Freikörperkultur

Freikörperkultur (FKK) is a German movement whose name translates to Free Body Culture. It endorses a naturistic approach to sports and community living. Behind that is the joy of the experience of nature or also of being nude itself, without direct relationship to sexuality. The followers of this culture are called traditional naturists, FKK'ler, or nudists. The German nudist movement was the first worldwide and marked the start of an increased acceptance of public nudity in Germany. Today, there are only few legal restrictions on public nudity in Germany.

In many parts of central Europe up until the 18th century, people bathed naked in rivers and lakes, although often separately by sex. Beginning in the late 18th century, public nudity became increasingly taboo. At the same time, Lord Monboddo (1714–1779) practised and preached nude bathing as a revival of Ancient Greek attitudes toward nudity. This found literary reference in Georg Christoph Lichtenberg's (1742–1799) book Das Luftbad.

In 1898 the first Freikörperkultur club was founded in Essen. In 1900 more and more Swedish baths arose in rooms in Berlin and on the North and Baltic seas and a naturist movement began in France.

The FKK movement was based on an attitude towards life where the naked body is not a source of shame. Freikörperkultur does not involve sexuality. Nakedness in the shower or sauna is not Freikörperkultur, since it is practically necessary. Nudity has to have prior group consent, and therefore requires no reserved zones, such as separate beaches or club areas.

With political liberalization, conservative circles challenged the nude baths which had become popular among urban intellectuals, seeing them as a corruption of morality.

The first nude beach in Germany was established in 1920 on the island of Sylt. In 1933 after the Nazi Party came to power, nudist organizations were banned or integrated into Nazi organizations. The first dissertation about the FKK movement was written in the 1930s. The first naturist Olympic Games took place in Thielle in Switzerland in August 1939.

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