Jeans, as a garment, were invented in the United States—patented in 1873 by tailor Jacob W. Davis and Levi Strauss in San Francisco—while the underlying fabrics trace to Europe: “jean” cloth from Genoa, Italy, and “denim” from Nîmes, France.

What “jeans” refers to

• The modern riveted work pants called jeans were created when Jacob W. Davis reinforced trousers with copper rivets and partnered with Levi Strauss to mass-produce them, culminating in a U.S. patent in 1873 in San Francisco.

• Levi Strauss & Co. recounts Davis’s innovation and partnership as the origin of blue jeans as we know them today.

Fabric origins

• The word “jeans” is linked to Genoa (French: Gênes), where durable cotton “jean” cloth was produced and exported; this likely gave the garment its name.

• “Denim” derives from “serge de Nîmes” (de Nîmes = from Nîmes), a tough twill developed in Nîmes, France, which became the standard fabric for blue jeans.

Bottom line

• Place of invention (modern blue jeans): United States, 1873, by Jacob W. Davis with Levi Strauss in San Francisco.

• Fabric etymology: “jeans” from Genoa, Italy; “denim” from Nîmes, France.