What Is an Anorak?

Where does the anorak come from?

The anorak comes from Greenland, where the annoraaq is a Greenlandic Inuit upper garment. Merriam-Webster finds the name in English by 1877. The Danish encyclopaedia Den Store Danske says the first anoraks were made of fur. The National Museum of Denmark holds an East Greenlandic garment of seal gut skin, accessioned in 1854 and catalogued in English as a parka.

The annoraaq in Greenland

Cloth changed the garment without replacing it. Den Store Danske records that cotton became known in Greenland from the mid-19th century, when coloured cotton anoraks were worn on weekdays and black ones, later white, on Sundays and holidays.

The anorak is still part of kalaallisuut, Greenland's national dress, and the details differ by region. Videnskab.dk reported in 2026, citing Det Grønlandske Hus in Copenhagen for the regional differences, that:

• in West Greenland, men's festive dress typically includes a white anorak, and dressing in white is called qaqortumaartoq;
• in East Greenland the outfit is often simpler, with a white cloth anorak and less beading;
• almost the whole outfit is sewn by hand, and the anorak is the one part made on a sewing machine;
• the dress began as everyday clothing and is now worn for occasions such as National Day, weddings and confirmations.

The word does not mean the same thing everywhere in the Inuit world. The historian Kenn Harper, writing in Nunatsiaq News, notes that annuraaq is used in all Canadian Inuktitut dialects as a general word for clothing, and can also mean an upper garment or shirt.

How the word reached English

Merriam-Webster traces anorak to Greenlandic annoraaq, borrowed through Norwegian, Danish or German, and gives 1877 as its first known use in English. Etymonline, which spells the Greenlandic form anoraq, gives 1924, so the two dictionaries disagree. Harper credits 19th-century whalers in Greenland with taking up the word.

Western versions followed. Etymonline records the word for Western makers' imitations from the 1930s. Den Store Danske dates the anorak's spread through Europe and the United States to around 1955, when it was widely worn for winter sports.

Why a British enthusiast is called an anorak

In British informal English, an anorak is also a person intensely interested in something others find dull. Etymonline records a related sense, a socially inept person, by 1983. Explanations differ. Harper links it to trainspotters, who adopted the jacket, while Etymonline reports Partridge connecting it with fans of left-wing politics and pirate radio. Merriam-Webster cites only the "alleged popularity" of anoraks among such people. Treat any single origin story as unproven.

What makes an anorak an anorak?

An anorak is defined by three features: it pulls on over the head, its hood is permanently attached, and it is made to keep out wind. Den Store Danske gives exactly those three, and Merriam-Webster adds a length that covers the hips.

The pull-on construction is the easiest test. A modern anorak may have a short zip or buttoned opening at the neck. By the Den Store Danske definition, a hooded jacket that opens all the way down the front is not an anorak, though Merriam-Webster's "usually pullover" allows exceptions. The word overlaps most with parka: Harper notes that where Britons say anorak, North Americans usually say parka.

What are the main types of anorak?

Anoraks divide by material and purpose: Greenlandic skin and gut-skin garments, cloth anoraks including the festive white anorak, and modern windproof or waterproof shells.

How do you tell a well-made anorak?

A well-made anorak keeps out what its label promises, at the seams as well as through the cloth, and lets you move without the hood or hem shifting. Run these checks before you buy.

Read the weather claim

"Windproof", "water-resistant" and "waterproof" are different promises. If the label cites EN 343, the European standard for protective clothing against rain, the class number means something you can check. According to the testing organisation SATRA, water penetration runs from Class 1 to Class 4, and Class 4 requires the material to resist at least 20,000 Pa after pre-treatments that include laundering and abrasion. SATRA notes that 1,000 Pa is roughly 102 mm of water, so Class 4 is about 2,040 mm. Class 1 cloth is tested only before any pre-treatment, at 8,000 Pa.

The same standard has four breathability classes, and a higher number means a more breathable garment. A "waterproof" claim with no standard or test named tells you very little.

Turn it inside out

EN 343 tests the seams as well as the fabric. On a waterproof anorak, look along every inside seam, including the hood, shoulders and pocket, for tape or another seal. The tape should lie flat with no lifting edges or bubbles. If the cloth has a waterproof coating on the inside, check that it is not cracking or peeling at the folds.

Check the hood and opening

• Pull the hood up and turn your head. It should turn with you, not block your side view.
• Try the drawcords. They should tighten the face opening without bunching the hood over your eyes.
• Pull the anorak off and on again. The neck opening should clear your head without straining the zip or stitching at its base.
• Check that any neck zip or chest pocket has a flap or guard so rain cannot run straight in.

Check the fit in motion

Raise both arms overhead. The hem should stay below your waist and the cuffs should still cover your wrists. Because an anorak cannot be unzipped to vent, try it on over the layer you plan to wear underneath, such as a fleece. If it has a lining, it should not pull or twist when you reach forward.

How do you wear an anorak?

Wear an anorak as an outer layer for wind and rain, sized to fit over whatever you wear beneath it.

• Outdoors: a thin shell over a fleece or knit adapts to changing weather better than one heavy coat.
• In town: a cotton or matt-finish anorak sits well with jeans, chinos and boots; keep the shoulders and length close to your body so it does not look borrowed.
• Proportion: if an anorak is cut with room for layers and you will wear it over a thin top, try the next size down.

The white anorak of kalaallisuut is different: it is national dress worn for family and public occasions in Greenland, not a style reference.

How do you care for an anorak?

Follow the care label, and treat a waterproof anorak's laundering instructions as part of its performance. Under EN 343, SATRA explains, Classes 2 to 4 test the fabric after pre-treatments that include laundering. Only Class 4 tests the seams after cleaning. Close every zip and fastening before washing, and dry the anorak fully before storing it.