Shorts are a garment worn over the pelvic area, circling the waist and splitting to cover the upper part of the legs, sometimes extending down to the knees but not covering the entire length of the leg. They are called "shorts" because they are a shortened version of pants, which cover the entire leg, but not the foot. Shorts are typically worn in warm weather or in an environment where comfort and airflow are more important than the protection of the legs.
There are a variety of shorts, ranging from knee-length short trousers that can in some situations be worn as formal clothes to beachwear and athletic shorts. Some types of shorts are typically worn by women, such as culottes, which are a divided skirt resembling a pair of loose-cut shorts.
Terminological differences
The British English term short trousers is used only for shorts that are a short version of ordinary trousers (i.e., pants or slacks in American English). For example: tailored shorts, often lined, as typically worn as part of a school uniform for boys up to their early teens, and by servicemen and policemen in tropical climates. Shorts, used unqualified in British English, refers to sports shorts, athletic shorts, or casual shorts; the last nowadays commonplace in warm weather in the UK. Shorts are also known as "half pants" in India.
The dated American English term short pants is probably the nearest equivalent in the US, where they might now be called dress shorts, a term that has not gained much currency in Britain.
A somewhat similar garment worn by men in Australia is called stubbies.
The term boxer shorts is an American coinage for a particular kind of men's underwear, and is now also common in Britain. However, boxer shorts are often referred to merely as boxers in the US. Moreover, whereas the American English usage of the word pants refers to outerwear (i.e., trousers in British English), the usage of pants in British English refers to the garment worn under one's trousers (such as boxers). Such a garment, however, is referred to as underpants in American English (note the qualification of the word pants by the word under). Alongside the term boxer shorts, undershorts or simply shorts were synonyms for underpants during the time of this coinage; while jockey shorts was a synonym for men's briefs.
Sociology
Europe and America
In much of Europe and the Americas during the 19th and early 20th centuries, shorts were worn as outerwear only by young boys until they reached a certain height or maturity. When boys got older, typically around puberty, they would receive their first pair of long trousers. This produced the perception that shorts were only for young boys. Because of this, men would not wear shorts to avoid looking immature, even when the weather was hot. Women tended not to wear shorts in most cultures, due to social mores: they were expected to wear dresses, or skirts and blouses.
In the 1890s, knee pants (an early type of short pants) became the standard wear for American boys. Many urban school portraits from the 1890s show all but the oldest boys wearing knee pants. North American boys normally wore knee pants with short stockings. This began to change after the 1900s when North American boys began wearing knickerbockers during the winter, while short pants became more popular in Europe. In the 1930s, shorts started to be worn for casual comfort (e.g. outdoor and athletic activities) by both men and women. However, it was still taboo to wear shorts outside of certain activities.
Since about the time of World War II, when many soldiers served in tropical locations, adult men have worn shorts more often, especially in summer weather, but the perception of shorts as being only for young boys took several decades to change, and to some extent still exists in certain circles. Shorts would soon become more popular by the late 1960s as a result of the countercultural movement that defined the decade, and men and women started wearing jean shorts and other variants as the 1970s dawned. It would become more common for men to wear shorts as casual wear in summer, but much less so in cooler seasons.
Wearing shorts remains uncommon in the office environment and are not typically considered part of the business casual dress code.
Asia
Shorts are not traditional clothing in some Asian countries. International trade and fashion trends have helped bring shorts to the East. They were first treated as taboo in countries like China, Japan, Korea and Vietnam because they conflicted with old traditions that women have to cover their body private parts and worries about sexual harassment.
As time goes by, shorts are slowly accepted by people, especially young people.
Now in Asia, wearing shorts is considered young, active, and energetic. They are a symbol of freedom from old rules and have helped promote gender equality.
Worldwide Adults are also commonly seen wearing shorts, but wearing shorts is less common among women in traditional eastern countries than in the West although that varies widely by region. Women more often wear shorts in large cosmopolitan cities. In some countries, adult women can be seen wearing loose-fitting shorts that end at or just below the knee, as these are seen as sufficiently modest.
In many countries, there are still many settings in which wearing shorts would not be acceptable, as they are considered too casual. Notable exceptions in which men may wear short trousers to the office or at formal gatherings are South Africa, Bermuda, Australia and New Zealand . Since the 1990s, casual office dress has grown to include formal shorts in some British and American businesses but by no means universally.
Styles Image Name Description Baggies Loose-fitting shorts which reach the knees. This particular style has been associated with football kit and similar sports since 1904, when the Football Association dropped its rule requiring players cover their knees. Loose-fitting longer shorts rapidly replaced the former knickerbockers. Until the 1960s, footballers referred to these garments as "knickers", but after the 1960s, the term "shorts" entered standard usage. During the 1970s and 1980s, much shorter shorts became standard wear for footballers, but following the adoption of longer shorts by Tottenham Hotspur F.C. for a match on 18 May 1991, despite initial mockery, the longer length became more widely worn again. A popular nickname for West Bromwich Albion football club since the early 1900s has been the "Baggies". This is sometimes assumed to be in reference to the players' shorts, although there are multiple alternative explanations.
"Baggies" is also an alternative term for boardshorts (see below). Bermuda shorts
Short trousers, terminating three to four inches above the knee, commonly worn by men in Bermuda (with knee-socks and a blazer and tie) for business attire and even at cocktail parties. They are available in a wide range of colors, ranging from conservative grey and navy, to brighter hues such as orange, green and pink. Despite their name, they are not of Bermudian origin, but were originally designed around 1900 for military wear by the British armed forces in tropical climates. From the 1920s onwards these military uniform shorts began to be copied by Bermudian tailors and civilians, and were subsequently taken up by tourists who spread the style around the world. The tourists who appropriated the style wore Bermuda shorts almost exclusively as casual wear.
In the early 1990s Bermuda shorts became accepted in France as a fashionable option for women, although since the 1930s they had been increasingly established as an option for American women's fashionable sportswear. In America, despite widespread criticism, Bermuda shorts were taken up by male and female students on college campuses from the 1920s and 1930s onwards, and by the 1950s, were widely worn. In early 21st century America, women's Bermuda shorts are known as "city shorts", and are usually knee-length, resembling a pencil skirt. Boardshorts Boardshorts are a form of long, loose-fitting shorts specifically designed for beachwear and aquatic sports. They may also be described as "baggies" (see above) or "jams". As "surf trunks" they first emerged in Hawaii in the 1950s, distinguished by their construction which included fly fastenings and secure pockets with sealable flaps. These early surf trunks were made from cotton, although quick-drying synthetics such as nylon and neoprene quickly found favour with wearers. They were made knee-length in order to protect the surfer's legs from sticking to the wax on their surfboard.
In 1970 the company Quiksilver offered a highly successful boardshort design that rapidly gained a reputation among surfers as the best to be had. They later pioneered a line of boardshorts specifically designed for the female wearer. Other leading boardshort manufacturers include Billabong and Rip Curl.
By 2010, the boardshort was widely worn as a fashionable garment beyond the beach, including as clubwear and in schools. In the early 21st century, polyester is increasingly used, often blended with other fibres such as Lycra, elastane, or spandex, creating an ultrasuede effect. Boxer shorts