And I remember sitting on the edge of the pool and just crouching over and trying to pull the top down because I wanted the two pieces to connect.

上下の布を引っ張って、つなげようとしてたの覚えてるわ。

The bikini is a fashion icon.

ビキニはファッションアイコンです。

Let's be honest, people like to look at people in bikinis.

やっぱりビキニ着てる人 見ちゃうもの。

But the skimpy nature of the bikini doesn't quite explain all of its popularity.

でも露出が多いだけで あんなに人気出ないよね？

So how did the smallest suit in the world become the biggest one?

どうして一番小さい水着が 一番人気なの？

It's pretty crazy that the bikini is the most popular swimsuit on earth, given how restricted women's clothing has been throughout history.

ビキニが一番人気だなんて信じられない、女性の服は昔から制限されてきました。

Up until the 1900s, people in Europe and North America used this really weird contraption called a "Bathing Machine"-- a wooden box on wheels, like a mobile changing room.

1900 年頃までの欧米では試着室に車輪をつけたような 「水浴車」で水浴びしてたのよ。

Women would sit in the box, which was then pulled down to the ocean by a horse.

女性が箱の中に座って、馬が海まで引くの。

This was meant to keep women hidden away from the eyes of men.

女性の体を男たちに見せないため。

A lot of places had strict laws about minimum swimsuit length.

水着の長さも、法律で厳格に決まっていました。

Police would even walk around with rulers and straight up measure your bathing suit.

警官が見回って、水着の長さを測ったりして、

That is so gross.

絶対イヤ！

Public opinion on the matter didn't really change until Annette Kellerman, a swimmer and silent film star, was arrested for wearing a more form-fitting suit in 1907.

世論が変わるきっかけは、水泳選手だった女優アネットケラーマンが体にフィットした水着で逮捕されたこと。

Kellerman's high-profile arrest caused people to re-think the frumpy suits in favor of a tighter, more aerodynamic approach.

これをきっかけに古くさい水着が見直され、タイトな水着が好まれるようになりました。

It's good to note, more revealing two-pieces had already existed for hundreds of years.

でも実は、ツーピースは数百年前に存在してたの。

These mosaics from the Villa del Casale in Sicily feature women in bikini-like outfits as early as the fourth century.

シチリア島に残る 4 世紀のモザイク画にはビキニのような服を着た女性が描かれています。

So when did the skimpy swimsuit finally resurface?

ではビキニはいつ復活したのでしょう？

Fast forward to 1946.

時間を 1946 年まで早送り

The United States has been testing nuclear weapons in a place called Bikini Atoll in the Pacific.

米国が太平洋のビキニ環礁で核実験を行いました。

A French engineer by the name of Louis Reard decided he wanted to make a similar sized explosion in the world of fashion.

フランスのデザイナー ルイ レアールは、ファッション界にもそれくらいの爆発が欲しいと考え、

Reard had created what he called the smallest bathing suit in the world.

世界最小の水着を作りました。

Basically just two triangle pieces of fabric held together by some string.

基本的には三角の布を紐でつないだものでした。

There's only one problem.

唯一の問題は、

The suit was so small, that none of the models in Paris would wear it.

水着が小さすぎて、着てくれるモデルがいなかったこと。

Reard had to enlist the help of a burlesque dancer from a nearby casino, Micheline Bernardini, to unveil the bikini at the Piscine Molitor pool in Paris.

そこでヌードダンサーのミシュリーヌ バーナーディニに頼み、パリのプールで ビキニを発表したのです。

The suit got a big reaction.

大きな反発がありました。

The Vatican declared it sinful.

バチカンは邪悪とし、

Spain and Italy banned it immediately, and Bernardini started getting lots of fan mail.

スペインとイタリアは禁止に、バーナーディニには大量のファンレター、

By 1950, the bikini was a permanent fixture on European beaches, and by 1960 it caught on in North America.

ビキニは、1950 年には欧州で当たり前になり、1960 年までには北米でも人気になり、

And now, it's one of the most iconic pieces of clothing ever.

今では最も象徴的な服の 1 つになりました

At the end of the day, you don't have to wear a bikini, but it is pretty nice having the option.

別にビキニを着なくてもいいけど 選択肢はあった方がいいよね。

What's your experience with a bikini?

あなたのビキニの思い出は？

You can tell me in the comments below, or on social media with the hashtag #WEWEARCULTURE.

下にコメントするか SNS で教えてくださいね。

Thank you so much for watching.

見てくれてありがとう。

If you enjoyed learning about that as much as I did, head on over to Google Arts and Culture here, and make sure to check out the rest of the videos by clicking over here.

こうした話題は Google Arts & Culture で紹介しています。こちらの動画シリーズもぜひご覧ください。