|
Nudism, or naturism, is the practice of going nude
or unclothed in social and usually mixed gender groups. It sometimes occurs furtively in secluded places in countries where
appearing naked in public is illegal, but enjoys widespread acceptance in other areas of the world. Those who practice nudism are
called nudists or naturists. A minority opinion is that being naked with other people is necessarily always
sexual, and that nudism is morally wrong or pornographic. Naturists
universally reject this view.
Typical activities are sunbathing and sports, but some nudists prefer also to be nude while working etc., whenever the temperature and the social situation
allows it (including when one is alone).
Naturism should not be confused with naturalism, the study of nature.
General
Nudists believe that the human body is nothing to be ashamed of, being something that we all possess and ought to cherish.
Although the terms are used interchangeably in this article, some would draw a distinction between the terms nudism and
naturism. In this view a nudist is one who sometimes chooses to go without clothes. A naturist
is one who embraces a philosophy that includes more than occasional nudity, often
environmentalism, vegetarianism or simply more of a closeness to nature. Others would argue that the term naturism implies
snobbery, and there is no distinction. A visit to a nude beach may entitle
someone to be called a nudist, but does not make one a naturist. Changing and showering in a locker room probably does not
qualify for either. Doing housework in the nude might. Many nudists do so casually at home. A common thought of nudists is being
"always naked under my clothes." The nudist or naturist label is really a state of mind of the practitioner, instead of a
strictly defined classification imposed by others.
Most nudists and nudist organizations maintain and try to enforce a no sex in public policy, (nude, not lewd) and it is rare to see obvious signs of sexual behaviour at most sites. These are the stereotypical
family-oriented clubs and beaches. Some fringe groups and gatherings (such as Swingstock) are more like sex clubs and not considered by most to be examples of true
nudism.
Some nudist organizations do not allow people with body piercings on
their premises (presumably this rule refers to the foreign objects in the piercings, not to the piercings themselves). Most
however accept people of all sizes, shapes and types including those with surgical scars,
tattoos or interestingly trimmed (or absence of) hair. Some nudist organizations do not allow unaccompanied men, see e.g. [1]
.
Nudism is not equivalent to exhibitionism. It is people who enjoy
being nude and who are not primarily interested in seeing others naked or being seen naked by others. That being said, all kinds
of people are attracted to the movement, for all kinds of reasons. Many naturists are convinced that increased exposure to the
natural environment, made easier through nudity, can result in numerous health benefits. Sunlight has been shown to be beneficial in some skin conditions, and is required by the body to make vitamin D. Naturists often claim that they
are more relaxed and in a better state of mind when they shed their clothes. Being around
like-minded people can make interpersonal interactions, such as meeting new friends, easier and many nudist organizations are
really just big social clubs. Indeed, some of these clubs have stricter entrance requirements then some traditional up-scale
'country clubs' - requiring references, a sponsoring member, a trial membership, committee approval etc. At the other end of the
spectrum is 'unorganized' naturism in which there is nothing to join, no one to pay, and only civil, common and criminal law to serve as rules of etiquette. Many people get
their first exposure to the naturist movement through this kind of informal nudism (eg. a clothing optional beach, a friend's
place in the woods, a party on the shore).
Nudists often use sun protection lotions and will wear clothes if the weather demands it. Because it does not involve protective gear, nor does it involve much
contact with the ground, volleyball is played by nudists.
Strong nudist movements exist in Germany (there called FKK or
Freikörperkultur - Free Body Culture), France and the Netherlands, and smaller such organizations exist in many other nations. Social nudity is practiced in
many cultures, especially in the context of social bathing, sometimes with mixed sexes.
Naturist terminology
Nudists sometimes refer to people who don't practice nudity as textiles. Clothing optional usually refers to a facility that allows and encourages nudity but
tolerates the wearing of clothes, whereas a nudist facility insists on complete nudity where practicable (to ensure that
no one feels inappropriately dressed). Topfree refers to an area that allows uncovered female breasts, also known as
topless. A landed organization is one that owns the real estate it is situated on. Non-landed or travel clubs
meet regularly at different locations such as public clothing optional beaches or swimming pools rented for the purpose. A
smoothie is a person who shaves much of his/her body hair off.
History of nudism
Genetic studies of the human body louse,
which requires clothes to survive, suggests that humans started wearing garments 72,000 years ago +/- 42,000 years. This estimate
matches that of the first appearance of physical evidence of clothing-making tools. The
species Homo sapiens
itself has existed for 200,000 or more years, so the 'natural' condition of humans is nude.
Informal nudism has always been practiced. Ancient cultures (the Greeks and the Romans for example) sometimes had
quite different attitudes toward the unclothed human body then is common today. In fact, the word "gymnasium" comes from the
Greek word "gymnos," meaning "nude," because athletics in Greece was routinely practiced naked by its participants.
Objections against being nude are often religiously motivated. Some peoples have started wearing clothes only after missionaries argued that that is more civilized.
The first known organized club for nudists, Freilichtpark (Free-Light Park), was opened near Hamburg in 1903. The nudist movement gained prominence in Germany in
the 1920s, but was suppressed during the Nazi
Gleichschaltung after Adolf Hitler came to power. Social nudism in the form of private clubs and campgrounds first appeared in the
United States in the 1930s. In Canada it first
appeared in British Columbia about 1939 and in Ontario nine years later.
Major nudist organizations
Worldwide: International Naturist
Federation/Federation Naturiste Internationale (INF/FNI)
with member regional organizations in 30 countries.
Canada: the Federation of Canadian Naturists (FCN) and
La Fédération Québécoise de Naturisme
(FQN) are the two national nudist organizations.
Netherlands: has the Naturisten Federatie Nederland (NFN)
Spain: has the Federación Española de Naturismo (FEN)
United Kingdom: the national organisation is British Naturism
, formerly known as CCBN (Central Council for
British Naturism).
United States: the American Association of Nude Recreation (AANR) and The Naturist Society (TNS) are the two major nudist organizations.
Public outdoor nudist areas
Austria:
- Vienna, Donauinsel [2] [3] (artificial island in the Danube quite close to the city centre)
Belgium:
- Bredene, tram stop Bredene Renbaan (Hippodroom): sandy beach (the only nude beach
of the country, since 2001).
Brazil:
Canada:
- Ontario All areas of Ontario, unless otherwise specified by town or city by-laws,
allow both males and females to be topless in public.
- Hanlans Point, a sandy
beach just a 15 minute ferry ride from downtown Toronto, Ontario.
- Wreck Beach is the second largest clothing optional beach in North America with over 100,000 visitors each year. It is located in Vancouver, British Columbia
on the north arm of the Fraser River.
- Oka, Quebec, about 40km from
Montreal.
Denmark:
- All beaches in Denmark are clothing-optional unless marked otherwise.
France:
Germany:
- Munich, part of the Englischer Garten, near the city centre. Also, the western part of Feldmochinger See, in the northwestern
suburbs.
- Most beaches have designated FKK areas
Netherlands:
- Almere, Zilverstrand
- Callantsoog, sandy beach 1.5 km to the south - the oldest official nude beach of the
country, dating from 1973.
- Delft, Grote Plas, northeast side (map ).
- Rijswijk, Wilhelmina Park, south side (map ).
- Scheveningen, The
Hague, sandy beach 1 km to the north.
- Zandvoort, sandy beach 2 km to the south.
- for more, see [5] , [6] ; beach locations are defined by km-pole
numbers, indicated on wooden poles every 250 m. See map (zip-file) with beach from Den Helder to Hoek van Holland, showing
these numbers and also public transport info.
- Municipalities with a beach (usually including quiet parts) tend to have a nudist beach; even if the municipality does not
like it, it designates a quiet part as such in order to be able to forbid nudity on the rest of the beach.
Spain:
United Kingdom:
- Morfa Dyffryn, Gwynedd
- Budleigh Salterton, Devon
- Studland Bay, Dorset - most
famous UK nudist beach, now officially approved (after years of controversy) by landowner the National Trust
- Brighton, East Sussex
- Fairlight Cove, East Sussex
- Leysdown East Beach, Kent
- St Osyth, Essex
- Corton Beach, Suffolk
- Holkham Beach, Norfolk
- Cleat's Shore, Isle of Arran
United States:
- Gunnison Beach, at Sandy Hook National
Park, New Jersey (near Highlands; one hour ferry-ride from Manhattan). Biggest legal nude beach on the East Coast.
- Haulover Beach, in
Miami-Dade County, Florida (between Sunny Isles Beach,
Florida and Bal Harbour). Most popular nude beach in North America.
- Hippie Hollow Park, on the shore of Lake Travis northwest of Austin, Texas. Traditionally used for nude swimming since the formation of the lake in the late 1940s. The
park was officially placed under management by Travis
County in the mid-1980s and remains officially clothing-optional.
- Black's Beach, in San Diego, California, north of La Jolla and south of Torrey Pines State Park, perhaps the largest nude beach in the United
States. Access from La Jolla, Torrey Pines State Park, and trails down the hillside by the glider port near the Salk Institute.
Part of Black's Beach is within the State Park, and part within the city of San Diego. While technically illegal in the city, the
ordinance against nude sunbathing is ignored and not enforced.
Miscellanious
There are two places in the US with nudist youth camps: Lake Como, Florida and
Shangri-La, Arizona.
The one at White Tail Park, Southampton
County, Virginia has to be discontinued: even though the camps are strictly non-sexual, in 2004 the state of Virginia banned
nudist youth camps unless a parent, grandparent or legal guardian is present [7] .
Pasco County, Florida has seven nudist resorts.
See also
Amersfoort, Gennep, Nude, Nude beach, Nudity in sport, Skyclad
Compare Modesty.
External links
|