| Chavs |
Articles about Chav |
Information AboutChavs |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT CHAV | |
| youth culture in the united kingdom | |
| pejorative terms for people | |
| social groups | |
| slang | |
| subcultures | |
| stereotypes | |
| british culture | |
| romani loan words | |
| fashion aesthetics | |
|
Chav is a Slang term which has been in wide use throughout the United Kingdom since 2004. It refers to a Subcultural Stereotype of a person with Fashion s such as flashy " Bling " jewellery and Counterfeit designer clothing, an uneducated, uncultured, and impoverished background, a tendency to congregate around places such as Fast-food outlets, Bus stops, or other shopping areas, and a culture of Antisocial behaviour. Response to the term has ranged from amusement to criticism that it is a new manifestation of Classism . ETYMOLOGY For a full discussion of the etymologies of , see Wiktionary. For a list of synonyms for . Sources disagree on the origin of the word. The ''Collins English Dictionary'' suggests that it derives from a distortion of the Anglo- Romany word ''chavi'' meaning "child". 1 In contrast, the '' Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary '' suggests that the word derives either from a nickname for " Chatham girls" 2 or from the Romany word ''chavo'' (boy), which is also the source of the Spanish word ''chaval''. It also reports that the word can be used as an adjective e.g. "The bus was full of chav kids." 3. There are a large number of synonyms and regional variations of "chav", including " Scally ", " Ned ", "townie" and "charva". It has been suggested that "charva" (or "charv") predates "chav" as a dialect word in North East England and Edinburgh , Scotland , and that "chav" may be a derivative term; they at least appear to share the same possible etymology in "chavi" 4 Many Folk Etymologies have sprung up to explain the origins of the word. These include humorous Backronym s such as " Council House d And Violent" 5. Another commonly cited False Etymology derives the word from Cheltenham Ladies' College . Here, it is claimed, the term was coined from the words "Cheltenham Average" (Ch-av), used by the young women of the school to describe less desirable young men of the town 6. USAGE Though "chav" has similarities to American terms such as ", designated it as the "word of the year" in 2004. 7 A survey in 2005 found that in December 2004 alone 114 British newspaper articles used the word. The popularity of the word has led to the creation of sites devoted to cataloguing and mocking the "chav" lifestyle. These include [http://www.chavscum.co.uk ChavScum and its spin-off ChavTowns . STEREOTYPE image of the stereotypical chav. Note the track suit, "bling" and counterfeit Burberry cap.]]The stereotype of the chav is defined by critics of the supposed chav lifestyle. Few people identify themselves as chavs. Note, however, that "lotto lout" Michael Carroll has "King of Chavs" emblazoned on the side of his car and a number plate reading "L111 OUT" (i.e. "lout"). The essential stereotype is of someone conspicuously "common" i.e. Lower-class , where "class" is defined by Taste rather than Income . Elements of the stereotype The stereotypical chav is someone who:
|
|
|