Web braces for 2005 “chav-alanche”

The word “Chav” has become prevalent in the English language, owing much of its popularity to websites such as "ChavScum":http://chavscum.co.uk and mentions in Popbitch.

These were joined by chavtowns.co.uk, a website which reviews towns and cities throughout the UK for the prevalence of their own chav culture.

While the term has faced criticism for inciting class hatred, the Oxford English Dictionary named "chav" its 2004 word of the year, and a number of chav-related books already among the best sellers this Christmas with online retailer Amazon.

Research from web domain firm "Easily.co.uk":http://easily.co.uk/ indicates that the chav brand looks set to be exploited in new areas with a string of new web addresses being registered over the past few months including chav-dating.co.uk and chav-cars.co.uk.

Jonathan Robinson, business development director at Easily.co.uk, said: "What was a niche term has captured the imagination of the mainstream public and has practically become a brand in its own right. It is little surprise to see the registration of sites such as chav-dating which could potentially exploit the continued interest in 2005."

The Oxford dictionary defines a chav as “a young person, often without a high level of education, who follows a particular fashion…Chavs usually wear designer labels, and if they’re girls, very short skirts and stilettos. Chavs still see branded baseball caps as a status symbol and wear them at every opportunity.”