chav

"Chav" (), also "charver", or "scally", or "roadman" in parts of England, is a British term, usually used in a pejorative way. The term is used to describe an anti-social lower-class youth dressed in sportswear. The term has been described as classist. Julie Burchill described the term as a form of "social racism". "Chavette" is a related term referring to female chavs, and the adjectives "chavvy", "chavvish", and "chavtastic" are used to describe things associated with chavs, such as fashion, slang, etc. In Australia, "eshay" or "adlay" has been described as a "try-hard chav".

==Etymology== "Chav" is usually thought to derive from Romani, either from the Romani word "chavo" (a boy or unmarried man) or the Angloromani "chavvy" (child). It may have come into English through Polari, where "chavy" meant "child". "Chavi" is attested in English from the 19th century. It may also be related to the northeastern dialect word "charver" (or "charva"), denoting members of a subculture of unemployed or lower-class youths in Tyneside.