Buyao
Buyao, China, 18th century
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	步搖
Simplified Chinese	步摇
Literal meaning	Step-shake
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Bùyáo
English name
English	Buyao/ buyao hairpin

Buyao (simplified Chinese:步摇;traditional Chinese:步搖;pinyin:Bùyáo;lit. 'step-shake') is a type of Chinese women's hair ornament.[1] It is a type ofChinese hairpin which was oftentimes decorated with carved designs and jewelries that dangles when the wearer walks, hence the name, which literally means "shake as you go".^[2][3] The buyao is similar to azan hairpin, except for the presence of its dangling ornaments, which are its primary featured characteristics.^[4] The buyao appeared as early as in theHan dynasty,^[5] where only noble women in the royal family could wear it.^[6] In ancient times, the use of buyao denoted noble status.^[2][4] Some noble women also put buyaos on theirtiaras, making their hair decoration more luxurious than simple buyao.^{[citation needed]} Common material used in making the buyao was gold; the ornaments were typically jade and pearls.^[2][3][4] Other valuable materials could be used, such as silver, agate, etc.^[6] Many centuries after the fall of the Han dynasty, the buyao was introduced to ordinary civilians; and when all women were allowed to wear to it, more variety of materials were used to produce them.^[6] Buyao was passed down over generations; buyao decorated with pendants are still popular in modern-day China.^[6]

The wearing of buyao were fashionable during theHan,Wei,Jin,Northern and Southern dynasties.^[7] During this period, there were two types of buyao: thebuyao flower and thebuyao crown (Chinese:步摇冠;pinyin:Bùyáoguān).^[7] The buyao flower was more prevailing in theCentral plains and in theSouthern dynasties and was worn by women only whereas the buyao crown was worn by both men and women in theYan andDai regions, which were the location where the ancientXianbei resided.^[7] These two forms of buyao were influenced by the gold crown culture of the nomadic tribes who lived in the grasslands ofCentral Asia however, the cultural differences between the Central plains and the Yan-Dai areas contributed in the difference in shapes, wearing fashion, aesthetics preferences and meaning of historical culture, etc.^[7]

During theWestern Han period, buyaos were created and adopted the style of the Western region's accessories,^{[citation needed]} and became popular.^[5] The earliest depiction of buyao so far can be found on theMawangdui tomb funeral banner which showsLady Dai wearing a buyao which was painting in the Western Han dynasty.^[5][8]

In ancient Chinese texts, the buyao is largely defined in terms of their structure.^[8] For examples, according to theShiming in the sectionShi toushi (Chinese:釋頭飾), it is written that:^[8]

"The top of a buyao has hanging beads, and when one takes a step, they sway(Chinese:步搖，上有垂珠，步則搖 也)."

TheHanshu mention thebuyao guan worn by an official in theJiang Chong zhuan (Chinese:江充傳;lit. 'Biography of Jiang Chong'):[8]

"Chong wore gauzy diaphanous robe, and the overlapping curved panels of his robes hung down in back. He wore on his head a sheer head covering and abuyao cap [also known asbuyao crown], and fluttering feather tassels.(Chinese:充衣紗縠襌衣, 曲裾後垂交輸，冠禪纚步搖冠，飛翮之纓)"

During this period, the buyao was not only worn by theHan Chinese but also by theWuhuan women who would grow their hair long, divide it into buns and decorate their hair with hairpins and buyao.^[8] The buyao were worn also by the Han dynasty empresses; according to theYufu zhi (Chinese:輿服誌) of theHou Han shu:^[9][8]

"When empresses dressed to visit the ancestral shrine, they wore dark purple on the top and black on the bottom, silkworms, and greenish black on the top and pure white on the bottom. The dress code was all dark clothing, and silk ribbons were used to hide the edges of the collar and sleeves. [They wore] fake chignons, buyao, hairpins, and ear ornaments. Theirbuyao used gold for the mountain-shaped frontal piece, and white pearls were strung on the intertwining cassia branches. [They wore] a sparrow and nine flowers, and the six beasts: the bear, tiger, red bear, heavenly deer,bixie, and the grand cow from Nanshan.(Chinese:皇后謁廟服，紺上皁下，蠶，青上縹下，皆深衣制，隱領袖緣以絛。首飾有假結、步搖、簪、珥。步搖以黃金為山題，貫白珠為桂枝相繆，一爵九華，熊、虎、赤羆、天鹿、避邪、南山豐大特六獸)".

At the time of theEastern Han dynasty, the buyao was introduced to Japan.^{[citation needed]}

According to theYufu zhi (Chinese:輿服誌) of theJin shu also mentioned that the palace ladies from Western Han through Jin wore buyao in their hair as hair ornaments.^[8] Buyao are depicted in theAdmonitions Scroll attributed toGu Kaizhi as a pair of zan (Chinese:簪), a type ofChinese hairpin, decorated with delicate ornaments which are shaped like birds and sits on delicate branches which extend out like blooming flowers and when the wearer would walk, the thin branches would move slightly causing any hairpin ornaments or beads to shake.^[9] The buyao worn by the court ladies in theAdmonitions Scroll might have been variants or lower-ranking variants of those worn by the empresses.^[9]

Buyao made of gold appear to be representative head ornaments of the early elite culture of theMurong Xianbei.^[10] The Murong, similarly to the people ofBuyeo, wore gold ornaments which had dangling leaves calledbuyao guan (Chinese:步摇冠;pinyin:Bùyáoguān;lit. 'buyao crown'); they looked like golden-leaf and tree-like head ornaments and were worn by both men and women; they were however different from the Chinese buyao which were only worn by women.[11]

According to theMurong Hui zaiji (Chinese:慕容廆載記; lit. 'Chronicles of Murong Hui') of theJin shu, Mo Huba (Chinese:莫护跋), the MurongXianbei leader, introduced the buyao ornaments to his people by copying it from the Chinese.^[9][8] Initially, theMurong clan lived in theLiaodong regions, but during theCao Wei dynasty, they migrated to theLiaoxi regions.^[12] When Mo Huba saw the people ofYan andDai wearing thebuyao guan, he ordered all his people to tie their hair and wear thebuyao guan.^[12][8] The buyao crown largely disappeared when theTuoba Xianbei conquered Northern China.^[11]

In theTang dynasty, golden buyao which were decorated with flowers and birds were favoured by the Empresses.^[1] The Tang dynasty empresses would attach their buyao to their ceremonial wig.^[1] Buyao were also worn by the Tang dynasty upper-class women.^[1]

Dragons and phoenix designs were typically used to decorate the buyao^[2][4] Other shapes and decorations included:

• Bixie design – a symbol to ward off ill luck and maintain happiness,^[13]
• Birds,^[5] and other winged animals;
• Butterfly,
• Flowers,^[5][1]
• Tassels and pendants, and
• Valuable gemstones.^[5]

• 
  Tree-shaped gold shimmering buyao crown (buyao guan) ofJin dynasty (266–420).
• 
  Tang Court Lady wearing flower buyao crown

• Fengguan - Phoenix crown
• Shubi - Chinese comb
• Hanfu accessories

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