Figure 1.--The boy and girls at this Spanish school wear different colored smocks, the boys blue and the girls pink. There are, however, also stylistic differences with the smocks. Note the darker contrasting color on the collars, pockets, and boys' belts, this is characteristic of Catalan schools.

HBC at this time has only limited information on the colors of Spanish school smocks. We believe that many Spanish school uniforms were white or light colored in the inter-war period. We notice that Spanish schools wear a wide variety of colors in school smocks. We have noticed white (or very light colors), grey, brown, blue, pink, and other colors. Many are checks and stripes rather than solid colors. Some schools now use the same colors for boys and girls, using stylistic differences rather than colors to differentiate boys and girls. This is especially true of Catalan schools, we are less sure about schools smocks in other regions of Spain. We are unsure how common this use of color to diferentiate boys' and girls' smocks was in earlier periods or just when this convention was first adopted. Other colors are also used to diffrentiate boys and girls. We know that some schools have the same color smocks for all the children, but used only stylistic differences for boys' and girls' smocks. We have so little information about Spanish smocks that we cannot yet confirm that this is a common practice. Some schools used both color and stylistic differences in smocks to differentiate the smocks worn by boys and girls.

Limited Information

HBC at this time has only limited information on the colors of Spanish school smocks. Here our limited information enables us to make only preliminary assessments at time. In particular we have vrually no information on historical smocks as to what colors were worn.

Chronology

We believe that many Spanish school uniforms were white or light colored in the inter-war period. We notice that Spanish schools today have children wearing a wide variety of colors in school smocks.

Colors

We have noticed white (or very light colors), grey, brown, blue, pink, green, and other colors. Many are checks and stripes rather than solid colors. We also note gingham smocks in different color.

Regulations

Quite a number of schools appears to have designed a specific coloror pattern to be worn. Often there were diferent colors designated for boys and girls, but not always. At some schools boys wore blue and girls pink, but other colors were wore at different schools. At some schools there seems to have been a style of smock selected and in ome cases colors selected as well, as seen here (figutr 1). A few schools allowed the chldren to wear many other colors of their own choosing.

Gender

Some schools now use the same colors for boys and girls, using stylistic differences rather than colors to differentiate boys and girls. At other schools thec hildren wore a variety of different clor with they chooe themselves. This is especially true of Catalan schools, we are less sure about schools smocks in other regions of Spain. We are unsure how common this use of color to differentiate boys' and girls' smocks was in earlier periods or just when this convention was first adopted. Other colors are also used to differentiate boys and girls. We know that some schools have the same color smocks for all the children, but used only stylistic differences for boys' and girls' smocks. We have so little information about Spanish smocks that we cannot yet confirm that this is a common practice. Some schools used both color and stylistic differences in smocks to differentiate the smocks worn by boys and girls (figure 1).

Created: September 21, 2000
Last updated: September 18, 2002