How Women's Hygiene Lead to the Modern Bidet

Ever wanted to know the history of how the modern bidet came to be? Here’s everything you need to know about the history of the bidet.

The classic bidet is a miniature, bathtub-like fixture situated next to the toilet, with taps on one end. Its tub is filled with water, and the user straddles themselves over it to wash below the belt. But it took centuries before arriving at this version. In fact, today many countries still don't use bidets and instead use more traditional methods of cleaning themselves, like chamber pots or bamboo scrubbers.

The bidet was born in France in the 1600s as a washing basin for your private parts. It was considered a second step to the chamber pot, and both items were kept in the bedroom or dressing chamber. Some of the early versions of the bidet look like ornamental ottomans; the basins were inset in wooden furniture with short legs. Often lids made of wood, wicker, or leather topped the seated portion, disguising its function to a degree. The name is rooted in the French word for “pony,” which offers a helpful hint that the basin should be straddled. But it also picked up this moniker because royalty used it to clean up after a ride. Hauling water was a laborious process in that era, but bidet bathing was a regular indulgence for the aristocracy and upper classes. The use of a bidet was not immediately well received by other countries, especially Americans.

American soldiers first encountered bidets in European brothels and came to understand them as “symbols of sin” for washing away the unsavory scents and fluids associated with sleeping with strange men. In Europe, bidets were also used (ineffectively) as a means of birth control and a way of washing away the heavy flow of menstruation. This trifecta of women’s uses made bidets unappetizing to men who might’ve helped import them into America if only they had realized their use for men’s backsides. Other countries warmed up to the idea of a bidet much sooner than in the USA, and formed positive opinions regarding their health and hygiene benefits.

Opinions as to the necessity of the bidet vary widely over different nationalities and cultures. It is virtually nonexistent in cultures of British origin. To those world cultures which use it habitually, such as those of the Islamic world, Sub-Saharan Africa, Southern Europe, France, and some South American countries, it is an indispensable tool in maintaining good personal hygiene.

Thankfully, Americans have started to embrace the bidet and realize the benefits it brings. Not only are they healthier for your bum than using toilet paper, bidets also are healthier for the environment. Eventually, the bidet will be standard in America as it is all over the world.