Surf culture

Surf culture is the culture that includes the people, language, fashion and lifestyle surrounding the sport of surfing. The history of surfing began with the ancient Polynesians. That initial culture directly influenced modern surfing which began to flourish and evolve in the early 20th century, with popularity spiking greatly during the 1950s and 1960s. (principally in Hawaii, Australia, and California. )It continues to progress and spread throughout the world. It has at times affected popular fashion, music, literature, films, art, jargon, and more.

The fickle nature of weather and the ocean, plus the great desire for the best possible types of waves for surfing, make surfers dependent on weather conditions that may change rapidly. Surfer Magazine, founded in the 1960s when surfing had gained popularity with teenagers, used to say that if they were hard at work and someone yelled "Surf's up!" the office would suddenly be empty. Also, since surfing has a restricted geographical necessity (i.e. the coast), the culture of beach life often influenced surfers and vice versa. Localism or territorialism is a part of the development of surf culture in which individuals or groups of surfers designate certain key surfing spots as their own.