How does your world handle nudity?

Haellan, my setting, is largely inspired by ancient Greece, so people may walk around naked or covering up only the primary genitalia if it is warm enough. And for the most part, this is the rule: dress to be comfortable. However, there are some kingdoms that have different rules.

Saras is a kingdom set in a desert of glass. Largely magical in nature and super dangerous to be naked. They cover themselves in loose, light, and colorful clothing, wearing masks with slit eyeholes to both protect the face and help protect against sand-blindness. The culture has evolved such that showing skin is a sign of trust. So nowadays, showing someone your full naked body is the ultimate sign of trust and respect.

On the religious side, Dasadea's patron god is the god of death, also known as the flayed god. While having skin isn't a sin, and you can even show a fair amount, flaunting nakedness is seen as mocking that god for not having skin. Entering the temple or any government building naked is cause to be executed. Most other establishments will refuse to serve you. Even the bathhouses only allow nakedness in and around the baths themselves.

In Wyldesse, certain beastfolk and lycanthrope-led clans will roam naked, seeing the natural form as sacred and clothing as profane. All of the nudist clans are very involved in spirit worship, but not every super-spiritual clan is nudist.

Finally, there is Alvaon. It is so dangerously cold most of the year that going out naked, even if it is warm enough, is seen as crazy. Doing so will get weird glances, gossip, and possibly a visit from loved ones to ask why you would do such a thing.

There really isn't a commentary behind this, it's just a world where nudity isn't taboo by default (like my understanding of ancient Greece), but also considering how each kingdom might view it differently based on geography and religion

The continent of Pakena generally isn't nudist, but it also has no strong lean against nudity. Certain cultures are quite blah on clothing. One culture, the Kranji, believe in always being dressed, but they're always dressed in very light shear, so basically nude. It's more a statement of who they are and what their gods believe.

Pakena is- like all of Sion- hot. But the people who call the place home are also equatorial and tropical. This precludes the need for some clothing, as although the sun is weak it's not impotent, and still gives off a little radiation.

However, it's also very rainy, which makes some covers in the form of capes and cloaks necessary- or, you know, at least a parasol.

Exposed body parts are a little indecent, yeah, but also aren't usually anything to worry about. It's damn hot, and the sun ain't gonna burn you, so... Take it off. While clothing of Pakena is light, bright, and colorful, most peasants get by just fine with a pubic apron or a loincloth.

As to your final question-

I don't have a personal, intentional reason as an artist to do this. Sure, there's something to be said for the Thermian Argument as it's called- or, the author's intention behind their fiction- but I really do build most things in Sion solely because that's how I think it would have worked.

There might be no references to Earth cultures but it is an anthropological world, and I'm exploring that. I know that real-world equatorial cultures follow this rule, so, I'll put it in because it obviously worked. That's all. Sometimes it really is just because the lore says so.

.... Also Dragon Tiddy

In my world, self-expression is important culturally, and so fashion is very varied as people wear what makes them feel fulfilled. If nudity is how someone feels they should express themself, then that's acceptable, though most people would probably think they're boring

In the Empire of Massia it is expected of a man to never show his wrists and for a woman to never show her neck and both should not show anything above the knee. So safe to say indecent exposure will not be tolerated and will result in a fine or a prison sentence depending on the severity of the incident. Even with this though there are still clubs in tucked away corners of the cities that would allow you to experience such things for a few Massian Crowns.

Magic in my world needs to be cast through material things that quickly degrade depending on the medium used to cast. Paper is a cheap, one use per sheet example, while metals are an expensive example that can be used more than once indefinitely (so long as they have time to cool afterwards).

Since magic is so convenient, most people don't want to go all the way to the nearby spring or creek to wash themselves, and they especially don't want their kids to do so every half an hour after they go play. Cleaning yourself once every other day is affordable for most people, but if you have to feed half a dozen kids on top of cleaning them, materials get expensive quick.

As such, children under the working age are acceptable to bathe in the public, magic water fountains in towns. It also helps keep them away from the woods, where monsters would kill them.

This worldbuilding note was a result of an offhand, once off comment where the isekai MC asked about instant cleaning magic. It is said once in my novel and never brought up again :)

My settings generally have a fairly relaxed attitude towards nudity. Generally people are expected to wear clothes appropriate to their situation, but the naked body isn't frowned upon as such. But being naked or near so in the wrong context would prompt some stares and/or comments. There are some variations across various cultures, but for the majority the above is the default.

This will vary between cultures of course, but generally nudity isn't really a big deal in my world. The most extreme example in my world is the silver forest, where nudity is perfectly acceptable. While people don't normally walk around nude or anything, no one is bothered by seeing each other naked and communal bathing is an important part of their culture. Long story short, this is because this culture doesn't have a custom of marriage (or families), which led to it being more promiscuous than most others and ultimately more comfortable with nudity. Why I added this? Honestly I just had the idea for a culture without families and this is what it eventually evolved into.

Varies by culture, of course. A lot of cultures permit toplessness for both men and women, though there are many that forbid it, and some permit full nudity.

In the Elven Imperium, nudity is allowed mostly by virtue of the fact that the Elves, thanks to their long lifespans and near-perfect memories, are constantly trying to stave off ennui. Fashion is wild and varied, and allowing nudity permits for more styles and 'looks' than forbidding it would. Not to mention that you're dealing with a culture where the average person has been around the block far longer than a human ever would, and so it isn't like it would be things they haven't seen before.

Meanwhile in the United Confederation of the Isles, people are slightly more prudish in that sense and would not allow that sort of thing. A man going shirtless outside of situations involving heavy labor, or a woman exposing cleavage or anything above the knee would be considered very scandalous, if not necessarily illegal. Nudity and female toplessness would still be illegal, however.

Traditional Dwarvish culture normally leans more towards the restrictive end of things in mixed company, but nudity amongst the same gender is considered fine. And wrestling, a popular sport amongst them, is almost always done topless regardless of gender, even in mixed company. In regions with sauna use, there are also a number of mixed-gender saunas where nudity is tolerated.

In my built world there are a lot of different cultures and a lot of them have different notions of that.

I would say it's pretty similar to our world if we go back some centuries.

There are naked people in tribe like cultures. There are very covered up people in desert areas. There are some in the middle and an array of different types of clothings.

In an island where the population is mostly sacred sex workers people cover very little as well. They have dresses inspired by the Minoan dresses.

I mean no one's gonna walk through town nude. There might be nudist conclaves here and there, as freedom of expression is considered a fundamental right as long as it's not infringing on another creature's rights.

Nudity isn't considered profane, but being nude in public is seen as indecent, because not everyone wants to see your junk. And those that do, probably want to see it in private.

Exceptions apply of course.

I made it this way mostly because it just makes sense. It seems familiar to me I spose.

In my fantasy world, there are multiple different cultures that have many different views.

The culture that the main human protagonist is from, any nudity below the neck and above the knee is considered vulgar and is to never be allowed to be seen outside of their private setting.

The culture that the main elven protagonist is from, believes that all art shall be shown to the world and not hidden away, and as the physical form is the art of the divine powers, is first best shown in all of its glory, any adornment shall be worn only to enhance the perfection of the body or to protect it, ideally both when possible.

And there are cultures that fall in between those two extremes.

Edit to add: I only answered half of your questions.

Why?

Because it gives the cultures life, and as to the "why are these cultures" the way they are, it stems from the environment they each developed in, the culture that the human is from, the Wulfgrum peoples, live on a set of islands about the size of the British Isles, but drastically colder and with beasties that are much more hostile to humanoid life. So they had to spend a lot of time basically being nomadic and battle ready at all times. And in a place where "Be caught with your pants down" means likely death by mauling, being nude anytime is dangerous or seen as inviting danger, thus their social taboo on nudity.

Contrast that with the Silverleaf peoples,the aforementioned elves, that live in a rainforest that has very moderate temperatures and clothing is just as likely to hide stinging insects and biting spiders as it is to hide yourself, but you're also from a race of humanoids that is also innately in tune with the natural magic of the world so most mundane animals view you as a friend and you end up needing less protection from nature. And when you don't have to protect yourself from nature and your culture favors peace and serenity over conflict and power, and focus on "things of culture" art and beauty become a way of life and being a living tribute to the beauty of nature becomes a focal point in life.

As to why I choose to include this in my writing? It's a jab at the "indecency laws" of a few of the states I grew up in. As such, the Wulfgrum people don't actually have an idea of marriage, children are raised by the tribe, mating is not an exclusive activity between a couple, but any two that can find the safety and privacy for it. And it is almost as clinical as the term mating sounds, it is more duty to the tribe than anything else, and it is encouraged for tribesmember to mate with as many other tribesmember as they see fit to produce as many offspring as possible. So, while they are conservative in dress, they are hyper-sexual.

Again conversely, the Silverleaf people view coupling as just that, coupling and they will spend years, sometimes decades getting to know everything about their partners before they as much as chastely touch each other's hands, and then it might be another four decades before they go to the bed chambers. Where the couple might remain for days, depending on how well supplied the chamber is. They describe it as "becoming one" because by the time they come together they know everything about each other and it is "like yourself being able to touch you in the most intimate ways while you also touch another part of yourself in the most intimate of ways, it truly is a full mind, body and soul binding experience".

Most of the cultures of my world are located in the Southern hemisphere and is largely based on Southeast Asia. The weather is usually warm and humid. So, people only cover their ‘private parts’ on the daily basis. Being topless is perfectly normal for both men and women (and anything in between). A common garment would be a type of skirt which can also be tied up as pants.

Formally though, it is customary to cover your top. If you go to a place or worship or a formal event, not wearing a shirt is seen as rather strange. Even though there are machines that can make clothes (much faster and cheaper), people usually prefer hand-made clothes for formal wear. It signifies your wealth and status, or simply your respect to the place/host.

In the mainland kingdoms, for a close audience with royalties, you are required to be topless to show that you carry no weapons in your sleeves. You may wear a light, see-through robe although they are mostly ceremonial.

It’s definitely based on a real world custom. Mostly Khmer, Siamese, and Lao. It definitely reflects my own view as well. As a Thai I feel like the current clothing custom is way too westernized, especially formal wear like suits. I feel that it makes no sense for people in this region to wear suits since it’s boiling hot and you will be soaked in sweat in no time without air conditioning. Being topless used to be normal for men and women no more than 100 years ago which perfectly makes sense since it’s hot and humid all the time. In formal events, men who wear short-sleeve shirts are seen as more informal but I feel like it is much more climate-appropriate.

Aside from utility and fashion cloths are not required and nudity is fine and normal. There are some places that have local bylaws that make it illegal under threat of expulsion. But that's more in business or ceremonial settings.

In the world of the Demiorc Homeland, all societies are Feudal Matriarchies.

I've been thinking about whether or not to "Free the nipple", or keep it marketable by instead making the Male nipple just as indecent.

Women have no obligation to maintain any image of modesty or sexual purity, there is no pressure to be sexy either. So skin exposure is dependent on the climate and weather.

Depends on the setting within the world. Just like IRL, nudity ranges from normal because clothes aren't necessary to survival, to places like the US that hypersexualize the naked body. I personally view nudity as not being inherently sexual. Clothes to me are a means to an end, for warmth or comfort, but decency and shame don't exist in my mind. I think this reflects in my writing quite often, and so my worldbuilding has followed suit

My world building project is heavily based in science, essentially just being as if some other planet in our universe also developed intelligent life. The reasoning behind why we find sex and nudity vulgar is pretty based on science: its unhygienic. If you’re always nude, you’re exposing people to a lot of your bacteria from your anus and genitalia, as that is where you excrete waste from. Sex is seen as being so taboo and gross because of much he same reason a rotten apple does: disease. Specifically, in the case of coitus, STIs. So, going by this knowledge, the people in my world view sex and nudity in much the same way that we do, if not seeing it as worse than we do, as we developed hair on our genitalia to reduce the spread of STIs, while my creatures are hairless.

Relaxed. My world is pretty hot so you'd only wear as much as you have to. Sunburn isn't a thing for the inhabitants, so on a practical level you'd dress to keep desert sand or things that bite away from your sensitive bits and out of your crevices. Not wearing a scrap of clothing would identify you as a broke-ass bum or extreme ascetic. You're not getting in trouble, but you're getting side-eye. Wearing a lot of clothing is impractical and uncomfortable, but would identify you as wealthy.

I've got a story I want to tell that I'll never get around to formally doing, but I was thinking about it the other day- part of it is set in the past (relative to the other part set in that world's "today") and centers around a monarch who has some mental issues, I thought maybe she gives a big public address completely naked in a misguided attempt to seem more down to earth.

The Wildings don't particularly consider nudity offensive. You could walk around with no clothes on and the most they'd do is tease you for being a bald ape lol.

Depending on the place in certain nations, it's actually not a bad thing to go full nude, partial or whatnot.

In Serviol, mostly covering up is ideal, due to naturally colder weather. But women more often than men will expose their torso in recreational time.

In Krossia, it doesn't matter. Everyone is equal in full aspect so whether you dress up or down, no one really blinks about it. Besides, with boatloads of mates to cover you up, who needs clothes?

In Mascia, either of them, everyone wears good coverage regardless because it's cold as fuck up there. Even the summer is super cold, but nudity in steam-houses or doing ice-dives is normal.

In Mildova, nudity is sinful, the hands and the face are the most appropriate thing to have uncovered and the forearms and shins are more so, but still undesired. Being heavily tied by their faith, the Mildovites/Mildovans/Mildovarks just usually dress well. They wear lighter clothes in the warmer climates of the nation or in summer time, but usually maintain the coverage.

In Jandorii, nudity is mixed between the provinces, but full nudity (mostly genital) is not okay.

It's...extremely bizarre to see people with an exposed body. It's not that it suggests familiarity or indecency, but more a sign that they've lost their mental faculties. As much of the "world" (country, would be a better term, but as far as many are concerned, they're the only ones in the entire world) is extremely cold, with biting winds that come off the northern sea, walking around without layers upon layers of clothing is concerning and brings into question whether someone is healthy or can feel the cold at all. The only time that it's not a concern is at the communal or private baths. There tends to be only a singular bathhouse for a town or village, with only the largest of cities having more, as they're either heated with fires that require quite a bit of wood that can be hard to come by, or they're dug deep into the earth where they're naturally warmed by the earth itself and thus extremely difficult to build.

So, simply put: if you're in a bathhouse, you're good, nudity is expected there; if you're not, people are seriously concerned about your health.

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The exceptions to these are for priests. As part of a priest's uniform and vestments, they have carefully-crafted masks, as well as hooded coats or cloaks. Between that, and their robes, the only bit of skin that priests usually reveal would be their hands. This is similar to the reason why executioners wear masks, so that people can't retaliate against them for one reason or another. In this country, priests frequently perform both animal and human sacrifices, and while they are usually willing sacrifices, that isn't always the case, and certainly wasn't always the case in the past. In the past, people who would perform these sacrifices usually needed to hide their faces in case families would retaliate. Over time, the necessity for hiding one's identity faded, but the tradition remained. While priests don't always wear the masks while in their private homes or around other priests, if they're in public or around laypeople, they're masked, with hoods up.

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Why did I decide this? It just made sense, really. The northern country is extremely cold and harsh, with wood being fairly difficult to come by unless it's in the far south, so that meant that it would be very rare for people to want to become naked. The priests was an exploration of "wouldn't it just look cool" as well as "well, they're basically executioners, let's take that to its logical end."