| Futou/Putou | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Eunuchs wearingyuanlingshan and futou, Tang dynasty | |||||||
 Wushamao (a type of futou), housed in Shanghai Museum | |||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 襆頭/幞頭 | ||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 幞头 | ||||||
| Literal meaning | Scarf head | ||||||
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Futou (simplified Chinese:幞头;traditional Chinese:襆頭/幞頭; also pronounced and written asputou), also known asfu (幞) andtoujin (頭巾),[1] was one of the most important forms ofChinese headwear in ancientChina with a history of more than one thousand years.[2] Thefutou first appeared inNorthern Zhou under the reign ofEmperor Wu where it became prevalent.[2] It was also commonly worn in theTang andSong dynasties.[3]: 319 Thefutou was typically worn by government officials.[4] Thefutou was originally turban-like headwear which was tied at the back of its wearer's head, with the two corners going to opposite directions and acting as decorations.[5] From theSui to theMing dynasties, thefutou evolved and was developed based on thefujin.[2] Thefutou eventually came to assume a variety of shapes and styles.[3]: 319 The shape of thefutou worn by the government officials in the Song and Ming dynasties, the latter known as thewushamao (烏紗帽), was based on thefutou of the Tang dynasty.[3]: 71–72
Thefutou was also introduced in bothUnified Silla andBalhae[6]: 135 and continued to be worn by government officials until the lateJoseon.[7]: 25 Thefutou with ajinzi (lining) was also introduced back in theSogdian areas inCentral Asia spreading to the Western regions through theXinjiang region.[2] Thefutou withjinzi was also introduced inJapan during theNara period throughPrince Shōtaku.[2]Đại Cồ Việt was introduced to thefutou in the late 10th century and adapted various iterations from theEarly Lê to theNguyễn dynasty.[8]: 171
The termfutou (orputou) (simplified Chinese:幞头; traditional Chinese:襆頭 or 幞頭) means "head scarf" or "head-cloth".[3]: 319 According to theMufuyanxianlu by Bi Zhongxun, the original meaning offutou was to "cover one's head with a black cloth" before theSui dynasty.[9]
The English term "feet", which is used to describe the hard ribbons used in thefutou, is calledjiao (simplified Chinese:脚;traditional Chinese:腳;pinyin:jiǎo;lit. 'feet').[10]: 11
Thejinzi (巾子;jīnzi) refers to a lining used inside thefutou; it began to be used in 614 AD, and its purpose was to make thefutou look more straight and beautiful in terms of appearance.[2]
There are varying opinions on the origins of thefutou in the literature. According to Chinese scholar Sun Ji inFrom Futou to Turban (從幞頭到頭巾;Cóng fútóu dào tóujīn), thefutou first appeared in the 3rd century AD and was based on the headdress of a northern tribe.[3]: 319
Guzel Maitdinova proposed in 1990 that thefutou may have been developed from hats worn in ancientCentral Asia and was brought in by theTurks fromSogdiana toTokharistan to China, based on information provided by Hsen Kuo, an 11th-century Chinese annalist:[11]: 54–55
"The Chinese clothes and hats, starting from the time ofNorthern Qi dynasty represents abarbarian costume".
It is also proposed by Yatsenko that thefutou was part of the Chinese male costume.[11]: 54
The origins of thefutou in China can be traced back to the reign ofEmperor Wu inNorthern Zhou,[2] who had wrapped his head with afutou with four ribbons, calledsijiao (四腳;sìjiǎo; 'four feet') orzheshangjing (折上巾;zhéshàngjīn; 'folding-up scarf'); two of those ribbons were tied at the back and left hanging down, while the other two were tied inversely at the top of the head.[10]: 10 According to theTongdian, Emperor Wu created thesijiao by cutting thefujin.[12] According to ancient texts, Emperor Wu created thefutou to protect the hair of his generals and soldiers in battles.[9]
Thefutou first appeared a type of kerchief made by cutting a piece ofmuslin fabric into the proper size and by attaching four long and wide ribbons at each corner of the fabric like four feet.[10]: 10 [2] Thisfutou was large enough to cover all the hair of its wearer,[10]: 10 and when it was worn, a kerchief had to be placed on the top of its wearer's head.[2] Two of these ribbons were tied on the forehead while the other two were tied at the back of the wearer's head and was left hanging down.[2][10]: 10 Prior to theSui dynasty, thefutou was a black piece of cloth.[9]
Prior to theSong dynasty, thefutou was mostly made of black muslin.[10]: 11 In the early Tang, thefutou was asijiaoruanjin (四腳軟巾; 'Four-feet soft scarf'),[13] where all four ribbons were allowed to hang down after being tied.[10]: 10 Later on, the early Tang dynasty minister,Ma Zhou, was the first person to use a square kerchief in order to tie afutou and was also the person who added a lining to shape hisfutou making it more beautiful.[9] The lining which was added to the inside of thefutou from the year 614 AD was calledjinzi (巾子); thejinzi was used to make thefutou look more straight and beautiful in terms of appearance.[2] After being cut into the desired shape, thejinzi was painted black with lacquer and would then be covered by thefutou.[2] Thejinzi was made with soft and lighttung wood and with other materials such as bamboo strips, timbo,miscanthus, silk, and leather.[2] It was also possible to line thefutou with a mount-shaped item made out ofpaulownia (Chinese:桐木为冠;pinyin:Tóngmù wéi guān;lit. 'paulownia crown') in the front.[10]: 11 [13] The step-by-step process to wear thefutou withjinzi was to tie the hair up in a topknot, followed by covering the topknot with thejinzi as hard lining, then wrapping the head and thejinzi with a black, square-shaped piece of cloth, and finally tying the cloth in the desired style.[9] Thefutou withjinzi then became the standard form offutou in the early Tang dynasty.[9] A form offutou withjinzi was a kerchief with two corners attached with two ribbons in opposite directions of each other; the ribbons would then be tied at the back of the wearer's head, allowing the two back ribbons to hang down freely as a form of decoration.[5] With time, thefutou withjinzi was further developed, and a ribbon was attached to each corner of the turban to make it more decorative; two ribbons were tied on the top of the head while the back ribbons were tied and were allowed to hang down freely.[5] Thefutou withjinzi could also have all four ribbons tied at the back of the head and allowed to hang down freely.[9] Theyingwangboyang (Chinese:英王踣样), afutou with a big and forward topjinzi, was created byEmperor Zhongzong and became prevalent during his reign when he awarded this type offutou to his officials.[2] During the reign ofEmperor Xuanzong, theneiyang (Chinese:内样), afutou with a small and round top jinzi became popular around the year 726 AD.[2] Moreover, by adding wire or silk strings inside the added ribbons, thefutou could take different shapes and styles depending on its wearer's liking.[5] However, in the Tang dynasty, only the Emperors could use these hard ribbons; these hard ribbons would be bent upward.[10]: 10–11 The Tang dynasties emperor wore afutou with two upturned tails until theFive dynasties period.[9] The Tang dynasty emperors also wore thezhijiaofutou (Chinese:直腳幞头;pinyin:zhíjiǎofútóu;lit. 'straight-feet futou').[9]
| Types of futou | Description | Pictures | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ruanjiao putou (软脚幞頭;軟腳幞頭;ruǎnjiǎo fútóu; 'putou with soft legs') | A typical type of headwear in the Tang dynasty and was an important precursor to thefutou developed in the succeeding dynasties. Sometimes, 2 or 4 narrow and long ribbons were tied to the back of theputou and were allowed to hang down freely down the back of its wearer[3]: 319 |  | |
| Zheshang jin (折上巾; 'kerchief folded upward'), | A type of form ofruanjiao putou which consisted of square-piece of cloth wrap around the head; the two ends of the fabric were then tied at the back at either side of the neck and were then wrapped around the head before being together above the forehead.[3]: 319 |  | |
| Chuijiao Putou (垂腳襆頭) | A black hat with two drooped down wing-like flaps. |  | |
In theFive dynasties period, more styles offutou were created including thefutou with wide feet which looked like fans or banana leaves which surrounded the front of the head; and thefutou with curved feet which turned upwards before bending downward.[9]
In theMa Chu, painted silk was used in thefutou.[9]Ma Xifan also wore thehorns of a dragon (Chinese:龍角;pinyin:lóngjiǎo;lit. 'dragon horn'), afutou with extremely long feet on both sides.[9]
During theLater Jin,Emperor Liu Min used azhijiaofutou with long and straight feet which were more than one foot in length; the Song dynasty later kept the tradition of using this style offutou as a standard.[9] It is also attested in theSong Shi that thefutou had become straight and flat since the Five dynasties period.[9]
Thefutou was popular in theSong dynasty,[5] and it was commonly worn by all classes of people ranging from commoners to emperors. During the Song dynasty, the black muslin, which was mainly used to make thefutou, was replaced by other materials, such as muslin or lacquered muslin.[10]: 11 Thefutou could also be found with supports made out of wood, and therefore they could look like hats and caps of various styles.[5] Hard ribbons were also used;[10]: 10 and all thefutou in this period had hard feet.[9] There were 5 main types offutou in this period: thezhijiaofutou (also calledpingjiaofutou (Chinese:平腳幞頭;pinyin:píngjiǎofútóu;lit. 'flat-feet futou')) which was worn by people of all social classes (including both the upper and lower classes[9]); the "bent-feet"futou, thejiaojiaofutou (Chinese:交腳幞頭;pinyin:Jiāojiǎofútóu;lit. 'cross-feet futou'), the "upward"futou, and the "downwind"futou.[10]: 11
According to theSong Shi, thezhijiaofutou became the national standard form offutou in the Song dynasty for the emperor and the officials on any occasion, except when they had to take a carriage.[9] Thefutou worn by the Song dynasty officials had an extended reclined feet; it was developed by having two hard ribbons made out with iron wire or bamboo strips attached at the back of thefutou.[10]: 11 According to thePedantic Remarks of the Confucians by Yu Yan, this form offutou might have been developed to prevent the officials from whispering to each other during court audience with the Emperor.[10]: 11 On some special occasions (e.g. the imperial court banquets, or the longevity ceremonies held for the royal family), Song court officials would put flowers on theirfutou; this was referred as Flower pinning.[10]: 11 The Song emperors would sometimes send fresh flowers or man-made flowers which were exclusive to the use of the imperial court to his courtier; this later become a form of etiquette in the Song dynasty court.[10]: 11 It is also recorded in theSong Shi that the upwardfutou was used by people (including the Emperor and the officials) when they found themselves in narrow spaces, such as in a carriage.[9]
According to the first volume of theHistory Narrated at Ease in the sectionThe Etiquette by Wang Dechen (1036 –1116), in the early Song dynasty, a typefutou, calledfront-folded scarf, was worn by some people.[10]: 11 Thefront-folded scarf was folded and tied at the front region of the head was worn by some people.[10]: 11 Theback-folded scarf was a typefutou which would be bent backward; it started to be worn after theShaosheng period (i.e. after 1098 AD).[10]: 11 Following the Shaosheng period, there were many changes in the styles offutou.[10]: 11
There were also other forms offutou, such as thecolourful flower-shapedfutouembedded with gold lines which were sold in market ofDongjing; thecurved-feetfutou or theflower-likefutouwith feet curved backwards were also worn by some warriors; thelong feetfutou was favoured by the musical instrument plays of the imperial music office; the lustrelessfutou, and the whitecrêpefutou which was worn during funerals.[10]: 11
| Types of futou | Description | Pictures | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zhanjiao Putou展角幞頭; 'spread-horn head cover' | It consisted of a black hat with two wing-like flaps which extends outward. The thin flaps were stiff and straight, and could extend up to almost a meter each. |  |  |  |
In theKhitan-ledLiao dynasty, the Khitans shaved their hair in a style called kunfa and wore light hats made of felt or helmets which were more suitable for their horse riding activities instead of wearing the lacqueredfutou; however thefutou did not disappear in this period and continued to be depicted in the Liao dynasty tomb murals, including the curved legfutou.[9]
In theMongol-ledYuan dynasty, thefutou continued to be worn since the Yuan dynasty court followed the Song dynasty standards regarding official costumes:[9]
(All officials' work clothes should wear) straight tails painted hemp futou.
During the Ming dynasty, a type offutou was to be worn by government officials as part of the court uniform, calledwushamao (乌纱帽).[14]Wushamao resembled thefutou used in the early Tang dynasty, but followed the crafting methods of the Song dynasty by using lacquered muslin and wooden or metal frames to cast its shape. The shape of the feet varies depending on the era, with some resembling the curved leaf appearance of the prior dynasties or the straight wing-like feet in the late Ming dynasty.[15][16] The Ming dynasty also kept the tradition of using straight-feetfutou; however, by the shape of thefutou worn in the Ming dynasty diverted from that worn in the Song dynasty: the feet became shorter with time and some of thesefutou became less than forty centimetres.[9] The forty centimetre long straight-feet, painted linenfutou was worn by both the military and civil officials for official business according to theMing Shi.[9] The feet of the Ming dynasty straight-feetfutou were not completely straight and had a curved tip which would bend upwards.[9]
| Types of futou | Description | Pictures | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zhanchi Futou/putou (展翅襆頭), also known as thewushamao (烏紗帽; 'black gauze cap') | It is aheadwear ofMing dynasty officials, consisting of a blackhat with two wing-like flaps of thin, oval shaped boards on each side. According to theCollected Statutes of the Ming Dynasty (大明會典), ordinary citizens are not allowed to wear this headdress unless attending wedding ceremonies or events involving any noble families/officials. In modern China,wushamao is commonly used as a metaphor for officials and government posts. The Zhanchi Futou was also adopted by neighbouring countries. |    | ||
| Zhanjiao Putou (展角幞頭; 'spread-horn head cover') | It was based on the Song dynasty's zhanjiao putou; in the Ming dynasty, it was worn by Ming civil officials at court assemblies when they would present memorials or retirement notices to the Ming rulers.[3]: 100 |    | ||
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| Yishan guan (翼善冠; 'winged shan hat') | A type of futou made of lacquered silk which is formed on a wooden frame. At the back of the hat, there is a tall extension which is molded into 2 symmetrical bulbous shapes; there are 2 ribbons which are fastened to the hat's lower back and straight up extending just beyond the top protrusion.[3]: 102 It is also a type ofguan. |   | ||
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{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)文武官常服：洪武三年定，凡常朝視事，以烏紗帽、團領衫、束帶為公服。
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