This entry is concerned with the use of the word талия to refer to the part of the human torso between the ribs and the hip as an element of someone's figure. It does not refer to animals. This word is used to describe the shape of someone's body and
also certain gestures involving someone's waist. It is not used to describe sensations, e.g. pain. In the literature of the 19th century, талия was still used in the sense "the upper portion of the torso," e.g. длинная талия, said of a
long-waisted person, стройная талия "a shapely figure," etc. (Compare the word стан, which also has this usage.) For the difference between the word талия and its synonym пояс, see Lexical Relationships: Synonyms.
The word талия is also used to refer to the corresponding part of clothing, a meaning not described in this dictionary.