by ZEKEY

Clothing is an important part of any culture.

In this blog I wore a Hanfu which is a Chinese traditional dress for those of Han Dynasty descendance.

The Hanfu has,

Crossed collar
Right lapel
Sash instead of buttons
Colourful embroidery
Loose sleeves

Since Chinese culture is more than 5,000 years old, traditional Chinese clothing has an interesting history too. The style of Chinese clothing usually reflects Chinese peoples’ religious views and social life customs.

Another important factor in Chinese dress is which of the 56 officially recognised Chinese ethnic groups people are from. As most Chinese ethnic groups have their own unique traditional clothing.
The design is usually straight cut, a loose shape and comfortable. Normally garments are light coloured, but you can also see reds, yellows and purples fairly often too. White is a funeral colour in China, therefore not often worn day-to-day.
Thousands of years ago, colours such as red and purple were allowed only for royalty and noblemen.

Nowadays red is the most popular because believed to be a colour of happiness and wealth.
Female clothes tend to be more detailed, have more ornaments and styles than their male counterparts. The materials vary – cotton and linen for daily wear, and silk for special occasions.

There are four types of traditional Chinese clothing that are still very popular among the Chinese population today.
The Chinese Hanfu is the oldest traditional costume and as the name suggests, it originates from the Han Dynasty (206 BC–220 AD).

The majority of the Chinese refer themselves as descendants of the Han Dynasty, as it was the longest and the most prosperous dynasty in Chinese history.
The literal translation of Hanfu from Chinese would be “Han dynasty clothes” – 汉(Han dynasty) + 服(clothes).

The Hanfu has two main styles: a one-piece dress and skirt/trousers combo. The completed Hanfu apparel has three layers – underwear, an inner layer and overcoat. To complete the Hanfu traditional costume there are accessories such as socks, shawl, jade belt, and jade jewellery should be added.