There is a nature festival in Cumbria (North England) next week that has run into a small, although highly predictable problem.
There are two groups of people buying tickets.
One group will be dressing up sensibly to protect themselves as they creep through the undergrowth hoping to discover birds, insects and other interesting things. The other group will not be dressing at all—they hope to have an uninhibited experience of nature.
So, to avoid disappointment for both groups, the organisers have had to clarify that this is an event for naturalists, not naturists.
I studied zoology and, had I stayed in the field, I would have been a zoologist—someone who studies animals. It is a branch of biology, the study of living things. By that logic, a naturist ought to be someone who studies nature.
But no.
A naturist is a late 19th century word that innocently described someone advocating a return to a “natural” life—fresh air, sunlight, and simplicity. It was part of a broader response to industrialisation in Europe. “Naturalist” is the older word, which refers to the study of nature.
“Nudism” appears in English in the early 20th century as the movement to go unclothed emerged in Europe and Britain. The root is Latin “nudus”, meaning bare or naked. “Nude” arrives via French in the 17th century, originally an artistic term for the unclothed human form.
“Naturism” around the late 19th century, slowly became synonymous with nudism. The German word “Freikörperkultur”—free body culture—captures the idea that health and nature are best experienced without clothing. It was NOT about exhibitionism but about hygiene, sunlight, and an unencumbered philosophy.
The French have “naturisme” which carries the same earnest, philosophical tone—though in practice leads to bronzing on beaches in Provence. Spanish “nudism” hardly needs a phrase book to translate.
By the early 20th century, the English “naturist” had followed the German lead and quietly shed its broader meaning. It no longer meant living naturally—it meant living naturally without trousers. Holiday advertisements in Britain in the 1930s had to be quite explicit about what sort of “natural” experience was being offered.
So if you are intending to attend the Cumbria Nature Festival (8 to 10 May 2026) that is “dedicated to fostering a deeper connection with the natural world” make sure you take your binoculars to look at wildlife.