A History of Menstruation: terms, customs/beliefs, and fashion!

Yet again I am combining school with blogging because I simply lack any brain power or extra time to muster up a creative original after this draining week of something due in every class and much less sleep than I would like.
Below you'll find a paper I wrote for my History of Fashion and Manners class focusing on the history of menstruation...

Not my funniest post (at least not on purpose) but it is full of facts, especially random ones!

Menstruation: Manners, Fashion and More

            Menstruation happens all the time but we hardly ever hear about it. Furthermore, though every society faces this act of nature, many tend to treat it differently and those customs have changed over time. In uncovering some of the mystery of menstruation, I shall focus on words, customs or beliefs, products and fashions.

            First, there are several interesting words regarding menstruation. Some are just nicknames for it such as Aunt Flo, On the Rag, Leak Week, Surfing the Crimson Tide, and My Dot, among others (4). However, some names are much more specific: “menstruation” is from Old English “mondablot” or “month blood;” in Latin, “menses” means “month;” an Amazon culture’s word for “woman” translates to “the person with a red streak down the leg” (2); and the term “period” dates back to 1822 meaning “an interval of time” (4). Furthermore, some menstruation words have much more tainted meanings: “The term ‘ritual’ is derived from the Sanskrit word ‘R’tu,’ which means ‘menstrual.’ This etymology suggests that ritual in a general sense and menstrual acts have a common origin;” Also, the “word taboo comes from the Polyneisain tapua, meaning both ‘sacred’ and ‘menstruation’… [where] sacred means both ‘set apart’ and ‘cursed’.” (4). Lastly, some of the words simply refer to products: “Tampon is French for ‘plug’ or ‘bung,’ a variant from the Old French tapon meaning a ‘piece of cloth to stop a hole;” for o.b. tampon company, “o.b. means ‘ohne Binde,’ without a pad, in German;” and Kotex stood for “COtten-like TEXture… because women were used to cotton and the new Kotex was made from wood pulp, making it cheaper” (2).

            Second, there has been a vast array of menstruation customs or beliefs over the years. First, in reference to religion:

 “Judaism, Hinduism, and Islam all prohibit sex during menstruation. Both Jews and Muslims require women to achieve ritual purity after menstruation, through the Jewish mikvah (literally ‘collection,’ as in a collection of water) or the Islamicghusl (ablution), respectively;” also, “Christian churches have refused communion to menstruating women” (4). Beyond religious reasons, sex was discouraged while women were menstruating because “During the nineteenth century, it was widely thought that intercourse with a menstruating woman would transmit gonorrhea, which may have been mistaken for trichomoniasis. Trichomoniasis becomes worse during menstruation because of lower vaginal acidity”(4).

            There were other mis-informed beliefs regarding menstruation blood: Hippocrates of Ancient Greece “may have started the process of bleeding out after observing women recovering from bloating and aches and pains after starting their periods” (2); “Menstrual blood was thought to cure warts, birthmarks, gout, goiters, hemorrhoids, epilepsy, worms, leprosy, and headaches. It was also used in love charms, could ward off demons, and was occasionally used as an offering to a god. The first napkin worn by a virgin was thought to be a cure for the plague” and in “many cultures, a fetus was thought to be formed in the womb by clotting menstrual blood” (4). 

Additional misunderstandings came from beliefs about the mental states of women on their periods: “At one point in history, women who complained of menstrual cramps (dysmenorrhea) were sent to psychiatrists because menstrual cramps were seen as a rejection of one’s femininity” and “Psychoanalysts, such as Freud, have suggested that menstruation is a “bloody sign of a woman’s loss of penis” and that it is a reminder of a woman’s “uncleanliness and inferiority” (4).

Some things assumed in relation to menstruation, though, were not incorrect. These included some of the firsts concepts of time and numerical thinking, as well as the first lunar calendar, all based upon the menstrual cycle (4).

Lastly, a few more concrete customs brought on by menstruation include:

• menses huts have been built in many societies to keep women separate while menstruating for reasons from fear to reverence (4)
• as matriarchy gave way to patriarchy, menstruation shifted from being powerful to a tool of oppression (4)
• washing and changing underclothing was not done for fear of causing more bleeding (2)
• strong perfumes were used to mask the smell (2)
• some cultures believe the smell is a sign of fertility and attracts men (2)
• many women wore nothing and just let it run down their legs, hidden by long chemises and dresses (2)
• factories where women worked would simply lay straw down on the floor to absorb the menstrual blood (2)

Though most women wore nothing initially, as products became available, more and more women started to use them. First there was a belted pad, then an adhesive pad before tampons and finally cups.

First, “American patents for menstrual devices start in 1854 for a belt with steel springs to hold a pad, but really don't pick up steam until the 1870s” (2). Belted pads were worn in between the legs and then taken off to be washed at night. They were used up until the 1970s and could be held up with suspenders or belts and pads could be pinned in (2). An image of a possible 19^th century belt is pictured here. 

Pads of this type are still available from smaller companies(2).

However, most of these fell out of favor with the arrival of disposable pads from Kotex is 1921 which likely developed from bandages for soldiers in World War I (2). Kotex further dominated the menstrual market when it came out with adhesive pads in the 1970s. A Swedish ad demonstrates the new product and how much more comfortable and concealable it was, seen here. 

Though tampons were sold to mass audiences in the 1930s in America, it is likely that they had been around for years and years before that; for example, “Ancient Egyptians used softened papyrus as rudimentary tampons  [and] Hippocrates notes that the Greeks used lint wrapped around wood…The modern tampon was invented by Dr. Earle Haas in 1929, which was called a ‘catamenial device’ or ‘monthly device.’ He trademarked the brand name Tampax” (4).  Tampons altered once more with the addition of an applicator which was patented in the 1930s (2).

The most recent menstrual product is the cup. It was first created in the 1930s and made from rubber latex (3); however, it fell out of favor and only recently resurfaced as a popular option. The cups are reusable and very environmentally friendly preventing the waste created by all the disposable feminine hygiene products (3).

Lastly, how does all of this relate to fashion?

First, women wore nothing. This would seem like it would be disastrous but due to malnourishment, physical exertion, higher pregnancy rates and other factors, women in previous eras had far less periods than today’s woman; “The average women in a modern industrialized society menstruates 450 times in her life. Conversely, prehistoric women menstruated only 50 times—and today, women in agrarian regions menstruate about 150 times in a lifetime” (4). However, when a period did come, women would cover it with a chemise: a long, floor-length gown (2).

It took a long time for this fashion to fade but eventually wearing of underpants became accepted practice around 1800 and remained so throughout the century (2).

These underpants were often open in the crotch for dealing with menstruation and urination (2); However, crotches soon closed because of “shorter and looser, more clinging dresses, allowing women to reach under and pull their drawers down (‘draw’ means ‘pull’) when on the toilet and to better conceal their vulvas if their dresses hiked up, as from the wind, or from a more active life than in former decades” (2).

As undergarments shrank in size, protection from period leaks came in the form of almost diapers when women would take old clothes, handkerchiefs, sheets and other fabrics and fold them over or button and pin them under their clothes; these could be highly visible and bulky but were their only options (2).

          A further form of protection came from sanitary aprons. These were worn from the shoulders and hung down, not to absorb blood as pads would do, but simply to prevent clothing from being stained (1). 

Next came the belts and then the disposable pads and lastly tampons and cups.

Some other interesting fashion that has evolved from menstruation includes the following: some women in India wear a scarf around their neck dyed by their menstrual blood as a sign that they are on their period; and scholars suggest that marriage rites are an extension of menarchal rites, which may explain why many bridal dresses were historically red. The bride would also walk on a red carpet to the wedding ceremony, wearing a red veil (4).

In conclusion, menstruation may be overlooked but actually has had a huge impact on our society through words, customs, products and fashion.

Sources:

1. Cappon, Colleen. “Shocking Facts About the Flow: What You Always Wanted to Know About Your Period, But Were Too Afraid to Ask.” Fox News. 29 Mar. 2010. Fox News Network. 10 Apr. 2010. <http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,590056,00.html>.
2. Finley, Harry. “When they menstruated, they left a trail of blood behind them.” MUM. 1999. Museum of Menstruation and Women’s Health. 10 Apr. 2010. <http://www.mum.org/pastgerm.htm>.
3. “Menstrual Cup History and Our Story.” The Diva Cup. 12 Apr. 2010. 10 Apr. 2010 <http://www.divacup.com/en/home/history/>.
4. “68 Random Facts About… Menstruation.” Random History. 2010. 10 Apr. 2010. <http://facts.randomhistory.com/random-facts-about-menstruation.html>.