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Origin of Words - "Pants"
Most often words of one syllable have Anglo-Saxon roots but occasionally one slips into English from the classics. One such is the word pants. Everyone knows the meaning of this word so why do I offer it to you here? It travelled a very interesting route to find its way to mean trousers or slacks.
William Safire cleverly explained this route in a N Y Times article in the Sunday Magazine section. I regret I do not have the date it was published.
In his article he explains that a Christian doctor was condemned to death by the Romans in the 3rd century for aiding the poor. He was to be beheaded but survived the six attempts to take his life. Later the Church canonized him, giving him the name "Saint Pantaleone". "Pan" is Greek for "all' and "leo" is the Latin word for "lion". He was given this title to recognize his strength and courage. In time he became the patron saint of physicians. Looking for such courage and strength in their sons, numerous boys were christened with his name.
Where did "pants" come into this picture? In ca. 800, in comic drama according to Robert Hendrickson in his book " Facts on File, An Encyclopedia of Word and Phrase Origins", the fool in a comic production was called panteleon...all lion. In time this changed to "pantaloon". The actor was dressed in breeches that were tight below the knee but which bloused out in a full puffy fashion from the waist to the knee.
In the 18th century the costume became one worn by many men. This famous portrait found in the Louvre shows Louis XIV in a full pose, showing off his legs in a ''pantaloon'' costume. The term was shortened to "pants" in the 1840s. The term
pantaloons continued to be used when referring to the undergarment worn by women under hoop skirts in the same period.
http://www.dl.ket.org/latin3/vocab/e...tory/pants.htm
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