Boys' Clothing Glossary: "E"


Figure 1.--

We have begun to build a glossary of boys' clothing terms. As boys clothes until the 19th century was the sane as adult male clothing, we have included many applicable men's clothing terms. We have also included some women's terms as younger boys commonly wore dresses until the 20th century. As HBC is extensively used by non-native English speakers we plan to give considerable attention to this glossary so that words can be looked up. It will also serve as an index as we will provide links to the appropriate pages. We eventually hope to add foreign words, but that will take some time.

Ear flaps: A pair of appendages attached at the top to opposite sides of headwear, usually a cap, for protecting the ears in especially cold weather. Also called "earlaps" in older publications.

Ear muffs: A pair of usually adjustable coverings to cover the ears in cold weather. Usually made of fake fur on an adjustable metl ban. I'm not sure just when ear muffs first appeared. The turn of the 20th century seems likely, but that is just a guess. One advantage of a boy with longbhair or ringlets is that ear muffs were not as necessary as with a boy that had a short hair cut.

Eisenhower jacket: An American military jacket often worn by General Eisenhower in World War II. Also called a "battle jacket."

Ethnic dress: Some clothing styles are strongly associated with ethnic groups. In many cases there are interesting cultural and or climatic reasons for the development of these styles. The Lapps of Norway, for example needed warm clothes in their Arctic envirnment. The origins of other styles are lost in time, but are often assocaited with styles in specific historical periods. In most cases these folk costumes no longer widely worn in the various countrues. They do appear in folk festivals are may even be be incorportated into dress wear for formal occasions. Often ethnic costumes reflect national costumes. Most ethnic costumes can not be neatly categorized by countries or other political units. Some ethnic groups like the Lapps or Kurds find themselves in many different countries. Some countries or empires have many different ethnic groups. Some religious groups maintain some destinctive costumes or hair styles in many different countries.

Eton collar: Boys over the ages have worn a variety of shirt collars, one of the most common style in the late 19th and early 20th century was the Eton collar. For decades, an Eton collar Eton collars were large stiff white collars worn by the students at Eton school. Given the prestige of Eton, the fashion of Eton suits became widely worn both in England and America during the late 19th and early 20th Centuries.

Eton style: Formal Eton suits and collars were a style which lasted for about a century in England and were also commonly worn in America. And offshoot of the Eton suit, a colarless jacket for little boys became a staple for younger American boys for an additional half century when the formal Eton suit had disapperared--except of course at Eton College.

Eton suit--American: A spin off of the Eton suits became fasionable for small American boys beginning at about 5 years of age. This style from the beginning was preceived as an upper-class style. Even so, it became the most stylish dress suit for two generations of American boys. It did not begin to disappear until the 1970s, but even in the 1990s is worn by very young boys at fornmal events like weddings.

Eton suit--classic: The Classic Eton suit was a style which dominated boys' suits for about a century in England and were also commonly worn in America, France, and other countries. The style originated in England's fabeled Eton college. The prestige of the school resulted in the style being copied for boys' suits at other public schools as well as suits for boys that did not go to Eton college. Older English boys as well as boys in America commonly wore the style as their best dress suits for several generations. It was commonly worn until after World War I when it was replaced by suits with soft collars. Even during the 1930s, English boys might don an Eton suit for an especially formal event.

Eyelet: A small hole, usually round and finished along the edge, as in cloth, lace, or leather for the passage of a lace or cord or as in embroidery for ornamental effect.

Eylet lace:










Christopher Wagner






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Created: April 24, 1998
Last updated: November 28, 2001