There are two versions of the origin of this expression.
The outdated phrase evokes associations with the word “trapeza,” which in Greek means “table.” Thus, “zatrapezny” can be interpreted as “table-related.” In modern language, this word is used to mean “unattractive” or “low-quality.” However, isn’t it customary to dress up for the dining table?
In fact, this has not always been the case. In the past, in spiritual educational institutions and seminaries, the children of poor clergymen wore old, worn-out robes. It was at the dining tables that many such outfits could be seen, which came to be known as “zatrapezny.”
According to another version, this expression has another explanation related to the times of Peter the Great. Among the entrepreneurs who received factories from Peter I “as a reward for their abilities and useful activities” was Ivan Zatrapeznov, who organized production at the Yaroslavl textile factory. His surname quickly became well-known and turned into a “brand.”
The factory produced a fabric called “pestriad” or “pestriadina,” which was popularly nicknamed “zatrapez” or “zatrapeznik.” This coarse and cheap fabric made from hemp fiber was used for upholstery of mattresses, as well as for sewing robes and trousers. Zatrapez resembled Dutch ticking (a fabric for cushions) and came in various colors, including multicolored or blue stripes. Depending on the weaving method, it had different names: “poganyka,” “putanka,” “tyazhina,” “skvortsovaya,” “navolochnaya.” It was from this zatrapez that clothing was sewn.
Saltykov-Shchedrin notes in his work “Poshekhonskaya Olden Times”: “[the hay girls] were poorly fed, dressed in zatrapez, and given little sleep, exhausting them with almost continuous work.” And the heroine of Ostrovsky’s play “The Profitable Place” adds: “According to my status, I could only take you out in calico and zatrapez dresses.”
