Chaps

Chaps (IPA: /ʃæps/, tʃæps) are sturdy coverings for the legs, usually of leather, consisting of leggings and a belt. more...

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They are buckled on over trousers with the chaps' integrated belt, but unlike trousers they have no seat and are not joined at the crotch. They are designed to provide protection for the legs and are usually made of leather or a leather-like material. They are most commonly associated with cowboy culture of the American west, as a protective garment to be used when riding a horse through brushy terrain. In the modern world, they are worn for both practical work purposes and for exhibition or show use.

History

The earliest form of protective leather garment used by mounted riders who herded cattle in Spain and Mexico were called armas, which meant \"shield.\" They were essentially two large pieces of cowhide that were used as a protective apron of sorts. They attached to the horn of the rider's stock saddle, and were spread across both the horse's chest and the rider's legs. From this early and rather cumbersome design came modifications that placed the garment entirely on the rider, and then style variations adapted as vaqueros and later, cowboys moved up from Mexico into the pacific coast and northern Rockies of what today is the United States and Canada. There is also some evidence that certain design features may also descend from the Mountain men, who copied them from Native Americans. Different styles developed to fit the local climate, terrain and hazards. Designs were also modified for purely stylistic and decorative purposes. The time of actual appearance of the garment on American cowboys is uncertain. By the late 1870's, however, most Texas cowboys wore them as the cattle industry moved north. By 1884, the Dictionary of American Regional English notes use of the word in Wyoming, spelled \"schaps.\"

The word chaps is a clip of chaparejos or chaparreras, which are Mexican Spanish words for this garment, ultimately derived from Spanish chaparro, one sense of which is a low growing thicket--difficult to ride through without damage to clothing. In English, the word has two common pronunciations: and . Since at least the end of the 19th century, in the western United States and Canada, English-speaking riders have tended to pronounce the word . This pronunciation is also used among rodeo riders in New Zealand. English-speaking riders in the eastern United States and Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom have tended to pronounce the word .

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