| Chima | |
 Daeran Chima | |
| Korean name | |
|---|---|
| Hangul | 치마 |
| Revised Romanization | chima |
| McCune–Reischauer | ch'ima |
Chima is a generic term for theskirt worn together withjeogori, or a short jacket inhanbok,Korean traditional clothing. It is also referred to assang (裳) orgun (裙) inhanja in theKorean language.[1][2][3] While thejeogori has evolved over time, thechima has remained relatively unchanged throughout time.[4]
Basic forms of ancientchima date back to theGoguryeo era (37 BC–668 AD).[5] According to the murals of Goguryeo and an earthen toy excavated from the neighbourhood ofHwangnam-dong,Gyeongju, Goguryeo women usually wore thejeogori over thechima, covering the top of the chima.In addition, a painting of a woman wearing a saekdong chima can be seen in a mural tomb related to Goguryeo's figure Pungsokdo in Gangseo-gu, Nampo, North Korea.[6][7] Later on in the Goguryeo Kingdom, thejeogori became shorter and shorter, showing off more of thechima.[8]
InSilla,China'sTang dynasty influenced the culture of Koreans;[9] In Tang dynasty, a popular fashion was to wear the skirt over the blouse for a slimming silhouette. This was different from the traditional Korean way of wearing Hanbok. Ancient Korean women would wear the chima (skirt) first, and then the jeogori (upper garment) over it, covering the skirt's waistband.[10]
Several types ofTang dynasty's clothing was also introduced in Korea.[11] Theqixiong ruqun, a form of high-waistqun (a generic term for Chinese skirt) worn over ashort Chinese jacket was introduced in Silla[12][13][14] and inBalhae.[15] This form of high-waistqun which ties to thechest can still be seen in thechima worn in present daysKorean women'shanbok;[16][17] it is also likely that the current women'shanbok has been derived from the Tang dynasty's high-waistqun with a shortru (Chinese:襦) or from a later revival of the Tang dynasty fashion.[18]
The Tang-influenced trend of wearing the skirt over the blouse did not last into the Goryeo dynasty. This method of wearing the skirt last can be considered a temporary phenomenon, popular primarily among the royalty and aristocracy of Silla after the unification of the Three Kingdoms. In conclusion, during the Goryeo period, the Tang-style influence began to wane, and the native Goguryeo style—the practice of wearing the upper garment over the skirt—was revived.[19]
The hanbok of the Joseon period was fundamentally a continuation of the sartorial traditions established during the preceding Goguryeo and Goryeo dynasties. The basic structure, consisting of the jeogori (jacket), baji (trousers) for men, and chima (skirt) for women, was inherited and served as the foundation upon which Joseon-era styles evolved. During the Joseon dynasty, the chima (skirt) adopted fuller volume, while the jeogori (upper garment) took a more tightened and shortened form, features quite distinct from the hanbok of earlier eras like Goguryeo and Goryeo, when the chima had a more natural A-line silhouette and the jeogori was baggy and long, reaching well below waist level.[20]
Thechima is a floor length wrap around skirt with a wide waistband positioned above the chest. With the high placement of the waistband it allows the skirt to have a more billowy look, which can give greater freedom of movement.[21] Traditionally, women needed to wear about five to seven layers of undergarments which consisted of pants and underskirts, this made the skirt look more voluminous and provide a more elegant look.[21]
There are different kinds ofchima: single-layered, double-layered, and quilted. Furthermore,pul-chima refers to achima with a separated back, whereas atong-chima has a seamed back.[22] The upper class usually useramie as the fabric to make for summerchima while plain and patterned silks are used throughout the remainder of the year.[23] By contrast, commoners were restricted to using cotton for theirchima.[23] Women in the upper class wore a longchima which falls down to the floor while women in the lower class wore a shorterchima which length reaches to thecalf of the leg. Korean noblewomen wore full lengthchima to designate their social status.
Different colours and lengths indicated important social distinctions such as: age, marital status, and class. Girls and unmarried women usually wore red skirts, while married women and middle-aged women wore blue skirts and elderly women wore gray skirts.[citation needed]
From the Goguryeo to Joseon periods, chima have been striped, pleated, patchworked,gored and decorated with uniquely Korean geumbak(gold leaf) patterns. This traditional Korean technique of stamping gold leaf with woodblocks was applied to the garments of royalty and nobility and has its origins even before the Three Kingdoms period.[24]
Goguryeo women also woresaekdong chima that is a colourfully striped skirt bypatchworking, and achima in form ofgored skirt, made by sewing several pieces of fabric withoutgathering.[25]
The use of primary colours inhanbok,and more specifically in chima[citation needed], was typically preferred by the ruling class and people who came from the upper, privileged, social class.[26][27] Korean commoners rarely wore primary colouredhanbok, and they were only allowed to wear it for special occasions, such as seasonal festivals, weddings, and for ceremonial events.[26][27] Nowadays, thehanbok worn by Korean is colourful due to the Western influences which Korean to become a free society where Koreans could choose what and what colours they want to wear.[27] Wearing colourfulhanbok is, however, a clear contrast from the traditional use of whitehanbok.[27]
For thousands of years and nearly exclusively, mostKoreans only wore white clothes. They donned colored clothing on special occasions.[27][28] In Korean culture, white has traditionally been a symbol of nobility and innocence; and a result, Koreans would wear white during their lives from birth to death.[27][29] Moreover, the Korean commoners' clothing were mainly un-dyed and plain. Korean people often being nicknamed "the white clad [people]".[27]
Within the Korean tradition, the perception ofbaeksaek(white) was broad enough to encompasssosaek (neutral color), the inherent color of unprocessed natural materials.Sosaek represents the concept of beingmusaeku (uncolored), referring to the native hue of textiles such as cotton and hemp, free from artificial dyes or modern bleaching processes. Consequently, the term for Koreanbaegui(white clothes), denotes a range of shades from a very light cream to a light tan.
In Goryeo and Joseon, the use of white clothing was banned byKing Chung Yeol in the 13th century and by many Joseon kings which even includedKing Sejong, but this did not stop the tradition of wearing white clothing to continue until the early 20th century.[27]
The application of traditional Korean baegui (white clothing) was exceptionally broad. It encompassed the everyday attire of commoners, the informal and scholarly robes of the yangban (aristocracy), and the sacred vestments worn by priests and participants in religious rites. A wealth of historical sources and artworks from the Joseon dynasty attests to the prevalence of white attire among the elite. This included not only the dopo as casual wear (pyeonbok) and the simui as the scholar's ceremonial robe (beopbok), but often extended to the sibok, the official's work uniform. While colored garments were certainly worn by the upper echelons to denote rank or for official functions, white remained their principal choice for daily life.[30]
Throughout the Japanese colonial period, the act of wearingbaegui served as a symbol of defiance, representing a means of asserting national identity in opposition to colonial authority. The colonial government coercively suppressed this tradition. Measures of suppression included imposing administrative penalties on individuals in white, prohibiting their entry into government buildings, and even publicly humiliating them by splattering ink on their attire on market days. In Modern times, the use of white hanbok is often associated with resistance and is mostly worn forfunerals.[27]
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