A couple of days ago the subject here was umbrellas. After I’d hit the “send” button, I got to thinking that for the sake of completeness, I should have mentioned the parasol — a term that i remember hearing more in the past than I have recently. So — let’s talk about parasols….
Webster defines parasol as: a lightweight umbrella used as a sunshade.
I guess from that definition, a parasol is simply an umbrella that is to be used when the sun is shining and it’s not raining. That seems reasonable — I’m not sure which came first, the parasol or the umbrella… whichever it was, was it invented for a shelter from the elements, or from the sun? Parasols and umbrellas are essentially built the same — they have basically the same design except one is designed to block out the sun and the other rainy weather.
As far as I can tell, the parasol dates back to the Ancient Egyptian pharaohs and other kings or royalty — when they walked, they had a servant carry parasols to give them shade on hot days. Parasols were often intricately designed to be attractive and/or to convey power and prestige.
The first umbrellas, on the other hand, weren’t decorated in any way and were fairly bulky — not particularly attractive and not particularly easy to use. Most of the time, people would not even bother to venture out in the rain, let alone struggle with an umbrella.
Parasols were more popular than umbrellas up until around the middle to late 1800s. As time passed, the umbrella kept being refined little by little and offered shelter to those who needed to go out in the rain, snow, or other severe weather.
Over the years, people seemed to not worry about the sun as much as they did about heavy rain or other “wet” weather conditions. In places like England, where you often have more rain than sun, the umbrella slowly began to become an every day accessory. Of course as its use increased, its cost decreased.
As a way of summary, the word “parasol” (originally from French) is a combination of para, meaning to stop or to shield, and sol, meaning the sun.
Basically, parasols are for sun protection, umbrellas for rain protection.
As a general rule of thumb, if it’s made of waterproof material, it’s an umbrella; if it’s made of anything else, cotton, lace, silk, etc., it’s a parasol
Originally, parasol handles were (and are) usually straight; umbrella handles were curved, so the umbrella could be hung up to dry. With advancements in technology and the popularity of folding umbrellas, curved handles aren’t as popular today — although they are often used on the larger “golf sized” umbrellas.
So there you are — some things to ponder when it’s rainy — or sunny. You know what they say, the mind is like a a parasol or umbrella, it’s most useful when open.
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