Why do women wear skirts and men wear pants?
In: Culture
Essentially everyone used to wear skirts, then when horseback riding became a thing men started wearing pants and heeled boots for better grip on the horse. Than high society women liked the looks of heels so they started wearing them. Pants are essentially the sign of a “working man/women”. In the 1940s when WW2 was affecting essentially everyone, men got shipped off to war and the women had to work in the factories, that’s when women started wearing pants and stopped wearing heels as much. It’s a mix of function and trends basically. Wearing skirts are now “trendy” for men according to the recent met gala photos.
Because public toilets everywhere are a new phenomenon. Men can urinate easily in pants but women need a skirt or dress for the same convenience (underpants are new too).
Making trousers is far more work than making a skirt. In hot countries it’s common to see everyone in some form of skirt or dress. The kaftan and lungi are good examples of this.
In colder climates Men did most of the hunting and needed something which was both warn and gave freedom of movement. Initially this was simply a tube which covered each leg and was attached to a belt. This is perhaps why we refer to trousers as a pair. Women on the other hand would have done much of their jobs around the home and a skirt or dress was sufficient.
Even at the start of the last century boys wore skirts until they were five to seven years old. Before the days of mass production and cheap clothes, this was the best option because of the rate young children grow.
Socially constructed gender norms. These things change all the time, and will change again. There is no real reason for it other than what society deems as “normal” and society changes its views all the time.
Some men wear skirts (mostly called kilts) and some women wear pants. Fashion is preference to the person that will be wearing it.
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