Knicker knowledge

Friday, 3:06 pm

By Kate

Oct

20

2006

According to the search strings that land people on my site, the question of what to call knee length trousers worn by men a century and more ago seems to be one of ongoing interest. The term “knickers” was mentioned here a couple of weeks ago in the matter of the Cute Knickered Brit.

For some odd reason the term Knickerbocker leaped to mind this afternoon. You know, it seemed to me I remembered something along the lines of knee pants in relation to that name. And so I looked it up on Google.

Did you know that the New York Knicks (originally, The Knickerbockers) were named for the Dutch settlers who wore these britches? Being a New York stater for most of my life, I should have remembered that.

The Knicks website says:

Why Knickerbockers?

The term “Knickerbockers” traces its origin back to the Dutch settlers who came to the New World—and especially to what is now New York—in the 1600s. Specifically, it refers to the style of pants the settlers wore ... pants that rolled up just below the knee, which became known as “Knickerbockers,” or “knickers”.

Through history, the Dutch settler “Knickerbocker” character became synonymous with New York City. The city’s most popular symbol of the late 19th and early 20th centuries was “Father Knickerbocker,” complete with cotton wig, three-cornered hat, buckled shoes, and, of course, knickered pants.

The Knicks site also says that the first use of the Knickerbockers name in sports was for a New York baseball team in 1845, which make sense given the knee pants that baseball players wear.