Glabrousness
 |
La Naissance de Venus by Eugène Emmanuel Amaury-Duval (1808â€"1885) shows a woman portrayed with no pubic or armpit hair. |
Glabrousness is the technical term for having a lack of
hair or
down. Those who are glabrous have either performed
depilation, or have
medical conditions like
alopecia universalis in which hair does not grow or in which all hair is lost.
It is not usually considered to be a
sexual fetish, although it can sometimes become one.
The preference for hairless genitals is not normally related to any form of attraction towards a pre-pubescent age group. Although the appearance of secondary hair on parts of the body is a sign of
puberty, in
Western cultures it is socially accepted for men and women to remove body hair to enhance their perceived
femininity and youthful appearanceâ€"in particular, underarm, facial and leg hair. Pubic hair removal can sometimes be seen as an extension of this preference. The shaving of the chest, scrotum, underarms is also becoming increasingly prevalent among males in these cultures.
Those with this preference will argue that genitals without hair are more
aesthetically pleasing, and therefore more attractive and
arousing. It is also claimed that sexual activity between two acomoclitics is a far more sensual experience as it gives a more tactile, intimate "skin-to-skin" contact. The removal of pubic hair can also facilitate
oral sex, as it both reduces odor and allows for easier mouth to genital contact.
A preference for hairless genitals is not necessarily just a sexual preferenceâ€"it can be a cultural or religious one.
Judging by their artifacts, earlier civilizations and societies have often portrayed their citizens and members with no pubic hair. Even today, naked statues of females rarely show any sign of pubic hair, although they always show abundant hair on their heads. On the other hand, male statues do tend to show some representation of pubic hair. Some examples of artwork from
Ancient Greece and
Ancient Rome show men and women without pubic and/or body hair.
Some Muslims believe that the
Sunnah directs all adults, as a part of keeping clean, to remove most body hair, including the armpits and pubic area.
In the last few years in Western culture, the removal of pubic hair has become far more mainstream and even fashionable. The term "
Brazilian" is used to describe the partial or full removal of pubic hair, as the
thongs worn on Brazilian beaches were too brief to cover it up, and any sign of pubic curls emerging from underneath a
swimsuit is regarded as unfashionable in many countries. Indeed, a culture is now emerging of "intimate shaving" that is geared specifically around the pubic area. What was once kept a personal secret is now discussed openly in magazines and on television.
The practice of removing body hair and pubic hair in the Western world has extended to men, with some men now removing their body hair and pubic hair. This is known as
manscaping.
In the
clothes free movement, the term "smoothie" is often used to describe an acomoclitic individual. In the past, such open displays were frowned upon and in some cases, members of clothes-free clubs were actually forbidden to remove their pubic hair and, if they did, they were excluded from the club. Others have grouped together and formed societies of their own. Depilation has become popular over the past 30 years [
1].
*
Depilation fetishism*
Pubic hair*
Merkin, a "pubic wig"
