Navel Navel The navel (clinically known as the umbilicus, colloquially known as the belly button, or tummy button) is a protruding, flat, or hollowed area on the abdomen at the attachment site of the umbilical cord. All placental mammals have a navel. The umbilicus is used to visually separate the abdomen into quadrants. The umbilicus is a prominent scar on the abdomen, with its position being relatively consistent among humans. The skin around the waist at the level of the umbilicus is supplied by the tenth thoracic spinal nerve (T10 dermatome). The umbilicus itself typically lies at a vertical level corresponding
Cultural views on the navel Cultural views on the navel The navel has been historically subject to many customs, fashions and taboos. Various cultures view the sexual and cultural significance of the navel differently, and these views have changed over time, which has shaped social mores relating to the navel in design of clothing and social traditions and practices. The public exposure of the male and female midriff and bare navel has been taboo at times in Western cultures, being considered immodest or indecent. It was banned in some jurisdictions, with some arguing that it simulated an "erogenic orifice". Eventually, only female navel exposure was