Archaically (and possibly currently still in use in countries outside the United States) the term Masseuse is used for someone who massages, self-taught or just because they have great hands. Masseuse and masseur is gender-specific. Masseuse is a female. Masseur is a male. A massage therapist is used for a person who has formal training in massage therapy, and is either registered, licensed, or state certifed. Massage Therapist can be male or female.
Masseuse became associated with illicit operations. To be more blunt, Masseuse is used a lot in sex work. Massage Therapist is used for people in the health and wellness industries. It has a more professional and clinical connotation. In more recent years, Masseuse or Masseur has become an offensive word, and many Massage Therapists will correct the title they studied hard for and earned.
When I was a child, to work in massage, you didn't have to be educated in the field in Southern California. Each "Masseuse" or "Masseur" had to go to the police department of the city that they would be working in upon hiring, pass a Venereal Disease test, give a mugshot picture, give their fingerprints, and get a permit to work in a massage establishment. This was done through the Vice unit, the unit that does prostitution and drug sting operations. By default, Massage Therapy ads were placed in the Adult Entertainment section of the newspaper. A legitimate massage ad, could read, "Therapeutic Massage by Jane, $60 hr, luxury day spa," and would be placed next to "Exotic full body Massage by beautiful Red Head." You can clearly see the difference. Being placed in the Adult Entertainment section and being treated as such by the police department, made it a constant battle of fighting and weeding out sexual offenders and lonely men.
For years, massage therapists fought this. They went to board meetings. They protested. They wrote articles and letters. They pushed to fight this misclassification and ill-treatment.
I watched the industry change. It went from 100 hours of schooling to 300, to 500, to 1000, to getting Nationally Certified and/or passing the MBLEX, to the California Massage Therapy Counsil certificate. Each city had their own ordinances, meaning they had their own laws on how much schooling a person needed, whether they needed to have a veneral disease test done or not, had to give fingerprints, pass a background check, pass a test in front of police officers and massage instructors hired by the police station. It was such a hassle for people who legitimately wanted to be health care professionals in Massage Therapy, but at least with the extra add-ons, Massage Therapists were being recognized as being health care professionals.
Massage Therapists were sometimes called Massage Technicians on their permits. It took years before a legitimate Massage Therapist in the state of California could work anywhere without all the various ordinances and police departments getting involved when the California Massage Therapist Counsil (CAMTC) was formed. It was an answer to our prayers. We could work in two different cities, not be confined to one city, pay a fee every 2 years, and proudly hang our state certificate in our office or lobby. We could also quickly identify the legitimacy of another massage therapist by verifying their certificate number through the CAMTC.
Unfortunately, many people have not lost the old lingo, passing it on from generation to generation. A Massage Therapist earned their title. A Masseuse or Masseur is now outdated and, very much, not preferred. This also includes "Massage Parlor" another outdated word.
A Massage Parlor goes along with the Masseuse and Masseur lingo. Massage Parlors hid and hide themselves in the guise of a spa. A spa, boutique, wellness center, clinic, or studio is the preferred massage establishment of a Massage Therapist.
Some people are confused by the term "Spa." A spa is typically associated with a jacuzzi, right? Well, in the massage industry, it can confuse a potential client. They may think there is a jacuzzi in the building. In ancient history, a spa was a place for bathing. Ancient Greece and Rome had bathing rituals, that included being washed in hot water, then rinsing in cold water. Afterward, they would be moisturized by having a liniment or emollient rubbed into their skin, a massage if you will. In Ancient Egypt, bathing in running water was considered a holistic approach to not just cleansing your body, but cleansing your spirit, use of flowers and parfums from flowers in the water was their form of Aromatherapy.
Today, spas (aka Massage establishments) use these ancient holistic approaches in healing of mind, body, and spirit. They use scent in the form of incense, candles, essential oils, or the essential oils in the massage oil. They may offer steam rooms, jacuzzis, or saunas in higher end spas, for the same reasons of ancient times...opening the pores, sweating the toxins out, relaxing the muscles and joint, and overall feeling of wellbeing and cleansing. This is why many of the massage establishments without jacuzzis or tubs, call themselves a spa. It's about paying homage to the ancient healing rituals of our ancestors. Just don't call it a parlor.
I hope my explanation helps you understand why your Massage Therapist may cringe when you write a public review referring to their spa as a Massage Parlor and referring to them as a Masseuse/Masseur.
Revolutionize your vocabulary.
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