Chav

Chavs are gay, hurr hurr.

Chav is a slang term in popular usage throughout the United Kingdom, usually used in a derogatory fashion, referring to a subculture stereotype of a person with: fashions such as brand-name tracksuits with white trainers, and sometimes flashy 'bling' jewellery and/or flat fronted, occasionally Burberry caps; a magnetic attraction to congregation points (sometimes known as chavaramas) such as fast-food outlets or other shopping areas; a concentrated music taste (centred loosely around Rhythm and blues, Rap and Hip Hop); and a culture of antisocial behaviour.

The label implies someone who is uneducated, uncultured and prone to antisocial or immoral behavior. The label is typically, though not exclusively, applied to teenagers and young adults of working class or lower-middle class origin. Response to the term has ranged from acceptance to criticism that the term is a new manifestation of classism.

Chav is used for both sexes; a male chav may sometimes be referred to as a chavster and a female as a chavette. (A more complete list of synonyms can be found in the Derived and Similar Terms section below.) It is similar to the United States terms white trash (although many chavs are part of multi-ethnic inner city communities like London council estates) or trailer trash, or the Australian term bogan. "Chav" is of recent origin, and came into widespread use in 2004.

Chav is also a description of a person or product, a certain car can be refered to as 'chav' and cetain celebraties can dress 'chav'

Origin

For a full discussion of the etymologies of chav and charva, see Wiktionary.

The word chav is commonly thought to be from the mid-19th century Romany words chavi, meaning "delinquent youth", "chavo", meaning child and possibly "charver", meaning prostitute. Following an article in The Independent it has been suggested that it comes from a nickname used for people from various towns in the UK, including Chatham and Cheltenham in conjunction with the class label Average, but this is almost certainly incorrect.

It is sometimes mockingly redefined as one of several backronyms, including "Council Housed And Violent", "Council Housed And Vile", "Council House Assault & Violence", "Council House Associated Vermin", "Council House Adolescent Violence" and "Council House Adidas Victim" — although there is no etymological basis for these terms. (In the large majority of cases, suggested derivations of words from acronyms are erroneous).

It is also said that the word was used in Edinburgh, Scotland, in the early 1990s, leading to widespread bemusement on the part of Edinburghers at the sudden popularity of the term in southeast England. If this is true then this is serious evidence for a Romany origin, since Edinburgh slang includes a significant number of such words, since there used to be a large Romany encampment on the outskirts of the city. However, if it is of Latinate origin, then it may have entered English through Polari.

The slang word chav was used in Chatham during the early 1990s (and possibly earlier than this), as well as the word 'Pikey', to refer to someone who was or had a Traveller appearence. The meaning has changed over the last 10 to 15 years, especially since it has been picked up by the media. People who would have not appreciated being called Chav 10 years ago, now seem to aspire to the label. Chav is no longer synonymous with 'Pikey', but describes a separate subculture.

Faversham is also home to the 'FaverChaver' and is sometimes nicknamed 'Chaversham'.

Key concepts

This stereotyped subculture is defined by outsiders. Essentially very few self-identify with these labels and groupings; rather, they are used by those on the outside to categorise those supposedly conforming to the stereotype, which is marked by the similarity of trends in clothing and behaviour.

The essential stereotype is of being loudly lower-class, with 'class' defined by taste rather than income.

Elements of the stereotype

Typical features of the stereotype include:

An image of the stereotypical chav. Note track suit, bling and Burberry cap.

The wearing of particular clothing, such as
- Scallywear, brand name athletic clothing and shoes (stereotypically, "prison-white" trainers / trainers / Reebok Classics), and for females stilettos.
- Fake designer clothing and accessories, in particular the distinctive tartan of Burberry.
- A love of "bling", that is, gaudy gold jewellery (in particular hoop earrings and large dangling golden clowns on chains for females and gold sovereign rings for males, stereotypically purchased from Argos).
- Sports caps and "hoodies" (hooded tops); often both are worn, the hood pulled up over the baseball cap, thus obscuring the features from security cameras.
- Sports or jogging trousers, often tucked into white sports socks, so as to show off the sports label on the socks which would otherwise be hidden. These are also referred to as tracky b's or trackies.
For females, thickly applied make-up, the heavy use of fake tan, and the hairstyle known as the "Council House Facelift" or "Croydon Facelift" in which the hair is pulled back into a tight bun or ponytail.
An association with crass, drunken behaviour and minor criminal activities including unprovoked attacks on members of the public (see happy slapping), generally carried out under the influence of cheap alcohol such as White Lightning or Lambrini, and often after the pubs have closed.
An association with housing estates and other low-income neighbourhoods.
The ownership of a large, dangerous attack dog and a heavily modified car (known as a 'Chavmobile'), usually of low original specification, but decorated in the style seen in the film The Fast and the Furious. Typical vehicles include the Vauxhall Nova and Corsa, the Ford Escort and Renault Clio. These vehicles are chosen because of their low initial cost and the ease and relative cheapness of modifying them.
- Usually incorporating a high specification music system with amplified bass.
A proclivity for under-aged drinking and sex (and, consequentially, an association with teen pregnancy).
Congregating and loitering in areas such as shopping malls, outside off-licences and fastfood carparks.
Violence, verbal abuse and vandalism, often unprovoked.
An affinity for txt slang
Suspicion, violence or insults towards anyone who conforms to a different youth culture, often manifesting itself in violence

Commercial impact

The chav stereotype and image has had impact upon the commercial world.

The Burberry clothing brand acquired such links with the chav subculture that it ceased production of its branded baseball cap, attempted to distance itself from the stereotype, and pointed out that chavs were usually associated with counterfeit versions of the clothing: "They're yesterday's news," stated Stacey Cartrwright, the CEO. "It was mostly counterfeit, and Britain accounts for less than 10% of our sales anyway."

The Thomson Directories Ltd. has reported that the popularity of "chav culture" has both increased the quantity of listings in certain categories and influenced the way that it categorized its Thomson Local directory. It reports that:

there has been a 15% increase in alloy wheels suppliers advertising since 2000;
there has been a 50% increase in the number of car customisation and conversions specialists;
there has been a 20% increase in car kit assemblers;
there has been a 15% increase in the size of the car painters and sprayers listing; and
it has created a whole new heading, renaming the Car Radio Dealers section to Car Audio and Entertainment Systems in 2003.

Media characterisation and comment

The character Vicky Pollard as portrayed in the BBC comedy series Little Britain by Matt Lucas is the most iconic chav or Kappa Slappa — from the name of the clothing brand Kappa and the word slapper.

The Gallagher family from the Channel 4 series "Shameless" share many Chav characteristics including alcohol abuse, petty criminality, underage sex and maintaining a large family on state benefits. In this case the family is presented in a sympathetic light in an extension of the "Sympathetic Scally" characters found in Brookside and Boys from the Blackstuff.

The British magazine Viz includes a character called Tasha Slappa, a exaggerated teenage female "chav". The strip satirises chav culture. (The character was originally called "Kappa Slappa" until the Kappa company filed a lawsuit against Viz. It is unknown whether the term "Kappa Slappa" predates its adoption by Viz.)

Lottery millionaire Michael Carroll is the self-proclaimed King of The Chavs due to his lifestyle and antics. He is frequently derided in the tabloid press for his anti-social behaviour, often referring to him as the "Lottery Lout".

The Welsh rap group Goldie Lookin' Chain are frequently described as an example of the chav aesthetic, though the group heavily satirize Chav culture.

The widespread use of the chav stereotype has come under criticism from some quarters, many arguing that it amounts simply to classism and that social problems such as teenage pregnancy, delinquency and alcoholism in low-income areas are hardly appropriate subjects to laugh about. Julie Burchill writing in The Guardian in 2005 defence of Chav girls arguing that reduced social mobility means that an education as the traditional route out of poverty has limited value. Therefore Burchill claims that it was logical that Chavs would aspire to role models such as Jade Goody and Victoria Beckham. Burchill also produced a Sky One television programme on the topic.

The controversy around the term was also the subject of a Channel 4 documentary in July 2005.

Derived and similar terms

There are many regional and local synonyms. For example, chav is equivalent to one definition of townie but is more specific in its usage.

Similar terms are scobe/scanger (in Ireland, Dublin in particular), spide and steek for boys and millies for girls (in Northern Ireland), and ned or schemie (Scotland). North & South Wales use the terms townie and scally.

A more comprehensive list of synonyms includes:

Bam, Barry, Bazza, Bhav, Bogan, Casual, Charver, Chavalier, Chavette, Chavster, Chavver, Chore, Chore-Banger, Dumbo, Gazza, Hatchy, Hood Rat, Janner, Kappa Slappa (female only), Kev, Knacker, Millie Ned, Norrie (Northsider) (Cork, Ireland), Pikey, Ratboy, Rick Wing, Rudeboy, Rudie, Rude, Scally, Schemie, Scranner (Leeds, England) Scumbag (Dublin, Ireland), Scutter, Shazza, Skanger (Dublin, Ireland) Spide, Steek, Stig, Telf, Townie, Tracy, Trendy, Trev, Twocers (acronym for Taking Without Owner's Consent), Westie (Auckland, New Zealand), Yarco, Yeadner.

However many of these are only partial synonyms and have subtle, or even major, differences from the stereotype presented above.

The act of adding superfluous and cosmetic modifications to something is known as chavving up (or shamming up in Ireland), and is particularly relevant if the modifications actually decrease performance. This has sometimes been used - occasionally derivatively but usually as a joke - of the case modding scene.

Related terms for urban or suburban miscreants can be found in the dictionary entry for "chav". The popularity of these terms has grown since the 1980s, and their usage reflects both serious and light-hearted issues arising from changes in British urban life.

There are a number of neologistic collective nouns for a group of chavs, among the most popular being a chavalanche or a chavalcade.

The term "guido" is an American term with a similar meaning to "chav." Most people who fit the classic guido stereotype inhabit a corridor stretching from Long Island to South-East Pennsylvania (Philadelphia) and encompassing New York City and the entire state of New Jersey. Although guidos are often Italian-American to the extent that some people mistakenly believe that only Italian-Americans can be guidos, there are also guidos with other white ethnic origins.

References

"British tabloids savage 'snooty' Burberry". 2005-01-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |org= ignored (help) (via Agenda) — reporting the comments of Stacey Cartrwright
White, Alison (2005-07-13). "The chav effect". {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |org= ignored (help) — reporting the effect on the Thomson Local directory

External links