|
Boys' fashions in America and Europe varied. During some eras styles were similar across national borders and during other eras there were substantial differences with boys clothes in different countries. American boys in the 1920s for example wore knickers while European boys wore short pants. Today there are great similarities among boys clothes in Europe and America. Some boys' clothing styles originated in folk dress such as kilts in
Scotland and lederhosen in Germany. Some styles were strongly influenced by royal or elite preferences, such as Queen Victoria dressing the young princes in sailor suits. Sometimes opposite pattens emerge such as American middle-class children adopting black hip-hop styles, popular in the inner-city ghettoes. Sometimes Governments have acted to set
styles such as the French Third Republic in the 1870s mandating smocks
for school wear so as less affluent children would not feel at a
disadvantage to children whose parents could afford better clothes.
We are preparing a series of pages on national clothing styles. We now have over 70 countries listed in our country section. Most have a linked page with at least some basic information on clothing in that country. We have developed detailed information for several mostly European counties and the United States. Many of the country pages, however, are just being sketched out at this time. So don't expect too much yet. We have a lot of other pages to do, so it will be a while before we can focus on all the countries on our list. Of corse here we need your assisatnce. HBC does not have the capability to visit or even reserach all of these countries. Do let us know if you have any text or images to contribute about your country. We are interested in adding information about every different countries around the world. The current Euro-centric focus of HBC is because European readers have been the most willing to contribute information. We have tried to create a page for each country, even if only limited information is available. This provides a location for collecting information. We hope that our readers will contribute insights into fashion trends in their own countries. HBC has collected information on more than individual countries. The information on most of these countries still sketchy. We have, however, succeeded in collecting quite detailed infornation on America and several European countries.
Our information on African countries at this time is very limited. We are interested in adding information about every different countries around the world. The current Euro-centric focus of HBC is because European readers have been the most willing to contribute information. Internet usage in Africa is smallest of all the different world regions. Few African readers have contributed information to HBC. We have, however, slowly begun to create African country pages and acquire information on individual African countries.
Latin America and the Caribbean is primarily populated by Spanish and Portuguese people, but there are in the Caribbean also countries where Enbglish, French and Dutch is spoken. Also in some countries indigenous languages are still spoken. Our information on boys' clothing in Latin American and the Caribbean is relatively limited, but we have pages on several countries.
Central America and Mexico are located in North America, but for cultural consistency, we have archived them under Latin America. The principal North American country is the United States. American fashions have been largely influenced by Europe, but began to diverge after World War I. Since World War II. America has been a major influence on biys' fashions around the world. Canadian fashions are quite similar to American fashions, but with a greater English influence. Another factor has been the French Canadian population centered in Quebec.
Our information on Asia is relatively limited. Here language differences are a majorlimitation in collecting information. We have some information on Japan, but our information on other countries is much more limited. We do, however, have at least a basic page on most Asian countries. Boys in Asia often dressed in traditional, often destinctive styles. This began to change after World War II when Western clothing began to replace traditional styles.
We have, however, succeeded in collecting quite detailed infornation on America and several European countries. Europe is the region on which HBC has developed the most information. Boy's fashions were largely determined in Europe. England was especilly important, but France and Germany have also played an important role. This was the caseuntil after World War II when American styles began to be increasingly important.
The Middle Eastern countries are the arc of Islamic countries from Morocco west to Iran. They encompass both North African and south western Asian countries. We have relatively few impages from these countuies. Interestingly, traditional dress styles persist there more than any other region. In fact traditional styles seem more popular in the 21st century than in the mid-20th century. This is especially true in the Arab countries. This appeas to be a reflection of the strength of Islam and the rejection of Western culture.
Oceania includes countries of very significant ethnic and religious differences. Australia and New Zeland have poulations of primarily European origins. Indonesia is one of the most populace countries in the wirld and has a stikingly diverse population. The Philippines is also a highly diverse country wjhich has been greatly influenced by both Spain and the United states. Boys clothing reflected these differences, but after World War II, American styles have become increasingly important.
Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing Web Site:
[Introduction]
[Activities]
[Biographies]
[Chronology]
[Clothing styles]
[]
[Bibliographies]
[Contributions]
[FAQs]
[Glossaries]
[Images]
[Links]
[Registration]
[Tools]
[Boys' Clothing Home]
