The Story of Jeans

The Story of Jeans, written by Elizabeth Austin.

《牛仔裤的故事》，作者：伊丽莎白·奥斯汀。

Introduction. Take a look in your closet or clothes drawer. Do you see a pair of jeans? You probably do. The average American owns about seven pairs. You may be wearing a pair right now, or you might have a jean jacket, shirt, or a pair of denim shoes. Jeans are so common, you may wonder who invented them and how the fashion took off.

引言 看看你的衣柜或者衣橱抽屉吧。 你有没有看到一条牛仔裤呀？ 很可能你有的哦。 美国人平均每人大概有七条牛仔裤。 说不定你现在身上就穿着一条呢，或者你有牛仔外套、牛仔衬衫，还有可能有一双牛仔鞋。 牛仔裤太常见啦，你说不定会好奇是谁发明了它们，还有这种时尚是怎么流行起来的。

History. Jeans were invented by a German man named Levi Strauss. He went to the US in 1847 and followed the gold rush to San Francisco. He carried many kinds of fabric to sell to dry goods stores. Business was booming in California during the gold rush. Levi quickly became a successful businessman.

历史。 牛仔裤是一个叫李维·施特劳斯的德国人发明的。 他在1847年去了美国，之后跟着淘金潮去了旧金山。 他带了好多布料卖给布料店。 淘金潮时期加州的生意特别红火。 李维很快就成了一名成功的商人。

The miners in California had a problem with their pants. When they found gold or ore, they carried it in their pockets. But the metal was heavy, and the pockets ripped. In 1873, Levi became partners with a tailor named Jacob Davis. Jacob and Levi made tough denim pants with copper rivets sewn into the seams. Rivets are strong metal fasteners. The miners loved the waist overalls, as they were called, and they quickly became popular.

加州的矿工们的裤子有个小麻烦。 他们挖到金子或者矿石的时候，会把东西放在口袋里。 但金属很重，口袋很容易被扯破。 1873年，李维和一位叫雅各布·戴维斯的裁缝成了合伙人。 雅各布和李维做了结实的牛仔裤，在接缝处缝上了铜铆钉。 铆钉是很结实的金属固定件。 矿工们特别喜欢这种当时叫腰工装裤的裤子， 很快牛仔裤就流行开了。

Changing fashions. Levi's jeans were work pants. Male workers wore them all the time, but a gentleman wouldn't think of wearing jeans. Women didn't wear pants at all, but this changed when western movies became popular. All the cowboys wore jeans. People thought the cowboys looked tough and cool, but jeans still weren't proper for places like school, stores, or offices.

不断变化的时尚。 李维斯的牛仔裤原本是工作裤。 男性工人一直都穿它，但绅士们根本不会考虑穿牛仔裤。 女性那时根本不穿裤子，不过这种情况在西部片开始流行时发生了改变。 西部片里的牛仔们都穿牛仔裤。 大家觉得牛仔们看起来又硬朗又酷，不过牛仔裤还是不适合穿去学校、商店或者办公室这类地方。

During World War II, off -duty U .S. soldiers wore jeans. They made jeans seem like tough, casual American pants. They became a symbol of America and many other countries.

第二次世界大战期间，不当班的美国士兵会穿牛仔裤。 他们让牛仔裤看起来是结实休闲的美式裤子。 牛仔裤成了美国的象征，也在很多其他国家流行起来。