Red - light district - wikipedia Red - light district This article is about the sex industry term. For other uses, see Red Light District ( disambiguation ). Rooms illuminated by red lights in an Amsterdam red - light district A red - light district or pleasure district is a part of an urban area where a concentration of prostitution and sex - oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, and adult theaters are found. Areas in many big cities around the world have acquired an international reputation as red - light districts. The term red - light district originates from the red lights that were used as signs of brothels. Contents 1 Origins of term 2 Legal issues 3 Image gallery 4 See also 5 References 6 External links Origins of term Red - light districts are mentioned in the 1882 minutes of a Woman 's Christian Temperance Union meeting in the United States. The Oxford English Dictionary records the earliest known appearance of the term `` red light district '' in print as an 1894 article from the Sandusky Register, a newspaper in Sandusky, Ohio Author Paul Wellman suggests that this and other terms associated with the American Old West originated in Dodge City, Kansas, home to a well - known prostitution district during the 19th century, which included the Red Light House saloon. This has not been proven, but the Dodge City use was likely responsible for the term becoming pervasive. A widespread folk etymology claims that early railroad workers took red lanterns with them when they visited brothels so their crew could find them in the event of an emergency. However, folklorist Barbara Mikkelson regards this as unfounded. One of the many terms used for a red - light district in Japanese is akasen ( 赤 線 ), literally meaning `` red - line ''. ( This has independent origins from the same term in English. ) Japanese police drew a red line on maps to indicate the boundaries of legal red - light districts. In Japanese, the term aosen ( 青 線 ), literally meaning `` blue - line '', also exists, indicating an illegal district. In the United States during the 19th and early 20th centuries, the term `` sporting district '' became popular for legal red - light districts. Municipal governments typically defined such districts explicitly to contain and regulate prostitution. Legal issues Some red - light districts ( such as De Wallen, Netherlands, or Reeperbahn, Germany ) are places which are officially designated by authorities for legal and regulated prostitution. Often, these red - light districts were formed by authorities to help regulate prostitution and other related activities, such that they were confined to a single area. Some red - light districts ( such as those in The Hague ) are under video surveillance. This can help counter illegal forms of prostitution ( such as child prostitution ), in these areas that do allow regular prostitution to occur. Legality of prostitution Decriminalization - No criminal penalties for prostitution Legalization -- prostitution legal and regulated Abolitionism -- prostitution is legal, but organized activities such as brothels and pimping are illegal ; prostitution is not regulated Neo-abolitionism illegal to buy sex and for 3rd party involvement, legal to sell sex Prohibitionism -- prostitution illegal Legality varies with local laws Image gallery Reeperbahn in Hamburg, Germany Soi Cowboy, Thailand Statue in honor of sex workers in Amsterdam See also List of red - light districts References ^ Jump up to : `` History of the Red light District `` What you should know about Amsterdam ''. Whatyoushouldknowaboutamsterdam. WordPress. com. Retrieved 2012 - 09 - 01. ^ Jump up to : `` Red light ( 2. ) ''. Oxford English Dictionary. June 2010. Retrieved October 6, 2010. Jump up ^ Minutes of the Ninth Annual Meeting. National Woman 's Christian Temperance Union. 1882. pp. 332, 333 & 363. Jump up ^ Wellman, Paul Iselin ( 1988 ). The Trampling Herd : The Story of the Cattle Range in America. University of Nebraska Press. p. 195. ISBN 0 - 8032 - 9723 - 8. Jump up ^ Barra, Allen ( 2009 ). Inventing Wyatt Earp : His Life and Many Legends. University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 0803220588. Jump up ^ Barbara Mikkelson ( July 9, 2007 ). `` Red Light District ''. snopes.com. Retrieved October 3, 2010. Jump up ^ Woolston, Howard Brown ( 1921 ). Prostitution in the United States. New York : The Century Company. p. 105 -- 107. ISBN 978 - 0 - 217 - 03857 - 7. Jump up ^ `` The Red Light District of Amsterdam ''. CamsterDamn. Archived from the original on May 20, 2013. Retrieved February 20, 2013. Jump up ^ `` Camera surveillance in red - light districts in The Hague ''. January 24, 2014. Archived from the original on 2016 - 10 - 08. 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Question: where did the phrase red light district come from
Answer: from the red lights that were used as signs of brothels