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EveryParampara

Dress and adornment

Clothes, jewellery, henna, tattoo and hair.

Dress and adornment traditions cover the clothes, jewellery, hairstyles, tattoos and henna that people wear to mark who they are and what the day is. A sari, a kilt, a kente cloth, a hanbok or a poncho is a statement of belonging, and the way it is worn tells of age, marriage, rank or region. Some garments are worn every day, others only on festivals, and many are made by hand by craftspeople whose skills are handed down. EveryParampara describes them with respect and notes how they are changing.

Cloth and meaning

Colour, pattern and fibre carry meaning: red for luck in China and India, white for mourning in some places and for brides in others, kente patterns that name proverbs, tartans that name clans. The making of cloth, whether by weaving, dyeing, printing or embroidery, is itself a tradition, and master weavers are honoured. A garment given at a wedding or handed down in a family holds the memory of the people who wore it.

Skin, hair and ornament

Body decoration is as old as cloth. Henna on the hands of a bride, a bindi on the forehead, the tattoos of Samoa and the Maori, the plaited hair of West Africa, the lip plates and neck rings of some peoples, each is a language. Many are rites of passage, done at a coming of age or a wedding. They are best described by those who wear them, and EveryParampara aims to give their meaning, not to treat them as curiosities.

About this page

Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Background on Dress and adornment (kind of tradition). Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.

RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
MealBreakfastLunchDinnerSupperTea-time and snacking customsTea, coffee and drinking ceremoniesSweets given and sharedFeasts and festival mealsFasting and breaking the fast
🇮🇩 IndonesiaBatik kawung An old Indonesian batik pattern of four neat ovals, read as fruit or lotusCraft 🇮🇷 Tehran, Iran and 5 moreChadorchādar A full-length open cloak that is pulled over the head and held shut by handDress 🇭🇺 HungaryDolman A Hungarian-bred garment, worn as hussar uniform and later as a woman's outdoor wrapDress 🇬🇷 GreecePeronaiπερόνη (perónē) A long straight pin that fastened Greek clothing, and a weapon in Greek legendDress 🇷🇺 RussiaPodvorotnichokподворотничок A detachable white fabric strip sewn inside military uniform collars for hygieneDress 🇳🇱 Amsterdam, NetherlandsKoningsmantel The Dutch royal cloak of red velvet and ermine, brought out when a monarch is sworn inDress 🇫🇷 France and 1 moreBliaut A fitted medieval overgarment with trailing sleeves, worn in France and nearby landsDress 🇿🇦 South AfricaIsidwaba A knee-length leather skirt of cowhide or goatskin, worn by married Zulu womenDress 🇮🇳 IndiaMadisarமடிசார் (Tamil) A nine-yard sari drape kept by Tamil Brahmin women for weddings, puja and mourningDress 🇳🇵 NepalPatukaपटुका A traditional Nepalese cloth sash worn for core support, carrying items and festivitiesDress 🇩🇿 Constantine, AlgeriaM'layaملاية A black full-body veil worn by women in Constantine, Algeria, as a sign of modesty.Dress 🇨🇳 Taiyuan, ChinaGuan Li冠禮 The traditional Chinese coming-of-age capping ceremony for young menRite of passage 🇨🇳 China and 1 moreDahu褡护 (Dāhù) A cross-collar jacket worn in the Ming dynasty, blending Chinese and Mongol styles.Dress 🇮🇩 Bali, IndonesiaNational costume of IndonesiaPakaian Nasional Indonesia The formal attire worn by Indonesians to represent the nation's diverse cultural heritage.Dress 🇪🇸 Valencia, Spain and 1 moreZaragüellessarāwīl (Andalusi Arabic), saragüells (Valencian) Wide, pleated breeches of Andalusian origin, worn as traditional dress in parts of Spain and Morocco.Dress 🇨🇳 ChinaChinese academic dress Formal attire for scholars and officials in China, ranging from imperial robes to modern degree gowns.Dress 🇨🇭 Zurich, SwitzerlandSwiss traditional costumeSchweizer Trachten Distinct regional festive dress worn across the cantons of SwitzerlandDress 🇪🇬 Luxor, Egypt and 1 moreMelaya leff A traditional wrapped Egyptian mantle once worn for modesty and now famous on stageDress 🇳🇬 Nigeria and 2 moreGeleGèlè A voluminous sculpted headwrap worn by Yoruba women for gatherings and daily lifeDress 🇨🇳 China and 2 moreJi Li笄禮 The traditional Chinese coming-of-age hairpin ceremony for young womenRite of passage 🇷🇸 Belgrade, Serbia and 5 moreSerbian traditional clothingсрпска народна ношња (srpska narodna nošnja) The regional folk attire of Serbs, featuring wool, linen, and leather, worn for celebrations and cultural identity.Dress 🇹🇭 ThailandKhruiครุย A sheer ceremonial robe worn by Thai royalty and now as academic dress at universities.Dress 🇺🇦 Kyiv, Ukraine and 2 moreOchipokочіпок The embroidered cap a Ukrainian bride put on at her wedding and kept afterwardsDress 🇮🇳 Jammu, India and 1 moreChura A set of bridal bangles worn across South Asia at weddings and in early marriageDress 🇯🇵 Kyoto, Japan and 5 moreTeeth blackening A custom of dyeing teeth black to mark adulthood and beauty in parts of Asia and Oceania.Rite of passage 🇮🇳 Varanasi, India and 3 moreDupattaदुपट्टा A traditional South Asian scarf worn across the shoulders, chest, and headDress 🇬🇷 GreeceTablionταβλίον An embroidered panel on the ceremonial mantle of Byzantine courtiers.Dress 🇬🇷 Sparta, GreeceChitonχιτών A draped tunic of wool or linen worn across ancient Greece and RomeDress 🇯🇵 Yūki, JapanYūki-tsumugi結城紬 A hand-spun silk cloth from Yūki, Japan, woven slowly on a low loomCraft 🇰🇬 Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan and 1 moreAk-kalpakАк калпак A traditional Kyrgyz four-sided white wool felt hat worn by men across generationsDress 🇹🇷 Turkey and 3 moreYashmakyaşmak A traditional face and head veil worn in Turkey, Egypt and TurkmenistanDress 🇨🇳 ChinaSankeng三坑 Chinese slang for three dress styles young fans wear, and the money they takeDress 🇳🇬 Nigeria and 1 moreAso Olona A patterned Yoruba cloth, woven with symbols and worn as a mark of rank and identityDress 🇹🇿 Tanzania and 4 moreKanga A colourful printed cotton wrap bearing proverbs, worn across East AfricaDress 🇮🇱 Israel and 1 morePurim costume The Jewish custom of wearing masks and disguises during the festival of PurimDress 🇳🇵 Nepal and 1 moreDaura-Suruwalदौरा सुरुवाल The traditional Nepali male attire of a wrap shirt, tapered trousers, and a coat.Dress 🇨🇱 ChileChilote ponchoPoncho chilote A thick, striped wool poncho crafted in the cold and rainy Chiloé ArchipelagoDress 🇱🇰 Kandy, Sri LankaOsariyaඔසරිය (Sinhala) Sri Lanka's national dress: a sari with a waist frill and a full blouseDress 🇳🇴 Norway and 1 moreSølje A silver brooch from Norway, worn with the bunad or on its ownDress 🇵🇭 PhilippinesTapis A hand-woven wrap skirt from the Philippines, fastened at the waist with a sashDress 🇨🇳 Zhongshan, ChinaChinese clothing Robes, gowns, and suits shaped across dynasties, ranks, and daily life in ChinaDress 🇬🇷 GreeceKausiaκαυσία A flat hat of ancient Macedonia, worn by kings and later as sun cover in RomeDress 🇮🇳 Hyderabad, IndiaClothing of Hyderabad Traditional attire of Hyderabad, shaped by South Asian and Islamic stylesDress 🇦🇹 Tyrol, AustriaLoden capeLodenmantel A rain-shedding wool overcoat from Tyrol, part of the region's TrachtDress 🇨🇳 Nanjing, ChinaYunjin brocade雲錦 A traditional Chinese silk brocade woven with coloured silk, gold and silverCraft 🇨🇳 ChinaHuadian花鈿 A forehead ornament of Chinese women, painted or fixed on, still worn with hanfuDress 🇩🇿 Algeria and 4 moreFoutaفوطة A thin patterned cotton or linen cloth, worn as a wrap at the baths and as dressDress 🇰🇭 CambodiaAv pakអាវប៉ាក់ A Cambodian women's shirt in silk or cotton, embroidered or laced, for festivalsDress
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The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

The weekly EveryParampara

Every week: one tradition from somewhere new, what is being celebrated around the world this week, and one idea explained.