Some societies and groups continue to disapprove of nudity not only in public but also in private based upon religious beliefs. Societies such as Japan and Finland maintain traditions of communal nudity based upon the use of baths and saunas that provided alternatives to sexualization. While the majority of societies require clothing in most situations, others recognize non-sexual nudity as being appropriate for some recreational, social or celebratory activities, and appreciate nudity in the arts as representing positive values. Contemporary social norms regarding nudity vary widely, reflecting cultural ambiguity towards the body and sexuality, and differing conceptions of what constitutes public versus private spaces.
Nakedness and clothing are connected to many cultural categories including identity, social status and moral behavior. Although often used interchangeably, 'naked' and 'nude' are also used in English to distinguish between the various meanings of being unclothed. In any particular society, these meanings are defined in relation to being properly dressed, not in relation to the specific body parts being exposed. Nudity is culturally complex due to meanings given to various states of undress in differing social situations.
Nudity is the state of being in which a human is without clothing. Sunbathers at Müggelsee lake beach, East Berlin in 1989
