Coat history

Coats of the 18th and 19th centuries

Some of these styles are still worn.

• Basque, a tightly fitted, kneelength women's jacket of the 1870s
• Duster, a long coat of light-colored material worn by cattlemen and early automobile travelers to protect clothing from dust and dirt

Norfolk jackets

• Frock coat, a kneelength men's coat of the nineteenth century
• Garibaldi jacket, a short, red women's jacket with military trim of the 1860s
• Greatcoat, a voluminous overcoat with multiple shoulder capes, prominently featured by European militaries, most notably the former Soviet Union
• Justacorps, a knee-length coat fitted to the waist with flared skirts
• Morning coat or cutaway, a dress coat still worn as formal wear

• Norfolk jacket, a sturdy wool jacket with a belt and box pleats front and back for hunting, fishing, and other outdoor sports
• Redingote (via French from English riding coat), a long fitted coat for men or women
• Smoking jacket, a men's informal jacket of luxurious fabric
• Spencer, a waistlength, frequently doublebreasted, men's jacket of the 1790s, adopted as a women's fashion from the early nineteenth century
• Tailcoat, a late eighteenth century men's coat preserved in today's white tie and tails

Modern coats and jackets

• Anorak (in the United Kingdom) or parka (in the United States), a hooded jacket for very cold climates
• Blazer, a nautically-inspired jacket for men or women
• Bolero, a very short jacket for women, originally worn by matadors
• Car coat, a hooded hip-length casual jacket inspired by the parka, popular in the 1960s
• Chesterfield, a long, tailored overcoat of herringbone tweed, with a velvet collar, worn over a suit or dress
• Dinner jacket or Tuxedo jacket, a men's coat for formal social occasions, usually of plain black fabric with grosgrain lapels

Three men in black tie.

• Down coat, a warm coat insulated with goose down
• Duffle coat or duffel coat, a warm coat made of thick wool; usually having a hood and fastening with toggles
• Eisenhower jacket, a waist-length, fitted, military-inspired jacket with a waistband based on the World War II British Army's Battle Dress jacket introduced by General Dwight Eisenhower
• Field Jacket, a jacket that is worn by soldiers on the battlefield or doing duties in cold weather. The field jacket came about during World War 2 with the US Army introducing the M-1941 and the M-1943 field jacket and issued the jacket to their troops. The most well-known and the most popular type of military field jacket that is on the market today is the M-1965 or M-65 field jacket which came into US military service in 1965.
• Jeans jacket or denim jacket, a jacket falling slightly below the waist, usually of denim, with buttoned band cuffs like a shirt and a waistband that can be adjusted by means of buttons. Also called Levi's jacket (see Levi's)
• Lab coat, a knee-length simple coat, almost always white, worn by scientists, students and researchers in laboratories
• Medical coat, similar to lab coat, worn by physicians (also termed white coat)
• Mess jacket, a nearly waist-length fitted formal coat worn as full-dress military uniform evening wear, especially in the British Army. Often brightly coloured and trimmed.
• Motorcycle jacket, a leather jacket, usually black, worn by motorcycle riders; originally to mid-thigh, now usually to a fitted waist.
• Opera coat, an ankle- or floor-length women's coat of luxurious fabric (often velvet), to be worn over an evening gown
• Overcoat, a long, tailored coat worn over a suit or dress
• Pea coat or P coat, a heavy wool double-breasted hip-length jacket worn by sailors, or a coat styled like this
• Raincoat, a water-resistant or water proof coat, often belted
• Sportcoat (US) or Sports jacket (UK), a tailored jacket, similar in cut to a suit coat but more utilitarian, originally casual wear for hunting, riding, and other outdoor sports; specific types include a shooting jacket and hacking jacket
• Suit coat the jacket portion of a men's tailored business suit or lounge suit
• Topcoat, a medium-length tailored coat, shorter than an overcoat, worn over a suit or dress
• Trench coat, a belted military raincoat developed by Burberry, or any coat styled like this
• Walking coat, a women's tailored coat of about knee-length, generally to be worn over trousers
• 7/8 coat, a women's dress coat several inches shorter than the currently fashionable skirt length