Maelochs

Actually, leg shaving Wasn't for women until the early 20th century when razor manufacturers realized they could more than double sales if they convinced women that body hair was unsightly. Fashion changes---women's clothing which exposed parts of the body hitherto kept covered---was a part of the ploy.

Underarm hair went first, as sleeveless dresses became socially acceptable (Gillette marketed its first "Women's" razor in 1915) but as hemlines rose after WWI, leg-shaving became de rigueur.

I assume leg-shaving wasn't suggested for men for two reasons---One, men were already buying razors and two, for men with very hairy legs, a razor alone often isn't enough, which could have cause a backlash which would have been bad for business.

Hair removal has a much longer history, differing in different regions and cultures, but the idea that hirsuteness was indicative of brutality is pretty common. Hairy men (or women) are animals, is one school of thought. The more modern idea is that hairy men are like animals---powerful, aggressive, predatory, dangerous---because so few people actually do anything dangerous on a daily basis, we seek reinforcement that we are "Real" men by advertising how hairy we are (yes, it really is as pathetic as it sounds.)

Because shaving gear used to be expensive and hard to manufacture, only the very wealthy (or noble) could afford to worry about such stuff---so being smooth (like being fat, in some cultures) was seen as a sign of success. So ..... is it low testosterone, high wealth, good breeding, good aero? Why do people do what they do?

People are really weird. if it wasn't for the fact that some of them make bikes and bike parts, I'd be in favor of extermination.