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(), also known as () when used as a during
Chinese opera Traditional Chinese opera (), or ''Xiqu'', is a form of musical theatre in China with roots going back to the early periods in China. It is an amalgamation of various art forms that existed in ancient China, and evolved gradually over more tha ...
performances, and () when it is blue in colour, is a traditional form of in and is also one of the most distinctive form of traditional clothing for the Han Chinese. The was one of the most common traditional form of outer
robe A robe is a loose-fitting outer garment. Unlike garments described as capes or cloaks, robes usually have sleeves. The English word ''robe'' derives from Middle English ''robe'' ("garment"), borrowed from Old French ''robe'' ("booty, spoil ...
worn by men. literally means "Taoist robe"; however, despite its name, the were and is worn by men, and did not imply that its wearer had some affiliation to
taoism Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ' ...
. The can be dated back to at least the
Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...
but had actually been worn since the
Song dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...
. Initially the daopao was a form of casual clothing which was worn by the middle or lower class in the Ming dynasty. In the middle and late Ming, it was one of the most common form of robes worn by men as casual clothing. The was also a popular formal wear by the
Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...
scholars in their daily lives. It was also the daily clothing for the literati scholars in the Ming dynasty. In the late Ming, it was also a popular form of clothing among the external officials and eunuchs sometimes wore it. The was also introduced in Korea during the
Joseon Joseon ( ; ; also romanized as ''Chosun''), officially Great Joseon (), was a dynastic kingdom of Korea that existed for 505 years. It was founded by Taejo of Joseon in July 1392 and replaced by the Korean Empire in October 1897. The kingdom w ...
period, where it became known as and was eventually localized in its current form. The can also refer to a type of , which were worn by practitioners of taoism, when the term is used in its literal form. This form of worn taoist practitioners and taoist monks continued to be worn in the
Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...
as they were exempted from the policy. The of the Taoist also continue to be worn by modern taoist priests, although it may come in different names.


in


History and origins

Some sources posit that a form of without a cord had evolved from the , which refers to the military-style garments which had supposedly been influenced by the northern nomad warriors from the north in the past. According to Antonia Finnane who noted the 《觚不觚錄》of Wang Shizhen (1526-1590), the three robes which evolved from the -style was the , the '' chengziyi'' (程子衣) worn with a chord around the waist, and the worn without chord. The of this period was a type of new garment which only appeared in the Ming dynasty and was likely localized from and developed under the influence of the
jisün Jisün (Mongolian term), also known as zhisunfu () or Zhisun (, also written as or ), zhixun (), jixun (), zhama ( ) or Jisun (), was a very important male Mongol garment during the Yuan dynasty. They were also known as Mongol " robes of honour ...
the Yuan dynasty. The was developed in the late Ming and bore some similarities with the . In the same ancient text, Wang Shizhen also noted that the was also called . However, the was another kind of which had predated the
Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty ( ; zh, c=元朝, p=Yuáncháo), officially the Great Yuan (; Mongolian language, Mongolian: , , literally 'Great Yuan State'), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after Div ...
and can be traced back to the
Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...
. Other Chinese sources also indicate that the had been worn since the
Song dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...
(960–1279). After the year 960 AD, the belted was worn by the Taoist priests in order to distinguish themselves from others. The broad and elegant robes which were initially worn by
Taoist priests A ''daoshi'' () or Taoshih, translated as Taoist priest, Taoist monk, or Taoist professional is a priest in Taoism. The courtesy title of a senior is ''daozhang'' (, meaning "Tao master"), and a highly accomplished and revered is often cal ...
were known as the (; sometimes translated as "Taoist priest robe").


Song dynasty

In the Northern Song dynasty,
Taoism Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ' ...
was highly revered. During this period, the also became very popular and was greatly appreciated by some hermits and scholars during the Song dynasty and was mentioned in some poems written by Wang Yucheng and
Fan Zhongyan Fan Zhongyan (5 September 989 – 19 June 1052), courtesy name Xiwen (), was an accomplished statesman, writer, scholar, and reformer of the northern Song dynasty. After serving multiple regional posts and at the imperial court for over two de ...
. Some scholars, such Shi Manqing (994 –1041), who was a celebrated scholar in the Northern Song dynasty, would often wore a with a scarf worn in a free style. The Shi Manqin-style was liked by some officials who were in their retirement; and therefore, they dressed in this form of . In the Southern Song dynasty, it was
Neo-Confucianism Neo-Confucianism (, often shortened to ''lǐxué'' 理學, literally "School of Principle") is a moral, ethical, and metaphysical Chinese philosophy influenced by Confucianism, which originated with Han Yu (768–824) and Li Ao (772–841) i ...
which arose and flourished; a new form of became fashionable; this form of was the garment worn by the scholars which followed the () Confucianism. In the book ''Rules of Moral Teaching study'' by
Zhu Xi Zhu Xi ( zh, c=朱熹; ; October 18, 1130April 23, 1200), formerly romanized Chu Hsi, was a Chinese philosopher, historian, politician, poet, and calligrapher of the Southern Song dynasty. As a leading figure in the development of Neo-Confuci ...
, Zhu Xi stressed on the importance of dress code as being the first step for a person to be a "decent person". Since Zhu Xi put so much emphasis on the dress code, the literati eventually gradually developed their own dressing style as an accepted custom, which included the which was worn as a form of leisure clothing. Contemporary observers living in the Southern Song dynasty, such as Shi Shengzu (1192-1274), also noted that the return of the
classic A classic is an outstanding example of a particular style; something of Masterpiece, lasting worth or with a timeless quality; of the first or Literary merit, highest quality, class, or rank – something that Exemplification, exemplifies its ...
-style apparel in the Song dynasty had made the popular. In Volume 2 of the chapter 《》in the 《》, Shi Shengzu reported that the had been made popular by the use of and the shoes called ; he associated the reason behind the popularity of with the attire style of the Taoist priests, which he observed, had remained unchanged for centuries. He also concluded that the apparel system of the three ancient Chinese dynasties, referred collectively as the (), could still be found among the attire-style of the Taoist priests.


Ming dynasty

During the
Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...
, the traditional clothing system of the Han Chinese, the , was restored following the fall of the Mongol-led
Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty ( ; zh, c=元朝, p=Yuáncháo), officially the Great Yuan (; Mongolian language, Mongolian: , , literally 'Great Yuan State'), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after Div ...
. The and the continued to be worn in the Ming dynasty; the was similar to the in the Ming dynasty, with the presence of decorative border trims on the as an exception. However, despite the restoration of the -system by the Ming dynasty court, the shape of some garment, including the , had some differences from the ones worn in the Tang and Song dynasties as the clothing in the Ming dynasty had undergone a series of adjustments to their shapes. The shape of the Ming dynasty , and its colours, was strictly regulated by the political systems, rules and regulations of the time.


Construction and design


Ming dynasty

The Ming dynasty is a full-length. It has a large frontal outer placket and smaller frontal inner placket. There is a pair of ties at the small placket and two pairs of ties on the large placket which is used for closing the garment. The sleeves are large but are narrower around the wrists. It characterized by a cross collar, which closes at the right side in the front, in a style called .It is also not completely stitched at the two sides and allows for side slits to begin below the waist level. At the sides of the robes, there are side panels in the form of concealed swing or pendulum structure (i.e. a front and back swings at each sides of the robe). These side panels at these slits, are called (), and they were designed to conceal undergarments. The neckline of the robe is often decorated with white or plain collars. The collar can be either the same or a different colour to the main pieces of fabric. However, the collar is generally the same colour as the hems. An optional additional protective collar called () could also be sewn to the first collar. The either be white or dark in colour. A belt called () was also fastened around the waist. In total, the structure of the Ming dynasty was made up of 10 parts.


Ming dynasty

In the
Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...
, the was a wide-sleeved, crossed-collar robe which closes to the right in a style called ; it also had dark edging at the edges of the collar, sleeves, and placket. In the collar edge, the was sometimes inserted. The Ming dynasty was similar to the , except for the addition of edges decoration on the robe. Belts, like the () and the (; i.e. a ribbon or a thin rope made of silk) was also used around the waist when wearing the .


Derivatives and influences


China


The () which is a costume in , is a derivative of the Ming dynasty which was worn by the Ming dynasty scholars as an every day formal attire.It is also a derivative of the which dates back from the
Zhou dynasty The Zhou dynasty ( ) was a royal dynasty of China that existed for 789 years from until 256 BC, the longest span of any dynasty in Chinese history. During the Western Zhou period (771 BC), the royal house, surnamed Ji, had military ...
. In the
Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...
, actors who performed in
Chinese opera Traditional Chinese opera (), or ''Xiqu'', is a form of musical theatre in China with roots going back to the early periods in China. It is an amalgamation of various art forms that existed in ancient China, and evolved gradually over more tha ...
performance were allowed to wear and -style as they were exempted from the policy. Therefore, the was therefore allowed to be worn and continues to be worn even in present days, where it is now one of the most common form of costumes worn on stage. When used in Chinese opera, the is a form of informal dress worn by performers who hold the role types, which include the and the . Performers playing female roles could also wear a called '','' which was also used as an informal robe.


= Construction and design

= The is structurally different from the : the has a trapezoid body, narrower sleeves which is tubular in shape, the sleeves are longer than the wrists, and
water sleeves Water sleeves (Chinese: 水袖; pinyin: shuǐxiù) are long, flowing silk sleeve extensions attached to the Cuff, cuffs of Chinese opera costume, costumes in Chinese opera, widely used by both male and female characters of higher social classes. ...
are also added; there is an asymmetrical closure where the right side is right below the shoulder and neck intersection while the left crossing over is tied right under the right arm in a style called . There are also differences in the shapes and forms of the depending on the role types: Actors performing the role of men wear a full-length while actors performing the role of women wear a knee-length ; the male has a closure while there are two types of closure for the , one which has a closure and one which has front central closure, a style which can be referred as . ''The '' often wears of pastel colours, which is embroidered with flowers and has
water sleeves Water sleeves (Chinese: 水袖; pinyin: shuǐxiù) are long, flowing silk sleeve extensions attached to the Cuff, cuffs of Chinese opera costume, costumes in Chinese opera, widely used by both male and female characters of higher social classes. ...
.


Korea

The was imported from the
Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...
to Korea during the
Joseon Joseon ( ; ; also romanized as ''Chosun''), officially Great Joseon (), was a dynastic kingdom of Korea that existed for 505 years. It was founded by Taejo of Joseon in July 1392 and replaced by the Korean Empire in October 1897. The kingdom w ...
period, where it became known as and was eventually localized in Korea gaining its current form. In this period, the intellectual current which had been popularized in Joseon was the Zhuzi studies (viz. : and ) which was of Chinese origins. According to the Joseon literati, Sŏng Tae-chung, who visited
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
in the 1764 at a time when the Ming dynasty had already fallen, when asked what he wore as a robe and headwear by Ryūzan, Sŏng Tae-chung answered that he was wearing the and the which were the attire of the ancient sages 《冠幅巾衣道袍, 乃古聖賢所着》; the and were both Confucian attire and dressing style which had been adopted in Joseon.


The traditional clothing worn by the Taoist community is connected to pre-modern Chinese clothing and styles. Tradition-based taoists will often wear the traditional robes and liturgical clothing for formal religious and ritual occasions while Zhengyi priests and taoists priests outside mainland China tend to wear Western clothing in their daily lives. The traditional taoist robes can also be worn as a daily lives clothing by the Quanzhen monastics in mainland China. There were many forms of daojiao fushi in the ancient China.


Daopao/ hechang

Some forms of taoist robes are also referred as crane robes (hechang, 鶴氅). The Taoist priests' daopao which date back to at least the 1800s is not cross collared and instead looks like a
beizi Beizi (), also known as beizi () and chuozi (), is an item worn in Hanfu, traditional Chinese attire common to both men and women; it is typically a large loose outer coat with loose and long sleeves. It was most popular during the Song dynasty, ...
in terms of construction and design; a clothing artefact showing this style of daopao is now stored in museums such as the Rhode Island School of Design Museum. The Taoist's priest daopao are commonly worn by the Taoism priests. It is worn by middle-ranks Taoist priests; it is red in colour and has motifs at the back and front, on the sleeves. Theses motifs decorations can include, the
bagua The ''bagua'' ( zh, c=八卦, p=bāguà, l=eight trigrams) is a set of symbols from China intended to illustrate the nature of reality as being composed of mutually opposing forces reinforcing one another. ''Bagua'' is a group of trigrams—co ...
and cranes. File:西塞2017·神舟前的道士.jpg, A taoist priest wearing a modern-day taoist's daopao (depicted as a red overcoat), 2017. File:WangChangyue.jpg, Wang Changyue, Qing dynasty. File:Taopriest.jpg, Taoist Priest in Macau, 2006.


Jiangyi

Jiangyi (), also known as "robe of descent" which refers to either the descent of a priest from the altar or of the spirits to the altar, is a common form of Taoist priest's clothing. The jiangyi is a sign of the higher priestly rank and is worn by grandmasters. It was worn at least since the Ming and Qing dynasties. It looks similar to a
poncho A poncho (; ; ; "blanket", "woolen fabric") is a kind of plainly formed, loose outer garment originating in the Americas, traditionally and still usually made of fabric, and designed to keep the body warm. Ponchos have been used by the Indige ...
in structure; when worn, the robe sits squarely on the shoulders of the Taoist' priest; it is usually fastened across the front with two silk ties which are sewn just above the waist level. It is made of embroidered silks and is composed of a large square of satin fabric folded into two to form the shoulder line; the shoulder lines continues to the hem of the sleeves. The robe is slashed in the middle to form the collar of the robe. It is typically trimmed with border decorations. File:邵元節.jpg, Zhengyi taoist priest wearing jiangyi, Ming dynasty. File:Daoist priest's robe (jiangyi), China, Qing dynasty, late 18th to early 19th century AD, silk, metal-wrapped silk, view 1 - Textile Museum, George Washington University - DSC09658.JPG, Daoist priest's robe (jiangyi), China, Qing dynasty, late 18th to early 19th century AD/ File:Daoist Priest's Robe (China), 19th century (CH 18464275-2).jpg, Daoist Priest's Robe (jiangyi), 19th century File:MET TP478.jpg, Daoist Priest's Robe (jiangyi), late 18th–early 19th century File:Daoist priest's robe, China, Honolulu Museum of Art 1678.1.JPG, Daoist priest's robe (jiangyi), China, 20th century.


Daoyi

The Quanzhen monastic taoist priests and nuns wear a wide-sleeved, cross-collared gown called daoyi (道衣; lit. "robe of the Dao") which closes to the right; it is a standard type of clothing. The sleeves of the daoyi is referred as "cloud sleeves"; they are wide, open at the ends, and their sleeves are so long that it is past the fingers when extended but can be even longer. In the Quanzhen order, the dagua is worn as one of the ordinary clothing while the deluo is a formal clothing.


Deluo

The deluo (得罗) is a cross-collared gown with large sleeves. It is worn by Taoist priests of the Quanzhen order is a formal ritual dress which is indigo in colour. The blue colour is a symbolism for the east and represents having been descended from the first patriarch of the
Quanzhen school The Quanzhen School (全真: ''Quánzhēn'', "All-True", Complete Perfection, Integrating Perfection or Complete Reality) is currently one of the two dominant denominations of Daoism in China. It originated in the Shandong peninsula in 1170. O ...
, Donghua dijun. In large temples (e.g. Baiyunguan in Beijing), the deluo would be worn by monastics on festival days; the deluo would have wide sleeves which could reach 45 cm.


Daogua

In the Wengong temple in
Hanzhong Hanzhong ( zh, s= , t= , l=middle of the Han River (Hubei), Han River; abbreviation: Han) is a prefecture-level city in Southern Shaanxi, the southwest of Shaanxi, Shaanxi province, China, bordering the provinces of Sichuan to the south and Gans ...
, the cross-collar daopao is the standard form of attire and is referred as daogua ( depending on context). Their daopao is cross-collared at the front, and the sleeves are so long that only the fingers can escape from the sleeves. It is made of thick garments and is blue or black in colour. The daogua can be found in 3 types: dagua (; a long cross-collar robe which reaches the ankles and has a 42 cm wide sleeves), zhonggua (中褂; a cross-collar robe which reaches the mid-calf and has slightly narrower sleeves than the dagua), and xiaogua (小褂; a cross-collar robe which reaches the hip and has sleeves which could either be the same size or narrower than a zhongua; the xiaogua is more similar to a jacket than a robe).


Similar garments

* Sengyi (僧衣) - Long buddhist robes
abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the head of an independent monastery for men in various Western Christian traditions. The name is derived from ''abba'', the Aramaic form of the Hebrew ''ab'', and means "father". The female equivale ...
. * Hai Qing (海青) - Buddhist ritual garment. * Zhiduo, also known as zhishen (直身) - a style similar to the daopao except that it was decorated with outside pendulums. * Dopo (clothing) - A Korean equivalent


See also

*
Hanfu ''Hanfu'' (, lit. "Han Chinese, Han clothing"), also known as ''Hanzhuang'' (), are the traditional styles of clothing worn by the Han Chinese since the 2nd millennium BCE. There are several representative styles of ''hanfu'', such as the (an ...
* List of Hanfu *
Paofu (), also known as () for short, is a form of a long, one-piece robe in , which is characterized by the natural integration of the upper and lower part of the robe which is cut from a single fabric. The term is often used to refer to the and th ...


References

{{Types of Han Chinese clothing Chinese traditional clothing