Hanfu

Hanfu
Hanfu (simplified Chinese: 汉服; traditional Chinese: 漢服; pinyin: Hànfú) is the traditional styles
of clothing worn by the Han Chinese. There are several representative styles of hanfu, such as the
ruqun (an upper- body garment with a long outer skirt), the aoqun (an upper- body garment with a
long underskirt), the beizi and the shenyi,[1] and the shanku (an upper- body garment with ku
trousers).[2]: 24
Hanfu
Ming dynasty portrait of General Tang Tong ( 唐通) wearing Hanfu

Simplified Chinese 汉服
Traditional Chinese 漢服
Literal meaning "Han Chinese's attire"
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin Hànfú
IPA [xân.fǔ] ( listen)
Wu
Shanghainese Hoe2-voq5
Romanization
Yue: Cantonese
Jyutping Hon3-fuk6
IPA [hɔ̏ːn.fòk̚]
Southern Min
Hokkien POJ Hàn-ho̍k

Traditionally, hanfu consists of a paofu robe, or a ru jacket worn as the upper garment with a qun
skirt commonly worn as the lower garment. In addition to clothing, hanfu also includes several
forms of accessories, such as headwear, footwear, belts, jewellery, yupei and handheld fans.[1]
Nowadays, the hanfu is gaining recognition as the traditional clothing of the Han ethnic group, and
has experienced a growing fashion revival among young Han Chinese people in China and in the
overseas Chinese diaspora.[1][3][4][5]
After the Han dynasty, hanfu developed into a variety of styles using fabrics that encompassed a
number of complex textile production techniques, particularly those used to produce silk.[6]: 3
Hanfu has influenced the traditional clothing of many neighbouring cultures, including the Korean
hanbok,[7][8] the Japanese kimono (wafuku),[9][10] the Okinawan ryusou,[11][12] and the Vietnamese
áo giao lĩnh (Việt Phục).[13][14] Up to a certain extent, hanfu has also influenced some elements in
Western fashion, especially those influenced by Chinoiserie fashion, due to the popularity of
Chinoiserie since the 17th century in Europe and in the United States.[15]: 52 [note 1] Silk remains a
core element of Hanfu and Chinese traditional clothing.
Early history
Hanfu comprises all traditional clothing classifications of the Han Chinese with a recorded history
of more than three millennia.[16][17] Each succeeding dynasty produced their own distinctive dress
codes, reflecting the socio- cultural environment of the times.[18][19] Clothing made of silk was
initially used for decorative and ceremonial purposes. The cultivation of silk, however, ushered the
development of weaving, and by the time of the Han dynasty, brocade, damask, satin, and gauze
had been developed.[20]
Component Romanization Hanzi Definition
Upper Yi 衣 Open cross- collar shirt.
Garment Ru 襦 Open cross- collar shirt, only worn by women.
Ku 裤 Trousers or pants.
Lower
Garment
Chang 裳 Skirt for men.
Qun 裙 Skirt for women.
Full- body Pao 袍 Closed full- body garment.
Cloth Chang ru 长襦 Long skirt, only worn by women.
Ao 袄 Multi- layer open cross- collar shirt or jacket.
Shan 衫 Single- layer open cross- collar shirt or jacket.
Banbi 半臂 A half- sleeved waistcoat.
Outer
Bixi 蔽膝 A cloth attached from the waist, covering front of legs.
Garment
Dou Peng 斗篷 Cape.
Pifeng 披风 Cloak.
Pibo 披帛 A long silk scarf, however not used to cover neck. Sometimes
covering shoulders, other times just hanging from elbow.
Zhao shan 罩衫 Cloaking coat. Usually open at the front.
Dudou 肚兜 Belly Cover. Covers front upper body. Worn by women and
children.
Inner
Garment
Moxiong 抹胸 Tube top. Worn by women.
Zhongyi 中衣 Inner garments, mostly white cotton or silk. Also called

zhongdan ( 中单).
There is differences between traditional garment of Han ethnic and other ethnic groups in China,
most notably the Manchu- influenced clothes, qipao, which is popularly considered to be the de
facto traditional Han Chinese garb. A general comparison of the two styles can be seen as the
following provides:[236]
Component Han Manchu
Crossing diagonally. Loose Parallel vertical overlapping collars, with

Collars
lapels, front opened. paralleled secured lapels, no front openings.
Sleeves Long and loose Narrow and tight
Sparingly used and concealed

Buttons Numerous and prominently displayed
inside the garment
Belts and sashes are used to Flat ornate buttoning systems are typically used
Fittings close, secure, and fit the to secure the collar and fit the garment around the
garments around the waist neck and upper torso
Footwear
There were many etiquettes which rule people's daily lives, and this included the use and
etiquettes of shoes and socks wearing.[237] The rules of Zhou stipulated that shoes had to be
removed before entering a house; shoes and socks had to be removed at banquets, and ministers
who had to meet with the emperor had to remove both their shoes and socks.[237] Being barefoot
was considered a taboo on ceremonial worship occasions.[237]
Headwear and hairstyles
On top of the garments, hats (for men) or hairpieces (for women) may be worn. One can often tell
the profession or social rank of someone by what they wear on their heads. The typical types of
male headwear are called jin ( 巾) for soft caps, mao (帽) for stiff hats and guan for formal
headdress. Officials and academics have a separate set of hats, typically the putou, the
四方平定巾; or simply, fangjin: 方巾) and the Zhuangzi jin (莊
wushamao, the si-fang pingding jin (
子巾). A typical hairpiece for women is the hairpin called ji (笄) that appeared since Neolithic time,
and there are more elaborate hairpieces.
In addition, managing hair was also a crucial part of ancient Han people's daily life. Commonly,
males and females would stop cutting their hair once they reached adulthood. This was marked by
the Chinese coming of age ceremony Guan Li, usually performed between ages 15 to 20. They
allowed their hair to grow long naturally until death, including facial hair. This was due to Confucius'
teaching "Shenti fa fu, shou zhu fumu, bu gan huishang, xiaozhi shi ye ( 身體髮膚，受諸父母，不
敢毀傷，孝之始也)" – which can be roughly translated as 'My body, hair and skin are bestowed by

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Ming dynasty portrait of General Tang Tong ( 唐通) wearing Hanfu

Hanyu Pinyin Hànfú

IPA [xân.fǔ] ( listen)

Hokkien POJ Hàn-ho̍k

Upper Yi 衣 Open cross- collar shirt.

Garment Ru 襦 Open cross- collar shirt, only worn by women.

Qun 裙 Skirt for women.

Full- body Pao 袍 Closed full- body garment.

Cloth Chang ru 长襦 Long skirt, only worn by women.

Ao 袄 Multi- layer open cross- collar shirt or jacket.

Shan 衫 Single- layer open cross- collar shirt or jacket.

Banbi 半臂 A half- sleeved waistcoat.

Zhao shan 罩衫 Cloaking coat. Usually open at the front.

Zhongyi 中衣 Inner garments, mostly white cotton or silk. Also called

Crossing diagonally. Loose Parallel vertical overlapping collars, with

Sleeves Long and loose Narrow and tight

Sparingly used and concealed

Headwear and hairstyles

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