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The origin of the boxer shorts

Boxer shorts are the favorite type of underwear for many men. Boxer shorts are comfortable and, according to many, also look better than the briefs. That is an opinion that not only many men have, but also many women share that opinion. How did the boxer shorts become so popular?

Over time, there have been countless forms of men's underwear. Once upon a time people used little more than an animal skin to cover themselves. The predecessor of the boxer shorts, also called 'the ball squeezer', has also been very popular for a long time, but now the men's briefs are mainly worn by older men. This type of underwear is no longer popular among the younger generations of men.

The origin of the first boxer shorts

It really took thousands of years to perfect the boxers or briefs you wear now. The first underwear (that we know of) dates back to about 7,000 years ago, when prehistoric humans used leather to cover and protect their genitals while hunting. Not much changed for several millennia.

Ancient Egyptian art shows everyone from the pharaohs to those at the bottom of the ranks, decked out in their own loincloth. The pharaohs even wore a type of specialized kilt/loincloth. This is called a shendoh. They even took extra supplies of the garment into their pyramids for use in the afterlife.

From Victorian times into the 1930s, men had typically worn tight-fitting knee-length flannel “underpants” under their trousers, as well as donning close-fitting flannel tops as undershirts.

There are various stories about the origin of the first boxer shorts. The first boxer shorts are said to have been introduced in the 1930s. At first, these underpants looked more like shorts. The first versions of the boxer shorts even came with a leather belt, because the pants were so difficult to keep in place. Slowly but surely boxer shorts became more and more comfortable. As boxer shorts became more and more comfortable, so did the popularity of underwear.

Designer underwear became all the rage in the 70s and 80s when labels like Calvin Klein started to transform our knickers from something we hid under our pants to the kind of fashion and lifestyle choice you could flaunt in a bad music video. The cuts became tighter and sexier, and the underwear designs became flashy, loud and often humorous.

Today there is no better alternative

Boxer shorts are incredibly popular today. Most modern men don't even want to think about wearing men's briefs. Almost all men of the younger generations choose to wear boxer shorts. However, there can also be a relatively large difference between boxer shorts.

The fabric largely determines how comfortable the underpants are. Even today, there are still manufacturers that surpass their competition in the field of comfort. If you are looking for the most comfortable underwear for men, it is therefore a good idea to compare different providers.