Drag (clothing)

Drag (clothing)

Drag is used for any clothing carrying symbolic significance but usually referring to the clothing associated with one gender role when worn by a person of another gender. The origins of the word are debated, but 'Drag' has appeared in print as early as 1870. One suggested etymological root is 19th-century theatre slang, from the sensation of long skirts trailing on the floor.

"Drag queen" appeared in print in 1941. The verb is to "do drag." A folk etymology whose acronym basis reveals the late-20th-century bias, would make "drag" an abbreviation of "dressed as girl" in description of male transvestism. The opposite, "drab" for "dressed as boy," is unrecorded. Drag is practiced by people of all sexual orientations and gender identities.