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 the . The was worn since the Zhou dynasty and became prominent in the Han dynasty.' The was a unisex, one-piece robe; while it was worn mainly by men, women could also wear it. It initially looked similar to the ancient ; however, these two robes are structurally different from each other.'''' With time, the ancient disappeared while the evolved gaining different features in each succeeding dynasties; the continues to be worn even in present day. The term refers to the "long robe" worn by ancient Chinese, and can include several form of Chinese robes of various origins and cuts, including '','' , '','' ', ', '.

Terminology

The term () is composed of the Chinese characters 《》, which literally means "robe", and 《》which literally means "clothing". The character 《袍》is the same character which is used as an abbreviated synonym of .

The Chinese character《袍》can be found in ancient texts dating prior to the Qin and Han dynasties, such as in the 《》. According to the ', the character《袍》can also refer to the (). The term which appear in the ancient texts has been described as the precursor of the by scholars.

Naming based on design

There are different types of , which can be referred by different names and terms based on its style, cut, length, and specific features.

The term is a generic term which refers to robes which are long in length and can include different forms of long robes, such as the ancient , the .

There are also specific terms which is used to described with or without lining or padding: for example, and ', ' () which is robe quilted with hemp.

There are specific types of , which can be named based on their specific cut, construction, accessories, and wearing styles, are the:

* ' – a simple, loose-fitting robes with long, open sleeves, a style worn by men which provided a carefree look to its wearer.''''
* '
* ''''
* ' – long robe with a cross-collar closing which closes to the right; worn since the Zhou dynasty.
* vs vs
* () – dragon robe.
* ' () – an ancient term used to refer to the which closed on the left side in a style called () as defined by the '. It was typically worn by a deceased person.
* ' vs '

Construction and design

The and the are both one-piece robes as an result.'''' However, the difference between those two is the cut and construction of the garment.

The is composed of two parts: an upper garment called and a lower garment called , which are then sewn together into a one-piece robe; and therefore, there is the presence of a middle seam where the two parts were connected together. The , on the other hand, has its upper and lower part made out of a single fabric leading to the absence of middle seam between the upper and lower part.

Typically the closes on the right side in a style called and was a very important symbol of cultural identity for the Han Chinese. The could also be found closing on the left style called . The with a closure was generally associated with the dress of ethnic minorities and the Hufu; however, they could also be the funeral dress of the Han Chinese. It was also a possible for some living Han Chinese to adopt with a closure in geographical areas which were ruled by foreign nationalities.

History

Zhou dynasty

In the Zhou dynasty, was one of the basic clothing worn by the Han Chinese people, along with the Chinese trousers, called . The style of which was widely worn in this period is the ', which was a long robe with an overlapping front closing on the right side, a style called '. The ' was made with 2-length of fabric which started from the back hem and continued down to the front hem without discontinuity over the shoulders; they were then sewed at the central region of the back and under the arms which often allowed for side vents on the lower side seams to be formed. To form the sleeves, 2 additional pieces of fabrics were sewed together at the shoulder regions of the garment. It was left open in the front, and it could be closed at the waist with a tie or with a belt. Other pieces of fabric could be added to make the width at the sides bigger or to create the overlapping front of the robe.

Han dynasty

The ' became a prominent form of attire in the Han dynasty; it was mainly worn by men, although it was sometimes worn by women. Even with the rising popularity of ', women continued to wear . In the Han dynasty, ' was typically worn by the members of royalty and by the aristocrats as an outerwear. It was also the uniform of government officials. Around the 206 BC, the ' worn by elders had large sweeping sleeves which would be tied tightly to the wrist. The ' could be found in different length; the ', which could reach down to the ankles, were usually worn by scholars or elderlies whereas knee-length ' were worn by warriors and heavy labourers. Elderlies started to wear the ankle-length ' after 206 BC.

The ' in the Han dynasty had linings; and it could be called ' or ' based on whether it was padded. It was padded or quilted for warmth. The sleeves were typically very wide and would become cinched at the wrists. The collar was ', and it was cut lower than the ', and it was also low enough to expose the undergarments of its wearer. It was also typically decorated with an embroidered dark-coloured band at the collar, front hem, and at the wrists.

Wei, Jin, Northern and Southern dynasties

By the Wei, Jin and Northern and Southern dynasties, the ' of the Han dynasty evolved into the () and into the more complex and elaborate women's , .''''

'

The was a type of loose with long ribbons for men.'''' The gave its wearer a casual and simple appearance.'''' Loose type of clothing was often worn during leisure times as found in the depictions of the '' Seven Sages of the Bamboo groove'' where men had their upper clothing open, allowed their inner garment to be exposed, a knotted belt or sash which would tied to the upper garment at the chest level, and their skirts and lower garment would be held by a belt made of clothing which would be knotted at the front of the lower garment.

The -style appears to have been a Northern Chinese style instead of a Southern Chinese style. The '-style eventually became fashionable in the South. Loose ' with flowing, loose sleeves was a popular style among men from diverse social strata in the Eastern Jin and in the Southern dynasties period; a was sometimes attached to the waist of the .

The style also appeared on the images of Buddha which dates from the late 5th century AD. The style appears to have been a direct consequence of Emperor Xiaowen's Sinicization reforms in 486 AD. The popularity of the style was very high, and it eventually replaced the Indian-style clothing (i.e. '' sanghati'') which used to be depicted on the Buddha.

Sui and Tang dynasties

In the Tang dynasty, the ' evolved into a with a round collar,'''' referred as or . However, Tang dynasty women also continued to wear long and loose ' which was tied and knotted with a large sash at the hipline.

Song dynasty

Yuan dynasty

Ming dynasty

In Ming dynasty, the ' continued to be worn by commoner men; it was worn with an undershirt, loose trousers (), and a sash around the waist. Other specific forms of also coexisted such as: ', , ', ', and , etc.

Qing dynasty

Derivatives and influences

Japan

The kimono was based on a type of Chinese ' which was popular in the 8th century AD Japanese court.

Korea

Chinese-style () influenced by the Han dynasty coexisted together with the native Korean during the Three Kingdom period. The po influenced by the Han dynasty either had a straight collar crossing at the front, which is referred as (), or had a straight collar which does not overlap at the front, which is referred as (); the sleeves of the Chinese-style were also long enough to cover the back of the hands; the robe could reach the ankle-level or longer, and could even trail on the ground.

During the Goguryeo period, a form of ', which was the precursor of the , was adopted and worn by the upper class of Goguryeo in various forms for ceremonies and rituals.

The () originated from the Chinese's ; it was introduced from the Tang dynasty was introduced during the Silla period.

See also

* Hanfu
*List of Hanfu
* '
* Swallow-tailed Hems and Flying Ribbons clothing
* ' – Chinese upper garment

References

{{Types of Han Chinese clothing

Chinese traditional clothing