What is the swimsuit

Swimwear is clothing designed to be worn by people engaging in a water-based activity or water sports, such as swimming, diving and surfing, or sun-orientated activities, such as sun bathing. Different types may be worn by men, women, and children. Swimwear is described by a number of names, some of which are used only in particular locations, including swimsuit, bathing costume,swimming costume, bathing suit, swimming suit, swimmers, swimming togs, bathers, cossie (short for “costume”), or swimming trunks for men, besides others.

A swimsuit can be worn as an undergarment in sports that require a wetsuit such as water skiing, scuba diving, surfing, and wakeboarding. Swimsuits may also be worn to display the wearer’s physical attributes, as in the case of beauty pageants or bodybuilding contests, and glamour photography and magazines like the annual Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue feature models and sports personalities in swimsuits.

There is a very wide range of styles of modern swimsuits available, which vary as to body coverage and materials. The choice of style may depend on community standards of modesty, as well as current fashions and personal preferences. Swimwear for men usually exposes the chest, while suits for women do not.

Contents

1Materials

2Swimsuit styles2.1Unisex styles2.2Women’s swimsuits2.3Men’s swimsuits

3Body coverage

4Competitive swimwear

5Swimwear and hygiene

6History6.1Pre-20th century6.220th century

7Alternatives to swimsuits

8See also

9References

10External links

Materials

Rayon was used in the 1920s in the manufacture of tight-fitting swimsuits,[1] but its durability, especially when wet, proved problematic,[2] with jersey and silk also sometimes being used.[3]

In the 1930s, new materials were being developed and use in swimwear, particularly latex and nylon, and swimsuits gradually began hugging the body.[4]

Swimsuit styles

In western culture, men’s swimsuit styles include boardshorts, jammers, swim trunks, briefs or “speedos”, thongs, and g-strings, in order of decreasing lower body coverage.

Women’s swimsuits are generally described as one-piece, monokini, bikinis, or thongs. While they go through many trends in pattern, length and cut there is not much modification to the original variety of suit. A recent innovation is the burqini, favored by some Muslim women, which covers the whole body and head (but not face) in a manner similar to a diver’s wetsuit. These are an updated version of full-body swimwear, which has been available for centuries, but conforms withIslam’s traditional emphasis on modest dress. In Egypt, the term “Sharia swimsuit” is used to describe full-body swimwear.[5]