{{Short description|Cloth worn around the waits or loins}} {{distinguish|Laplap}} A '''lap-lap''' is a waistcloth or loincloth worn in Papua New Guinea and the South Pacific. This item of clothing has three parts: a front flap, a back flap, and a thread to tie them around the waist. The sides are generally open. How much is covered by the front and back flaps varies.
Related to the lap-lap is the lava-lava, which is an all-round rectangular cloth worn like a kilt or skirt by Polynesians.
This description refers to the traditional, pre-colonial period, costume. The current usage is broader than this: 'Laplap: a waistcloth, a loincloth, any cloth material or dry goods, a rag'.<ref>Mihalic, F 1971, ''The Jacaranda dictionary and grammar of Melanesian Pidgin'', Jacaranda Press, Milton, Qld</ref> It is a Fijian word that is also used in Western Melanesia.{''op. cit.'', p. 120}
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{clothing-stub}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Lap-Lap}} Category:Melanesian clothing Category:Skirts Category:History of Oceanian clothing