约1600年，“古罗马人在和平时期的主要外衣”，来自拉丁语 toga “斗篷或披风”（来自PIE *tog-a- “覆盖物”，词根 *(s)teg- “覆盖”的后缀形式）。在英语中也用于比喻地表达专业权威。
The toga as the Roman national dress was allowed to be worn by free citizens only. A stranger not in full possession of the rights of a Roman citizen could not venture to appear in it. Even banished Romans were in imperial times precluded from wearing it. The appearance in public in a foreign dress was considered as contempt of the majesty of the Roman people. Even boys appeared in the toga, called, owing to the purple edge attached to it (a custom adopted from the Etruscans) toga praetexta. On completing his sixteenth, afterward his fifteenth, year ( tirocinium fori), the boy exchanged the toga praetexta for the toga virilis, pura, or libera—a white cloak without the purple edge. Roman ladies (for these also wore the toga) abandoned the purple edge on being married. [Guhl & Koner, "The Life of the Greeks and Romans," transl. Francis Hueffer, 1876]
作为罗马国民服饰的斗篷只允许自由公民穿着。一个不完全拥有罗马公民权的陌生人不能冒险穿着它。即使是被流放的罗马人在帝国时期也被禁止穿着它。在公共场合穿着外国服饰被视为对罗马人民威严的蔑视。甚至男孩们也穿着斗篷，由于附有紫色边缘（这一习俗来自于伊特鲁里亚人） toga praetexta。在完成他的十六岁，后来是十五岁年纪时（ tirocinium fori），男孩将斗篷 praetexta 换成 toga virilis， pura，或 libera—一种没有紫色边缘的白色斗篷。罗马女性（因为她们也穿斗篷）在结婚后放弃了紫色边缘。[Guhl & Koner, "The Life of the Greeks and Romans," transl. Francis Hueffer, 1876]
裤子（拉丁语 bracae）对罗马人来说是外来的，属于波斯人、日耳曼人和高卢人的服饰，因此 bracatus “穿裤子”在罗马地理中是指“阿尔卑斯以北”。相关词： Togaed； toged； togated； togate。
大学兄弟会 toga party 通过电影《动物屋》（1978年）重新流行起来，但这是设定在1962年，美国大学的这一习俗似乎至少可以追溯到1950年代中期。
Down on Prospect Street, Campus Club held a toga party, at which everyone wore togas. Charter held a come-as-you-are party, at which everyone wore what they happened to have on, and Cloister held a party called "A Night in Tahiti," at which we'd hate to guess what everyone wore. The borough police reported that only one false alarm was turned in. [Princeton Alumni Weekly, March 19, 1954]
在前景街，校园俱乐部举办了一场斗篷派对，所有人都穿着斗篷。宪章社举办了一场随意派对，所有人都穿着他们随便穿的衣服，隐居者社则举办了一场名为“塔希提之夜”的派对，我们不敢猜测所有人穿了什么。市警察报告说只有一个虚假警报被报告。[Princeton Alumni Weekly, March 19, 1954]
