Tim Worstall

Origins of the Word Chav.

So where did it come from, the buzz word of 2004 that so perfectly describes a certain youth culture, chav? One explanation:

So, who coined such a sneeringly useful term? Well, the pupils of Cheltenham Ladies College, apparently.
Rumour
in the town has it that chav is derived from Cheltenham Average, the
name given by the young ladies to the less-eligible young men of the
town.

Having, at one point in my life, run a company from an office overlooking the main entrance to that College (and not so coincidentally been a habitue of a pub known to serve the sixth form) I find that entirely believable. A lingering remnant of those years is a slight frisson for girls in hockey skirts but less said the better eh?   

In

4 responses

  1. Mike Avatar
    Mike

    Most likely the term `chav´comes from the Spanish `chaval´ meaning `guy´, `kid´(in the sense of bloke, chap).
    Probably the disco-going British on Ibiza picked it up there.

    Reply
  2. Jebus Bono Avatar
    Jebus Bono

    No matter where the person comes from the word chav is amazing defining the evil species in one 4 letter word, DEATH TO CHAVS.

    Reply
  3. jay swift Avatar
    jay swift

    cheltenham my arse, its been floating around kent for many years, the gyppos use the word as a greeting, its romany for kid/child chavi

    Reply
  4. nigel chapman Avatar
    nigel chapman

    In the late 1950s at Glencoe Road Junior School, Chatham, and at Rochester Math School we used the word “chavvy” as “mate”. e.g. He’s my chavvy. We also greeted each other as “Hello, me old chav” obviously trying to sound hard and common like what we wasn’t really, going to a grammar school like, and stuff. Cool. Up here, in the far north of England, Leamington Spa, the term was unheard of when we arrived in January 1961.

    Reply

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