Big Beautiful Woman
Encyclopedia
Fat fetishism
Fat fetishism is the strong or exclusive sexual attraction to overweight or obese people.As well as traditional attraction, the topic also incorporates feederism and gaining, where sexual gratification is obtained via the process of gaining body fat...
. The terms "Big Beautiful Women" and "BBW" were coined by Carole Shaw in 1979, when she launched BBW Magazine, a fashion and lifestyle magazine for "plus-size
Plus-size model
Plus-size model is a term applied to a person who is engaged primarily in modeling plus-size clothing. Plus-size models also engaged in work that is not strictly related to selling large-sized clothing, e.g., stock photography and advertising photography for cosmetics, household and pharmaceutical...
" women.
Meaning
The term is a subjective, visually determined concept that does not have an explicit lower or upper weight limitation, and may denote women who may be considered barely overweight to those who are morbidly obese. A 2009 study found that male fat admirers preferred females that were clinically overweight and rated both overweight and obese women more positively than slighter individuals. The study also found that participants reacted more positively to a much wider range of figures than a control group, even rating emaciated figures higher. It concludes "these findings suggest that an explanation for fat admiration may be that FAs are rejecting sociocultural norms of attractiveness".Usage
Although "BBW" may have been first used in the context of BBW Magazine, the term's usage spread over the years, to the point that even women who had never heard of the magazine began to refer to themselves as "BBWs".Some women may adopt the term as a personal preference over the term Rubenesque, or full-figured, because they may not necessarily have large breasts or hips. Such terms, and others such as "queen-sized", "plus-sized
Plus-size model
Plus-size model is a term applied to a person who is engaged primarily in modeling plus-size clothing. Plus-size models also engaged in work that is not strictly related to selling large-sized clothing, e.g., stock photography and advertising photography for cosmetics, household and pharmaceutical...
", or "fat" may lead to feelings of marginalization or non-inclusion for some women. However, some strongly prefer the term fat over other words which they consider unnecessary euphemisms.
The abbreviation BBW can often found used in personal ads (and online dating service
Online dating service
Online dating or Internet dating is a dating system which allows individuals, couples and groups to make contact and communicate with each other over the Internet, usually with the objective of developing a personal, romantic, or sexual relationship...
s) denoting an identification with (or preference for) such women, and is also used to denote events specifically targeted to such women, and persons interested in them, such as specific gathering nights in dance clubs, restaurants, and fashion stores and shows.
The term is also commonly used as a positive euphemism by those involved with the fat acceptance movement
Fat acceptance movement
The fat acceptance movement is an effort to change societal attitudes towards fat, obese, and overweight people.- Background :...
.
Websites
There are a wide range of websites dedicated to the topic of big beautiful woman, including sites which are dedicated to sending out a size-positive message towards larger women, some of which denounce the dieting industry as encouraging women to lose weight to conform to what is considered the ideal by mainstream society. Big beautiful women are also on a number of pornographic websites which may include content which is sexually fetishistic in nature (including fat fetishismFat fetishism
Fat fetishism is the strong or exclusive sexual attraction to overweight or obese people.As well as traditional attraction, the topic also incorporates feederism and gaining, where sexual gratification is obtained via the process of gaining body fat...
and feederism).
Variants
The acronym BBBW refers to Big Beautiful Black Woman. Another variant is SSBBW: Super-Size Big Beautiful Woman. There is much debate on a definition for a Super-Size Big Beautiful Woman.While "Big Beautiful Woman" may be prevalent in the Americas and Europe, in Asian countries where obesity may be considered uncommon or deemed unhealthy, other terms are used. For example, in Japan the term debu (katakana デブ, hiragana でぶ) is used, but usually with a pejorative meaning.
Big Handsome Man
Big Handsome Man (BHM), or sometimes Big Beautiful Man (BBM), refers to a physically or sexually attractive fat man. These men are large to extremely large. There are many subcategories of BHMs. Some are men who just happen to be large, while others attempt to become fatter. Some of these men are insecure about their size, while others embrace their obesityObesity
Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on health, leading to reduced life expectancy and/or increased health problems...
and feel confident. Women who are attracted to BHMs are called Female Fat Admirers (FFA). In the gay community, BHMs are called Chubs
Chub (gay culture)
A chub is an overweight or obese gay man who identifies as being part of the related chubby culture. Although there is some overlap between chubs and bears, chubs have their own distinct subculture and community...
, and men who are attracted to BHMs are known as Chasers
Chub (gay culture)
A chub is an overweight or obese gay man who identifies as being part of the related chubby culture. Although there is some overlap between chubs and bears, chubs have their own distinct subculture and community...
.
See also
- Fat acceptance movementFat acceptance movementThe fat acceptance movement is an effort to change societal attitudes towards fat, obese, and overweight people.- Background :...
- Fat fetishismFat fetishismFat fetishism is the strong or exclusive sexual attraction to overweight or obese people.As well as traditional attraction, the topic also incorporates feederism and gaining, where sexual gratification is obtained via the process of gaining body fat...
- Female body shapeFemale body shapeFemale body shape or figure is the cumulative product of a woman's skeletal structure and the quantity and distribution of muscle and fat on the body. There are, and have been, wide differences on what should be considered an ideal or preferred body shape, both for attractiveness and for health...
- ObesityObesityObesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on health, leading to reduced life expectancy and/or increased health problems...
- OverweightOverweightOverweight is generally defined as having more body fat than is optimally healthy. Being overweight is a common condition, especially where food supplies are plentiful and lifestyles are sedentary...