Aran Jumper

The Aran jumper (Irish Gaelic: Geansaí Árann) is a style of jumper/sweater that takes its name from the Aran Islands off the west coast of Ireland. It is sometimes known as a fisherman's jumper. A classical fisherman's jumper is a bulky garment with prominent cable patterns on the chest, often cream-colored.

The jumpers are distinguished by their use of complex textured stitch patterns, several of which are combined in the creation of a single garment. The word choice of "jumper" or "sweater" (or indeed other options such as "pullover" and "jersey") is largely determined by the regional version of English being spoken. In the case of Ireland and Britain, "jumper" is the standard word with "sweater" mainly found in tourist shops. The word used in Irish is geansaí, a gaelicization of guernsey which has been re-Anglicised to gansey in Hiberno-English.

Originally the jumpers were knitted using unscoured wool that retained its natural oils (lanolin) which made the garments water-resistant and meant they remained wearable even when wet. It was primarily the wives of island fishermen who knitted the jumpers before local knitters began selling their produce through initiatives such as the Aran Sweater Market on Inis Mor, Aran Islands.

Some stitch patterns have a traditional interpretation, often of religious significance. The honeycomb is a symbol of the hard-working bee. The cable, an integral part of the fisherman's daily life, is said to be a wish for safety and good luck when fishing. The diamond is a wish of success, wealth and treasure. The basket stitch represents the fisherman's basket, a hope for a plentiful catch.