Naturism

Naturism, or nudism, is a cultural and political movement practicing, advocating and defending social nudity, most but not all of which takes place on private property. The term may also refer to a lifestyle based on personal, family and/or social nudism.

Definition

According to the XIV Congress of the International Naturist Federation (Agde, France, 1974), naturism is:

Several other terms ("social nudity", "public nudity", "skinny dipping", "sunning", and "clothes-free") have been proposed as alternative terms for naturism, but none has found the same widespread public acceptance as the older terms "naturism" and (in much of the United States) "nudism".

People interested in social nudity can attend clothes-free beaches and other types of ad-hoc nudist events. At these venues, participants generally need not belong to a naturist club.

Many contemporary naturists and naturist organisations feel that the practice of social nudity should be asexual. For various social, cultural, and historical reasons the lay public, the media, and many contemporary naturists and their organisations often oversimplify the relationship between naturism and sexuality. Current research has begun to explore this complex relationship.