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Why do men button left over right and women button right over left?
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
It is tradition that has no obvious source.
Some theories
-Men's shirts button left over right following cloth and leather armor design. Left hand being primarily your defensive hand holding either a shield or dagger, right holding your main weapon, so your stance was turned - left forward slightly. Seams were placed so pointed weapons would glance off instead piercing through, so left over right for a center seam makes sense. If it was right over left, a blade could easily get caught and puncture through. Early shirts followed the left over right design because men would be used to seams being this way. Women's clothing is opposite, but the reason isn't clear. The prevailing theory is that men dressed themselves, while women were dressed by a maid, so the buttons were reversed to make the job easier on the maid. Another theory points to a more medieval mindset that women were inferior, so their buttons were done up with the left hand instead of the right, reinforcing inferiority. Although, my favorite theory is having opposite seam directions makes it easier to undress your mate while standing face to face, and who doesn't love a knocking boots theory. In the centuries since, men's and women's clothing has become closer and closer in style - women's blouses being almost identical to white men's shirts, except for the button seam. It's one of the oldest holdovers from earlier eras. It's not that awkward or hard to button a shirt the other way, and women could easily make the switch, but after centuries of right over left, it's just convenience and familiarity that continues the tradition.
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
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Why are men and women shirts button differently?
For Men. A fact that really has nothing to do with buttons but is interesting: Years ago when men wore wraps. The swords hung on their left, because they were right handed. It was noted that if the wrap was right over left when they drew the sword they would be exposed. To remedy this situation the left was wrapped over the right. Now as far as buttons: Most people are right handed, And it was noted that if the left is over the right, holes left side buttons right, it was easier to button. Now far Women: We will go back to the 13th-14th century. Men were dressing themselves, but the women of class had servants to help them get dressed. The clothing also was designed and sewed by the same servant. To make it easier for the servant to dress their master they put the buttons on the left. So at that time the left/right button issue was based on practicality
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Why do men's shirts button on the opposite side of women's?
The practice of buttoning men's shirts on the right side and women's shirts on the left side dates back to the 19th century. It is believed to have originated from a time when wealthy women were dressed by servants, who found it easier to button shirts from their own perspective. Over time, this tradition stuck and became standardized as a gendered distinction in clothing.
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Why do men button left over right and women right over left?
There is no definitive origin for this orientation. This is a distinction that only predominated since the middle of the 19th century, when buttons became more widely used. Some theories date this from medieval combat where coat buttons were more easily undone with the left hand, but don't explain why women would require the opposite. A popular theory is that wealthy women were dressed by maids, but this would not explain the wide usage among all classes. The simplest explanation is that it was designed explicitly to define the gender that the clothing was designed for. Fashions for women tend to have an obvious distinction in their cut, so this would immediately suggest the gender for which they were intended.
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