Han Chinese clothing or Hanfu (Traditional Chinese: 漢服; Simplified Chinese: 汉服; Hanyu Pinyin: hànfú; Wade-Giles: han4fu2), also known as Hanzhuang (漢裝) or Huafu (華服) [1] refers to the historical clothing of the Han Chinese people, that are commonly worn before conquest by the Manchus and the establishment of the Qing Dynasty in 1644. The term Hanfu derives from the Book of Han, which says, "then many came to the Court to pay homage and were delighted at the clothing style of the Han [Chinese]." [2]
Han Chinese clothing is presently worn only as a part of historical reenactment, hobby, coming of age / rite of passage ceremonies, ceremonial clothing worn by religious priests or cultural exercise and can be frequently seen on Chinese television series, films and other forms of media entertainment. However, there is a movement in China and overseas Chinese communities to revive Han Chinese clothing in everyday life and incorporate in Chinese festivals or celebration.
Some costumes commonly thought of as typically Chinese, such as the qipao, are the result of Manchu influence and are regarded by purist advocates as not being "traditionally" Han. Today, most Han Chinese wear western-style clothing in everyday life.
History
An early portrait of Confucius showing him in Hanfu of the Spring and Autumn Period of the Eastern Zhou DynastyHanfu has a history of more than three millennia, and is said to have been worn by the legendary Yellow Emperor. From the beginning of its history, Hanfu (especially in elite circles) was inseparable from silk, supposedly discovered by the Yellow Emperor’s consort, Leozu. The first solidly historical dynasty known of in China, the Shang Dynasty (c.1600 BC-1000 BC), developed the rudiments of Hanfu; it consisted of a yi, a narrow-cuffed, knee-length tunic tied with a sash, and a narrow, ankle-length skirt, called shang, worn with a bixi, a length of fabric that reached the knees. Vivid primary colours and green were used, due to the degree of technology at the time.
The dynasty to follow the Shang, the Western Zhou Dynasty, established a strict hierarchical society that used clothing as a status meridian, and inevitably, the height of one’s rank influenced the ornateness of a costume. Such markers included the length of a skirt, the wideness of a sleeve and the degree of ornamentation. In addition to these class-oriented developments, the Hanfu became looser, with the introduction of wide sleeves and jade decorations hung from the sash which served to keep the yi closed. The yi was essentially wrapped over, in a style known as jiaoling youren, or wrapping the right side over before the left, because of the initially greater challenge to the right-handed wearer (the Chinese discouraged left-handedness like many other historical cultures, considering it unnatural).
In the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, the "Deep Robe" (shenyi) appeared a combination of tunic and skirt. The upper and lower halves were cut separately but sewn as a single unit. An additional change was the shaping of the left side of the costume into a corner, fastened on the chest. Perhaps because of Confucian influence, disapproving of a hierarchical society in favour of social mobility based on personal merit, the shenyi was swiftly adopted. There still existed an elite however, and they monopolised the more ornate fabrics and grandiose details.
[edit] Garments
The style of Han Chinese clothing can be summarized as containing garment elements that are arranged in distinctive and sometime specific ways. This is different from the traditional garment of other ethnic groups in China, most notably the Manchurian influenced Chinese clothes, the qipao, which is popularily considered to be the sole style of tradition Chinese garb. A comparison of the two styles can be seen as follows:
Component Han Manchu
Upper Garment Consist of "yi" (衣), which have loose lapels and are open Consist of "pao" (袍), which have secured lapels around the neck and no side openings
Lower Garment Consist of skirts called "chang/shang" (裳) Consist of pants or trousers called "ku" (褲)
Collars Diagonally crossing each other, with the left crossing over the right Parallel verticle collars with parallel diagonal lapels, which overlap
Sleeves Long and loose Narrow and tight
Buttons Sparingly used and concealed inside the garment Numerous and prominently displayed
Fittings Belts and sashes are used to close, secure, and fit the garments around the waist Flat ornate buttoning systems are typically used to secure the collar and fit the garment around the neck and upper torso
Shenyi (深衣) a type of Han Chinese clothing commonly worn from the pre-Shang periods to the Han Dynasty. This form is known as the quju (曲裾) and worn primarily by women
Another type of Han Chinese Shenyi (深衣) commonly worn from the pre-Shang periods to the Han Dynasty. This form is known as the zhiju (直裾) and worn primarily by menA complete Hanfu garment is assembled from several pieces of clothing into an attire:
Yi (衣): Any open cross-collar garment, and worn by both sexes
Pao (袍): Any closed full-body garment, worn only by men in Hanfu
Ru (襦): Open cross-collar shirt
Shan (衫): Open cross-collar shirt or jacket that is worn over the yi
Qun (裙) or shang (裳): Skirt for women and men, respectively
Ku (褲): Trousers or pants
People are also able to accessorize with tassels and jade pendants or various ornaments hung from the belt or sash, known as pei (佩).
[edit] Hats and headwear
On top of the garments, hats (for men) or hairpieces (for women) maybe worn. One can often tell the profession or social rank of someone by what they wear on their heads. The typical male hat or cap is called a jin (巾) for commoners and guan (冠) for the priviliaged. Officials and academics have a separate set of hats for them, typically the putou (幞頭), the wushamao (烏紗帽) and the si-fang pingding jin (四方平定巾; or simply, fangjin: 方巾). A typical hairpiece for women is a ji (笄) but there are more elaborate hairpieces.
[edit] Style
Han-Chinese clothing had changed and evolved with the fashion of the days since its commonly assumed beginnings in the Shang dynasty. Many of the earlier designs are more gender-neutral and simple in cuttings. Later garments incorporate multiple pieces with men commonly wearing pants are women commonly wearing skirts. Clothing for women usually accentuates the body's natural curves through wrapping of upper garment lapels or binding with sashes at the waist.
[edit] Informal wear
Types include tops (yi) and bottoms (divided further into pants and skirts for both genders, with different terminologies qun for females and shang for males), and one-piece robes that wrap around the body once or several times (shenyi).
Two traditional forms of ruqun (襦裙), a type of Han Chinese clothing worn by women. Cuffs and sleeves on the upper garment may be tighter or looser depending on style. A short skirt or a weighted braid (with weight provided by a jade or gold pendant) is sometimes worn to improve aesthetics or comfort of the basic ruqun.Shenyi (深衣): a long full body garment
Quju (曲裾): diagonal body wrapping lapels
Zhiju (直裾): straight lapels
Zhongyi (中衣) or zhongdan (中單): inner garments
Shanqun (衫裙): a short coat with a long skirt
Ruqun (襦裙): a top garment with a separate lower garment or skirt
Kuzhe (褲褶): a short coat with trousers
Zhaoshan (罩衫): long open fronted coat
A typical set of Hanfu can consist of two or three layers. The first layer of clothing is mostly the zhongyi (中衣) which is typical the inner garment much like the Western sense of a T-shirt and pants. The next layer is the main layer of clothing which is mostly closed at the front. There can be an optional third layer which is often an overcoat called a zhaoshan which is open at the front. More complicated sets of Hanfu can have many more layers.
For footwear, white socks and black cloth shoes (with white soles) are the norm, but in the past, shoes may have a front face panel attached to the tip of the shoes. Daoists, Buddhists and Confucians may have white stripe chevrons.
[edit] Formal wear
Men and women in xuanduan formal wear at a Confucian ceremony in China.A piece of Hanfu can be "made formal" by the addition of the appropriate long front cloth panel attached from the waist belt called a bixi (蔽膝), a zhaoshan and a guan.
Formal garment may include:
Xuanduan (玄端): a very formal dark robe; equivalent to the Western black tie or white tie
Yuanlingshan (圓領衫), lanshan (襴衫) or panlingpao (盤領袍): closed, round collared robe; mostly used for official or academical dress
Mianfu (冕服): official dress for emperors
The most formal Hanfu that one can wear is the xuanduan (sometimes called yuanduan 元端 [3]), which consists of a black top garment that runs to the knees with long sleeve (often with white piping), a bottom red chang, a red bixi (which can have a motif and/or be edged in black), an optional white belt with two white streamers hanging from the side or slightly to the front (like adding a white bow tie on a Western dinner suit to convert it to a full evening suit), and a long black guan. Additionally, wearers may carry a jade gui (圭) or a long wooden tablet (used when greeting royalty). This form of dress is mostly used in sacrificial ceremonies such as Ji Tian (祭天) and Ji Zu (祭祖), etc.
[edit] Ethnic identity
According to Kong Yingda's commentary to the Zuo Zhuan, Chinese clothing plays an important role in the Chinese ethnic identity. It says, "In China, there is the grandeur of rites and social conduct; that is why it is called Xia (夏). There is the beauty of dress and decoration; this is called Hua (華) [4]." The words Hua and Xia combine to form the word Huaxia (華夏), which is a name that is often used to represent the Chinese civilisation.
