G-string

A G-string or thong is a narrow piece of cloth or leather, or plastic that passes between the buttocks. It is attached to a band around the hips. It can be worn as a swimwear or underwear by both men and women. The two terms G-string and thong are often used interchangeably however, the primary difference between the two garments is that a g-string has less material between the legs, hence a string-like appearance. Variants of the thong or G-string include the V-string, a thong with a triangle "v" of cloth with the G-string between the legs, and the T-string, where a single string passes around the waist and between the legs, forming a T between the buttocks.

An example of a g-string

Origin

The G-string or thong is probably the earliest form of clothing known to mankind. It originated in the warmer climates of sub-Saharan Africa where clothing was first worn nearly 75,000 years ago. Many tribal peoples, such as some of the Khoisan people of southern Africa, wore thongs for many centuries. Much like the 2000-plus-year-old Japanese fundoshi, these early garments were made with the male genitalia in mind. Although developed for the male anatomy by primitive peoples, in the modern West thongs are more often worn by females. They first gained mainstream popularity as swimwear in South America, particularly in Brazil in the 1970s. In Brazil, where the buttocks ("bunda" in Portuguese) are especially admired and emphasized; it was originally a style of swimsuit whose rear area became so narrow that it would disappear between the wearer's buttocks.

The origin of the term "G-string" is obscure. The term is first attested in writings by Americans in the late 1800s describing the loincloth of Philippine natives. Others say the term is derived from the g-string on an instrument. The origin of the word "thong" is from the Old English thwong, a flexible leather cord.

Precautions

G-strings may cause urinary tract infections (UTIs) in women, just like other types of underwear. Sliding the string against the anus and vagina can let bacteria get inside the body. It is necessary for the person who wears G-strings to be keep the anus and vagina clean. Menstruating women can also continue to wear G-strings if they are using tampons and G-string panty liners.

In other languages

• In Lithuania, the G-string is often called "stringai", or more national name "siaurikės".

• In Portugal and Brazil, the G-string is often referred called fio dental. This means "dental floss".

• In Italy, the G-string is called "perizoma" or wrongly "tanga" (in Italian language "tanga" is a micro-panties).

• In Turkey, the G-string is called "ipli külot" (ipli means "stringed" and külot means "underpants"). Inn Italy, it is also wrongly called "tanga".

• In French, German and Dutch, the G-string is usually called "string", a loanword from English.

• In Puerto Rico, a Spanish slang term often used for G-string is gistro. This is most commonly used by Reggaeton artists to refer to the underwear style.

• In Argentina and Chile, G-String is widely known as colaless. In those countries, cola means buttocks. Colaless means "buttocks-less".

• In the Japanese language and also in Cantonese, the G-string is widely known as T-back. This is because of its shape seen from behind. The word is sometimes confused with "tea bag". The term T-back is also commonly used in the Philippines. However, there are also several usages of the term "T-back" in English as well. These include Children's literature author E.L. Konigsburg's T-backs, T-shirts, Coat and Suit. In other kinds of the Chinese language, the G-string is commonly called as dingziku (丁字裤). It means "t character pants".

• In Czech, Estonian, Finnish, German, Hungarian and Spanish the G-string is often called "tanga". In Finnish, the plural stringit "strings" is used, as they are pants, not a "pant".

• In Polish the G-string is usually called stringi, which is a pluralized loanword from English (literally: "strings").

• In Australia only the term G-string is used. Thongs are a type of rubber footwear.

See also

• Swimsuit
• Clothes