Did you know that bidet means "little horse" in French? The reason for this somewhat strange name lies in history. Back then, a butt shower looked very different to today and was mounted on a high frame that you had to climb onto. Hence the connection to climbing onto a horse.

Over time, the shape has changed repeatedly, which is why it can be found in various designs today. Traditionally, the bidet is installed in the bathroom like the toilet and also looks similar to it.

Although the bidet is now most common in Europe in Italy and Portugal, it first appeared in France at the end of the 17th century. The exact date or the name of the inventor is not known, but it is known that it was manufactured by a furniture manufacturer.

But the butt shower was not only popular in France. Forms of the butt shower also developed in other cultures and still exist today.

Turkey - The shower toilet, also called Taharet, looks like a conventional toilet and has a built-in bidet function, where a jet of water comes out of the back wall of the toilet.

Japan - In addition to the warm water shower, the Washlet can usually even play music or use light effects to make going to the toilet a special experience.

Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia or Laos - There is a water hose next to the toilet so that you can clean yourself with water after using the toilet.

As we can see, cleaning with water is widespread throughout the world. So why has the use of toilet paper become so popular in Germany? Both historical and religious reasons play a role here.

Before the first pod shower appeared in France, cleansing with water was already well established in ancient times. In Egypt, Greece and the Roman Empire, there were highly developed water pipes and public baths. Personal hygiene and specifically intimate hygiene were already considered very important at that time. However, historical events such as the fall of the Roman Empire meant that knowledge of the benefits of cleansing with water disappeared along with the water pipes.

Only in the Byzantine Empire and the Arab world did the bathing culture survive and was brought to what is now Spain and Portugal through the conquests. The rest of Northern Europe was not reached by these hygiene measures and was kept away from the freshness.

In a religious context, cleansing with water had a bad reputation. In Christian countries, regular bathing was rejected as a sign of effeminacy and luxury.

In Protestant and puritanical countries (such as Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands and Great Britain) people believed in an ascetic lifestyle that was expressed in strict abstinence. This included abstinence from cosmetics and personal hygiene as well as sexual abstinence. The fact that the butt shower had difficulty establishing itself here was not least due to this.

It's good that we now know that water cleans gently and hygienically and prevents diseases (link to health: Hygiene - water instead of paper). With Bidetlity you do something good for your intimate area and replace toilet paper and wet wipes as well as complex bidets.