Restroom signs, those silent guides in the mazes of public spaces, have always played an important role in the interior organisation of different facilities. Even before indoor plumbing was a common thing, restroom signs guided people to the desired destinations with ease and effectiveness.

These days, a simple women restroom sign you can buy on Bsign Store is something more than just a door plate that designates an area for washing one’s hands. It is interesting to explore how curiously restroom door signs have evolved, and this is exactly what we are going to do in today’s guide.

There are many pieces of evidence that first door signs on public bathrooms and restrooms were in active use during the time of the Roman Empire. Now we have one more reason to be thinking about it. However, back then, door signs executed merely utilitarian functions, namely they simply identified a bathroom or restroom without the extra layers of meanings we can see today.

This utilitarian function was rather a common thing till the middle of the previous century. People barely thought about the visual representation of public restroom signs, so “WC” or “Restroom” inscriptions were totally enough to designate a respective area.

Time passed by and it became evident that people are quite visually oriented. This means that it is more comfortable for us to perceive simple visual guides instead of inscriptions. In addition, in the 1960s, the world became more globalised, so there was a need to look for universally understandable symbols to designate restrooms. This is how men’s and women’s restroom icons appeared.

It turned out that icons are quite effective and acceptable all around the world regardless of the national cultures. Gender segregation became a common thing for restrooms, and now you can hardly find a public space that does not offer separate restrooms for men and women.

However, the evolution of restroom signs did not stop at that point.

In the 21st century, people have become more socially aware, which opened new opportunities for making public spaces more inclusive to the needs of various social groups. These initiatives resulted in so much-needed bills such as ADA, which started regulating the use of restroom signs in public facilities in order to make those spaces more inclusive for disabled individuals. Now you can see a lot of restroom signs designating areas designed specially for people on wheelchairs as well.

Inclusivity is all about the acceptance of other needs. These days, you can see more mother’s restroom signs equipped with all the necessary things to help young parents take care of their babies. This simple gesture shows that the space is family-friendly and that parents will not feel awkward looking for a suitable place to change their kid’s diapers.

On the whole, we are living in an era of inclusivity. Of course, restroom signs should not be considered as symbols of this era but they play an important role in its functioning.