shinel

Shinel, or shinél, is a long woolen overcoat originally issued to Russian soldiers and police; a traditional military outer garment of the Russian Empire, later used in the Soviet period. The garment is knee- to mid-calf length, with a straight cut, often single-breasted, with a high collar and button front, designed to provide warmth in cold climates. The design varied by era and unit, but the shinel typically featured durable wool, a belt, and sometimes epaulettes for rank. In everyday language, it is the generic term for a military-style greatcoat in Russian.

The shinel is also notable for its place in literature. Nikolai Gogol's 1842 short story The Overcoat (Shinel) follows a low-status clerk named Akaky Akakievich and his obsession with obtaining a new coat; the tale uses the coat as a symbol of human dignity, isolation, and bureaucratic indifference, and is considered a landmark work in Russian realism. The story has influenced later writers and remains a widely taught piece on social alienation.

In modern times, the term remains a conventional designation for traditional military greatcoats, though contemporary versions use modern materials and manufacturing. The shinel endures primarily as a historical garment and as a cultural emblem associated with 19th-century Russia and with Gogol’s literary legacy.