Dungaree (fabric)

Dungaree fabric (used in English since 1605–15, from the Marathi dongrī) is a historical term for an Indian coarse thick calico[1] cloth.

[2] Cotton twill with indigo-dyed warp thread is now more commonly referred to as denim.

[2] By 1891 English author Rudyard Kipling was using the word to refer to a kind of garment (in the plural)[4] as well as a fabric.

In the late 17th century, most dungaree produced was either washed and bleached, or dyed after weaving.

In the United States, the mill at Shady Lea, North Kingstown, Rhode Island, was built in the late 1820s by Esbon Sanford to manufacture a cotton-wool blend twill fabric called Kentucky Jean, resembling a cross between burlap and the dungaree fabric of today.