Leggings

An American soldier wearing puttees in France, c. 1918

Since the late 19th century, soldiers of various nations, especially infantry, often wore leggings to protect their lower leg, to keep dirt, sand, and mud from entering their shoes, and to provide a measure of ankle support. At first, these were usually puttees—strips of thick woolen cloth resembling a large bandage—which were wrapped around the leg to support the ankle. They were usually held in place by a strap attached to the cloth. Later, puttees were replaced by some armies with canvas leggings fastened with buckles or buttons, usually secured at the bottom with an adjustable stirrup that passed under the sole of the shoe, just in front of the heel. The soldier placed the leggings around his calf with the buttoned side facing out and adjusted them and the strap to achieve a proper fit. Leggings typically extended to mid-calf and had a garter strap to hold them up and were secured with a tie just below the knee. Military leggings extended to the bottom of the knee and buttoned to the bottom button on the knee-breeches. They are sometimes confused with gaiters, which extend to the high ankle and are worn with full leg trousers.

During World War II, United States Army foot soldiers were referred to as legs by paratroopers (soldiers who are dropped out of planes) and other U.S. forces that did not wear the standard Army leggings issued with the field service shoe. Late in World War II, after experiments with general issue of high-top combat boots and jump boots for soldiers, leggings began to disappear from military service. In 1943, the United States Army modified their field service shoe by adding a taller leather upper that reached to the lower calf; secured by a combination of laces and buckles, the new design was designated the Type III Field Boot. However, the United States Marine Corps retained canvas leggings throughout the war, and used them in combat as late as the Korean War; Marines were referred to as Yellow Leg troops by North Korean and Chinese Communist forces.[6]

By the 1960s, the old style of field shoe had given way to combat boots in most military forces, and leggings of any kind were obsolete. Leggings, usually bright white and often made of patent leather or buff are now worn primarily for ceremonial purposes.

At the Marni Men's show during the Fall 2007 Fashion Week, outfits with leggings designed solely for men were introduced.[8]

Men's leggings, dubbed "meggings" (a portmanteau of the words "men" and "leggings") were presented as the latest fashion trend for men at spring/summer 2011 fashion runways, supposed to be styled and layered beneath shorts and preferably with large, baggy, loose or long tops such as T-shirts.[9]

K-pop idols have been wearing male leggings under shorts as a fashion item since the 2010s.[10]

A model wearing shiny leather-look leggings on a catwalk.

Shiny leggings, sometimes called leather-look leggings, have a shiny, metallic (lamé), or wet-like appearance. They emerged as a popular fashion trend in the late-2000s (decade), particularly in 2008 as reported by Stylesignal and other trend forecasters. These leggings are most often a blend of nylon and spandex and come in a variety of colors, although most commonly in black, silver, or gold. These types of leggings are notable for their leather, or even latex appearance and are most often worn as evening or clubwear.

Shiny leggings were featured on fashion runways by many leading designers and were further popularized by celebrities such as Lauren Conrad, Kelly Clarkson and Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. Popular makers of shiny leggings include Members Only and American Apparel.

"Jeggings", a registered brand name of Sanko Group,[11] are leggings made to look like skin-tight denim jeans.[12] Jeggings were brought on by the resurgence in style of skinny jeans in the late 2000s, when a higher demand for an even tighter style of pants came about.[13] In 2011 "Jeggings" was entered into the twelfth edition of Concise Oxford English Dictionary.[14]

Leggings are sometimes worn during sports and other vigorous activities. Runners, dancers, and exercisers may wear them alone or with athletic shorts over them—particularly in cold weather under a sports uniform, e.g. in soccer, with soccer shorts, shin guards and soccer socks over the leggings, or under a cheerleading uniform with socks over the leggings. Leggings have even been worn by a hurling full back.[15]

Leggings have become a part of many school uniforms. Many schools that have uniform requirements allow leggings as an option in cooler and colder weather as long as the required skirt or dress and required socks are worn over them.

Back view of black opaque leggings.

There has been societal debate about whether leggings are clothing on their own, which can be worn without covering, or are an accessory only to be worn with other items covering them, such as skirts, dresses or shorts. In a 2016 poll of its readers Glamour magazine said that 61% of its readers thought that leggings should only be worn as an accessory,[16] whereas an article that same year from Good Housekeeping concluded that "...Leggings do, in fact, count as pants—provided they are opaque enough that they don't show your underwear."[17]

There have been a number of instances of people wearing leggings as pants who have been restricted or criticized for their actions. In 2013, schools in Sonoma County, California banned students from wearing them as outerwear,[18] as did a Massachusetts school in 2015.[19] Schools in Oklahoma, Illinois,[20] and North Carolina have enforced or suggested similar dress codes.[21] A state legislator in Montana introduced a bill in 2015 intended to ban leggings and yoga pants.[20]

In March 2017, three children flying on a company pass were barred from boarding a United Airlines flight by a gate agent who decided that their leggings were inappropriate. United Airlines defended its position, while rival airline Delta stated via Twitter that leggings were welcome on its flights; United said in a statement that it does not bar regular female passengers from boarding if they are wearing leggings.[22][23] Although some public figures, including actress Patricia Arquette and model and actress Chrissy Teigen, were critical of United's decision, a survey encompassing 1,800 travelers carried out by Airfarewatchdog found that 80% of their respondents backed the airline's decision to ban "inappropriate clothing", although the term was not defined in the poll.[24]

Restrictions on wearing leggings is sometimes linked to slut shaming or body shaming, with critics noting that "...not being able to wear leggings because it's 'too distracting for boys' is giving us the impression we should be guilty for what guys do."[25]