Thong (bikini, underwear)

See Thong for other meanings.

A thong is a narrow piece of cloth or leather that goes between the legs and is attached to a band around the hips, worn as a bikini bottom or as underwear.

Although it was worn for decades by exotic dancers, the thong first gained mainstream popularity in South America, particularly in Brazil in the late 1970s. In Brazil, it was originally a style of swimsuit made so that the back of the suit is so thin, often just a string, that it disappears between the buttocks. In prior usage, this style of clothing was usually called a g-string (referring to the thickest string on a violin, which is said to resemble the string part of the garment), which was in use at least as far back as the late 1800s. G-strings can be seen being worn in some old photographs. Many "primitive" tribes, such as some of the Khoisan peoples of southern Africa, wore a similar style of clothing for many centuries, if not millennia, before the current style. Their word for it, tanga, is used in languages such as Spanish, and very occasionally in English, to refer to the item, sometimes specifically the type with cloth through the legs and string around the sides.

By the mid-1990s, the design had made its way to most of the Western world, and thong underwear became popular. As of 2003, thong underwear is one of the fastest selling styles among women and is also gaining some popularity among men. One advantage attributed to the wearing of thong underwear is that no visible panty line can be seen even under a thin, light-colored, or skin-tight garment. The main drawback to thong underwear is that the fabric must be pulled directly between one's buttocks, which many people find unattractive and/or uncomfortable, but which others actually enjoy. If worn for long periods of time, they can also lead to urinary tract infections in women due to anal bacteria contamination.

Today, there are a number of intermediate styles between full rear coverage and a string rear. A style that has a narrow band of fabric in the rear that just covers the cleft in the buttocks is often called a "Brazilian" rear, because it is often seen at Brazilian Samba carnivals. In recent years the hip hop and R&B music industry has also helped to promote the thong by composing songs about it and featuring artists clad in them.