Figure 1.--We mosly see German boys before World War II wearing knee socks with Lederhosen. After the War we see ankle socks gradually becone more common. The boys are in a summer holiday group home, we think during the 1950s. |
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Lederhosen might be worn with folk costumes, but more commonly German boys worn them with regular clothes. This was especially the case outside of Bavaria where German boys were less likely to have folk costume garments. Until World War II, Lederhosen were promarily Bavarisan regional dress, but this began to change after the War. German boys wore Lederhosen with a wide variety of other garments. This was the case because Lederhosen were worn for many different occassions from play, school, casual occassions, and even dressing up. As a result, we see boys wearing Lederhosen with "T"-shirts as well as many different collared shirts. Colored check shirts are often associated with Lederhosen, but white shirts might be worn when dressing up. They might even be worn with a suit jacket for more formal occassions. Bavarian Alpine jackers were especially popular. They were also worn with arange of hosiery from ankle socks to long stockings. Many boys wore them with knee socks, but as ankle socks became more popular we see them as well, especially by the 1960s. As with other garments both chronological trends and seasonality were factors in the choice of these garments.
We see German boys wearing Lederhosen with quite a range of shirts. This was the case because Lederhosen were worn for many different occassions from play, school, casual occassions, and even dressing up. As a result, we see boys wearing Lederhosen with "T"-shirts as well as many different collared shirts. Colored check shirts are often associated with Lederhosen, but white shirts might be worn when dressing up.
We note boys wearing Lederhosen with sweaters. We note different types of sweaters, both pullovers and cardigans.
They might even be worn with a suit jacket for more formal occassions. Bavarian Alpine jackers were especially popular.
They were also worn with arange of hosiery from ankle socks to long stockings.
Lederhosen have been worn with a wide range of hosiery. Knee socks are commonly associated with lederhosen in the public mind. Younger boys in the summer might not wear any hosiery at all and go barefoot. Some folk outfits show boys and men wearing split socks (loferl). Lederhosen were also worn with short socks, kneesocks and over-the-knee long stockings. Over-the-knee long stockings were especially common for younger boys during the winter. After World War II, in the late 1950s, boys also began wearing lederhosen with tights--although this was never as common as long over-the-knee stockings. The choice of hosiery varied over time and were affected by the wearer's age as well as the season. In recent years kneesocks, which used to be commonly worn with ledehosen, have become less common. The hosiery varied somwhat depending on wether the boy was wearing short or knicker-length lederhosen. Many boys wore them with knee socks, but as ankle socks became more popular we see them as well, especially by the 1960s.
We note German boys wearing Lederhosen with all kinds of footwear. Basically what ever type of footwear was popular at any given period was worn with Lederhosen. We note boys wearing both sandals and shoes with Lederhosen. Seasonal and activities might affect the choice in addition to chsnges in populsr fashions. We note both strap shoes and sandals as well as variety of shoes. We group strap shoes and sandals because the strap shoes we see seem to be mostly casual strap shoes worn like sandals rather than the dressy strap shoes worn for more formal occassiions. Low cut shoes seem more popular than high-tops, but this is probably because by the time that Lederhosen were becoming popular for boys beyound Tracht outfits that high-top shoes were becoming less popular except for t\younger boys. There was also a functional component. Boys involved with youth groups or outdoor activities like hikinhg and camping might wear booys. By the 1970s, we see boys weraring sneakers with Lederhosen.
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