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Acummerbund is a broad waistsash, usuallypleated, which is often worn withsingle-breasteddinner jackets (ortuxedos).[1] The cummerbund was adopted byBritish military officers incolonial India, where they saw it worn bysepoys (Indian soldiers) of theBritish Indian Army.[2] It was adopted as an alternative to thewaistcoat, and later spread to civilian use. The modern use of the cummerbund for Europeans and North Americans is as a component of the traditionalblack tieWestern dress code.[2]
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The wordcummerbund is the Anglicized form of Hindustanikamarband (Hindustani: कमरबंद;کمربند), which originated from the Persian (Persian:کمربند,romanized: kamarband).[3] It enteredEnglish vocabulary in 1616 from India. It is a combination of the wordskamar meaning 'waist' andband meaning 'to close' or 'fasten' (not to be confused with ‘band’ from Old Norse, reinforced in late Middle English by Old French bande, of Germanic origin; related to bind). The 'waist-band' was a sash accessory worn by Indian men for many occasions.[3][4]
The wordcummerband (see below), and less commonly the German spellingKummerbund (a Germanized spelling variation of the English word), are often used synonymously withcummerbund in English.
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The form of the cummerbund is a wide band around the waist. The fastening is a ribbon around the back, tied or held shut by a buckle orvelcro. The contemporary use of the cummerbund is purely aesthetic, providing a transition between the shirt and the waistband.[5] They have also expanded in less formal situations into use with components of white tie, particularly by musicians, who sometimes wear a white cummerbund instead of the traditionalpiqué waistcoat.[6]
The pleats face up because they were originally used to hold ticket stubs and similar items,[7][page needed] explaining the slang name 'crumb-catcher'. However, the cummerbunds worn as part of theUS Army Blue Mess and Blue Evening Mess uniforms are worn with the pleats down, as prescribed by Army Regulation 670–1 Chapter 24 Section 10(b). TheUS Navy Uniform Regulations NAVPERS 15665 stipulate the cummerbund be worn with the pleats up for the Navy Dinner Dress Jacket.
Its origin as part ofblack tie determined the acceptable colours. It was adopted as civilian dress, beginning as a largely summer option with informal dinner jackets, such as Burmese fawn and white, later, it was restricted to the narrow range of colours which accompany black tie. These were predominantly black, sometimesmidnight blue to match the trousers, and occasionally maroon (the normal hue for coloured accessories). In contemporary use, it is now common to see coloured bow ties and cummerbunds, often matching, but this is considered non-traditional.[7]
Most units of theFrench Army of Africa wore cummerbunds of two different colours: blue for the European soldiers of theZouaves andChasseurs d'Afrique; and red for the nativeSpahis andTirailleurs.[8] Some modern French regiments with acolonial history origin, still retain cummerbunds as part of their full dress uniform (notably the French Foreign Legion and the Spahis).
Cummerbunds (kamarbands) were an accessory to the dress uniform used in several modern South Asian armies, including theIndian Army, thePakistan Army and theBangladesh Army. It is generally worn during ceremonial parades and dinners. The colour or combination of colours varies widely according to regiment or corps.[9]
Unlike the civilian cummerbund, a leather belt is worn above this cloth piece and one end hangs free displaying an ornamental fringe.
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During the 19th and early 20th centuries, cotton cummerbunds were commonly worn by athletes participating ingymnastic and/orcombat sport training and competition.
Acummerbund is also an informal word used in scuba diving to mean a wide waistband either on abuoyancy control device designed to provide more comfort to the user than a standard waistband and usually made of a stout fabric backed with velcro fastenings, or on a two-piecedry suit where a flexible rubber waistband helps to maintain a watertight seal between the jacket and the pants of the suit.[citation needed]
In some cases a cummerbund can be worn as an element of women's evening dress.[citation needed]
