Or more precisely, why do we almost universally wear the stuff, and at what point did we realized that it would be a good idea (ie did they have unerwear in the 1500?, the 1200s?)
When did it become the commodity it is today? (ie when did tidy whiteies become nearly ubiquitous?)
because you can then get more than a single day’s use out of pants, before they become soiled with typical bodily excretions, like from the apocrine glands in the groin, etc.
Tightie whities are kind of like a bra for testicles. Keeps 'em in place and protects them from chafing (for that active lifestyle!).
I wear 'em because it’s more comfortable that way.
I don’t wear ‘em. Except for bras, which keep me from swingin’ around. I hate underpants. HATE 'EM
j
From http://www.vintageskivvies.com/pages/archives/history/ancientbeginnings.html
"The loincloth is clearly the universal antecedent of men’s underwear.
In 1352 BC Egypt, the young Pharaoh Tutankhamun was buried with 145 loincloths. Surely that was an ample supply for the afterlife. They were each a long piece of linen shaped like an isosceles triangle with strings meant to be tied around the hips. The length of cloth hanging down in back was brought forward between the legs and tucked over the tied strings in the front, from the outside in. Whenever masculine Egyptian loincloth-clad royalty covered themselves with robe or skirt, then we had an example of underwear.
The loincloth was still being worn as underwear by the shepherds in southwestern France as late as 1835…"
And the site goes in length to answer how it became to commodity it is today.
z
I wear them to humor my mom. 
Qadgop the Mercotan’s secretions were probably more a factor back before we had the luxury of daily baths. Old habits die hard, I guess.
Look here
Peace,
mangeorge
Hey! What’s this WE business?! 
Seriously though, underwear’s been around just about as long as people have, at least people in cold climates. It’s just the forms that have changed. From around 50 BC
And even further back, as far as 1700 BC
when they were already using underwear to shape their figures to an ideal form. :eek:
I’m with jarbabyj here, count me out!
bella
you think bathing fazes apocrine glands?
No, but it does faze the accumulation of secretions.
Peace,
mangeorge
“Why do we wear underwear? Or more precisely, why do we almost universally wear the stuff, and at what point did we realized that it would be a good idea (ie did they have unerwear in the 1500?, the 1200s?)”
Of course, wearing underwear is not universal, and I’m not just speaking of Dopers here. There are cultures extant today that do not wear fabrics of any type on any part of their bodies (I don’t consider strings or gourds to be fabrics). These people live in relatively warm climates
I think it is clear that underwear, as in dainties that are worn under outerwear, was developed to protect the skin from the outerwear, which, until the past few thousand years and the development of things like cotton and silk, was made out of abrasive things such as leather and rough fabrics. I would guess that uderwear has been around as long as silk which I would guess was around well before 1200.
Wouldn’t mensutruation have anything to do with it, at least in the case of women? Back before tampons were invented, and “being on the rag” was taken literally? I figure underwear would help, and outer clothing could be protected from bothersome bloodstains that didn’t matter if they were on underwear.
I’ve been waiting for a post like this. How about some of these?
Whoops, try here.
Thanking you in advance for tonight’s nightmares.
:o
HaHaHaHaHaHa! Great site! Check out the stud in the red silkies with the dainty lil’ bows in the bottom left.
Yummy!
bella
Why do we wear underwear?
SECRETIONS!
Old fashioned underwear often didn’t have gussets, so the secretion thing (yuk!) doesn’t necessarily hold true.
I expect big bloomers were worn for extra warmth, to pad out a skirt in the days of full skirts, and to provide a bit more modesty should the skirt blow up.
Loincloths would possibly have been more about protection than modesty, at least in some early societies. Like the penis-gourds worn by some south east asian peoples.
In case you forget to zip your fly.