A couch, also known as a sofa, settee, chesterfield, or davenport, is a cushioned item of furniture for seating multiple people (although it is not uncommon for a single person to use a couch alone). It is commonly found in the form of a bench with upholsteredarmrests and is often fitted with springs and tailored cushion and pillows.[1][2] Although a couch is used primarily for seating, it may be used for sleeping.[3] In homes, couches are normally put in the family room, living room, den, or lounge. They are sometimes also found in non-residential settings such as hotels, lobbies of commercial offices, waiting rooms, and bars. Couches can also vary in size, color, and design.
The word sofa comes from the Turkish[8][9][10][11] language and is derived from the Arabic word suffah ("ledge/bench"), cognates with the Aramaic word sippa ("mat").[12]
The word settee or setee comes from the Old English word setl, which was used to describe long benches with high backs and arms, but is now generally used to describe small upholstered seating structures.[13]
Other terms which can be synonymous with the above definition are divan, davenport, lounge, and canapé.[2] In Canadian English, the word chesterfield is used to describe any couch or sofa,[14] particularly among older Canadians. According to a 1992 survey conducted in the Golden Horseshoe region of Ontario, the term is quickly vanishing.[15]
The most common types of couches include the two-seater, sometimes referred to as a loveseat, and the sofa. The loveseat is designed for seating two people, while the sofa has more than two cushion seats. A sectional sofa, often just referred to as a "sectional", is formed from multiple sections (typically two, three, and four) and usually includes at least two pieces which join at an angle of 90 degrees or slightly greater. Sectional sofas are used to wrap around walls or other furniture.
Other variants include the divan, the fainting couch (backless or partial-backed) and the canapé (an ornamental three-seater). To conserve space, some sofas double as beds in the form of sofa beds, daybeds, or futons.
A furniture set consisting of a sofa with two matching chairs[16] is known as a "chesterfield suite"[17] or "living-room suite".[18] In the UK, the word chesterfield was used to refer to any couch in the 1900s. A chesterfield now describes a deep buttoned sofa, usually made from leather, with arms and back of the same height. The first chesterfield, with its distinctive deep buttoned, quilted leather upholstery and lower seat base, was commissioned by Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield (1694–1773).
Materials
A couch consists of a frame, springs, padding, and a covering. The frame is usually made of wood, but can also be made of steel, plastic or laminated boards. Sofa padding is made from foam, down, feathers, fabric or a combination thereof. Sofa coverings are usually made out of soft leather, corduroy or linen. Couches commonly have springs under the padding for more support, although some don't.[19]
↑ Barber, Katherine, ed. (2004). Canadian Oxford Dictionary (Seconded.). Oxford University Press. p.264. ISBN978-0-19-541816-3. any couch or sofa
↑ Chambers, J. K. "The Canada-U.S. border as a vanishing isogloss: the evidence of chesterfield". Journal of English Linguistics; 23 (1995): 156–66, excerpt at chass.utoronto.caArchived 2007-09-12 at the Wayback Machine .
A cushion is a soft bag of some ornamental material, usually stuffed with wool, hair, feathers, polyester staple fiber, non-woven material, cotton, or even paper torn into fragments. It may be used for sitting or kneeling upon, or to soften the hardness or angularity of a chair or couch. Decorative cushions often have a patterned cover material, and are used as decoration for furniture.
A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. They may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in various colors and fabrics.
The original Knole Settee is a couch chair that was made in the 17th century, probably around 1640. It is housed at Knole in Kent, a house owned by the Sackville-West family since 1605 but now in the care of the National Trust.
Upholstery is the work of providing furniture, especially seats, with padding, springs, webbing, and fabric or leather covers. The word also refers to the materials used to upholster something.
A slipcover is a fitted protective cover that may be slipped off and on a piece of upholstered furniture. Slipcovers are usually made of cloth. Slipcovers slip on and off, they come fresh, and may be removed for seasonal change, cleaning, moving, or storage.
An ottoman is a piece of furniture. Generally ottomans have neither backs nor arms. They may be an upholstered low couch or a smaller cushioned seat used as a table, stool or footstool. The seat may have hinges and form a lid for the inside hollow, which can be used for storage of linen, magazines or other items, making it a form of storage furniture. The smaller version is usually placed near to an armchair or sofa as part of living room decor or may be used as a fireside seat.
A chaise longue is an upholstered sofa in the shape of a chair that is long enough to support the legs of the sitter.
Davenport was the name of a series of sofas made by the Massachusetts furniture manufacturer A. H. Davenport and Company, now defunct. Due to the popularity of the furniture at the time, the name davenport became a genericized trademark in parts of the United States.
A loveseat can be one of two styles of two-seat chair.
Upholstery coil springs are an important part of most modern upholstery. The consumer usually never sees the construction features of an upholstered piece. The overall quality of the materials and construction dictate the comfort level of an upholstered piece and its ability to satisfy the consumer over the long term. A basic upholstered piece may be composed of a frame, springs, foam, cushioning, padding, and textiles.
A sofa bed or sofa-bed is a multifunctional furniture typically consisting of a sofa or couch that, underneath its seating cushions, hides a metal frame and thin mattress that can be unfolded or opened up to make a bed. A western-style futon differs from a sofa bed, although sofa beds using futon mattresses are common.
A recliner is an armchair or sofa that reclines when the occupant lowers the chair's back and raises its front. It has a backrest that can be tilted back, and often a footrest that may be extended by means of a lever on the side of the chair, or may extend automatically when the back is reclined.
A divan is a piece of couch-like sitting furniture or, in some regions, a box-spring-based bed.
A canapé is a piece of furniture similar to a couch. The word is typically meant to describe an elegant couch made out of elaborately carved wood with wooden legs, an upholstered back, armrests, and single long seat that typically seats three, that emerged from France in the 18th century.
Poltrona Frau is a furniture-maker founded in 1912 by Sardinian-born Renzo Frau in Turin, Italy, headquartered since the early 1960s in Tolentino and specializing in leather seating for interior and automotive applications. The company name combines poltrona, the Italian word for 'armchair', and Frau, the last name of its founder.
An indiscret is a type of sofa, originally characterized by a triangular seat at each end, so that people could sit at either end of the sofa and be close to the person(s) sitting in the middle. The ends were sometimes detachable, and could be removed and used on their own as Burjair chairs. The name Confidante was coined by cabinetmaker George Hepplewhite, who described it in his Cabinet-Maker and Upholsterer's Guide as being "of French origin, and is in pretty general request for large and spacious suits of apartments. An elegant drawing-room, with modern furniture, is scarce complete without a Confidante, […]".
Oliver Browne was a London upholsterer and furniture maker in the 17th century who worked for aristocrats and the royal court. His business partners included John Baker, another upholsterer or "upholder", who worked for the royal family. Baker had been "upholster" for the household of Prince Henry. Baker's son, also John Baker, continued the business after the Restoration.
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