khaki

Glossaries

Term	Main definition
khaki	Used to describe either a colour or often used loosely to describe a fabric of this colour. The Hindi word khaki, khakee, kharki or kharkee, means dusty or mud coloured. English army records show that in 1848 Harry Burnett Lumsden equipped his troops, who were fighting in Afganistan at the time, with uniforms dyed an earthy, yellowy colour which he called khaki. In India, at the time of the Indian Mutiny in 1857-58, some of the soldiers at Lucknow dyed their uniforms a light brown or dust colour with a mixture of black and red office inks. These looking drab uniforms replaced the red ones which ultimately gave the British soldiers the nickname Lal Coortee Wallahs.

Term

Main definition

Used to describe either a colour or often used loosely to describe a fabric of this colour. The Hindi word khaki, khakee, kharki or kharkee, means dusty or mud coloured. English army records show that in 1848 Harry Burnett Lumsden equipped his troops, who were fighting in Afganistan at the time, with uniforms dyed an earthy, yellowy colour which he called khaki. In India, at the time of the Indian Mutiny in 1857-58, some of the soldiers at Lucknow dyed their uniforms a light brown or dust colour with a mixture of black and red office inks. These looking drab uniforms replaced the red ones which ultimately gave the British soldiers the nickname Lal Coortee Wallahs.