Chepken or chekmen ( tt-Cyrl, чепкен-outerwear, krc, чепкен, kum, чепген, russian: чекмень, nog, шепкен, az, çəpkən, tr, cepken ) is a caftan worn among Turkic people and later by the Cossacks. It was also in wide use among Caucasians.
Description
The clothing is in a transitional form between a robe and a fitting caftan without collar and most often made of cloth. The word "chepken" was used among Turkic groups in North Caucasus to refer to chokha and was often synonymous with that attire.
Among
Azerbaijanis
Azerbaijanis (; az, Azərbaycanlılar, ), Azeris ( az, Azərilər, ), or Azerbaijani Turks ( az, Azərbaycan Türkləri, ) are a Turkic peoples, Turkic people living mainly in Azerbaijan (Iran), northwestern Iran and the Azerbaijan, Republi ...
"chepken" is a type of lined upper shoulder clothing with long false sleeves. Chepkens were mainly sewn from cloth, velour or velvet as well as various silk brocade fabrics. It was worn mainly by women, but there is also a male version of this clothing. Depending on the age of the women, the colors of the chepkens varied. Young girls and women usually wore yellow, red or green, and older women wore white or black shirts. Chepkens were often sewn with cut linings that fit snugly to the body. In the lower side part of the clothes there was a detail called "chapyg" az, çapıq - "scar". They wore a chepken over a shirt, so it fitted well to the body. On the sides, the chepken had sleeves ending in armlets. Buttons were sometimes sewn to the sleeves.
Etymology
The word "chepken" is of
Turkic
Turkic may refer to:
* anything related to the country of Turkey
* Turkic languages, a language family of at least thirty-five documented languages
** Turkic alphabets (disambiguation)
** Turkish language, the most widely spoken Turkic language
* ...
origin and has analogues in related Turkic languages, such as ''"chikman"'' and ''"chikpen"'' that translate to "chikmyan" in
Tatar
The Tatars ()Tatar in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different and Bashkir. In
Turkmen
Turkmen, Türkmen, Turkoman, or Turkman may refer to:
Peoples Historical ethnonym
* Turkoman (ethnonym), ethnonym used for the Oghuz Turks during the Middle Ages
Ethnic groups
* Turkmen in Anatolia and the Levant (Seljuk and Ottoman-Turkish desc ...
"chepken" translates to 'cloth' and indicates the material from which this type of clothing was traditionally made.
Kuban Cossacks
Kuban Cossacks (russian: кубанские казаки, ''kubanskiye kаzaki''; uk, кубанські козаки, ''kubanski kozaky''), or Kubanians (russian: кубанцы, ; uk, кубанці, ), are Cossacks who live in the Kuban r ...
called this kind of clothing ''"chekmen"'' and
Circassians
The Circassians (also referred to as Cherkess or Adyghe; Adyghe and Kabardian: Адыгэхэр, romanized: ''Adıgəxər'') are an indigenous Northwest Caucasian ethnic group and nation native to the historical country-region of Circassia ...
called it ''"shepken"''.
Gallery
Image:Yomud Turkmen.jpg, Turkmen in chepken.
Image:Stamps of Azerbaijan, 2004-682.JPG, Azerbaijani stamp depicting a couple wearing chepkens.
Image:Kyrgyz Manaschi, Karakol.jpg, Kyrgyz man in traditional attire which includes chepken.