Bidet
A bidet (US: /bɪˈdeɪ/ (listen) or UK: /ˈbiːdeɪ/) is a bowl or receptacle designed to be sat on in order to wash one's genitalia, perineum, inner buttocks, and anus. The modern variety has a plumbed-in water supply and a drainage opening and is thus a plumbing fixture subject to local hygiene regulations. The bidet is designed to promote personal hygiene and is used after defecation, and before and after sexual intercourse. It can also be used to wash feet, with or without filling it up with water. In several European countries, a bidet is now required by law to be present in every bathroom containing a toilet bowl. It was originally located in the bedroom, near the chamber pot and the marital bed, but in modern times is located near the toilet bowl in the bathroom. Fixtures that combine a toilet seat with a washing facility include the electronic bidet.
Opinions as to the necessity of the bidet vary widely over different nationalities and cultures. In those cultures which use it habitually, such as in parts of Western, Central, and Southern Europe, Eastern Asia, and some South American countries such as Argentina, it is considered an indispensable tool in maintaining good personal hygiene. It is commonly used in North African countries such as Egypt. Rarely is it used in sub-Saharan Africa and North America.
"Bidet" is a French loanword meaning "pony" due to the straddling position adopted in its usage.
History
The bidet appears to have been an invention of French furniture makers in the late 17th century, although no exact date or inventor is known. The earliest written reference to the bidet is in 1726 in Italy. Even though there are records of Maria Carolina of Austria, Queen of Naples and Sicily, requesting a bidet for her personal bathroom in the Royal Palace of Caserta in the second half of the 18th century, the bidet did not become widespread in Italy until after WWII. The bidet is possibly associated with the chamber pot and the bourdaloue, the latter being a small, hand-held chamber pot.
Historical antecedents and early functions of the bidet are believed to include devices used for contraception.[28] Bidets are considered ineffective by today's standards of contraception, and their use for that function was quickly abandoned and forgotten following the advent of modern contraceptives such as the pill.
By 1900, due to plumbing improvements, the bidet (and chamber pot) moved from the bedroom to the bathroom and became more convenient to fill and drain.
In 1928, in the United States, John Harvey Kellogg applied for a patent on an "anal douche". In his application, he used the term to describe a system comparable to what today might be called a bidet nozzle, which can be attached to a toilet to perform anal cleansing with water.
In 1965, the American Bidet Company featured an adjustable spray nozzle and warm water option, seeking to make the bidet a household item. The fixture was expensive and required floor space to install; it was eventually discontinued without a replacement model.
The early 1980s saw the introduction of the electronic bidet from Japan, with names such as Clean Sense, Galaxy, Infinity, and Novita, and of non-electric attachments such as Gobidet. These devices have attachments that connect to existing toilet water supplies and can be used in bathrooms lacking the space for a separate bidet and toilet. Many models have additional features, such as instant-heating warm water, night lights, or a heated seat.
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