Hoodie
Encyclopedia
Hood (headgear)
A hood is a kind of headgear that covers most of the head and neck and sometimes the face. They may be worn for protection from the environment, for fashion, as a form of traditional dress or uniform, to prevent the wearer from seeing or to prevent the wearer from being identified.-History and...
. The characteristic design includes large frontal pocket
Pocket
A pocket is a bag- or envelope-like receptacle either fastened to or inserted in an article of clothing to hold small items. Pockets may also be attached to luggage, backpacks, and similar items...
s, a hood, and (usually) a drawstring
Drawstring
A drawstring is a string, cord, or rope used to "draw" or tie closed an opening in fabric or other material...
to adjust the hood opening. They are sometimes worn with sweatpants
Sweatpants
Sweatpants are a casual variety of soft trousers intended for comfort or athletic purposes.In Britain, Australia and New Zealand they are known as "jogging bottoms" or "track pants".- Design :...
. Some hoodies have zippers on them to allow easy removal much like a jacket. These hoodies are sometimes called zip-up hoodies or just a jacket.
History
The term hoodie entered popular usage in the 1990s. The history of the specific garment began in the 1930s, but historical precedent dates the style and form of the hoodie back to the Middle AgesMiddle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. The formal wear for Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
s included a cowl
Cowl
This article is about the garment used by monks and nuns. For other uses, see Cowl or Cowling .The cowl is an item of clothing consisting of a long, hooded garment with wide sleeves. Originally it may have referred simply to the hooded portion of a cloak...
, a long, decorative hood worn in addition to the standard tunic
Tunic
A tunic is any of several types of clothing for the body, of various lengths reaching from the shoulders to somewhere between the hips and the ankles...
or robes. The modern clothing style was first produced by Champion
Champion (sportswear)
Champion is a manufacturer of clothing, specializing in sportswear. The brand is a subsidiary of HanesBrands Inc. , which was spun off by the Sara Lee Corporation....
in the 1930s for laborers in the frozen warehouses of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Its popularity spread as sportswear designers such as Claire McCardell
Claire McCardell
Claire McCardell was an American fashion designer in the arena of ready-to-wear clothing in the 20th century. From the 1930s to the 1950s, she was known for designing functional, affordable, and stylish women’s sportswear within the constraints of mass-production, and is today acknowledged as the...
developed entire collections based around the clothing.
The hoodie took off in the 1970s
1970s in fashion
1970s fashion, which began with a continuation of the mini skirts, bell-bottoms and the androgynous hippie look from the late 1960s, was soon sharply characterized by several distinct fashion trends that have left an indelible image of the decade ...
, with several factors contributing to its success. Hip hop culture developed in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
around this time, and the hoodie's element of instant anonymity, provided by the accessible hood, appealed to those with criminal intent. High fashion also contributed during this era, as Norma Kamali and other high-profile designers embraced and glamorized the new clothing. Most critical to the hoodie's popularity during this time was its iconic appearance in the blockbuster Rocky
Rocky
Rocky is a 1976 American sports drama film directed by John G. Avildsen and both written by and starring Sylvester Stallone. It tells the rags to riches American Dream story of Rocky Balboa, an uneducated but kind-hearted debt collector for a loan shark in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
film. By the 1990s
1990s in fashion
The 1990s was the genesis of two sweeping shifts in Western fashion: the beginning of the rejection of fashion which continues into the present decade among a large section of the population, and the beginning of the mainstream adoption of tattoos , body piercings aside from ear piercing and to a...
, the hoodie had evolved into a symbol of isolation, a statement of academic spirit, and several fashion collections. The association with chavs/neds in the UK developed around this time, as their popularity rose with that specific demographic. Young men, often skateboarder
Skateboarding
Skateboarding is an action sport which involves riding and performing tricks using a skateboard.Skateboarding can be a recreational activity, an art form, a job, or a method of transportation. Skateboarding has been shaped and influenced by many skateboarders throughout the years. A 2002 report...
s or surfer
Surfing
Surfing' is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a surfboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore...
s, sported the hoodie and spread the trend across the western United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, most significantly in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. The rise of hoodies with university logos began around this time. Tommy Hilfiger
Tommy Hilfiger
Thomas Jacob "Tommy" Hilfiger is an American fashion designer and founder of the premium lifestyle brand Tommy Hilfiger.-Early life:...
, Giorgio Armani
Giorgio Armani
Giorgio Armani is an Italian fashion designer, particularly noted for his menswear. He is known today for his clean, tailored lines. He formed his company, Armani, in 1975, and by 2001 was acclaimed as the most successful designer to come out of Italy, with an annual turnover of $1.6 billion and a...
, and Ralph Lauren
Ralph Lauren
Ralph Lauren is an American fashion designer and business executive; best known for his Polo Ralph Lauren clothing brand.-Early life:...
, for example, used the hoodie as the primary component for many of their collections in the 1990s. In May 2005, at a time of recent publicity surrounding "Hoodies" in shopping centres, an infant travel wrap called the "Baby Hoodie" was launched by Morrck, a small UK company run by 'Mum-preneurs'. Towards the late 2000s and 2010s
2010s
The 2010s, pronounced "twenty-tens" or "two thousand tens", is the current decade which began on January 1, 2010 and will end on December 31, 2019...
, the hoodie has become increasingly popular with male youths in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
In Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
, the hoodie is often known as a "bunny hug" or "bunnyhug".
Now being very popular with youth culture - Scene Kids - it shaken off it's dark meaning and is fun way of implementing cartoon features (kawaii, anime) in the outfit, e.g. monster eyes and spikes or kitty ears on Hoodie.
North America
Across North America e.g. hoodies are often worn by people in casual settings for warmth, protection against wind and comfort. Throughout North America it is also common for high schools, colleges, and universities to create their own hoodies with their respective school names and/or mascots across the chest. Hoodies are a common dress for outside exercises such as jogging and running. Hoodies are generally regarded as casual dress and are often worn over a T-shirtT-shirt
A T-shirt is a style of shirt. A T-shirt is buttonless and collarless, with short sleeves and frequently a round neck line....
. In the United States as well as Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, hoodies are a near-ubiquitous fashion item for teenagers.
Hoodies have become mainstream fashion transcending the hood's original utilitarian purpose, similar to jeans
Jeans
Jeans are trousers made from denim. Some of the earliest American blue jeans were made by Jacob Davis, Calvin Rogers, and Levi Strauss in 1873. Starting in the 1950s, jeans, originally designed for cowboys, became popular among teenagers. Historic brands include Levi's, Lee, and Wrangler...
. This has found its way into a variety of styles, even so far as to be worn hanging over the back of a suit jacket. Due to the widespread use of the hoodie across the United States and Canada, there is very little negative perception of the clothing item as in the United Kingdom.
United Kingdom
In the UKUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, hoodies have been the subject of much criticism; some shoplifters have used the hood to conceal their identities from CCTV
Closed-circuit television
Closed-circuit television is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors....
cameras in shopping centres. Particularly when worn with a baseball cap
Baseball cap
A baseball cap is a type of soft cap with a rounded stiff brim. The front of the cap typically contains designs or logos of sports teams ,...
, the hoodie has become a trademark of "chavs", or Neds.
Goldsmiths College
Goldsmiths, University of London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom which specialises in the arts, humanities and social sciences, and a constituent college of the federal University of London. It was founded in 1891 as Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute...
in the UK, says the appeal of the hoodie is because of its promise of anonymity, mystery and anxiety. "The point of origin is obviously black American hip-hop culture, now thoroughly mainstream and a key part of the global economy. Leisure and sportswear adopted for everyday wear suggests a distance from the world of office suit
Suit (clothing)
In clothing, a suit is a set of garments made from the same cloth, consisting of at least a jacket and trousers. Lounge suits are the most common style of Western suit, originating in the United Kingdom as country wear...
or school uniform
School uniform
A school uniform is an outfit—a set of standardized clothes—worn primarily for an educational institution. They are common in primary and secondary schools in various countries . When used, they form the basis of a school's dress code.Traditionally school uniforms have been largely subdued and...
. Rap culture celebrates defiance, as it narrates the experience of social exclusion
Social exclusion
Social exclusion is a concept used in many parts of the world to characterise contemporary forms of social disadvantage. Dr. Lynn Todman, director of the Institute on Social Exclusion at the Adler School of Professional Psychology, suggests that social exclusion refers to processes in which...
. Musically and stylistically, it projects menace and danger as well as anger and rage. The hooded top is one in a long line of garments chosen by young people, usually boys, to which are ascribed meanings suggesting that they are 'up to no good'. In the past, such appropriation was usually restricted to membership of specific youth cultures - leather jackets, bondage trousers - but nowadays it is the norm among young people to flag up their music and cultural preferences in this way, hence the adoption of the hoodie by boys across the boundaries of age, ethnicity and class."
In May 2005, Bluewater shopping centre in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
caused outrage by launching a code of conduct which bans its shoppers from sporting hoodies or baseball cap
Baseball cap
A baseball cap is a type of soft cap with a rounded stiff brim. The front of the cap typically contains designs or logos of sports teams ,...
s, although the garments remain on sale. John Prescott
John Prescott
John Leslie Prescott, Baron Prescott is a British politician who was Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007. Born in Prestatyn, Wales, he represented Hull East as the Labour Member of Parliament from 1970 to 2010...
welcomed the move, stating that he had felt threatened by the presence of hooded teenagers at a motorway service station. Then-Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
openly supported this stance and vowed to clamp down on the anti-social behaviour with which hoodie wearers are sometimes associated. London-based rapper Lady Sovereign
Lady Sovereign
Louise Amanda Harman , better known by the stage name Lady Sovereign, is an English rapper & grime artist. She is noted for her professional success in performing styles of music generally dominated by males...
published a single titled "Hoodie
Hoodie (Lady Sovereign song)
"Hoodie" is the fourth single from UK hip hop artist Lady Sovereign's debut album Public Warning, following the release of her first UK top 40 hit, "9 to 5". The single was produced by UK dance outfit Basement Jaxx and became her third top 75 hit, peaking at #44 in the UK Singles Chart...
" in protest as part of a "Save the Hoodie" campaign.
In 2005, Coombeshead College
Coombeshead College
Coombeshead Academy is the premier academy for academic excellence in Newton Abbot, Devon, England. It has a specialism in maths and the arts, having a total of over 1600 students....
in the south-west of England, allowed the hoodie to become part of the boys school uniform
School uniform
A school uniform is an outfit—a set of standardized clothes—worn primarily for an educational institution. They are common in primary and secondary schools in various countries . When used, they form the basis of a school's dress code.Traditionally school uniforms have been largely subdued and...
, but the hood could be put up only when it rained. The principal, Richard Haigh, stated that the move would help to calm some of what he called the "hysteria" surrounding the garment.
In February 2006, a 58-year-old teacher who was wearing a hooded top was asked to remove it when entering a Tesco
Tesco
Tesco plc is a global grocery and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Cheshunt, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest retailer in the world measured by revenues and the second-largest measured by profits...
store in Swindon
Swindon
Swindon is a large town within the borough of Swindon and ceremonial county of Wiltshire, in South West England. It is midway between Bristol, west and Reading, east. London is east...
. According to the teacher, she was wearing the hood because "my hair's a mess". The shop apologized and said it was taking action to "make sure this doesn't happen again."
In July 2006, David Cameron
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. Cameron represents Witney as its Member of Parliament ....
, leader of the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
, made a speech suggesting that the hoodie was worn more for defensive than offensive purposes. The speech was referred to as "hug a hoodie" by the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
.
Australia
In June 2011, police in WynnumWynnum, Queensland
Wynnum is a suburb located on the shores of Moreton Bay in Brisbane, Australia, about 16 kilometres east of the CBD. The area was sparsely settled until the arrival of the railway in the late 1880s, but then grew fairly rapidly. The former Wynnum Shire Council was created in 1902, and twelve years...
, Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
launched a 'Hoodie Free Zone' initiative, with shopkeepers encouraged to ask hoodie-wearers to leave. The zone is part of an initiative to educate businesses on how they can avoid armed robberies, in which the clothing is often worn.
New Zealand
"National Hoody Day", a pro-youth initiative to challenge youth stereotypes, was launched in May 2008 in New ZealandNew Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. The campaign resulted in criticism at a number of levels within government, including a local council member (Dale Evans) donning a Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
outfit in protest, citing the hoodie as "not an appropriate article of clothing to celebrate". Many retail complexes have banned the wearing of hoodies and non-compliance and/or defiance can result in eviction or accusation of trespass.
Greece
In the aftermath of the 2008 Greek riots2008 civil unrest in Greece
The 2008 Greek riots started on 6 December 2008, when Alexandros Grigoropoulos , a 15-year-old student, was killed by two policemen in Exarcheia district of central Athens...
, the leader of the Popular Orthodox Rally
Popular Orthodox Rally
The Popular Orthodox Rally or The People's Orthodox Rally , often abbreviated to ΛΑ.Ο.Σ as a pun on the Greek word for people, is a Greek party. According to its political program LA.O.S...
, Georgios Karatzaferis
Georgios Karatzaferis
Georgios Karatzaferis is a Greek politician, a member of the Hellenic Parliament and the president of the Popular Orthodox Rally. Previously, Karatzaferis was a member of parliament of the liberal-conservative New Democracy party, from which he was expelled in 2000...
, addressed the Hellenic Parliament
Hellenic Parliament
The Hellenic Parliament , also the Parliament of the Hellenes, is the Parliament of Greece, located in the Parliament House , overlooking Syntagma Square in Athens, Greece....
requesting that anyone wearing a hood, for any reason, be taken to court.
See also
- AnorakAnorakAn anorak or parka is a type of heavy jacket with a hood, often lined with fur or fake fur, so as to protect the face from a combination of freezing temperatures and wind...
- Cardigan (sweater)Cardigan (sweater)A cardigan is a type of machine- or hand-knitted sweater that ties, buttons or zips down the front; by contrast, a pullover does not open in front but must be "pulled over" the head to be worn. The cardigan was named after James Brudenell, 7th Earl of Cardigan, a British military commander,...
- Goggle jacketGoggle JacketGoggle jackets are a hooded windproof type jacket released in the late nineties, popular in Britain. They cover the head and face completely, except for two built-in eye windows....