Different cultures also disagree on what constitutes “nudity”. I remember hearing once of a tribe somewhere where men routinely wear a string around their waist with a leaf dangling down in front, and nothing else. By our standards, they’re naked, but in that culture, if a man goes out in public without his leaf, they react in much the same way we’d react to a naked man.
for those of you interested in what some scientists are finding out aout sex and gender, I recommend the six part Radiolab series (podcast) entitled Gonads. (that web page has the episodes in reverse order; listen to Primordial Journey first) I found it very interesting.
mc
And they’re so mean about it, using derisive nicknames like “Three-Ring” and such…
Yes, it has more to do with how you are raised than any universal truth.
A lot of children in Finland have been going into the Sauna with their parents most of their lives. During puberty that is often split off but that has just as much to do with having alone time that the kids can ask questions about their changing bodies as anything else.
Nudity is not a big deal, in the sauna or palju. I assume most Americans would gag at the idea of seeing their Mother, Father, and grandparents nude. But nothing is forced, except not wearing soiled underwear for very real health reasons.
It is not uncommon for office colleagues to meet in a sauna to discuss work and make important business decisions. There simply is nothing sexual about being naked in front of others in sauna.
I grew up in Australia with a Finnish mum and extended family and we all had saunas together, this started to change as my female cousins grew breasts so then it became men or women only with the kids alternating between them.
This whole debate is doing my head in and I am quite left, hey I will call you whatever you want but don’t hate me if I say her or him without previous notice.