# What items of clothing have changed their names over the years? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 6, 2013, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011 "2013-04-06T13:33:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 10:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/21 "2013-04-07T10:42:30Z")
Blouse, knickers and jumper retain their archaic names in England. In America we call them shirt, panties and sweater. ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/22 "2013-04-07T11:39:31Z")
Trousers became pants. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/23 "2013-04-07T14:20:31Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > What were _Daisy Dukes_ before Daisy Duke came along? Were they cutoff shorts? they were cutoffs. initially purposely and skillfully frayed. maybe later also spot or totally bleached. later maybe with strategic holes. ---
**Author:** ![rsat3acr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@rsat3acr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rsat3acr)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/24 "2013-04-07T15:05:57Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > What were _Daisy Dukes_ before Daisy Duke came along? Were they cutoff shorts? hot pants ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/25 "2013-04-07T16:56:11Z")
Seems like women now wear tops , not shirts or blouses. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/26 "2013-04-07T17:02:41Z")
Pedal pushers became Capri’s and I think now they are called cropz or something like that. Ladies pants cut off abaout 4" above the ankles. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/27 "2013-04-07T17:27:18Z")
> [@rsat3acr](#): > > hot pants Aye, the hot pants. I thought “Daisy Dukes” were specifically **jean/denim** short shorts, whereas hot pants were any very short shorts. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/28 "2013-04-07T17:35:23Z")
> [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](#): > > My kids think I’m being quaint when I refer to my “dungarees”–they profess not even to understand what that word means. I’m partial to [Carhartt Work Dungarees,](http://dungareesblog.com/tag/carhartt-jeans/) which are basically full-leg denim carpenter’s pants. Carhartt reserves the name dungaree for their loosest fit; the rest are just jeans. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/29 "2013-04-07T17:40:20Z")
> [@moriah](#): > > And fashionistas now refer to them as a pant. And what do you wear with a pant? A shoe. I like picturing [Stacy London](http://images.quickblogcast.com/6/9/9/0/3/140134-130996/stacy_london.jpg) hopping around on one high heel. ---
**Author:** ![Kenm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bc79bd/32.png) [@Kenm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kenm)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/30 "2013-04-07T21:25:59Z")
That some 6-foot-5 Hulk who, using his teeth, pulls buses for a living through blinding snow now wears a hoodie, not a hood . . . well, I suppose I wouldn’t say anything. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/31 "2013-04-07T22:11:14Z")
> [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](#): > > My kids think I’m being quaint when I refer to my “dungarees”–they profess not even to understand what that word means. Come to think of it, _I_ don’t know what that means. And I’m almost 50. I have an impression of heavy work wear, perhaps even something like hip waders, but the word seems extremely archaic, like something my grandfather might have used. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/32 "2013-04-07T22:14:47Z")
> [@VernWinterbottom](#): > > I’m a Rev War reenactor. In America, both before and after the war, men wore waistcoats over their shirts. (Shirts were underwear.) The length of the Waistcoat , number of buttons and neck line changed over the years but they didn’t become “vests” until the 19th century. > > From the waist down, we wore breeches, pronounced britches, both knee length and full length. > > Examples here: [18th century men’s clothing from Jas. Townsend & Son](http://jas-townsend.com/index.php?cPath=1_17) Fascinating. That site makes me want to go riding through the streets yelling, “The British are coming!” Or possibly go riding through the streets imploring people to uphold the honour of the King. (As a Canadian of British descent, I am somewhat conflicted here.) ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/33 "2013-04-07T23:38:05Z")
Does anyone else remember sweatsacks? ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/34 "2013-04-07T23:39:40Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > Come to think of it, _I_ don’t know what [dungarees] means. And I’m almost 50. > > I have an impression of heavy work wear, perhaps even something like hip waders, but the word seems extremely archaic, like something my grandfather might have used. I’ll admit the first thing I thought of when I first heard the word dungarees was…dung. :rolleyes: Like maybe you wore them to clean up barns or muck stables. The word dungaree is originally Hindi, though, and was a kind of heavy sailcloth originating in India. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/35 "2013-04-08T04:39:41Z")
> [@naita](#): > > [Short shorts](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcvjXAtzaMU) > > I’d guess (denim) short shorts. Old jeans cut off to very short lengths were simply “very short cutoffs”. “Short shorts”, by contrast, were (usually) of some other material than denim and had a finished hem. Gym and running shorts, which in those days could be equally short for both men and women, were yet another category that didn’t really come under the heading short shorts. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/36 "2013-04-08T13:11:15Z")
sneakers—\>tennis shoes—\>athletic shoes ---
**Author:** ![VernWinterbottom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/c67d28/32.png) [@VernWinterbottom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VernWinterbottom)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/37 "2013-04-08T14:33:42Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > Fascinating. That site makes me want to go riding through the streets yelling, “The British are coming!” We were\* all \*British. The cry would have been, “The Regulars are coming!” or perhaps “Redcoats.” Photo of me, my wife and daughter [HERE](https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/528534_4225552809912_1534950715_n.jpg). My stuff is from Jas. Townsend. My wife made her dress, though you can’t see much of it. Our daughter’s glasses are ALL WRONG, so fellow reenactors, don’t get judgey. And me in my wool coat [HERE](https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-frc1/279182_10150268123239508_1621964_o.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/38 "2013-04-08T14:48:24Z")
> [@robert\_columbia](#): > > Interestingly enough, the words “shirt” and “skirt” are actually cognates. Shirt is a native English word while skirt is from Old Norse, the language of the Vikings. It appears that the meanings diverged once “skirt” had entered English usage. English is a West Germanic language and Old Norse (which eventually became Danish, Norwegian, and other languages) was North Germanic. The way I have been taught is that “shirt”, too, is a loan from Scandinavian when the pronunciation, and meaning, had changed. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/39 "2013-04-08T14:53:42Z")
“Don we now our gay apparel” doesn’t mean what it once did. ---
**Author:** ![Soylent\_Juicy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@Soylent\_Juicy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soylent_Juicy)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011/40 "2013-04-08T15:53:44Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > My grandmother wore clam diggers, my mom wore pedal pushers. I wore capris. > > My grandmother wore culottes, my mom wore split skirts, I wore gauchos. What used to be called “clam diggers” or “pedal pushers” we called “knickers” as a kid, now they’re “capris”. I wore gauchos when I was 7/8 (early 1980s) - it seems they’re called “culottes” now, and I never see them anymore. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-items-of-clothing-have-changed-their-names-over-the-years/655011.md?page=3)