A toilet is a sanitation fixture used primarily for the disposal of human excrement. Flush toilets, which are common in many parts of the world, may be connected to a nearby septic tank or more commonly in urban areas via a sewerage system to a more distant sewage treatment plant; chemical toilets are used in mobile and many temporary situations where there is no access to sewerage, dry toilets, including pit toilets and composting toilet require no or little water with excreta being removed manually or composted in situ. The word ''toilet'' may also be used, especially in British English to describe the room containing the fixture for which euphemisms such as ''restroom'' or ''bathroom'' are used in American English. Prior to the introduction of modern flush toilets, most human waste disposal took place outdoors in outhouses or latrines. Pail closets were introduced in England and France in an attempt to reduce disease in rapidly expanding cities.

Ancient civilisations which used toilets attached to sewage systems included those of the Indus Valley Civilization, e.g., Harappa and Mohenjo-daro which are located in present day India and Pakistan and also the Romans and Egyptians. Although a precursor to the modern flush toilet system was designed in 1596 by John Harington, such systems did not come into widespread use until the late nineteenth century.

Diseases, including cholera which affects some 3 million people each year can be largely prevented when effective sanitation stops fecal matter getting into waterways, groundwater and drinking water supplies. There have been five main cholera outbreaks and pandemics since 1825, during one of which in which 10,000 people died in London alone a physician named John Snow proved that deaths were being caused by people drinking water from a source that had been contaminated by a nearby cesspit; the London sewer system of the time had not reached crowded Soho and many houses had cellars (basements) with overflowing cesspools underneath their floorboards.

According to ''The Global Water Supply and Sanitation Assessment 2000'' by the World Health Organization, 40% of the global population does not have access to 'excreta disposal facilities', mostly in Asia and Africa and there are efforts being made to design simple effective toilets for these people.

Types of toilets

Various forms of flush toilet, including the widely used squat toilet have become widely used in modern times Urinals are used for men to urinate with the female urination device being designed to allow women to urinate standing upright. Heads (on ships) are flushed with seawater. The Reredorter was a design used in mediaeval monasteries in Western Europe and later also in some New World positioned over a stream or watercourse to remove waste. The amount of water used by modern toilets is a significant portion of personal water usage, totalling used per capita per day in 1990 in the United States. Dual flush toilet allow the use to select between a flush for urine or feces saving a significant amount of water over conventional units. In some places users are encouraged not to flush after urination; Flush toilet may also use greywater (water previously used for washing dishes, laundry and bathing) for flushing rather than potable water (drinking water).

Dry toilets, which use very limited or no water for flushing include the pit toilet (a simple hole in the ground, or one with ventilation, fly guards and other improvements) and composting toilet (which mix excrement with carbon rich materials for faster decomposition), incinerating toilet (which burn the excrement), the Tree bog (a simple system for converting excrement as direct fertiliser for trees. The pig toilet from the Indian state of Goa which consist of an outhouse linked to a pig enclosure by a chute is still in use to a limited extent but the subsequent use of the pigs for food carries a significant risk for human health. The unsanitary 'flying toilet' used in African slums where plastic shopping bags are first used as as a container for excrement and are then thrown as far away as possible." This practice has led to the banning of the manufacture and import of such bags in Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania. A toilet that pays its users has been opened in Musiri, Tamil Nadu, India. It is the first of its kind. The feces it receives are composted, and the urine is used as fertilzer for bananas and other food crops. Users are paid up to 12 U.S. cents a month. Before the introduction of modern flush toilets it was common for people to use a chamber pot at night and then to dispose of the 'nightsoil' in the morning; this practice (known as slopping out) continued in prisons in the United Kingdom until recently and is still in use in the Republic of Ireland. The garderobe was used in medieval times and then the privy midden and pail closet in early industrial Europe.

Chemical toilets which do not require a connection to a water supply are used in a variety of situations. Examples include passenger train toilets) and airplane toilet and also the space toilet for zero-gravity spacecraft. More primitive designs of train toilets still drop excrement directly onto the tracks. The portable toilet is used on construction sites and at large gatherings.

Public toilets are ones that are open to the general public with common access from the street for which a fee may be charged (pay toilet) or for which a fee is expected, but not enforced. A charge levied in the UK during the mid-20th century was one British penny, hence the generally adopted term "spend a penny" meaning to use the toilet. Accessible toilets are designed for use by people with disabilities. Outdoor public toilets (in the street, around parks, etc.) are a form of street furniture. For mixed sex arrangements, there are cubicles varying from simple devices with little or no plumbing to more luxurious versions that automatically clean themselves after every use (for the latter, see Sanisette). Facilities without walls all around are typically for urination only, and for men only; although passers-by can see the urinating men from the back, they cannot see the genitals. These street urinals are known as ''Pissoirs'' after the French term (see Urinal).

'High-tech' toilets include features such as automatic-flushing mechanisms (which automatically flush a toilet when the user stands up, or flush a urinal when the user steps away), water jets, or "bottom washers" like a bidet, as an alternative to toilet paper together with blow dryers which dry the body after use of water jets, artificial flush sounds to mask noises such as body functions, urine and stool analysis for medical monitoring - Matsushita's "Smart Toilet" checks blood pressure, temperature, and blood sugar. Also automatic lid operation, heated seats, deodorizing fans and automated paper toilet-seat-cover replacers. Interactive urinals have been developed in several countries, allowing users to play video games while urinating as with the 'Toylet', produced Sega, which uses pressure sensors to detect the flow of urine and translate it into on-screen action.

Etymology

The word toilet came to be used in English along with other French fashions. It originally referred to the ''toile'', French for "cloth", draped over a lady or gentleman's shoulders while their hair was being dressed, and then (in both French and English) by extension to the various elements, and also the whole complex of operations of hairdressing and body care that centered at a dressing table, also covered by a cloth, on which stood a mirror and various brushes and containers for powder and make-up: this ensemble was also a ''toilette'', as also was the period spent at the table, during which close friends or tradesmen were often received. The English poet Alexander Pope in ''The Rape of the Lock'' (1717) described the intricacies of a lady's preparation:

These various senses are first recorded by the ''OED'' in rapid sequence in the later 17th century: the set of "articles required or used in dressing" 1662, the "action or process of dressing" 1681, the cloth on the table 1682, the cloth round the shoulders 1684, the table itself 1695, and the "reception of visitors by a lady during the concluding stages of her toilet" 1703 (also known as a "toilet-call"), but in the sense of a special room the earliest use is 1819, and this does not seem to include a lavatory.

Through the 18th century, everywhere in the English-speaking world, these various uses centred around a lady's draped dressing-table remained dominant. In the 19th century, apparently first in the United States, the word was adapted as a genteel euphemism for the room and the object as we know them now, perhaps following the French usage ''cabinet de toilette'', much as ''powder-room'' may be coyly used today, and this has been linked to the introduction of public toilets, for example on railway trains, which required a plaque on the door. The original usages have become obsolete, and the table has become a ''dressing-table''.

Vestiges of the original meaning continue to be reflected in terms such as ''toiletries'', ''eau de toilette'' and ''toiletry bag'' (to carry flannels, soaps, etc). This seemingly contradictory terminology has served as the basis for various parodies e.g. ''Cosmopolitan'' magazine ("If it doesn't say 'eau de toilette' on the label, it most likely doesn't come from the famed region of Eau de Toilette in France and might not even come from toilets at all.")

The word ''toilet'' itself may be considered an impolite word in the United States, while elsewhere the word is used without any embarrassment. The choice of the word used instead of ''toilet'' is highly variable, not just by regional dialect but also, at least in Britain, by class connotations. Nancy Mitford wrote an essay out of the choice of wording; see U and non-U English. Some manufacturers show this uneasiness with the word and its class attributes: American Standard, the largest manufacturer, sells them as "toilets", yet the higher priced products of the Kohler Company, often installed in more expensive housing, are sold as ''commodes'' or ''closets'', words which also carry other meanings. Confusingly, products imported from Japan such as TOTO are referred to as "toilets", even though they carry the cachet of higher cost and quality. When referring to the room or the actual piece of equipment, the word ''toilet'' is often substituted with other euphemisms and dysphemisms (See ''toilet humor'').

As old euphemisms have become accepted, they have been progressively replaced by newer ones, an example of the euphemism treadmill at work. The choice of word used to describe the room or the piece of plumbing relies as much on regional variation (dialect) as on social situation and level of formality (register).

The term lavatory, abbreviated in slang to lav, derives from the , which in turn comes from Latin ''lavō'' ("I wash"). The word was used to refer to a vessel for washing, such as a sink/wash basin, and thus came to mean a room with such washing vessels, as for example in medieval monasteries, where the ''lavatorium'' was the monks' communal washing area. The toilets in monasteries however were not in the ''lavatorium'' but in the reredorter. Nevertheless the word was later associated with toilets and the meaning evolved into its current one, namely the polite and formal euphemism for a toilet and the room containing it. Lavatory is the common signage for toilets on commercial airlines around the world, see Aircraft lavatory.

The origin of the (chiefly British) term loo is unknown. According to the OED, the etymology is obscure, but it might derive from the word Waterloo. The first recorded entry is in fact from James Joyce's ''Ulysses'' (1922)'': "O yes, mon loup. How much cost? Waterloo. Watercloset".

Other theories are:

That it derives from the term "gardyloo" (a corruption of the French phrase ''gardez l'eau'' (or maybe: Gare de l'eau!) loosely translated as "watch out for the water!") which was used in medieval times when chamber pots were emptied from a window onto the street. However the first recorded usage of "loo" comes long after this term became obsolete.

That the word comes from nautical terminology, loo being an old-fashioned word for lee. The standard nautical pronunciation (in British English) of ''leeward'' is ''looward''. Early ships were not fitted with toilets but the crew would urinate over the side of the vessel. However it was important to use the leeward side. Using the windward side would result in the urine blown back on board: hence the phrases 'pissing into the wind' and 'spitting into the wind'. Even now most yachtsmen refer to ''the loo'' rather than ''the heads''.

That the word derives from the 17th century preacher Louis Bourdaloue. Bourdaloue's sermons at the Saint Paul-Saint Louis Church in Paris lasted at least three hours and myth has it that wealthier ladies took along "travelling" chamber pots that could be hidden under their dresses whenever the need arose to avoid the need to leave. Due to the popularity of the myth the bowls became known as Bourdaloues after the preacher and the name became corrupted to portaloos and sometimes just plain loos due to the habit of shortening words in slang.

The WC refers to the initial letters of Water Closet, which, despite being an English language abbreviation, is not in common use in English-speaking countries - but is widely used internationally: in France (pronounced "le vay-say" or "le vater"), in Italy (pronouced "vi-ci" or "vater"), Romania (pronounced "veh-cheu") and Hungary (pronounced "vey-tsay"), the Netherlands (pronounced "waysay"), Germany and Switzerland (pronounced "ve-tse"), Denmark (pronounced "ve-se"), Norway (pronounced "vay-say") Poland (pronounced "vu-tse") and others. The CR refers to the initial letters of ''Comfort Room'', used commonly in the Philippines.

Lexicographer Eric Partridge derives khazi, also spelt karzy, kharsie or carzey, from a low Cockney word ''carsey'' originating in the late 19th century and meaning a privy. Carsey also referred to a den or brothel. It is presumably derived from the Italian ''casa'' for house, with the spelling influenced by its similar sound to khaki. Khazi is now most commonly used in the city of Liverpool in the UK, away from its cockney slang roots.

An alternative derivation is from Christopher Chippindale, who states that khazi derives from Army slang used by expatriate officers of the British Empire who took a dislike to the habits of, and steaming rain forest inhabited by, the Khasi people of the Khasia hills on the northern frontier of India.

The Dunny is an Australian expression for an outside toilet or outhouse. The person who appeared weekly to empty the pan beneath the seat was known as the dunnyman. The word derives from the British dialect word dunnekin, meaning dung-house.

It is now an informal word used for any lavatory and is most often used referring to drop or pit lavatories in the Australian bush, which are also called ''thunderboxes''.

The Privy is an old fashioned term used more in the North of England and in Scotland; "privy" is an old alternative for "private", as in Privy council. It is used interchangeably in North America for various terms for the outhouse.

The netty is the most common word used in North East England. Many outsiders are often bemused when a Geordie or a Mackem states they are "gannin te the netty" (going to the bathroom). The etymology of the word is uncertain, but it is believed to be either derived from a corruption of "necessity" or from graffiti scrawled on Hadrian's Wall. It is linked to the Italian word ''gabinetti'' meaning "toilets" (singular ''gabinetto'').

The standalone toilet has been variously known as backhouse, house of ease, house of office, little house, or outhouse. The house of office was a common name for a toilet in seventeenth century England, used by, among others, Samuel Pepys on numerous occasions: ''October 23, 1660: ...going down into my cellar..., I put my foot into a great heap of turds, by which I find Mr Turner's house of office is full and comes into my cellar.''

Latrine is a term common in the military, specifically for the Army and Air Force for any point of entry facility where human waste is disposed of, which a civilian might call a bathroom or toilet, regardless of how modern or primitive it is. Traditionally the Royal Navy along with the United States Navy and Marine Corps use the nautical term "Head" to describe the same type of facility, regardless of whether it is located on a ship or on the land.

History

According to Teresi et al. (2002):

The third millennium B.C. was the "Age of Cleanliness." Toilets and sewers were invented in several parts of the world, and Mohenjo-Daro circa 2800 B.C. had some of the most advanced, with lavatories built into the outer walls of houses. These were "Western-style" toilets made from bricks with wooden seats on top. They had vertical chutes, through which waste fell into street drains or cesspits. Sir Mortimer Wheeler, the director general of archaeology in India from 1944 to 1948, wrote, "The high quality of the sanitary arrangements could well be envied in many parts of the world today."

The toilets at Mohenjo-Daro, described above, were only used by the affluent classes. Most people would have squatted over old pots set into the ground. The people of the Harappan civilization in Pakistan and north-western India had water-flushing toilets in each house that were linked with drains covered with burnt clay bricks.

Early water flushing toilets are also found at Skara Brae in Orkney, Scotland, which was occupied from about 3100 BC until 2500 BC. Some of the houses there have a drain running directly beneath them, and some of these had a cubicle over the drain. Around the 18th century BC, toilets started to appear in Minoan Crete; Egypt in the time of the Pharaohs and ancient Persia. In Roman civilization, toilets were sometimes part of public bath houses.

Roman toilets, like the ones pictured here, are commonly thought to have been used in the sitting position. But sitting toilets only came into general use in the mid-19th century in the western world. The Roman toilets were probably elevated to raise them above open sewers, rather than for sitting. Squat toilets are still used by the majority of the world's population.

Culture

There are also many different ways to clean oneself after using the toilet depends significantly on national mores and local resources. An important part of early childhood education is toilet training.

The most common method of cleaning after using a toilet in the Western world is toilet paper or sometimes using a bidet. In the Middle East and some countries in Asia, and South Asian countries such as India and Pakistan, the custom is to use water, either with or without toilet paper. Traditionally, the left hand is used for this, for which reason that hand is considered impolite or polluted in many eastern countries. Many poems have been composed on Latrines in India like "Latrine Karne Jaa Rae Hain, Chakkar Laga Ke Aa Rae Hain, Ghoom Ghoom Ke Aa Rae Hain" (I'm going latrine, and just coming after feeling fresh). The Islamic faith has a particular code, ''Qadaa' al-Haajah'' describing Islamic toilet etiquette.

Toilet humour is a name given to a type of off-colour humour dealing with defecation, urination, and flatulence.

See also

Bidet

Blackwater (waste)

Close stool

Ecological sanitation

''Flush!: The Scoop on Poop throughout the Ages'' (book)

Japanese toilets

Toilet-related injury

''The Truth About Poop'' (book)

World Toilet Organization (organizers of the annual "World Toilet Summit")

References

Further reading

"Flushed with success: new waste-reducing design in modern toiletry" by Jim Motavalli. ''E: The Environmental Magazine'', March-April, 1998

''Garden Houses and Privies, Authentic Details for Design and Restoration'' by Peter Joel Harrison. John Wiley & Sons, 2002. ISBN 0-471-20332-7 Member of the Outhouse Wall of Fame

''Slanguage - a Dictionary of Irish slang'' by Bernard Share. (Dublin,1997) ISBN 0-7171-2683-8

''Temples of Convenience - And Chambers of Delight'' by Lucinda Lambton (NPI Media Group, 2006) ISBN 0-7524-3893-X

''Thunder, Flush and Thomas Crapper'' by Adam Hart-Davis (Michael O'Mara Books, 1997), ISBN 1-57076-081-0.

''Clean and Decent - The Fascinating History of the Bathroom and the Water Closet'' by Lawrence Wright (Routledge and Kegan Paul, London, 1960).

Compendium of Sanitation Systems and Technologies - freely available PDF.

The hidden room A Short History of the ‘Privy’ by Johnny Ragland

''The Principles And Practice Of Modern House-Construction'': Chapter VIII. Interception Or Dry Systems G. Lister Sutcliffe. 1900

External links

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