Buttock cleavage explained

Buttock cleavage is minor exposure of the buttocks and the intergluteal cleft between them, often because of low-rise pants. The crena is a formal term for the cleft between the buttocks.

History

When faced with indecency issues back in the 1930s, W. G. Cassidy explained in an essay titled "Private Parts: A judicial view" that exposure of a buttock cleavage may come under "other private parts" in Australian law, though indecency generally involves exposure of the genital area.[1]

In the early 2000s, it became fashionable for young women and men to expose their buttocks this way, often in tandem with low rise jeans.[2] [3] The Cincinnati Enquirer called it the "new cleavage", and expressed views that "It's virtually impossible to find jeans to cover your hipbone".[4] In August 2001, The Sun celebrated a "bum cleavage week" claiming that "bums are the new tits".[5] In reaction to this trend, Saturday Night Live aired a parody advertisement in their April 16, 2006 episode for a product called "Neutrogena coin slot cream", in which host Lindsay Lohan appeared.[6]

Jeffreys (2005) identified British designer Alexander McQueen as the originator of buttock cleavage-revealing jeans, known as the "bumster";[7] similarly, a 2002 U.S. Patent 6473908 registers a trousers design with a removable buttock-covering part for revealing cleavage.[8] In the mid-2000s, Good Morning America reported on a rise of popularity of the buttock cleavage among celebrities.[9] In an interview conducted in late 2002, pop singer Avril Lavigne said: "My buttcrack showing is like my trademark."[10]

In 2010s, media reported rise in popularity among females of ultra-short miniskirts and shorts, which publicly exposed "underbuns" (i.e. lower part of buttocks, also referred as underbutts or "reverse buttock cleavage"), due to endorsement by celebrities such as Lady Gaga.[11] [12] Paparazzi also photographed Jessica Alba's tramp stamp bow tattoo, located just above her buttcrack cleavage.[13]

Lexicon

The terms plumber butt or plumber's crack (Canadian, Australian, and American English) and builder's bum (British English) refer to the exposure of the buttock cleavage, especially on occasions of careless bending over. The expression "builder's bum" was first recorded in 1988. The terms are based on the popular impression that work in these professions frequently involves bending over in locations where bystanders are observing from the rear.[14] In the Netherlands the term Dutch; Flemish: bouwvakkersdecolleté and in Germany German: Maurerdekolleté and in Poland Polish: dekolt hydraulika is used, which can be translated as "builder's/mason's/plumber's cleavage". In France, it is usually referred to as French: le sourire du plombier, which literally translates to "the plumber's smile".[15]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Cassidy . W.G. . September 1974 . Private parts: A judicial view . law essay . . 34 . 3 . 315–319 . Sydney, AU . informit.com.au.
  2. Web site: Brown . Janelle . 2002-05-28 . dmy-all . Booty call: Here come the buns . . dead . 2006-03-12 . https://web.archive.org/web/20060219202751/http://www.salon.com/mwt/style/2002/05/28/booty_call/ . 2006-02-19 .
  3. News: d'Angelo . Jennifer . 5 December 2001 . Cleavage fashion flips upside down . Fox News (FOXNews.com) . 12 March 2006 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110205053812/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,40105,00.html . 2011-02-05 . dmy-all.
  4. News: Daugherty . Gina . May 29, 2003 . Thong spotting gets easier . . enquirer.com . 2008-02-19 . dmy-all . live . https://archive.today/20120731021246/http://www.enquirer.com/editions/2003/05/29/tem_thurslede29.html . 2012-07-31.
  5. News: Davies . Anna . August 26, 2001 . Bum deal: Suddenly, women's bottoms are everywhere. It might seem like jolly, harmless fun, but actually there's nothing innocent about it . . February 19, 2008 . theguardian.com . live . Last week was bum cleavage week at The Sun. . https://archive.today/20210410124730/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/aug/27/gender.uk . April 10, 2021 .
  6. Neutrogena coin slot cream . Saturday Night Live . skit . TV program segment . King, D.R. (writer); Lohan, L. (actress, "Girl #1"); Wiig, K. (actress, "Girl #2"); Poehler, A. (actress, "Announcer") . 15 April 2006 . 12 March 2008 . season 31, episode 16 . . dead . registration . 2012-08-01 . dmy-all . https://web.archive.org/web/20091113092601/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCF8ZOYVXF8 . 2009-11-13.

    Web site: Don Roy . King . Don Roy King . Downs, Cody (transcribed by) . 15 April 2006 . 8 October 2018 . Lindsay Lohan: 04/15/06: Neutrogena coin slot cream . SNL transcripts . TV program segment . . season 31, episode 16 . jt.org.

  7. Book: Jeffreys, Sheila . 2005 . Beauty and Misogyny: Harmful cultural practices in the West . Routledge . 0-415-35183-9 . 98 . Google books.
  8. Bontems, Thomas A. . 9 January 2002 . Garment having a buttocks cleavage revealing feature . 5 November 2002 . US . 6473908 . — via Patent Storm (patentstorm.us);
  9. Celebrities are showing-off butt cleavage . 2006-01-06 . Good Morning America . TV news segment . . February 19, 2008 . live . https://archive.today/20120701122128/http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=125903&page=1%23.T_BAsKgo_KA . 2012-07-01 . dmy-all.
  10. News: Miller . Andrew . January 30, 2003 . Under Avril's hood . Music . . Phoenix, AZ . phoenixnewtimes.com . May 29, 2021.
  11. News: What is the underbun? This is the latest sexy body trend taking over the web . 4 May 2017 . 3 May 2017 . Life / style . . London, UK . . express.co.uk . 26 Jan 2018.
  12. High alert: We're all helpless onlookers to 'the Summer of butt cleavage' . 17 July 2013 . 16 July 2013 . . 26 January 2018.
  13. Web site: Liz . Calvario . 19 July 2019 . Jessica Alba reveals which tattoo she regrets getting: I'm so-irritated that I got it. . . . etonline.com . 2023-12-31.

    Web site: Jessica Alba has a 'tramp stamp' and it's amazing . tattoodo.com .

  14. Brewer's Dictionary of Modern Phrase & Fable, by John Ayto, Ian Crofton (2006),, p. 121
  15. Web site: French Expression of the Day . The Local.