Remnants of leather loincloths have been found with the remains of
pre-historic man living more than 7,000 years ago. The loincloth is the
simplest and probably the first undergarment worn by human beings. It
was often worn alone in warmer climates and covered by outer garments in
colder areas. Egyptians as long ago as 2, 000 B.C. used fabric to form
an undergarment over which they wore other clothing. In tombs of the
pharaohs, supplies of underwear for further use after death were buried
with them.
Ancient Greeks dressed very simply with a ‘chiton’, an oblong of
woolen cloth large enough to wrap around the body from the neck down to
just above the knees. The side left open was fastened by a ‘fibulae’ a
pin or brooch. A girdle was worn round it and the ‘chiton’ could by
pulled through it and worn high by those who were physically active and
left long by the older gentlemen. Over this was worn the ‘himation’, an
outer cloak. Slaves wore loincloths. However, the ancient Greeks did not
wear underwear.
The closest article of clothing worn by men in ancient Rome was
called a subligaculum, which in modern terms means a pair of shorts or a
loincloth and was worn under a toga or tunic.
Around the 13th century, pull-on underpants were invented and
underwear became an important garment. The loincloth was replaced by
large, baggy drawers called ‘braies’, which were often made from linen
and seem to be worn by men from all classes of society under their
normal clothing. Knights wore ‘braies’ under several layers of clothing
topped by their armor. The wearer stepped into them and then laced or
tied them around the waist and legs at about mid-calf. We know what they
look like from illuminations of hot field-workers dispensing with all
their clothes other than their braies for modesty and coolness.
Wealthier men often wore chausses as well, which only covered the legs.
In Europe underwear played an important role in shaping outerwear.
Items for men developed during this time and included corsets, cod
pieces, stockings, undershirts and drawers.
By the Renaissance, the ‘chausses’ became form fitting like modern
hose, and the braies became shorter to accommodate longer styles of
chausses. However, chausses and many braies designs were not intended to
be covered up by other clothing, so they are not actually underwear in
the strictest sense. Braies were usually fitted with a flap in the front
that buttoned or tied closed. This codpiece allowed men to urinate
without having to remove the braies completely. At first, the codpiece
was entirely a practical matter of modesty. Men’s hose were typically
very snug on the legs and open at the crotch, with the genitalia simply
hanging loose under the doublet. A shortening of the doublet resulted in
often-exposed genitalia, so the codpiece came into being. As time
passed, codpieces were shaped to emphasize the male genitalia and
eventually often became padded and bizarrely shaped. Henry VIII of
England began padding his own codpiece, which caused a spiraling trend
of larger and larger codpieces that only ended by the end of the 16th
Century. They also often doubled as pockets, handy carrying places for a
variety of items.
The modern men’s shirt appeared during this era, but it was
originally an undergarment. Renaissance noblemen also adopted the
doublet, a vest-like garment tied together in the front and worn under
other clothing.
In Victorian times men’s undergarments were in two pieces and all
undergarments were made by hand. Materials used were cotton through
linen and even silk. In America, before the Civil War, from the waist
down “drawers” were worn which were usually made of wool flannel, but
could be of any fabric. The most common were knee length with a simple
button overlap in front and a drawstring at the waist in the back. The
preferred upper garment was a wool flannel shirt worn next to the skin.
The Industrial Revolution with the invention of water-powered
spinning machines and the ¹cotton gin¹ made cotton fabrics widely
available and saw the beginning of mass-produced underwear. For the
first time, people began buying undergarments in stores rather than
making them at home. The standard undergarment of this period for men,
women, and children was the Œunion suit¹, which provided coverage from
the wrists to the ankles. The union suits of the era were usually made
of knitted material and included a drop flap in the back to ease visits
to the toilet. Because the top and bottom were united as a one-piece
garment it received the name Œunion suit¹. Hanes opened several mills
producing ‘union suits’. Originally made with ankle length legs and long
sleeves, later versions were available in knee length versions with or
without sleeves.
The name ‘Long Johns’, long skin-tight underpants, was actually first
used for the long underwear issued to American soldiers during World
War Two. The name is derived from the old boxing gear worn by John L.
Sullivan, who was a boxer in the late 1880s, the height of his career
being 1882-92.
In the 1930s, union suits went out of favor and
men boxer briefs
became the ‘vogue’. The 1930s saw another major innovation, that is
easy elastic waists replaced button, snap, and tie closures. At around
this time companies began selling buttonless drawers fitted with an
elastic waistband, which were the first true boxer shorts. The name is
derived from the shorts worn by professional fighters. The word
“underpants” also entered the dictionary.
‘Jockey’ began making briefs in 1930 but it was not until 1934 with
the advent of ‘Jockey’ Y-vent briefs that the design of men¹s underwear
made a leap forward. It was the first time an easy-to-use diagonal vent
was applied to boxers and briefs. Today one can buy jockey shorts which
are knit fabric, with access pouch or flap, usually at or near true
waist, leg bands at tops of thighs. Traditional high and lox cut jockey
shorts have vertical flaps or diagonal flaps. In 1936 ŒMunsingwear¹
developed the ‘kangeroo pouch’ underwear which used a horizontal vent.
During the Second World War there was a difficulty in obtaining
underwear as the first priority were troops abroad. Also there was a
shortage of rubber and metal, and button fasteners were again used. For
the first time color was used for underwear; soldiers were issued with
drab-olive briefs for safety, as white briefs were too conspicuous when
being hung up to dry. The preferred undergarments of this period were
knit briefs, broadcloth shorts with buttons, and the union suit. Designs
incorporated French backs, that is a design with small tabs at the rear
of the waistband, usually secured by buttons, for adjusting the size
and fit at the waist, and tie-sides.
At war’s end, Jockey and Hanes remained the industry leaders. Also at
the end of the war a preshrinking process called Sanforization came to
be used. Prior to this one had to buy underwear a size larger to allow
for shrinkage in the wash.
After the Second World War underwear continued to change
significantly helping create the shape and the look for the outer
clothes we wear. In 1947 came the introduction of nylon tricot, as well
as men’s stretch briefs, and in 1950 the first T-shirts with
nylon-reinforced neckbands to prevent sagging were introduced.
From the 1950s design in underwear became more innovative and
exciting with the introduction of color and pattern. Underwear began to
be a fashion statement. New fabrics were introduced such as rayon,
Dacron and DuPont nylon. Nylon tricot briefs were made in a multitude of
colors. By the 1960s boxer shorts were decorated with every type of
‘fun’ image and bikini type underwear was introduced using animal
prints. However, white cotton underwear was still the major seller.
New fabric technology continued to offer better comfort in
men’s underwear,
particularly with the introduction of Lycra and Spandex. In the 1960s
in Italy Peppino Gheduzzi realized the importance of elasticity in
fabrics used in men’s underwear to improve comfort (close – fitting –
support). He proposed the idea to Du Pont and subsequently the first
product in Lycra Cotton was realized. Spandex was created in the late
1950s and developed by Du Pont, but the first commercial production of
Spandex fiber in the United States began in 1959. Underwear became
smaller with far more variety designed for specific age groups and
purposes.
In the 1970s and 1980s the new ‘designer’ underwear producers as
Calvin Klein, Sauvage, Ron Chereskin, Tommy Hilfiger, 2(x)ist, as well
as Jockey, used ‘sex’ as the main selling point for major advertising
campaigns. Briefs got briefer and great design, unusual fabrics,
wonderful colors and combinations, and great variety of choice made for
underwear becoming a ‘fashion’ item. Today you can get underwear for
sports, casual, romance, figure enhancement, warmth (thermals), humor,
and with dual purposes such as the inclusion of pockets. Also, like the
women’s designs, the newest and hottest styles are almost totally
seamless.
The modern sexualization of underwear has started one more curious
trend: not wearing underwear at all. This practice is known in slang as
freeballing (or freebuffing for females); going commando (a term
popularized by the TV show ŒFriends)¹ is also used for both sexes. This
trend only emphasizes how far underwear has come from its beginnings as a
hygienic aide. When modern people bathe every day, underwear is not
nearly as necessary, and with underwear as the final barrier to sex, not
wearing it at all is a powerful turn-on for many people. Traditionally a
kilt is worn without underpants.
Boxer Briefs: In the 1990s, retailers started selling
mens thong,
which take the longer shape of boxers but maintain the tightness of
briefs. Though marketed as a new design, these are actually quite
similar to the bottom half of the two-part union suits worn in the
1910s. Boxer style are at or near true waist, leg sections extending to
thighs) . They can be woven boxers (traditional) or knit boxers (like
traditional but with more fabric give) . Boxer briefs ere also knit and
more form-fitting . Pouch boxer briefs have a pouch for genitals rather
than access flap and athletic and bike-style boxers are generally
skin-tight, usually with no access pouch or flap, like short tights
Bikinis: The ‘bikini’ was invented in 1946 by two Frenchmen, Jacques
Heim and Louis Reard, who named it after the Bikini Atoll in the
Marshall Islands, the site of atomic bomb testing, because the 2-piece
swimsuit was miniscule in size. The name became popular for both men and
women¹s briefs. Bikini briefs can be low or high-side bikini briefs but
are usually lower than true waist, often at hips, and usually have no
access pouch or flap, legs bands at tops of thighs. String bikini
briefs, another style have front and rear sections meet in the crotch
but not at the waistband, with no fabric on the side of the legs.
Thongs & G Strings: Men in ancient cultures wore thong-like items
for ease and comfort. The thong was very popular in South America,
particularly in Brazil, since the 1980s and was used on the beaches as
swimwear by both men and women. Even prior to this ‘exotic dancers’ were
thongs. But at that time you could not wear thong swimsuits on the U.S.
beaches and the fashion was slow to catch on. Nowadays the thong has
become popular as underwear not only for its erotic appeal, but its use
has the ability to give a smooth and rounded finish to the bottom,
particularly for wear under tight trousers. Current styles:
• G-string have a front pouch for the genitals but no rear coverage
• Thongs have a strap securing the pouch at the bottom rear, passing up the crack between the buttocks to the waistband
• Athletic supporters use two straps securing the pouch at the bottom
rear, passing around the bases of the buttocks up to the waistband at
the sides.
• Strapless pouches have a front pouch and waistband only with no securing straps
