What is a chav or chavette?

[madowl 10]

Forum Chavs...

http://www.koransky.com/Other/Teletubbies.jpg

 

 

[owdlad 10]

This will either end in tears, or a dummy spitting session.

[lizzmobile 11]

What is a baby chav called ?

 

A chavlet, per chance?

[AtticusFinch 10]

"Chav" was once a potent insult, but has become corrupted through lazy usage by middle class snobs. The original idea behind the term (as with "pikey" and "townie" before it) can be summed up in this joke:

 

Why did the chav cross the road?

To start a fight with a complete stranger for absolutely no reason

 

"Chav" was a way that normal law-abiding people could convey their frustration at people who start fights, steal things and vandalise things. It was a way of grouping together people like that; a statement that most people don't think that sort of behaviour is acceptable.

 

This original definition isn't dependent on class. If someone lives in an affluent suburb and their dad plays golf with the lord mayor, but they spend their evenings shouting abuse at people and giving out attitude, they'd still be a chav.

 

Over time though, "chav" has been corrupted to mean anyone working class who wears a tracksuit. People should be judged on how they act, not how they look.

 

[sarcastic 10]

chav---- young lad dresses in tracksuits , trainers and burberry!!! they type lik dis innit man bangin.

[owlface 10]

I think the generic names for this species are as follows...

 

Male - Chav

Female - Chavette

Young - Chavling

Appearance - Burberry, Von Dutch, baseball caps and white trainers

Eats - Macdonalds, KFC, Burger King

Typical phrases - "innit", "knawattamean"

Location - Shopping centres, street corners

Transport - Clapped out £400 Saxo VTR with audio system able to make ears bleed, also has an exhaust back box that can acieve this

Passtimes - Hanging around in groups and mugging defenceless passers by, vandalising anything nearby, talking in what appears to be a low IQ dialect of English and generally just being a tw*t

 

For more reference on these diabolical creatures try the following

 

http://www.chavscum.co.uk

[purplepippa 11]

I heard a particularly funny 'Nick at Night' (months ago) where a woman from Worksop (I think) rang in and insisted it stood for Council Houses And Violence.

 

Nick: So when you see one, you would say 'Oh look, there's a Council Houses and Violence'?

Woman: Yes.

 

Much hilarity ensued, and it went on and on.

[lizzmobile 11]

My French friend thought it was Council House Vermin with added vowel to make a word.

 

I am not responsible for his thoughts, OK!

[MOG1 10]

I heard that it was derived from the Romany for 'child'. I play a browser game (http://www.chavgangs.com) that was clearly intended to take the mick out of chav culture, but it's amazing how many real chavs stumble across it and miss the irony!

[nikki-red 308]

I always thought it stood for 'Council Housed and Violent'.

[pem123 10]

I heard that it was derived from the Romany for 'child'. I play a browser game (http://www.chavgangs.com) that was clearly intended to take the mick out of chav culture, but it's amazing how many real chavs stumble across it and miss the irony!

 

 

You are correct. The 'council house vermin' theory is merely a coincidence. I posted this on another thread a few weeks back

 

The word itself comes from the Romany Chavvi (think that's how it's spelt) which I believe means the same as the English words lad and mate. Along with many other old Romany words, it found it's way into the English/Romany hybrid dialect of travellers, "That chavvi over there" or "Hello my chavvi"

 

I remember way before the current media obsession with 'chav' culture, I worked in an area with a lot of travellers and they always used to call each other and others Chavvy Local youth also used to use it to each other in an ironic sense or to describe travellers

[LukeD 10]

I musty be getting old but what is this cultural reference?

 

Can members of the forum enlighten a thick Yorkshireman by describing what or who is a chav or chavette?

 

Seriously, how can you not know? Sheffield's full of the buggers