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.
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.
🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the CongoKuba textiles
Elaborate raffia cloths from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, known for their complex geometric embroidery and velvCraft
🇳🇪 Agadez, NigerAgadez Crosstanaghilt
A silver pendant cast by Tuareg blacksmiths in Niger, worn as jewelry and a symbol of protection.Dress
🇺🇬 Uganda and 4 moreBarkcloth
Cloth beaten from tree bark across Africa, Asia and the PacificCraft
🇬🇭 Ntɔnso, Ghana and 1 moreAdinkra symbols
Symbols of the Akan people, stamped on cloth, each one carrying a proverbCraft
🇱🇸 LesothoMokorotlo
A conical straw hat that serves as the national symbol of Lesotho and a key element of Basotho traditional dress.Dress
🇲🇱 San, Mali and 1 moreBògòlanfinibɔgɔlanfini
A handmade Malian cotton textile dyed with iron-rich mud, worn for protection and identity.Dress
🇺🇬 UgandaGomesi
A floor-length, brightly coloured dress tied with a sash, worn by women in UgandaDress
🇳🇬 Kano, NigeriaKofar Mata Dye Pits
Hand-dyed indigo cloth from centuries-old earthen pits in the heart of KanoCraft
🇰🇪 Kenya and 5 moreKitenge
A printed cloth tied at the waist or chest, worn as a wrap, head cover or baby slingDress
🇬🇭 Bonwire, Ghana and 1 moreKente clothNwentoma
Hand-woven Ghanaian cloth of silk and cotton strips, worn for ceremonies and graduationsDress
🇳🇬 Lagos, Nigeria and 2 moreAso ebiAsọ-Ẹbí
Matching cloth worn by family and friends at Yoruba weddings, funerals and partiesDress
🇲🇬 MadagascarLamba
A rectangular cloth wrapped around the body, worn across Madagascar and at burialsDress
🇸🇴 Somalia and 1 moreDirac
A long Somali dress for weddings and celebrations, worn with an underskirt and shawlDress
🇳🇬 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
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 1 moreOkpu Aguokpu agụ
A knitted wool cap from southeastern Nigeria, historically worn by warriors to display status and now used in ceremoniesDress
🇿🇦 South AfricaIsidwaba
A knee-length leather skirt of cowhide or goatskin, worn by married Zulu womenDress
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 2 moreGeleGèlè
A voluminous sculpted headwrap worn by Yoruba women for gatherings and daily lifeDress
🇿🇦 South Africa and 2 moreMadiba shirt
A loose batik-print shirt that Mandela wore to formal occasionsDress
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Adinkra symbols: Bosomba Amosah other versions=, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kofar Mata Dye Pits: Solasly, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Mokorotlo: Vanellus Foto, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Barkcloth: Hiart, CC0, source
- Kitenge: Fanny Schertzer, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Bògòlanfini: BluesyPete, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kuba textiles: Hiart, CC0, source
- Agadez Cross: Amadouibrahim2, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kente cloth: ZSM, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Gomesi: sarahemcc, CC BY 2.0, source
- Aso ebi: SUPREME LACE, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Dirac: Farah Omar, CC BY 2.0, source
- Aso Olona: Oramfe, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kanga: Petr Berka ( Petrberka ), Public domain, source
- Lamba: Lemurbaby at English Wikipedia, CC BY 3.0, source
- Isidwaba: USBSMG1, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Gele: Royalesignature, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Okpu Agu: Justice kelechi achinefu, CC0, source