Mooning is the act of displaying one's bare buttocks by removing clothing, e.g., by lowering the backside of one's trousers and underpants, usually bending over, whether also exposing the genitals or not. Mooning is used mostly in the English-speaking world to express protest, scorn, disrespect, or provocation but can also simply be done for shock value or fun.

Word history

Moon has been a common shape-metaphor for the buttocks in English since 1743, and the verb to moon has meant 'to expose to (moon)light' since 1601, long before they were combined in US student slang in the verb(al expression) mooning "to flash the buttocks" in 1968. Formerly, "mooning" was slang for "wandering idly" and "romantically pining."

Other Names / Slang

There's several slang words to describe the act of mooning. In Australia it's commonly known as "Chucking a brown eye" or "flashing a moonie", for example. The Australian version involves spreading the buttocks to expose the anus.

Legal status

The legal position of mooning varies between legislations, from indecent exposure to legal self-expression. Some example cases include:

Zimbabwe

Two brothers of Zimbabwean descent were charged and jailed for indecent exposure in 2006, for wearing traditional African loinclothes which leave the buttocks exposed. Whilst not strictly mooning, it illustrates the legal view on mooning in that country. The BBC reports that whilst this "reignited" a debate, "not many people in the capital are on their side".