11/24/2020 Towel - Wikipedia

Towel
A towel is a piece of absorbent fabric or paper used for drying or
wiping a body or a surface. It draws moisture through direct
contact.

In households, several types of fabric towels are used, including

hand towels, bath towels and kitchen towels. At the beach, people
use beach towels.

Paper towels are provided in commercial or office bathrooms for

users to dry their hands. In households they are used for minor,
precision, or particularly dirty jobs of wiping, cleaning, and
drying.[1] A stack of colored towels

Contents
History
Types
See also
References
External links

History
Towels on a shelf
According to Middle Ages archaeological studies,
"... closely held personal items included the ever
present knife and a towel."[2] However, the invention of the towel is commonly associated with the
city of Bursa, Turkey, in the 17th century. These Turkish towels began as a flat, woven piece of cotton
or linen called a pestamel, often hand-embroidered. Long enough to wrap around the body, pestamel
were originally fairly narrow, but are now wider and commonly measure 90 by 170 centimetres (35 in
× 67 in).[3] Pestamel were used in Turkish baths as they stayed light when wet and were very
absorbent.

As the Ottoman Empire grew, so did the use of the towel. Weavers were asked to embroider more
elaborate designs, aided by their knowledge of carpet-weaving.[4] By the 18th century, towels began
to feature loops sticking up from the pile of the material. These looped towels became known as
havly; over time, this word has changed to havlu, the Turkish word for towel, and means ‘with
loops’.[5] Towels did not become affordable until the 19th century, with the cotton trade and
industrialization. With mechanization, cotton terry-towelling became available by the yard as well as
being stocked in shops as pre-made towels.[6]

Today towels are available in a variety of sizes, materials and designs. Some hotels which provide
towels and bath robes embed washable RFID tags into their linens to deter theft.[7]

Types
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A bath towel is used for drying the body when it is wet, such
as after bathing or showering. It is typically rectangular, with a
typical size around 30 in × 60 in (76 cm × 152 cm), and is
made of terry cloth.
A beach towel is usually a little bit larger than a bath towel.
Although it is often used for drying off after being in the water,
its chief purpose is to provide a surface on which to lie. They
are also worn for privacy while changing clothes in a public
area, and for wiping sand from the body or objects. Beach
towels often have colorful patterns.
A hand-made African towel
A sheet towel or bath sheet is larger than a bath towel. The
classic bath sheet size (https://beezzly.com/home/organizing/
bath-sheet-vs-bath-towel#Types_of_Bath_Sheets_and_Towel
s) is 80×160 cm. A large bath sheet that can wrap the entire
body is 100×150 or 90×160 cm. They are used in baths,
saunas, on beaches, and for massage;
A foot towel is a small, rectangular towel which, in the
absence of a rug, carpet or bathroom mat, is placed on the
bathroom floor to stand on after finishing a shower or bath.
A hand towel is significantly smaller than a bath towel
(perhaps 12 in × 24 in (30 cm × 61 cm)), and is used for
drying the hands after washing them.
Close-up photo of a bath towel,
An oven towel or confectioner's mitten is a multipurpose made of terrycloth, showing the
household towel used for a kitchen or shop applications. The absorbing fibres, along with a
term came into use within Irish communities after a textile
decorative pattern
mogul, Owen Valley, created the line based on his own towel
experiences.
A paper towel is a piece of paper that can be used once as a
towel and then be disposed of. A perforated roll of paper
towels is normally mounted on a rod a little longer than the
width of the roll, or in an alternative type of hanger that has
protrusions on ears, the protrusions fitting into the ends of the
paper towel roll. Paper towels can also be found packaged
like facial tissues, as individual folded sheets.
A disposable towel (or non-woven towel) is a towel intended
for a single user, but not necessarily for a single use, as it can
be reused but not washed. It is often made of non-woven
fibers, and popular for the hospital, hotel, geriatric and salon A beach towel
or beauty industries because it guarantees cleanliness and
hygiene every time.
A show towel is a bath or hand towel that has had trim—such
as satin, lace or linen stitched onto it, or embroidery done on
it—mainly to simply "look nice".[8] They are used to add a
decorative touch—usually to a bathroom—most commonly in
the United States. They are generally not to be used to for
drying, as regular washing ruins the added trim, and the towel
buckles as well (because the towel usually shrinks differently
than the trim).
A sports towel, or (synthetic) chamois, is a towel originally
developed for swimmers and divers, favored for its super- Fibres in a tea towel
absorbent qualities. Sports towels can be wrung out when
saturated, leaving the towel able to absorb water again,
although not dry. Those qualities, along with their compact nature, have further popularized sports
towels amongst general outdoor and athletic enthusiasts. The absorbent material in sports towels
may be composed of viscose, PVA or microfiber, with polyester woven in for durability. Some

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manufacturers incorporate a silver ion or compound

treatment into their towels to better inhibit microbial growth
and associated odors.
A sweat towel or gym towel, often of similar size to a hand
towel, is used during a workout to dry oneself from sweat or
make a barrier between the gym machines and the skin. It
may also be required in gyms in order to wipe down the
machines after use.
The term kitchen towel refers to a dish towel in American
English (called a tea towel in UK and Canadian English) and
to a paper towel in British English.
Tea towels or tea cloths (UK and Canadian English), called
dishtowels or dish towels in America, originated in 18th-
century England. They are absorbent towels made from soft,
lint-free linen. They are used in the kitchen to dry dishes,
cutlery, etc. after they are washed. The towels are also used
during tea time. They can be wrapped around the tea pot to
keep the tea warm, prevent drips, and keep one's hand from
being burned by the hot tea pot handle when serving the tea.
Tunisian fouta towel
A cloth towel dispenser or continuous cloth towel is a towel
manipulated by a series of rollers, used as an alternative to
paper towels and hand dryers in public washrooms. These may have a lower environmental
impact than paper towels,[9] though concerns over hygiene mean they are not used by some
organisations[10] and have greatly declined in popularity. They can also be used in dangerous
"choking games".[11]
A bar towel is an absorbent, usually small towel used in bars and often given away free as
promotional items.
A fingertip towel is a small towel that is folded and placed next to the sink or in the guest
bedroom. Hosts often pin a note to these towels indicating that they are for guest use.[12]
A golf towel is a small towel which usually comes with a loop or clip to attach to a golf bag for
drying hands, balls, and clubs.[13]
A baby towel is a smaller towel characterized by an extra sewn-on hood at one corner to cover a
baby's head.
A peshtemal (or pestemal) is a unique multipurpose towel from Anatolia with over 600 years of
history.[14]
A fouta towel is a Tunisian hammam and beach towel, which is also used as a pareo.

See also
Terrycloth
Towel day

References
1. "The Best Bath Towel" (https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-bath-towel/). Wirecutter: Reviews
for the Real World.
2. Hatcler, Margret. Family Ties that Bind, Middle Ages Family Life. Oxford University Press, 1968,
p. 112.
3. "History of the Towel" (https://web.archive.org/web/20150509003955/http://www.jennifershamam.
com/education/history-of-the-towel.html). Jeniffer's Hamam. Archived from the original (http://ww
w.jennifershamam.com/education/history-of-the-towel.html) on 9 May 2015. Retrieved 28 April
2015.
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4. "History of Turkish Towels" (http://www.turkeyforyou.com/turkey_turkish_towels_history). Turkey

For You. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
5. "A Brief History Of Towels" (http://www.lidtime.com/a-brief-history-of-towels/). Lid Time. Retrieved
20 August 2013.
6. "Bath Towel" (http://www.madehow.com/Volume-4/Bath-Towel.html). Retrieved 28 April 2015.
7. "New Washable RFID Chips Track Hotel Towels and Bathrobes" (http://www.popsci.com/technolo
gy/article/2011-04/new-washable-rfid-chips-track-hotel-towels-and-bathrobes). PopSci. PopSci.
2008-02-28. Retrieved 2011-04-14.
8. "The (American) National Gallery of Art" (https://web.archive.org/web/20070609092538/http://ww
w.nga.gov/collection/gallery/iadpenn/iadpenn-15112.0.html). Archived from the original (http://ww
w.nga.gov/collection/gallery/iadpenn/iadpenn-15112.0.html) on 2007-06-09. "Like elaborately
decorated pottery and Jacquard coverlets, "show towels" were made primarily for display rather
than for use."
9. Celsias (http://www.celsias.com/actions/214/) Archived (https://archive.is/20130118235130/http://
www.celsias.com/actions/214/) 2013-01-18 at Archive.today Retrieved on 31 Oct 09
10. "Western News" (http://communications.uwo.ca/com/western_news/opinions/cloth_towels_health
_risk_20041124436373/). Communications.uwo.ca. 2004-11-24. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
11. D Le, A J Macnab (2009-10-26). "Self strangulation by hanging from cloth towel dispensers in
Canadian schools" (http://injuryprevention.bmj.com/content/7/3/231.abstract).
Injuryprevention.bmj.com. Retrieved 2010-11-18.
12. "Fingertip Towel" (http://www.thetowelshop.co.uk/blog/7-golden-rules-of-toweltiquette-towel-etique
tte-be-the-perfect-guest/). www.thetowelshop.co.uk. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
13. Roberts, Tom. "Unique Towel Types You May Not Know About" (http://www.duncanstewarttextiles.
com/unique-towel-types-you-may-not-know-about/). Duncan Stewart Textiles. Retrieved
14 October 2015.
14. "Our Story" (https://buldano.com/buldano-peshtemal-story/).

External links
Media related to Towels at Wikimedia Commons

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