What is Oktoberfest? A festival filled with dancing, pretzels, and most importantly beer. Lederhosen for men are knee-length leather trousers and often times come with suspenders.

What are they made of?

Authentic lederhosen is made it leather from tanned deers which are where the pants get their softness and light weight-ness from; not to mention the waterproof feature. Most pants come with one or more side pockets and a front drop.

Other features

Pockets may be accompanied by separate pockets for pocket knives and a hop pocket to carry any farming instruments. This is because lederhosen for men was commonly worn by farmers living in the Alps countryside.

Colors

Ledehosen comes in many colors. Most commonly in brown, shared of dark green or dark blue.

Length

Lederhosen are short in length. The longer version of them is called bundhosen and was worn by farmers living in colder regions of Europe. They were also worn by working-class men in the city who had to work in factories and did not want to get themselves dirty.

How are they worn

They are worn with a white or checkered shirt which may or may not be front open. They are also accompanied by socks which are usually white or cream in color and knee-high in length. Shoes are also made of leather and are usually loafer-style.

Origin story

Men in German outfits were usually worn by pheasant workers in the Alpines and surrounding regions of Bavaria and Austria. Their popularity quickly rose and they were soon worn by men in most of Europe. This included the time when Royal families decided to make it part of their outdoor sporting wear which really gave the leather trousers a boost.

Popularity

Lederhosen’s popularity rose and fell quickly during the 19th century. At one point, it was considered an outfit for uncultured working-class men. But by the end of the 19th century, several organizations and clubs were founded that valued these german outfits.

King Ludwig’s Contributions

Most notably, King Ludwig II was a big fan of leather trousers and wore them often during sporting and outdoor events. His acceptance of lederhosen for men became very popular and so they started being worn at festivals such as Oktoberfest.

Where to Buy

You can find the highest quality german outfits in Bavaria. You will find a variety of several lengths, colors, and embroideries accompanying these outfits which are more appealing to the modern taste.

How much do they cost?

Tradational lederhosen can cost anywhere between $1500-2000 but these are made of authentic deer leather as we speak of. There are also more nominal versions made of cow leather which cost around $100 or less depending on where you are looking.

You can also buy second-hand lederhosen which can be found in thrift and vintage stores around Germany. The reason for the high cost is that lederhosen is not bought often and are used for over 30 years by the buyer.