Figure 1.--Here we see a detail from a Soviet school class portrai. It looks like a 2nd or 3rd grade class (8-9 year olds). It looks to be taken in the late 1970s or early 80s. The girls wear the standard dark dresses and hairbows with white pinafores. The boys wear a little differt uniform than we have seen before. The children wear abkle sick, kneesocks, and tights. Put your cursor on the image to see the rest of the group. Note small star pins on the boys' and girls' uniforms --signs of the Little Octobrist (Oktybrenok) organization. Note that some boys are wearing short-sleeved shirts/jackets. This means that the weather was not cold. The children here are wearing tights as a formal garment rather than for warmth.

Russian children have worn different types of hosiery to school. We note Russian school children wearing ankle socks, three-quarter socks knee socks, long stockings, and tights. Here it is not always easy to tell, especially about boys, because our primary source of information is the photographic record and we canot tell if the boys are wearing long pants. Thus we know more about younger than older boys. The popularity of these different types as well as gender an color conventions have varied over time. Long stockings were common before World War I. After the War we see many children wearing kneesocks, but long stockings were very common during the winter. White was a popular color for girls, but younger boys also wore white hosiery Ankle socks became common after Wirld war II. Long stockings continued to be worn during the winter through the 1960s. Children began wearing tights in the the 1970s. White tights were especially popular for girls. Tights came in brighter colors than were common with long stockings.

Chronology

The types of hosiery worn by Russian children have varied over time. This has largely been due to the changing popularity of different styles of hosiery. Long stockings were common during much of the early and mid-20th century, especially during the winter. We note three boys boys at school playing Red army soldiers during the 1930s is a good example. We also notice knee socks. Long stockings quickly disappeared when tights appeared (1970s). Knee socks were also commonly worn during the mid-20th century. Ankle socks became increasingly common after World War II, especially as long pants became more common.

Types

Russian children have worn different types of hosiery to school. We note Russian school children wearing ankle socks, three-quarter socks knee socks, long stockings, and tights. Here it is not always easy to tell, especially about boys, because our primary source of information is the photographic record and we canot tell when the boys are wearing long pants. Thus we know more about younger than older boys and the time period before long pants became common. The popularity of these different types as well as gender an color conventions have varied over time. Long stockings were common before World War I. After the War we see many children wearing kneesocks, but long stockings were very common during the winter. White was a popular color for girls, but younger boys also wore white hosiery Ankle socks became common after World war II. Long stockings continued to be worn during the winter through the 1960s. Children began wearing tights in the the 1970s. White tights were especially popular for girls or for formal dress occassions. Tights came in brighter colors than were common with long stockings.

Age

Seasonality

Gender

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Created: 2:06 AM 11/22/2006
Last updated: 2:45 AM 2/1/2011