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| Type | Traditional female torso wrap |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Indonesia[1][2] |
Kemben (Javanese:ꦏꦼꦩ꧀ꦧꦼꦤ꧀,Indonesian:kemban) is anIndonesian female torso wrap historically common inJava,Bali, and other parts of the Indonesian archipelago. It is made by wrapping a piece ofkain (clothes), either plain,batik printed,velvet, or any type of fabrics, covering the chest wrapped around the woman's torso.[3]
Prior to the prevalence ofkebaya, it is believed thatkemben was the most popular and common female dress in the ancient and classical period of Java. It was commonly worn in theMajapahit era until theMataram Sultanate. Today, this shoulder-baring garment still features in manyIndonesian rituals, traditionalJavanese dances or palace ceremonies in Javanesekeratons.[1]
The bare shoulders of thekemben may be regarded as a representation of elegance andfemininity. In recent decades, however,kemben has fallen out of favor among Javanese Muslim women as they abandoned their traditional fashion and wear Islamic clothing such as thehijab, which was previously uncommon in Indonesia. Today, the tradition of wearing kemben has been preserved and kept alive in the Javanese royal court ofYogyakarta andSurakarta keratons, especially among nobles andabdi dalem (palace servants). However, in recent years, this also had stirred debate about the efforts to preserve classic Javanese court culture being contended by the growing conservativeIslamism among the Indonesian Muslims community.[4]
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Traditionalkemben is worn by wrapping a piece of cloth around the torso, folding and securing the edge, tying it with additional rope, and covering it with anangkin, a smaller sash around the abdomen. Traditional Javanese batikkemben worn by palace ladies in keratons are mostly this type ofkemben.[5] Today, there is also tight-fitted and tailoredkemben secured usingbuttons, straps orzippers similar to the westerncorset. Thekemben of female Javanese traditional dancers (srimpi orwayang wong) are usually made of tailored velvet corsets.
In theMalay Peninsula,kemban is essentially a type ofsarong and was a very popular style of clothing prior to the prevalence ofBaju Kurung andBaju Kebaya in Malaysia. The members of the nobility used better quality and designed cloths, as well as elaborate jewelry made of gold and precious stones.[6] They had theirkain kelubung (shawl) to cover their heads from the sun and akain kemban worn from the bust downwards to keep them cool in the tropical heat. According to theMalay Annals, Sultan Mansur Shah, the sixth Malaccan ruler, banned Malay women from wearing only akemban as it ran contrary to personal modesty based on Islamic teachings.[7] Today, the kemban torso wrap is rarely worn in the piously Islamic Malay community of Malaysia, regarded as a relic of the past, replaced by the more modest Baju Kurung which is generally worn withtudong to comply with Islamic modesty requirements.
InEurope, it is akin to Europeandécolletage, however, it is more indigenous by using local fabrics such asbatik,ikat,songket, ortenun, and simply secured by folding and slipping the cloth edges and tying the knot. Traditionally, women wear two pieces of clothes; the lower one is wrapped around the hips covering lower parts of the body (hips, thighs, and legs) and is called askain orSarong, while the piece that is wrapped about the upper body (chest and torso) is calledkemben. In the Malay Peninsula, a third piece of cloth is used to cover the head (head, shoulders, and arms) from the sun and it is calledkain kelubung as shown in the pictures below.
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