Figure 1.--Quite a number of the boys in this German school photograph wear lederhosen, more than we have noticed in most German classes. The German reader who provided us his image reports that it was taken in Eslingen, a small city close to Stuttgart, during 1965-67.

Perhaps the most destinctive of the various styles of short pants worn by schoolboys is the leather lederhosen that some Austrian and German boys wore to school. HBC see quite a number of schools were many of the cases, in some cases vitrtually all of the boysin primary schools are wearing Lederhosen. These schools had not established a unifo=m which is usually the case when items are so so common. It is just that Lederhosen were so common for boys wear in some regions. We see boys wearing Lederhosen to school in the inter-war era, but they become much more common after World War II, especially by the 1950s. German and Austrian schools did not have uniforms. They were widely worn to school as ordinary dress by boys in Austria and Germany. A German reader tells us, "In southern Germany (and Austria) during the 1950s and 1960s Lederhosen were often a kind of standard-dress for boys. This depended on the region as well as social background. They were very common schoolwear as well as scouting. I will send you some sample school portraits. At quite a number of schools in the 1950s nearly all of the boys are wearing a Lederhose, sometimes even the teachers. Scool portraits are of course the best indicator of popularity anbd prevakence. In the 1950s all Lederhosen are of rindkernvelours and with buttoned fall front. By the 1960s, the Glattleder and double-zipper-front meanwhile has become more popular." We see far fewer boys wearing Lederhosen to school in the 1970s.

Destinctive Styling

Perhaps the most destinctive of the various styles of short pants worn by schoolboys is the leather lederhosen that some Austrian and German boys wore to school. Thet are instantly recognizable in the photographic recoerd and the vast majority were worn in Germanny

Popular Fashion

HBC knows of no school that adopted lederhosen as aschool uniform. But few German and Austrian schools had uniforms. They were widely worn to school as ordinary dress by boys in Austria and Germany. It looks like a uniform becuase so many boys wore them. BC see quite a number of schools were many of the childrens, in some cases vitrtually all of the boys in primary schools are wearing Lederhosen. These schools had not established a uniforn=m which is usually the case when items are so so common. It is just that Lederhosen were so common for boys wear in some regions. We see boys wearing Lederhosen to school in the inter-war era, but they become much more common after World War II, especially by the 1950s. German and Austrian schools did not have uniforms. They were widely worn to school as ordinary dress by boys in Austria and Germany. A German reader tells us, "In southern Germany (and Austria) during the 1950s and 1960s Lederhosen were often a kind of standard-dress for boys. This depended on the region as well as social background. They were very common schoolwear as well as scouting. I will send you some sample school portraits. At quite a number of schools in the 1950s nearly all of the boys are wearing a Lederhose, sometimes even the teachers. Scool portraits are of course the best indicator of popularity anbd prevakence. In the 1950s all Lederhosen are of rindkernvelours and with buttoned fall front. By the 1960s, the Glattleder and double-zipper-front meanwhile has become more popular."

Chronology

Beginning in the 1920s we note boys beginning to commonly wearing Lederhosen to school in Germany. we presume the same was true in Austria. HBC is not sure why they suddenly became more acceptable for schoolwear in the 1920s. They may have been even more common in Austria. In German they were more common in Bavaria than other areas. In Austria they were more common in rural areas than Vienna and other large cities.HBC is not sure why they suddenly became more acceptable for schoolwear in the 1920s. They were not a dominabt styleds, but wse do see many boys wearing them. This continued into World War II when leather became an important war material. A lot of military gear was mase in keather. And the Germans Army needed tackle for the huge numbers of horses used by the Ostheer. After the War, Lederhosden seem to be mire common than ever. We are not sure why. They were especially commin in the 1950s. We see whole school classes with almost all of the boys wearing Lederhosen. We note boys in Austria and Germany commonly wearing them to school in the 1960s, but they began to decline in popularity during the 1970s. Even so, we note some French boys wearing them during the 1970s. We do not believe that they are now common schoolwear, but we have few recent reports. Hopefully our German readers will update us here. We note boys in Austria and Germany commonly wearing them to school in the 1960s, but they began to decline in popularity during the 1970s. We do not believe that they are now common schoolwear, but we have few recent reports.

Country Trends

Lederhosen are commonly associated with Germany. And most of the boys who have worm Lederhosen have been German boys. This is confirmed by the fact that the great majority of the images we have found and archived are German images. We note many Germn boys wearing them to schoo, especially in the 1950s. And because Germany has a large population, we are talking about large numbers. Lederhosen were also very common in Austria. But Austria is a much smaller country. Thus the number of boys has beem much smaller. There is also a substantial German-ethnic population in Switzerland. Like Austria, however, Switzerland is a small country. Lederhosen appear to be less common in Switzerland than in Germsny and Austria. Lederhosen have also been worn by boys in other countries, but not very commonly.

Created: March 4, 2002
Last updated: 5:25 PM 2/4/2021