Chinese clothing, including traditional Hanfu, ethnic minority garments, and modern adaptations of indigenous styles, is a vital aspect of Chinese culture and civilization. For thousands of years, Chinese clothing has evolved with dynastic traditions, foreign influences, and cultural exchanges, adapting to the needs of each era. Beyond its practical functions-such as protection from weather and modesty-clothing also served as a cultural marker, distinguishing social roles, rank, and relationships. Ancient Chinese attire reflected the social and political structures of its time, while also showcasing textile, dyeing, and embroidery techniques. Each dynasty maintained specific styles, colors, and forms that reflected social class distinctions and regional diversity. It stands as a testament to the creativity and ingenuity of the Chinese people, as well as the rich intercultural exchanges that shaped its development across centuries. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. This section does not cite any sources. In primitive societies, clothing was used to symbolize authority and specific identities. For example, as stated in the Book of Changes, Emperor Yao and Shun hung his clothes and ruled the world. Ancient Chinese literature traditionally credits the invention of clothing to legendary emperors such as Huangdi, Yao, Shun, or Youchao. The style of their clothing must be different from that of ordinary people. In addition, during military activities or ceremonial rites, the costumes of the host and participants were also different from usual. These laid the foundation for the occurrence and development of the clothing system. In ancient times, shoes were often made of animal skin, so the name of the shoe was often referred to as leather. From the perspective of unearthed cultural relics, the origin of clothing history can be traced back to the late Paleolithic period. The earliest shoe styles were very rudimentary. It has been speculated that ancient people cut animal skins into rough foot shapes and connected them with thin leather strips to form the most primitive shoes. It was confirmed that natural materials such as animal skins could be used to sew simple clothes at that time. A bone needle and 141 drilled stone, bone, shell, and tooth decorations were found dated 19,000 years old. Among them, 5 pieces were unearthed in a semi-circular arrangement, possibly as strings of decorations. Seven small stone beads and 125 perforated animal teeth and other decorations were seen in the mountaintop cave, with long-term wear and tear marks on them. Another 25 pieces were also dyed with hematite powder, and the bones buried in the lower chamber of the mountaintop cave were also scattered with hematite powder particles, which may have been used for coloring clothes or as a finishing ceremony, reflecting a certain aesthetic sentiment of the mountaintop cave people. Protecting life, concealing oneself from the cold, and decorating oneself have all become the main functions of clothing in primitive society. By the Neolithic period, spinning wheels became popular. The Yuyao Hemudu site also unearthed a “waist loom”, with a cylindrical back loop that could form a natural weaving mouth, as well as a sheng (scroll). With the invention of textile technology, clothing materials became artificially woven fabrics, and silk production also began in the Neolithic Age. The form of clothing has changed and its functions have also been improved. After the emergence of textiles, headscarves have developed into a standardized clothing style, widely used in a considerable period of time, in vast regions, and among many ethnic groups. Cloak style clothing such as headscarves and drapes soon became typical attire, with increasingly complex accessories that have had a significant impact on the formation of clothing systems. In addition to general clothing, the Neolithic period also discovered crowns, boots, headgear, and accessories from some pottery relics. They have basically replaced the clothing components of the Paleolithic era and become the coarse form of human clothing. The upper class favored naturally dyed silk and leather, while the lower class, due to limited access to silk, primarily used hemp, ramie, and kudzu fibers. In the Shang dynasty, the primary materials for clothing included leather, silk, ramie, and kudzu. As textile technology advanced, silk and ramie fabrics became increasingly significant. Artisans developed the skill to weave exceptionally fine silk, create geometric jacquard patterns, and produce ribbed yarn using warp looms. These fabrics were often richly dyed in deep, vibrant colors. During the Western Zhou dynasty, the hierarchical system was gradually established, and the Zhou dynasty established official positions such as “Si Fu” and “Nei Si Fu”, which were in charge of royal attire. It was incorporated into the rule of etiquette during the Spring and Autumn period and the Warring States period. To express nobility and dignity, royal officials in different ceremonial occasions should have their crowns arranged in an orderly manner, and their clothing should also adopt different forms, colors, and patterns. According to literature records and analysis of unearthed cultural relics, the Chinese coronal and attire system was initially established during the Xia and Shang dynasties and had been fully perfected by the Zhou dynasty. From the human shaped cultural relics unearthed during the Zhou dynasty, it can be seen that although the decoration of clothing is complex and simple, the upper and lower garments are already distinct, laying the foundation for the basic form of Chinese clothing. According to the “Miscellaneous Records of the Western Capital”, Zhao Feiyan was granted the title of Empress at that time, and her sister sent people to weave upper and lower jackets, forming a magnificent set of clothing. Zhao Feiyan once wore the “Yunying Purple Skirt”, also known as the “Liuxian Skirt”, which was a tribute from South Vietnam. In the Han dynasty, women’s clothing also showed a trend of diversification, with the most famous being the “Liuxian skirt”. During the Three Kingdoms period, women’s clothing also had unique characteristics, reflecting the aesthetic concepts and cultural styles of that time. This kind of skirt is similar to the pleated skirt of today and is very gorgeous. This type of dress is mostly long, with a wide hem, creating a dignified and generous atmosphere. The cuffs and stitching of the dress often carry exquisite embroidery, which may be floral, bird and animal, or other auspicious patterns, reflecting women’s pursuit of beauty and love for life. In addition, women also enjoy wearing various hair and headgear to showcase their beauty and elegance. A skirt or robe is one of the common attire for women. Common hair accessories include hair combs, hairpins, hairpins, etc. These hair accessories are usually made of precious materials such as gold, silver, jade, etc., which may be inlaid with precious gemstones or jewelry, adding charm and charm to women. Sui and Tang women are easy to dress up. At that time, long towels were also popular. The “half-arm” that spread from the court lasted for a long time, and later men also wore it. One end was fixed on the chest strap of the half arm, and then put on the shoulder, and swired between the arms, called silk. There are various kinds of women’s hair accessories in the Tang dynasty, each with its own name. They were made of tusa with silver flowers painted with silver or gold and silver powder. During the Song dynasty, there were roughly three types of Hanfu: official attire, casual attire, and traditional attire. Women’s shoes are generally floral shoes, mostly made of brocade fabrics, coloured silk and leather. In the Song dynasty, the fabric of official uniforms was mainly made of silk. The color of official attire follows the Tang system, with purple attire for third grade and above, red attire for fifth grade and above, green attire for seventh grade and above, and green attire for ninth grade and above. Due to the old system of the Five Dynasties, the government would give brocade robes to high-ranking ministers every year, divided into seven different colors such as Song dynasty Lingjiu ball patterned brocade robes. The official attire of the Song dynasty followed the fish wearing system of the Tang dynasty. The official attire style is roughly similar to the long sleeved robe of the late Tang dynasty, but the first attire (such as the crown hat) is already a flat winged black gauze hat, called the straight footed fu head, which is a custom attire for rulers and officials. Officials eligible to wear purple and crimson uniforms were required to wear a “fish bag” around their waist, which contained fish made of gold, silver, and copper to distinguish their official rank. The square and curved collar is also a characteristic of the court attire, which is the decoration of the lower part of the circle placed between the neckline of the court attire. The representative clothing of the Song dynasty’s elderly is a wide sleeved robe with a cross necked (cross necked) collar and a Dongpo scarf. The daily casual wear of officials in the Song dynasty, apart from their official uniforms and uniforms, mainly consisted of small sleeved round necked shirts and soft winged buns with drooping headbands, still in Tang style, but with more convenient casual shoes for daily living. The robe is made of dark material with edges to preserve ancient style. The Dongpo scarf is a square tube shaped high scarf, which is said to have been created by the great literary scholar Su Dongpo. It is actually a revival of ancient cloth scarves, which were often worn by the elderly gentry of the Ming. There were also various popular folk costumes in the Song dynasty. Men are popular with futou and drapes, while women are popular with flower crowns and caps. Women’s hairstyles and flower crowns were the focus of their pursuit of beauty at that time, best reflecting the changes in attire during the Song dynasty. Usually, flower and bird shaped hairpins and combs were inserted into hair buns, making everything unusual. The Yuan dynasty was an era of ethnic integration in Chinese history, and the costumes and clothing fully reflected this feature. During the Tang and Five Dynasties, female corollas became increasingly delicate, while during the Song dynasty, corollas underwent further development and changes. Genghis Khan, the founder of the Yuan dynasty, built the Khanate since 1206, and after the destruction of Western Xia and Jin, its ethnic composition was mainly dominated by Mongols. Yuan dynasty due to the more acute ethnic conflicts, long in a state of war, textile industry, handicrafts have been greatly damaged. This is inherited from the Han and Mongolian national characteristics of the clothing system. Palace service system for a long time to extend the Song, until 1321 Yuan Yingzong period only with reference to the ancient system, the development of the Son of Heaven and the hundred officials of the upper garment with the lower garment, on the tight under the short, and in the waist plus crease accumulation, the back of the shoulder to hang a large bead of the “quality of the zhisun” system, the Han people say “one color clothes” or “quality of the zhisun”. The Ming dynasty emperor wore a black veil folded over a scarf (with black veil wings and a crown), and the hat wings stood up from the back. In the early Ming dynasty, it was requested to restore the Tang style of clothing and headgear. After the rule of the Mongols in the Yuan dynasty, the Han tradition was restored in the Ming dynasty, and Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang re established the Hanfu clothing system. Since the Tang and Song dynasties, dragon robes and yellow have been exclusively used by the royal family. The style of the legal attire was similar to that of the Tang dynasty, except that the imperial crown for advancing talents was changed to a Liang crown, and the crown styles such as the Zhongjing crown were added. In the Ming dynasty, due to the emperor’s surname Zhu, Zhu was chosen as the official color. Since the Southern and Northern Dynasties, purple has been considered expensive for official uniforms. In the Ming dynasty, public uniforms were also made of Futou and round necked robes, but at this time, Futou was painted with black paint on the outside, with short and wide feet, and was called Wusha hat. Additionally, due to the mention in the Analects of Confucius that “evil purple is the way to seize Zhu,” purple was abolished from official attire. Non official civilians were not allowed to wear it. The most distinctive feature of public uniforms is to use “patches” to indicate the grade, in addition to the color according to the grade regulations. A patch is a piece of silk material approximately 40-50 centimeters square, woven and embroidered with different patterns, and then sewn onto official clothing, with one on the chest and one on the back. Civil officials use birds as their complement, while military officials use beasts, each divided into nine levels. To commend the achievements of officials, clothing such as python robes, flying fish uniforms, and bullfighting uniforms are specially given. When reaching the highest rank, jade belts are used. The python is a four clawed dragon, the flying fish is a python with fins on its tail, and the bullfighter adds curved horns to the python’s head. So the “python robe and jade belt” became the most prominent attire of high-ranking officials at this time. The wives and mothers of officials who were granted official titles also wore red long sleeved dresses and various types of Xia Pi, which were differentiated by patterns and decorations. In addition, high-heeled shoes are already worn by upper class women, and there are two types of shoes: inner high sole and outer high sole. The clothing of both upper and lower levels of society has obvious levels. In the field of cultural preservation, recent research has highlighted the effectiveness of modern digital technologies, such as CLO3D, in recreating traditional Chinese clothing from the Ming dynasty. Ordinary round necked robes are distinguished by the length of the clothes and the size of the sleeves, with the older ones being respected. Yang et al., 2021). These developments are significant as they offer new methods for accurately preserving and understanding historical garments, which were previously reliant on traditional replication techniques. This intersection of technology and historical study presents an exciting advancement in the conservation of cultural heritage, making it an important addition to related Wikipedia pages. The Qing dynasty time to implement shaved hair and easy to dress, Shunzhi nine years (1652), the “dress color shoulder ordinance” promulgated, since the abolition of the Ming dynasty’s crowns, gowns, and all the costumes of the Han, but the Manchu dress at the same time absorbed the texture pattern of the Ming dynasty dress. Ming dynasty men were all stored hair in a bun, wearing loose clothing, wearing stockings, shallow shoes; Qing dynasty, shaved hair and braids, braids hanging behind the head, wearing thin horseshoe-sleeved arrows, tight socks, deep boots. But the official and the people’s costumes are always clear-cut. The Qing dynasty is a Manchu ruler-based regime, Manchu Banner dress with the change of dynasty rushed into the customs. The customs and habits of the Banners influenced the vast Central Plains. The Republic of China period was an important stage in the history of Chinese fashion. Starting from the public dress gradually pushed to the regular dress. China began to be exposed to Western culture and fashion. During this period, some Chinese began to wear Western-style clothing, while traditional Hanfu gradually faded out of the mainstream. Chinese society experienced many changes and revolutions, and Western clothing and styles gradually affected China’s fashion industry. China’s national treasure and women’s national costume. It was formed in the 1920s and has since become the most common women’s garment. Qin and Han Dynasties. There are still many controversies about its definition and the time of its creation. In 1929, the government of the Republic of China promulgated the Regulations on the System of Clothing, which designated the traditional Chinese jacket and skirt, as well as the cheongsam, as women’s dresses. Zhongshan suit is a four-pocket garment with a stand-up lapel and a pocket flap designed on the basis of widely absorbing European and American costumes and synthesizing the characteristics of Japanese student clothes and Chinese clothes. In April 1929, the Chinese Zhongshan suit was announced as the legal uniform by order of the Nationalist Government. 1950s, it became the formal clothing for everyone from national leaders to ordinary citizens. Early in the People’s Republic, Mao Zedong inspired Chinese fashion with his own variant of the Zhongshan suit, which would be known to the west as Mao suit. After the 1950s, Zhongshan suit became the official clothing of the national leaders to the common people. At the same time, clothing viewed as backward and unmodern by both the Chinese as well as Westerners, was forbidden. In 1949, the First Plenary Session of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) opened with the election of Mao Zedong as Chairman of the Central People’s Government, announcing the birth of the great new China at the founding ceremony of the People’s Republic of China. In this historic moment, Mao Zedong wearing Zhongshan suit on the Tiananmen Square tower solemn declaration of the image of forever in the history books, and this set of clothes with the world famous, Westerners called it “Mao Suit” (Mao uniform). Meanwhile, Sun Yat-sen’s widow, Soong Ching-ling, popularized the cheongsam as the standard female dress. The Mao Suit became the most fashionable dress of that era. Compared with the Zhongshan Suit of the Republic of China, the Mao Suit of the 1950s had a larger neckline and the lapel changed from small to large. While most of the women choose Su Lenin suit, this style of clothing learned from the Soviet Union for the double-breasted suit with open collar, if the lower part of the large lapel phase cover, buckle under the collar, it becomes two small pointed collar. The first People’s Congress in 1954, men are to wear the Zhongshan suit as fashionable and progressive. The waist tied a cloth belt, two rows of three buttons, double lapel in the lower part of both with a dark slanting pockets, using gray or blue khaki, this system of clothing can shape the typical “female cadres” image, in the revolutionary era looks simple and solemn. Items that attracted dangerous attention if caught in the public included jeans, high heels, Western-style coats, ties, jewelry, cheongsams, and long hair. Around the Destruction of the “Four Olds” period in 1964, almost anything seen as part of traditional Chinese culture would lead to problems with the Communist Red Guards. These items were regarded as symbols of bourgeois lifestyle, which represented wealth. Citizens had to avoid them or suffer serious consequences such as torture or beatings by the guards. On the one hand, fashion styles in China tend to be diversified, and since 2023, styles such as “Dopamine,” “New Chinese style” have been hot, reflecting the diversity of contemporary fashion and the This reflects the diversity of contemporary fashion and the young generation’s pursuit of personalized expression. Consumers’ understanding of fashion has gradually gone beyond simple trend-following, paying more attention to the expression of personality and emotion through clothing, and the style of clothing has become more versatile. A number of these items were thrown into the streets to embarrass the citizens. Data show that the Hanfu, show clothes turnover year-on-year growth rate of 376% and 212%, respectively, the number of consumers of men’s Tang suit increased by more than 90% year-on-year.On the other hand, fashion styles tend to diversify. It is worth paying attention to the fact that traditional clothing containing classical aesthetics, such as Hanfu and Tang suit, have continued to be popular among consumers in recent years. These unique styles are not only changes in the matching of clothing and apparel, but also the display of life attitude and cultural symbols. “Soft and comfortable”, “not easily deformed”, “multi-color optional”, “windproof and warm” and so on have become popular apparel keywords which highlights consumers’ high demand for clothing quality. On the other hand, consumers’ attention to materials and fabrics has driven the quality upgrade of the fashion industry. This concern for quality is not only reflected in the appearance, but also shows the importance of the wearing experience and environmental protection characteristics of clothing. Hong Kong clothing brand Shanghai Tang’s design concept is inspired by historical Chinese clothing. It set out to rejuvenate Chinese fashion of the 1920s and 30s, in bright colors and with a modern twist. For the 2012 Hong Kong Sevens tournament, sportswear brand Kukri Sports teamed up with Hong Kong lifestyle retail store G.O.D. Chinese jackets and cheongsam-inspired ladies polo shirts. In recent years, renewed interest in traditional Chinese culture has led to a movement in China advocating for the revival of hanfu. As an increasing number of Chinese people like and attach importance to hanfu, hanfu no longer only appears in Chinese drama as in the past. In the year 2000, dudou-inspired blouses appeared in the summer collections of Versace and Miu Miu, leading to its adoption within China as a revealing form of outerwear. Relatedly, the guochao (Chinese: 国潮; pinyin: Guó cháo) movement has resulted in younger Chinese shoppers preferring homegrown designers which incorporate aspects of Chinese history and culture, such as Shushu/Tong. Amongst the famous and popular who have adopted the suit is Kim Jong Un of North Korea. Vietnamese leader Hồ Chí Minh is also known for wearing the Zhongshan suit. As much as the Zhongshan suit represented leftist utopianism, it was also used to fixate the dystopian fears of western audiences. During this time, the suit also came into the spotlight in Cold War spy films and subsequent satires. An unexpected influence on the suit came from the north – the Soviet Union. Examples include Ernst Stavro Blofeld in the James Bond franchise and Dr. Evil in the Austin Powers series. China Fashion Week was founded in 1997 and organized by China Fashion Designers Association, is a national fashion week and a promoter of China’s fashion industry. These films often depicted supervillains in Zhongshan-inspired suits. China Fashion Awards China Fashion Design “Golden Peak Award”, the best fashion designers, China’s top ten fashion designers, emerging designers, the Golden Shears Award, the best professional fashion models, China’s top ten professional fashion models, the best fashion photographers, the best fashion commentators and other awards have attracted much attention, and the annual award ceremony of China Fashion Awards has become an influential fashion event. An influential fashion event. The decoration of two cranes on his chest are a mandarin square “rank badge” that indicate he was a civil official of the first rank. Yang, Shaorong (2004). Chinese Clothing: Costumes, Adornments and Culture (Arts of China). A 15th-century portrait of the Ming official Jiang Shunfu. Long River Press (published 1 April 2004). p. 1999). 中国都装史 (in Chinese). 1542). 鉴略三皇记 (in Chinese). History teaching resource library. Tianjin People’s Fine Arts Publishing House. Weixin Official Accounts Platform. Simplified Chinese). 郑州市: 中州古籍出版社. 顶梁柱”—-中国科学院武汉植物园”. Jinlang Academic Publishing House. A short history of ancient Chinese dress (in Chinese). 四川职业技术学院学报. 罗, 莹 (2003). 成镜深.中国古代服饰小史 Cheng Jingshen. 18 October 2023). “三国时期服饰特点 Costume characteristics of The Three Kingdoms period”. Na, Chunying (2023). 隋唐平民服饰研究 A study on civilian dress in Sui and Tang Dynasties (in Chinese). 人民出版社. FU, BOXING (2016). 大宋衣冠：图说宋人服饰 Dress of the Song Dynasty: A picture of Song dress (in Chinese). Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House. 元代人的衣服主要是”质孙服”是较短的长袍，比较紧、比较窄，在腰部有很多衣褶，这种衣服很方便上马下马。 元代服装以长袍为主。 官员和士庶的日常服装多为窄袖长袍。 另外，在元代大宴活动中，天子百官要穿统一颜色的服装，称为”质孙服”，据古籍记载，天子的质孙服款式繁多，冬服有 11 种，夏服有 15 种。 Yuan Dynasty people’s clothes are mainly “quality Sun clothing” is a shorter robe, tighter, narrower, there are a lot of folds in the waist, this kind of clothing is very convenient to get on and off the horse. The Yuan Dynasty clothes were mainly long robes. 2024). 中国妆束：宋时天气宋时衣 Chinese makeup bundle: Song Dynasty weather Song dynasty clothes (in Chinese). The daily clothes of the officials and the common people were mostly narrow-sleeved robes. Yang, Shuran; Yue, Li; Wang, Xiaogang (August 2021). “Study on the structure and virtual model of “xiezhi” gown in Ming dynasty”. China: China Textile press and apparel press. 1986 (1): 012116. Bibcode:2021JPhCS1986a2116Y. 2022). 华夏衣橱 (in Chinese). Journal of Physics: Conference Series. 1995). The Red Mirror: Children of China’s Cultural Revolution. Broun, Samantha (6 April 2006). “Designing a global brand”. 2003). The Chinese Cultural Revolution Reconsidered: beyond purge and Holocaust. Chevalier, Michel (2012). Luxury Brand Management. Singapore: John Wiley & Sons. 1 Archived 10 January 2014 at the Wayback Machine. Bullock, Olivia (13 November 2014). “Hanfu Movement Brings Back Traditional Fashion”. The World of Chinese. Zhou, Dongxu (18 June 2015). “China Prepares ‘Traditional Culture’ Textbooks for Its Officials”. Wee, Teo Cheng (20 November 2015). “Stepping back in time at China’s schools for traditional culture and Confucianism”. Nan, Lisa (7 July 2021). “Can Shushu/Tong Go Global?”. Retrieved 30 July 2016 – via Caixin. MrOldMajor (13 May 2022). “The Zhongshan suit”. Moore, Booth (12 June 2018). “The Summit May Have Been Historic, But Kim Jong Un’s Mao Suit Was Business as Usual”. MrOldMajor (13 May 2022). “The Zhongshan suit”. Watt, James C.Y.; Wardwell, Anne E. (1997). When silk was gold: Central Asian and Chinese textiles. Jian, Li; Li, He & Sung, Hou-Mei & Shengnan, Ma (2014). Forbidden City: Imperial Treasures from the Palace Museum, Beijing. Richmond, Virginia: Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Wikimedia Commons has media related to Clothing of China. This page was last edited on 29 November 2024, at 06:13 (UTC). By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License; additional terms may apply. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.
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