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A poncho is a simple garment designed to keep the body warm, or if made from an impermeable material, to keep dry during rain. It is essentially a single large sheet of fabric with an opening for the head and sometimes for the arms. Some ponchos, especially those made to ward off rain, also have hoods attached.

Alternative ponchos are now designed as fashion accessories; they are the same shape but of different material. They are designed to look fashionable and be loose and comfortable, rather than ward off cold and rain. These are often made out of wool or yarn, knitted or crocheted.

While a traditional clothing in the whole world it is nowadays a standard in military field uniforms, and as a raincoat for wandering and biking. Traditional and more local names and variants are:

• Poncho, most of Latin America, Spain and worldwide
• Chamanto, Only in central Chile, poncho in the north and south
• Jorongo or Sarape, Mexico
• Kotze or "Wetterfleck" in Austria, Switzerland and Bavaria; a dark green or brown clothing for hunting
• Paenula, in ancient Rome; some kind of cape or jacket
• Kasel or Pluviale, Roman Catholic Church clothing
• Pelerine, Redingote and Cape; a weatherjacket without arms
• Poncho Chilote, a heavy poncho made of wool
• Gurgel, in the Middle Ages; short, sometimes with hood
• In the cold regions of Colombia there's a clothing similar to a poncho called the Ruana

Military equipment

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In the infantry of Australia and the UK, a poncho is a shelter half that may also serve as a raincoat or as an individual shelter. In operations in which ponchos are used, one is carried by each person, and when combined with another forms a two-person tent.

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