Public baths originated from a communal need for cleanliness. The term public may confuse some people, as some types of public baths are restricted depending on membership, gender, religious affiliation, or other reasons. As societies have changed, public baths have been replaced as private bathing facilities became more commonly available. Public baths have also become incorporated into the social system Social structure is a term used in the social sciences to refer to patterned social arrangements which form the society as a whole, and which determine, to some varying degree, the actions of the individuals socialised into that structure. Whereas 'structure' refers to "the macro", "agency" refers to "the micro" as meeting places.
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Cultures and countries
Indus Valley Civilization
The earliest public baths are found in the ruins in of the Indus Valley Civilization The Indus Valley Civilization was a Bronze Age civilization (3300–1300 BCE; mature period 2600–1900 BCE) which was centred mostly in the western part of the Indian Subcontinent and which flourished around the Indus river basin.[n 1] Primarily centered along the Indus and the Punjab region, the civilization extended into the Ghaggar-Hakra River. According to John Keay, the "Great Bath" of Mohenjo Daro Mohenjo-daro was one of the largest city-settlements of the Indus Valley Civilization of South Asia situated in the province of Sindh, Pakistan. Built around 2600 BCE, the city was one of the early urban settlements in the world, existing at the same time as the civilizations of ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Crete. The archaeological ruins of in present-day Pakistan Pakistan (Urdu pronunciation: [paːkɪsˈtaːn] ( listen)), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan (Urdu: اسلامی جمہوریہ پاکِستان), is a country in South Asia. It has a 1,046-kilometre (650 mi) coastline along the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman in the south, is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, and India in the was the size of 'a modest municipal swimming pool A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, or simply a pool, is a container filled with water intended for swimming or water-based recreation. There are many standard sizes; the largest and deepest is the Olympic size. A pool can be built either above or in the ground, and from materials such as metal, plastic, fiberglass or concrete', complete with stairs leading down to the water at each one of its ends.[1] The bath is housed inside a larger—more elaborate—building and was used for public bathing.[1] the Great Bath and the house of the priest suggest that the Indus had a religion.
Greece
In The Book of the Bath, Françoise de Bonneville wrote, "The history of public baths begins in Greece in the sixth century B.C.," where men and women washed in basins near places of exercise, physical and intellectual. Later gymnasia had indoor basins set overhead, the open maws of marble lions offering showers, and circular pools with tiers of steps for lounging. Bathing was ritualized, becoming an art – of cleansing sands, hot water, hot air in dark vaulted "vapor baths," a cooling plunge, a rubdown with aromatic oils Fragrance oil, also known as aroma oils, aromatic oils, and flavor oils, are blended synthetic aroma compounds or natural essential oils that are diluted with a carrier like propylene glycol, vegetable oil, or mineral oil. Aromatic oils are used in perfumery, cosmetics, flavoring of food, and in aromatherapy. Cities all over Ancient Greece Ancient Greece is the civilization belonging to the period of Greek history lasting from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to 146 BC and the Roman conquest of Greece after the Battle of Corinth. At the center of this time period is Classical Greece, which flourished during the 5th to 4th centuries BC, at first under Athenian honored sites where "young ephebes stood and splashed water over their bodies."
Rome
Main article: Thermae The terms balnea or thermae (from Greek thermos 'hot') were the words the ancient Romans used for the buildings housing their public bathsThe first public thermae of 19 BC had a rotunda 25 meters across, circled by small rooms, set in a park with artificial river and pool. By AD 300 the Baths of Diocletian would cover 1.5 million square feet The square foot is an imperial unit / U.S. customary unit of area, used mainly in the United States, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Japan, Afghanistan and Canada. It is defined as the area of a square with sides of 1 foot (0.333... yards, 12 inches, or 0.3048 metres) in length. For comparison, the average one-family house in the United States in 20 (140,000 m²), its soaring granite and porphyry sheltering 3,000 bathers a day. Roman baths became "something like a cross between an aquacentre and a theme park Amusement park and theme park are terms for a group of rides and other entertainment attractions assembled for the purpose of entertaining a large group of people. An amusement park is more elaborate than a simple city park or playground, usually providing attractions meant to cater to children, teenagers, and adults," with pools, game rooms, gardens, even libraries and theatres. One of the most famous public bath sites is Aquae Sulis The Roman Baths complex is a site of historical interest in the English city of Bath. The house is a well-preserved Roman site for public bathing in Bath, England Bath is a city in the ceremonial county of Somerset in the south west of England. It is situated 97 miles (156 km) west of London and 13 miles (21 km) south-east of Bristol. The population of the city is 83,992. It was granted city status by Royal Charter by Queen Elizabeth I in 1590, and was made a county borough in 1889 which gave it.
Japan
Main article: Sentō Sentō is a type of Japanese communal bath house where customers pay for entrance. Traditionally these bath houses have been quite utilitarian, with one large room separating the sexes by a tall barrier, and on both sides, usually a minimum of lined up faucets and a single large bath for the already washed bathers to sit in among others. Since theThe origin of Japanese bathing is Misogi Misogi is a Japanese mountain ascetic practice of lustration. This may be undertaken through exhaustive activities such as extended periods without sleep, breath training , standing under waterfalls, or other methods. Water-misogi may be likened to dousing practices. The bulk of this article will deal with "water" misogi, ritual purification with water.[2] After Japan imported Buddhist culture, many temples had saunas, which were available for anyone to use for free.
In the Heian period The Heian period is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height. The Heian period is also considered the peak of the Japanese, houses of prominent families, such as the families of court nobles or samurai, had baths. The bath had lost its religious significance and instead became leisure. Misogi became Gyōzui, to bathe in a shallow wooden tab.[3]
In the seventeenth century, the first European visitors to Japan recorded the habit of daily baths in sexually mixed groups.[2] Before the mid-1800s, when Western influence increased, nude communal bathing for men, women, and children at the local unisex public bath, or sentō Sentō is a type of Japanese communal bath house where customers pay for entrance. Traditionally these bath houses have been quite utilitarian, with one large room separating the sexes by a tall barrier, and on both sides, usually a minimum of lined up faucets and a single large bath for the already washed bathers to sit in among others. Since the, was a daily fact of life.
In contemporary times, many administrative regions require public baths to have separate facilities for males and females. Public baths using water from onsen An onsen is a term for hot springs in the Japanese language, though the term is often used to describe the bathing facilities and inns around the hot springs. As a volcanically active country, Japan has thousands of onsen scattered along its length and breadth. Onsen were traditionally used as public bathing places and today play a central role in (hot springs) are particularly popular. Towns with hot springs are destination resorts, which are visited daily by the locals and people from other, neighboring towns.
Ottoman Empire
Main article: Turkish bath A Turkish bath is the Turkish variant of a sauna, distinguished by a focus on water, as opposed to steamDuring the Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire was a regime that lasted from 1299 to 1923 public baths were widely used. The baths had both a religious and popular origin deriving from the Qur'an The Qur’an is the central religious verbal text of Islam, also sometimes transliterated as Quran, Koran, Qur’ān, or Al-Qur’ān. Muslims believe the Qur’an to be the verbal book of divine guidance and direction for mankind. Its text addresses the Arabic speaking "children of Israel". Muslims also consider the original Arabic (ablution ritual) and the use of steamrooms by the Turks Islam , Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Shamanism, Tengriism, Atheism, Agnosticism and Syncretic religion.
United Kingdom
In the late 1790s ritual and elite baths were available, but it was not until the mid 1800s that Britain's first true public bath house was opened. The original baths were used for individual washing and men-only swimming. It was not until 1914 that family bathing was allowed.[4] The introduction of bath houses into British culture The culture of the United Kingdom refers to the patterns of human activity and symbolism associated with the United Kingdom and the British people. It is informed by the UK's history as a developed island country, being a major power, and, its composition of four countries—England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales—each of which have was a response to the public's desire for increased sanitary conditions, and by 1915 most towns in Britain had at least one.[5]
Famous baths
- Gymnasium (ancient Greece) The gymnasium in ancient Greece functioned as a training facility for competitors in public games. It was also a place for socializing and engaging in intellectual pursuits. The name comes from the Greek term gymnos meaning naked. Athletes competed in the nude, a practice said to encourage aesthetic appreciation of the male body and a tribute to – Ancient Greece
- Esalen – USA
- Bathhouse Row in Hot Springs National Park Established from Hot Springs Reservation, Hot Springs National Park is a United States National Park in central Arkansas adjacent to the city of Hot Springs. Hot Springs Reservation was initially created by an act of the United States Congress on April 20, 1832, and the area was made a national park on March 4, 1921. It is the smallest national, Arkansas The name "Arkansas" derives from the same root as the name for the state of Kansas. The Kansas tribe of Native Americans are closely associated with the Sioux tribes of the Great Plains. The word "Arkansas" itself is a French pronunciation of a Quapaw (a related "Kaw" tribe) word "akakaze" meaning "land, USA ^ b. English is the de facto language of American government and the sole language spoken at home by 80% of Americans age five and older. Spanish is the second most commonly spoken language had eight bath houses in a row; all but one are now closed.
Public baths in different cultures
- Thermae The terms balnea or thermae (from Greek thermos 'hot') were the words the ancient Romans used for the buildings housing their public baths – Roman
- Banya – Russian
- Sweat lodge The sweat lodge is a ceremonial sauna and is an important event in some North American First Nations or Native American cultures. There are several styles of sweat lodges that include a domed or oblong hut similar to a wickiup, or even a simple hole dug into the ground and covered with planks or tree trunks. Stones are typically heated in an – Native American The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Americas, their descendants, and many ethnic groups who identify with those peoples. They are often also referred to as Native Americans, First Nations, Amerigine, and by Christopher Columbus' geographical mistake Indians, modernly disambiguated as the American Indian
- Sauna A sauna session can be a social affair in which the participants disrobe and sit or recline in temperatures of over 80 °C . This induces relaxation and promotes sweating – Finnish
- Hammam The Hamam is the Middle Eastern variant of a steam bath, which can be categorized as a wet relative of the sauna – Turkish
- Onsen An onsen is a term for hot springs in the Japanese language, though the term is often used to describe the bathing facilities and inns around the hot springs. As a volcanically active country, Japan has thousands of onsen scattered along its length and breadth. Onsen were traditionally used as public bathing places and today play a central role in & Sentō Sentō is a type of Japanese communal bath house where customers pay for entrance. Traditionally these bath houses have been quite utilitarian, with one large room separating the sexes by a tall barrier, and on both sides, usually a minimum of lined up faucets and a single large bath for the already washed bathers to sit in among others. Since the – Japanese
- Jjimjilbang & Mogyoktang – Korean
See also
- Ancient Roman bathing
- Bathing Bathing is the immersion of the body in a fluid, usually water or an aqueous solution. It may be practised for hygiene, religious or therapeutic purposes or as a recreational activity
- Gay bathhouse
- Steam shower A steam shower is a type of bathing where a humidifying steam generator produces water vapor that is dispersed around a person's body. A steam shower is essentially a steam room that offers the typical features of a bathroom shower. Steam showers are generally found in self-contained enclosures that prevent the water vapour from escaping into the
- Skinny dipping Nude swimming is swimming naked, i.e. without any swimsuit. Skin(ny) diving is both used as a synonym and for free diving
Notes
- ^ a b Keay, John (2001), India: A History, 13–14, Grove Press, ISBN 0-8021-3797-0.
- ^ a b Clark 1994, backcover Misogi
- ^ Clark 1994, p.36 Gyōzui
- ^ Port Cities: – Liverpool baths and wash houses timeline, 1789–1952
- ^ Profit is a Dirty Word: The Development of Public Baths and Wash-houses in Britain 1847–1915 – SHEARD 13 (1): 63 – Social History of Medicine
References
- Clark, Scott (1994). Japan, a view from the bath. University of Hawaii Press. ISBN The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering (SBN) code created by Gordon Foster, now Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H. Smith and others in 1966 0824816579. http://books.google.com/books?id=pT7tP4zFHdYC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false.
External links
| Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Baths |
- www.OnsenJapan.net Interactive Google map of Japanese baths with easy-to-read icons, pictures, and reviews
- Swiss Indoor and Open-Air Swimming Pool Guide – Directory and Description of Swiss Public Swimming Pools
- SentoGuide – A guide to public baths in Japan
Categories: Bathing
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