Where does the word gansey come from?
Where does the word gansey come from?
A guernsey, or gansey, is a seaman’s knitted woollen sweater, similar to a jersey, which originated in the Channel Island of the same name, sometimes known as a knit-frock in Cornwall, especially Polperro.
What is a gansey sweater?
A gansey (or guernsey) is a hardwearing, hand knitted, woollen jumper which has been worn by fishermen around the coast of Britian for many years. A tough weatherproof garment, usually navy blue, its purpose was more than just to keep the fishermen warm and dry.
Where did the word guernsey come from?
By the 1870s, footballers started to wear more rugged and robust woollen navy jumpers called Guernseys which traced their origins to the Channel Islands off the coast of France. It is from this garment that the modern football guernsey takes its name from.
Why is it called Fair Isle knitting?
Fair Isle (/fɛəraɪ̯l/) is a traditional knitting technique used to create patterns with multiple colours. It is named after Fair Isle, one of the Shetland islands. Fair Isle knitting gained considerable popularity when the Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII) wore Fair Isle jumpers in public in 1921.
What does the name gansey mean?
: a knitted jacket or sweater : jersey.
What is the meaning of get a guernsey?
get a guernsey in British English Australian. to be selected or gain recognition for something.
What is a Yorkshire gansey?
A Gansey is a distinctive woollen sweater, originally designed to provide protection for fishermen from wind and water but which is ideal for all outdoor activity. Using a tightly spun 5-ply worsted wool (popularly known as “Seamen’s Iron”) the intricately patterned Gansey is knitted in one piece on five steel needles.
Where do Aran sweaters come from?
It is a style of sweater, also known as a fisherman’s sweater, which originated in the Aran Islands in Connemara, off the west coast of Ireland. These sweaters were traditionally knit in the natural colour of sheep’s wool, an off-white or cream colour.
What is a gansey in English?
Definition of gansey dialectal, British. : a knitted jacket or sweater : jersey.
What is Fair Isle jumper?
“Fair isle” refers to a type of knitwear pattern – named after the island in Shetland – which, in its traditional form, has a restricted palette of four or five colours.
How old is Fair Isle?
Fair Isle was first populated around 6,000 years ago, and evidence of some of its early inhabitants is still visible today, including Neolithic land divisions, Bronze Age ‘burnt mounds’, and an Iron Age fort at Landberg.
What is a Guernsey Gansey?
Ganseys are knitted in a particular wool, known as Guernsey 5-ply, a hard twist worsted spun wool available from specialist suppliers. This is a very fine yarn, which knits up into quite a tight mesh. (It’s rumoured to be wind and waterproof, but this can be overstated – see Gansey Myths .)
How is a gansey knit?
In common with other traditional pullovers, a gansey is knit in the round, as a tube, starting at the bottom and working up to the armpit gussets. Then half the stitches are placed on a holder while the other half are worked back-and-forth up to the shoulders; then the first half are worked back-and-forth up to the shoulders too.
How did the guernsey sweater get its name?
Many families had their own variation of the patterns in their knitwear that became a means of recognition when unfortunate sailors were lost at sea. International recognition of Guernsey Sweaters came in the 17th century when Sir Walter Raleigh was Governor of Jersey and forged trade links with Newfoundland.
What is the stitch gauge for a gansey?
This gives a stitch gauge in the region of 8 or 9 stitches to the inch, and 12 rows per inch (my personal stitch gauge is about 9 stitches per inch). In common with other traditional pullovers, a gansey is knit in the round, as a tube, starting at the bottom and working up to the armpit gussets.
