What is a Chav?

Helmholtz Watson

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Ok so I've heard about these kinds of people from UK escapist for a while now, and I'm curious as to what is a Chav? Is it like the punk kids in the Michael Caine movie Harry Brown? Are they generally really violent thugs or are they just a sub-culture of the general UK culture? Are they in all parts of the UK or just England? Final question, when did being a chav become widespread and why did it become popular?
 

iFail69

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chav

They make England more comical, gives the rest of us something to laugh at, constantly.

They hang out on street corners, drinking cheap alcohol, making noise, and generally being an idiotic nuisance.
 

Rastien

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Jun 22, 2011
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Harry Brown is an extreme example of them but thats pretty much it. Chav is also an acronym see below.

Council
House
And
Violent

God knows why its become populour but they are just a nightmare majority of the time. To become a chav you must have complete distate for any form of authority wether it be school, police or your potential employer whilst feeling the world owes you something.

Needless to say the majority seem to have a massive chip on their shoulder for some reason.
 

Ruwrak

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They be telling me that I am a chav o.o
I'm not even from the UK! I was raised well, don't drink cheap alcohol (only the double numbers drinks) am generally quiet and so far not a nuisance.

What did I do wrong? XD
 

Memoriae

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Ruwrak said:
They be telling me that I am a chav o.o
I'm not even from the UK! I was raised well, don't drink cheap alcohol (only the double numbers drinks) am generally quiet and so far not a nuisance.

What did I do wrong? XD
Probably wearing Burberry gear, swearing, and acting like a bit of a ****. They're the rest of the requirements
 

Ruwrak

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Memoriae said:
Ruwrak said:
They be telling me that I am a chav o.o
I'm not even from the UK! I was raised well, don't drink cheap alcohol (only the double numbers drinks) am generally quiet and so far not a nuisance.

What did I do wrong? XD
Probably wearing Burberry gear, swearing, and acting like a bit of a ****. They're the rest of the requirements
Hmmm nope. Doesn't really sound like me. I wear t-shirts from no particularly brand. I only swear when I stub my toe or hit my head (happens more often then you think.) and I try to be nice to people in general. =/

Weird. I was on holliday in Spain though at the time. Two english women came up to me, we got chatting and she was all about chav this and chav that.
 

mgirl

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Rastien said:
Council
House
And
Violent
That's actually a common misconception, the origin of the word was, (if I remember my A-level English correctly) a gypsy slang term that came into common use. The acronym thing isnt true, people have just made that up later on.

To answer your question, chavs generally arent viewed as a sub culture exactly... it's more often used as a blanket term for young people who cause trouble. And from what I've seen, this word is starting to fall out of use a lot more. At least where I live, anyway.
 

Phishfood

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Lets see, there are a few requirements.
1) Council housing
2) Habbits such as drinking cheap cider on street corners
3) Wearing hoodies
4) Generally acting like society owes you one even though you are the one too lazy to find a job.

Don't really have to be VIOLENT as such, but violence pretty much guarantees being a chav. As does being pregnant at 13. The US equivalent would be rednecks.



To quote Jimmy Carr
"The first time I saw it written I thought it was pronounced 'chareve'* and I thought 'They sound like lovely people, I must meet them"


* to rhyme with cucumber sarendwich
 

O maestre

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google is your friend.

but as far as i can tell its a blend between british "white trash" and "wiggers" a true horror to behold. if you have ever seen little britain, the character vicky is a perfect example.
 

Wintermoot

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never met one but from what I heard it,s the British equivalent of a frat boy but worse.
 

Scarim Coral

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Chavs is pretty much a subgroup who tend to wear sport clothings especially hoodies. They are pretty much a dick to everyone and may also be druggie and thugs, mugging people of their belonging on them.
 

Rastien

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Jun 22, 2011
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mgirl said:
Rastien said:
That's actually a common misconception, the origin of the word was, (if I remember my A-level English correctly) a gypsy slang term that came into common use. The acronym thing isnt true, people have just made that up later on.
Very true! :) although it has commonly been accepted to stand for that in somerset although to be honest we have more trouble with pikeys and gypos stealing anything that isn't nailed down lol
 

Helmholtz Watson

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Phishfood said:
Lets see, there are a few requirements.
1) Council housing
2) Habbits such as drinking cheap cider on street corners
3) Wearing hoodies
4) Generally acting like society owes you one even though you are the one too lazy to find a job.

Don't really have to be VIOLENT as such, but violence pretty much guarantees being a chav. As does being pregnant at 13. The US equivalent would be rednecks.



To quote Jimmy Carr
"The first time I saw it written I thought it was pronounced 'chareve'* and I thought 'They sound like lovely people, I must meet them"


* to rhyme with cucumber sarendwich
eh, rednecks are not always violent, and stereotypically if your white, they leave you alone.
 

RoyalWelsh

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They're a sub-species of humans that really ought to be studied extensively. They have bottles of cider growing out of their hands, and have developed a second skin that they like to call a tracksuit. Evolution is truly a strange thing.
 

ms_sunlight

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Rastien said:
mgirl said:
Rastien said:
That's actually a common misconception, the origin of the word was, (if I remember my A-level English correctly) a gypsy slang term that came into common use. The acronym thing isnt true, people have just made that up later on.
Very true! :) although it has commonly been accepted to stand for that in somerset although to be honest we have more trouble with pikeys and gypos stealing anything that isn't nailed down lol
You know it's really racist to use terms like "pikey" and "gyppo", right?

If you mean Irish travellers or Roma, say so.
 

Helmholtz Watson

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Rastien said:
mgirl said:
Rastien said:
That's actually a common misconception, the origin of the word was, (if I remember my A-level English correctly) a gypsy slang term that came into common use. The acronym thing isnt true, people have just made that up later on.
Very true! :) although it has commonly been accepted to stand for that in somerset although to be honest we have more trouble with pikeys and gypos stealing anything that isn't nailed down lol
wait, I thought pikey was just another name for gypsy's, no?
lol this is what I think about when I think pikey: