A short, stiff skirt made of layers of fabric worn by ballet dancers, typically standing out from the body.
From French 'tutu,' possibly from a childish reduplication of 'tu' (you) or related to 'toutou.' The term became widely used in English in the late 1800s as ballet became popular in Europe and America.
Ballet tutus are actually engineered pieces of clothing! The stiffness comes from horsehair or netting, and the length changed over time—longer in the 1800s (Romantic era) to shorter in the 1900s (Classical). The costume itself tells the history of dance styles.
Ballet costume historically coded as feminine; 'tutu' in non-dance contexts often invokes stereotypical femininity or is used to mock/diminish (cf. 'tutuing' as ridicule).
When discussing garments, use 'tutu' descriptively for ballet costume. In other contexts, prefer neutral descriptive language to avoid gendered mockery.
["gathered skirt","voluminous skirt","ballet costume"]
Women's contributions to ballet as dancers and choreographers have historically been credited to male impresarios; specificity about female artists honors their labor.
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