A Short History of Jorts

Chances are you’ve worn a pair of jorts in your life. Maybe you took a pair of shears to old Levi’s or bought them new. But it’s an inescapable fact that during the warmer months, jean shorts are everywhere. Originally called waist overalls, jeans didn’t become popular until the Gold Rush (with a name like that, it’s hard to imagine why!), when the demand for sturdy workwear skyrocketed. Still, its spawn, jean shorts—today known by their portmanteau “jorts”—were not a part of the sartorial lexicon until just over 50 years ago.

The counterculture movement in the 1960s brought about the rise of jean shorts. Prior to this, wearing shorts in public was considered a grave impropriety, with some cities going so far as to ban them outright. By the late ’60s, aided by a free-love, anti-authority mentality, folks began hacking the legs off their jeans to create shorts.

Soon enough, jorts were everywhere—and getting shorter by the year. Cutoffs found a home in the punk scene in the ’70s, with stars including Debbie Harry and Patti Smith embracing their counterculture roots. Starting in 1979 through the mid-’80s, Catherine Bach donned the most famous pair of jorts to ever grace television as Daisy Duke in The Dukes of Hazzard. To this day, the itty-bitty thigh grazers still bear her character’s name and have inspired cultural references galore. (To quote Katy Perry’s “California Girls”: “California girls, we’re unforgettable / Daisy Dukes, bikinis on top.”)

In the 1980s, hemlines grew longer, waists got higher, and washes were lighter. Tennis legend Andre Agassi even played the 1988 US Open in a pair of acid-wash jorts. By the ’90s, hip-hop culture in New York introduced a new approach to jean shorts, with rappers like Ol’ Dirty Bastard and Killah Priest endorsing a baggier silhouette. But by no means were short-shorts obsolete. Azzedine Alaïa sent them down the runway in 1991, and Cindy Crawford filmed her 1992 Stuntwoman World Tour cameo in teeny-tiny cutoffs. Jean shorts became a go-to in every ’90s It girl’s closet, from Mariah Carey and Halle Berry to Britney Spears.

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In the 1990s, hemlines diverged: Some preferred the über-baggy longer shorts pioneered by the hip-hop scene, while others followed the lead of punk singers like Courtney Love, who still favored grungier DIY cutoffs. Since then, jorts’ hemlines have waxed and waned, with itty-bitty inseams and full-coverage shorts finding fans in the ’00s. The 2010s saw experimental forms with colorful denim, studs, and pairs even layered over glittery catsuits, à la Rihanna.

But recently jorts are creeping back down toward the knees. From Kendall Jenner to both Hadid sisters, the tastemakers are signaling a return to the ’90s-style shorts. Still, that hasn’t stopped Taylor Swift from sticking by her short-shorts, which she wore out in New York with knee-high boots.

Halfway through 2024, it’s clear that the long shorts trend is continuing. Shortly before she released her album, Brat, Charli xcx hit the streets of New York in long black shorts, while father-to-be Justin Bieber tested out dad jorts. (His drawstring shorts, however, are Bottega Veneta.) Wherever jorts may go from here is anyone’s guess, but they certainly aren’t going anywhere.

Below, look back at the relatively short, and ever-evolving history of jorts: