Manbag

Manbags (a portmanteau of 'man' and 'handbags') are fashionable bags for men. Sometimes also called murse (a portmanteau of 'man' and 'purse'). Though the traditional briefcase is technically a manbag, in the current sense of the term, manbags refer to messenger bags and reporter bags. Brands include Prada, Louis Vuitton, Tumi, Gucci, Lacoste, Balenciaga, Timbuk2 and Crumpler.

In popular culture

In an episode of the popular U.S. sitcom, Friends, Rachel helps Joey to become fashionable for an acting audition and convinces him to take a manbag. He is subsequently mocked by the other characters, especially Chandler, for carrying the manbag because of its feminine connotations.

American television comedian Jerry Seinfeld made the manbag (described as a European Carry-all or man-purse) the subject of an episode. The comedy focused on whether a manbag was too feminine.

Kel Knight (Glenn Robbins), "Purveyor Of Fine Meats" from the hit Australian TV show Kath and Kim had many manbags throughout the series. One of his catch-phrases throughout series one, was "Where's My Manbag?"

Kiefer Sutherland, of 24 fame, brought the man-purse into the U.S. mainstream through his character, Jack Bauer. Jack frequently prominently carried his messenger bag with him in the 5th season. Fans of the show often refer to it as the "Jack Sack."

European perspective

In some western European countries the concept of men carrying a bag for much the same reason a woman would has been commonplace since the 1950s. As such, some Europeans consider the term 'Manbag' an American English aberration and simply refer to the item as a 'bag'. However in the United Kingdom there remains a similar negative stigma towards the man bag.

The Scottish Sporan, worn with a kilt due to a lack of pockets, is considered by some to be a man-purse.

See also

• Handbag
• Sling bag