Leather leg coverings worn by cowboys and riders, designed to protect legs from thorns, brush, and rope burns while working on horseback.
From Spanish chaparejos, a variant spelling of chaparajos. Both derive from Spanish chaparrera or chaparrilla. This word represents the Spanish vaquero tradition that influenced American cowboy culture and equipment.
There are multiple spellings of this word because Spanish vaqueros themselves spelled it different ways—a reminder that standardized spelling is actually pretty recent in human history!
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