Figure 1.--One interesting aspect of the school jumper was that for the most part it was optional. Most school uniform items were required. At most schools, however, boys could puton or take off the jumper when ever they wanted. |
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England can be a chilly place, especially on a drizzy day, and there are normally a lot of them. Schools did not used to be as well heated as they are today. The most common jumper became the "V" neck to
show the tie, but there were many other styles. Almost all were pullovers, but girls at some schools wore cardigans. Many schools once required boys to wear their blazers while at school, but this rule is now rarely observed. Private schools still generally have blazers, but
boys often geberally wear just their jumpers during the school day.
Boys at many comprehensives in the 1990s began wearing mostly jumpers without blazers.
Sweater and jumper can used interchangably, but they can mean quite different things. The difference is significant between American and British English. I'm not sure about other English speaking countries. In particular I am unsure about usdage in the dominions. While some of the uses of jumper are shared meanings in both America and Britain, the use of the term being a sweater appears to be destinctly British. The word jumper began to be used about 1850-55, presumably in Britain. The origin, however is uncertain. We are ost familiar with the meaning in America. Hopefully our British readers will provide an update on current usage.
England can be a chilly place, especially on a drizzy day, and there are normally a lot of them. Virtually every English schoolboy wore sweaters to school, except during the warm summer months. Here there were no school rules. Unlike other school uniform garments, the children could decide whether to wear their jumpers and when. O\Perhaps some schools had riles about the jumper, but we did not notice them at schools we visited. Schools did not used to be as well heated as they are today .Here we do not only see the children wearing jumpers when they go outside, but commonly wearing their jumpers inside during classes or in the dormitories or other school buildings. Boys commonly kept their jumpers on all day long, in part because the schools discouraged them from leavong their sweaters around the school grounds.
HBC at this time has relatively little chronological information and can only speculate about trends. HBC would be interested in any details English readers can add. The most popular style has been the "V" nuck sweater because so many schools insisted the children wear ties. We have noticed cardigans and crew-neck sweaters being worn, but by the 1950s, the grey "V" neck sweater was the standard style. Mums and grandmothers were still knitting sweaters, but more and more boys were wearing stote-bought, often play grey sweaters. Some Girls in the 1950s still wore Cardigan sweaters rather than blazers. An English reader in secondary school during the 1970s tell us, "When I first went to secondary school the only jumpers allowed were grey ones with the school colours on them. Sweaters continue to be one of the most used school uniform garments. They were the normal classroom wear except during when the weather turns warm during the summer term. Grey continued to be the most common color. Boys had worn mostly wool sweaters, but in the 1980s some schools began adopting jumpers made with synthetic fibers, primarily because of the lower cost. Some schools in the 1990s began replacing jumpers with sweatshirts. They were less expensive and could be ordered with school logos.
We notice English school children wearing a range of different sweaters. The boys mostly wore different types of pullovers. The two basic styles of sweaters are pullover and cardigan. Boys always wore pullovers or jumpers. Cardigans were much more common for the girls. Girls also wore the "V" neck sweaters, primarily girls wore ties at many schools. The most common jumper for boys became the "V" neck because the open "V" allowed the tie to show. These "V"-style jumpers are made in both sleeved and sleeveless versions. There were, however, were many other styles besides the "V"-neck jumpers. A few schools had jumpers with crewnecks or even collars and Rugby-style buttons. Almost all were pullovers, but girls at some schools wore cardigans. Quite a number of schools had pullovers with a kind of satin shoulder patch. This seems to have been a style adapted from the services.
Uniform sweaters were initially plain grey. We note jumpers with a variety of color detailing or trim. The color detailing added a bit of color to otherwise rather drab jumpers. Most commonly this involved two colors. Often one was a bright colot like yellow, but there were countless combinations. Sometimes only one color was used. While grey was the most common color jumper, they were done in severalmother colors which often also had color detailing. Jumpers might have color detailing at the collar, wrist cuffs, or waist band. The color detailing was most common at the collar, mostly "V" collar jumpers. The "V" collar was of course designed to show the school tie. Some also had the school leaders or symbol. Other types of sweaters than the "V" collar were not commonly detailed. The detailing would be in the school colors. The detailing often matched the ties and kneesock cuffs. And the color was commonly coordinated with caps and blazers or sometines scarves for winter wear.
Uniform sweaters were mostly grey. I'm not sure precisely why grey was so common. While grey was the most common, there were several other colors used as well. We have not noted black, but white was used for cricket. We have noted blue in particular. Other colors included brown, green, maroon, and red. In recent years colored sweters became more common. Quite a number of schools, however have begun to replace sweaters with sweatshirts.
One interesting aspect of the school jumper was that for the most part it was optional. Most school uniform items were required. School rules defined when most uniform garments were worn. At most schools, however, boys could puton or take off the jumper when ever they wanted. Thus in all but really cold and really warm weather, one normally saw some boys wearing the school sweater and other boys not wearing them. At most schools all of the children had sweaters thus it was just a matter of individual choice as to whether the sweater was worn. This included both during and outside of the classroom. There was no consistent thread. It is just that some boys felt colder than others. The sweaters were very commonly worn durung the Fall ans Winter terms, even inside because many of the schools were not very well heated. The spring term was ,ore varied because the weather is much warmer, aklthough there can still be chilly days.
Private schools still generally have blazers, but boys often wear just their jumpers during the school day. Prep schools most commonly had jumpers with trim in the school colors. Not all prep schools had them, but many did. Even prep schools did not always the regulation jumpers were worn. This varied from school to school. Many Anglican schools also had these sweaters. They were less common atstate primary schools, but not unknown. A factor here was the cost. Plain grey jumpers were less expensive. Boys at many comprehensives in the 1990s began wearing mostly jumpers without blazers. An English reader reports in the 1990s that boys at comprehensives began to less commonly wear their blazers. Most of the children, boys and girls, seem to usually wear just their sweaters.
One English reader reports that he does not recall girls wearing jumpers (pullovers) while he was at school in the 1950s. Some did wear cardigans, which buttoned up the front, rather than jumpers which pulled over the head. Perhaps they were considered more lady-like. Girls also wore blazers and his sister certainly had one as part of her uniform.
School sweaters were done with flat weaves. Out of school hand-knitted jumpers sometimes had an elaborate "cable stitch" pattern yet you would never see such a pattern on a school uniform jumper. The one exception was the white sweaters done for cricket. These sweaters did sometimes have the cable knit weave.
We notice schools beginning to add sweatshirts ro the school uniform in the 1990s. Very few schools in the 1980s had sweatshirts. Schools began replacing sweaters with sweatshirts. I don't think many schools hd both sweaters and sweatshirts. I'm not sure why this change was made. There seem to be several reasons. Sweatshirts are cheaper. They are easier to stylize with the school shiels or other logo. They are more informal garments and are generally worn without ties. Sweatshirt always come with crew necks. They are not made with V-necks. Sweatshirts are done in colors. Unlike American sweatshirts, British sweatshirts were not done in grey. The most common color is blue, but they are done in sevveral other colors as well. The sweatshirtswere worn by both boys and girls, just like sweaters.
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