, meaning "Lord of the forms of Re". The name Nibhurrereya in the Amarna letters may be a variation of this praenomen.

Cause of death

For a long time the cause of Tutankhamun's death was unknown, and was the root of much speculation. How old was the king when he died? Did he suffer from any physical abnormalities? Had he been murdered? Many of these questions were finally answered in early 2005 when the results of a set of CT scans on the mummy were released. The body was originally inspected by Howard Carter’s team in the early 1920s, though they were primarily interested in recovering the jewelry and amulets from the body. To remove the objects from the body, which in many cases were stuck fast by the hardened embalming resins used, Carter's team cut up the mummy into various pieces: the arms and legs were detached, the torso cut in half and the head was severed. Hot knives were used to remove it from the golden mask to which it was cemented by resin. Since the body was placed back in its sarcophagus in 1926, the mummy has subsequently been X-rayed three times: first in 1968 by a group from the University of Liverpool, then in 1978 by a group from the University of Michigan and finally in 2005 a team of Egyptian scientists led by Dr. Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities, conducted a CT scan on the mummy. Early (pre-2005) X-rays of his mummy had revealed a dense spot at the lower back of the skull. This had been interpreted as a chronic subdural hematoma, which would have been caused by a blow. Such an injury could have been the result of an accident, but it had also been suggested that the young pharaoh was murdered. If this is the case, there are a number of theories as to who was responsible: one popular candidate was his immediate successor Ay. Interestingly, there are seemingly signs of calcification within the supposed injury, which if true meant Tutankhamun lived for a fairly extensive period of time (on the order of several months) after the injury was inflicted. Much confusion had been caused by a small loose sliver of bone within the upper cranial cavity, which was discovered from the same X-ray analysis. Some people have mistaken this visible bone fragment for the supposed head injury. In fact, since Tutankhamun's brain was removed post mortem in the mummification process, and considerable quantities of now-hardened resin introduced into the skull on at least two separate occasions after that, had the fragment resulted from a pre-mortem injury, it almost certainly would not still be loose in the cranial cavity. It therefore almost certainly represented post-mummification damage.

2005 research

On March 8, 2005, Egyptian archaeologist Zahi Hawass revealed the results of a CT scan performed on the pharaoh's mummy. The scan uncovered no evidence for a blow to the back of the head as well as no evidence suggesting foul play. There was a hole in the head, but it appeared to have been drilled, presumably by embalmers. A fracture to Tutankhamun's left thighbone was interpreted as evidence that suggests the pharaoh badly broke his leg before he died, and his leg became infected; however, members of the Egyptian-led research team recognized as a less likely possibility that the fracture was caused by the embalmers. 1,700 images were produced of Tutankhamun's mummy during the 15-minute CT scan. The research also showed that the pharaoh had cleft palate [http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/03/0308_050308_kingtutmurder_2.html]. Much was learned about the young king's life. His age at death was estimated at 19 years, based on physical developments that set upper and lower limits to his age. The king had been in general good health, and there were no signs of any major infectious disease or malnutrition during childhood. He was slight of build, and was roughly 170 cm (5½ ft) tall. He had large front incisor teeth and the overbite characteristic of the rest of the Thutmosid line of kings to which he belonged. He also had a pronounced dolichocephalic (elongated) skull, though it was within normal bounds and highly unlikely to have been pathologic in cause. Given the fact that many of the royal depictions of Akhenaten (possibly his father, certainly a relation), often featured an elongated head, it is likely an exaggeration of a family trait, rather than a distinct abnormality more typical of a condition like Marfan's syndrome, as had been suggested. A slight bend to his spine was also found, but the scientists agreed that that there was no associated evidence to suggest that it was pathological in nature, and that it was much more likely to have been caused during the embalming process. This ended speculation based on the previous X-rays that Tutanhkamun had suffered from scoliosis. The 2005 conclusion by a team of Egyptian scientists, based on the CT scan findings, confirmed that Tutankhamun died of a swift attack of gangrene after bre

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