What is a livery? This word evokes associations with lackeys who served in wealthy homes in the old days. Clothing, called livery, was usually very colorful, and the servants who donned it looked important. This was to give prestige to their owners. But it turns out that liveries exist today, but only ... in aviation. More about what a livery will be described below.
Dictionary Interpretation
The following meanings of the word "livery" are given in the dictionary. These include:
- Uniforms, which have a special cut and a certain color, were used in palaces and rich houses. It was intended for coachmen, footmen, porters, and other attendants.
- Historical significance - formal attire for the courtiers and knights, which revealed their belonging to any overlord.
- Aviator jargon - a proprietary coloring of a vehicle, which indicates its belonging to a particular company.
Origin
For a better understanding of what livery means, you need to understand the etymology of this term. Before getting into the Russian language, the studied linguistic object went the following way. It is believed that in the pre-Indo-European language the word leudheros originally existed, from which the ancient Greek ἐλεύθερος was formed in the meaning of “free”.
From the latter came the Latin adjective liber - “free, free”, and then the verb liberāre - “free”. From it formed the French verb livrer, which means "to issue, deliver, release," and from this verb - the noun livrée - "livery".
As for the origin of the word in the meaning of "corporate coloring", it is tracing paper from the English livery.
Uniform and formal clothes
We propose to consider in more detail what livery is like uniform and formal clothes. As already mentioned above, this type of costume was used for staff in wealthy and royal houses. Most often it was worn by footmen, coachmen and porters. She had a special cut, was decorated with edging, woolen axelbants, galloons, bassons, sometimes the emblem of the master.
In old France, knights and courtiers wore liveries as formal attire. This meant that they belonged to a particular overlord. The overlord is a type of large feudal ruler, whose power was based on the subordination of the feudal lords, who were smaller. The latter received from the suzerain the right to a piece of land in his possessions.
As with knights and courtiers, as well as among servants, the color of the livery often corresponded to the heraldic colors of their masters. This was evidence of the subordination of the first and second, although at different levels.
In Europe, the livery appeared in the 14th century as clothing for retinues and servants who served in the hunt and during other events. In Russia, such clothes were sewn in the 18th century, and it completely coincided with European patterns. Later it underwent differentiation depending on what kind of social position the owner occupied.
At the end of the 19th century, the liveries were sewn according to the old model, they included components such as a camisole, short culottes, gloves and stockings. Interestingly, until the beginning of the 20th century, impoverished aristocrats sought to preserve liveried servants, reminiscent of their former greatness.
At the court there were red liveries - ceremonial clothing of ministers, who were called red footmen. Such costumes were trimmed with gold galloons and black woven double-headed eagles. Everyday clothes were green and had no galloons.
Livery today
What is livery today? Today, elements of this colorful clothing are present in such categories of workers as porters, theater workers, wardrobes. In aviation, there is also a livery. Among aviators, this is the name of aircraft coloring. It follows a certain pattern, in order to thereby distinguish a civilian ship from those similar to it, and a military one, on the contrary, to disguise it. The coloring also serves advertising purposes, representing, for example, the operator’s company.