korean fashion เดี่ยว

KOREAN TRADITIONAL
FASHION

“Hanbok”

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KNOW ABOUT

HANBOK

The hanbok (in South Korea) or Chosŏn-ot
(in North Korea) is the traditional Korean
clothes. The term “hanbok” literally means

“Korean clothing”.

The hanbok can be traced back In modern times, “hanbok” usually re-
to the Three Kingdoms of Korea pe-
riod (1st century BC–7th century AD), fers to clothes worn and developed during
with roots in the peoples of what is
now northern Korea and Manchuria. the Joseon Dynasty by the upper class.
Early forms of hanbok can be seen in
the art of Goguryeo tomb murals in Generally, the clothes of Korean rulers and
the same period, with the earliest mu-
ral paintings dating to the 5th centu- aristocrats were influenced by foreign and
ry. From this time, the basic structure
of the hanbok consisted of the jeogori native styles. As a result, some styles such
jacket, baji pants, chima skirt, and the
po coat. The basic structure of han- as Simui from the Song Dynasty of China,
bok was designed to facilitate ease of
movement and integrated many mo- gwanbok worn by male officials and roy-
tifs of shamanistic nature. These basic
structural features of the hanbok re- al court ladies were modified from royal
mains relatively unchanged to this day.
However, present days hanbok which is figures.The clothes of the Ming Dynasty
worn nowadays is patterned after the
hanbok worn in the Joseon dynasty. of China cultural exchanges were also bi-

lateral and Goryeo Hanbok had a cultur-

al influence during the Yuan Dynasty.The

commoners were less influenced by those

foreign fashion trends and most wore folk

clothes different from those of the up-

per class.

Koreans wear the hanbok for for-
mal or semi-formal.In 1996, the South Ko-
rean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tour-
ism established “Hanbok Day”to encourage
South Korean citizens to wear the hanbok.

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Construction& Design
“Traditionally, women’s hanbok consist of the jeogori
(a blouse shirt or a jacket) and the chima (a full, wrap-
around skirt). The ensemble is often known as ‘chima

jeogori’. Men’s hanbok consist of jeogori and loose fit-

ting baji (trousers).”

Jeogori Chima

The jeogori is the basic upper Chima refers to “skirt,” which is also
garment of the hanbok, worn by both called sang in hanja.According to
men and women. It covers the arms ancient murals of Goguryeo and
and upper part of the wearer’s body. an earthen toy excavated from the
The basic form of a jeogori consists of neighborhood of Hwangnam-dong,
gil, git, dongjeong, goreum and sleeves. Gyeongju, Goguryeo women wore a
Gil is the large section of the garment chima with jeogori over it, covering
on both front and back sides, and git is the belt.
a band of fabric that trims the collar. Although striped, patchwork,
Dongjeong is a removable white col- and gored skirts are known from the
lar placed over the end of the git and Goguryeo and Joseon periods, chima
is generally squared off. The goreum were typically made from rectangu-
are coat-strings that tie the jeogori. lar cloth that was pleated or gath-
Women’s jeogori may have kkeutdong, ered into a skirt band.This waist-
a different colored cuff placed at the band extended past the skirt fabric
end of the sleeves. Jeogori and chima itself and formed ties for fastening
The form of Jeogori has changed the skirt around the body.
over time.Women’s jeogori dramat- Sokchima was largely made in
ically shortened during the Joseon a similar way to the overskirts until
dynasty, reaching its shortest length the early 20th century when straps
at the late 19th century. However, due were added, later developing into
to reformation efforts and practical a sleeveless bodice or ‘reformed’
reasons, modern jeogori for women petticoat.By the mid-20th century,
is longer than its earlier counterpart. some outer chima had also gained
Nonetheless, the length is still above a sleeveless bodice, which was then
the waistline. Traditionally, goreum covered by the jeogori.
were short and narrow, however mod-
ern goreum are rather long and wide.
There are several types of jeogori vary-
ing in fabric, sewing technique, and
shape.

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Koreanswear the hanbok for formal or semi-formal occa-
sions and events such as festivals, celebrations, and
ceremonies. In 1996, the South Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism
established “Hanbok Day”( Oct. 21 has been marked as Hanbok Day since 1996 )to en-
courage South Korean citizens to wear the hanbok.

Baji Po is a generic term re- Jokki
ferring to an outer robe or and
Baji refers to the overcoat. There are two gener- magoja
bottom part of the men’s al types of po, the Korean type
hanbok. It is the formal and the Chinese type. Jokki is a type of vest, while
term for ‘trousers’ in The Korean type is a magoja is an outer jacket. Al-
Korean. Compared to common style from the Three though jokki and magoja were
western style pants, it Kingdoms of Korea period, and created at the end of the Jo-
does not fit tightly. The it is used in modern day.A belt seon dynasty (1392–1897), direct-
roomy design is aimed was used until it was replaced ly after which Western culture
at making the cloth- by a ribbon during late Joseon began to affect Korea, the gar-
ing ideal for sitting on dynasty. Durumagi is a variety ments are considered tradition-
the floor.It functions as of po that was worn as protec- al clothing. Each is additionally
modern trousers do, but tion against cold. It had been worn over jeogori for warmth
nowadays the term baji widely worn as an outer robe and style. Magoja clothing was
is commonly used in over jeogori and baji. It is also originally styled after the cloth-
Korea for any kinds of called jumagui, juchaui, or juui. ing of Manchu people, and was
pants. There is a band The Chinese type is dif- introduced to Korea after Heu-
around the waistline of ferent styles of po from Chi- ngseon Daewongun, the father
a baji for tying in order na. Starting from north–south of King Gojong, returned from
to fasten. states period, they were used his political exile in Tianjin in
Baji can be un- through history until na- 1887.Magoja were derived from
lined trousers, leather tion-wide adoption of the Ko- the magwae he wore in exile
trousers, silk pants, or rean type durumagi in 1895. because of the cold climate
cotton pants, depend- there. Owing to its warmth and
ing on style of dress, Po ease of wear, magoja became
sewing method, embroi- popular in Korea. It is also
dery and so on. called “deot jeogori” (literally
“an outer jeogori”) or magwae.

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Occasions

Hanbok is classified according to its purposes: everyday dress, ceremonial
dress, and special dress. Ceremonial dresses are worn on formal occa-
sions, including a child’s first birthday, a wedding, or a funeral. Special

dresses are made for shamans and officials.

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Hanbok was worn daily up un-

til just 100 years ago, it was orig-
inally designed to facilitate ease
of movement. But now, it is only
worn on festive occasions or spe-
cial anniversaries.It is a formal
dress and most Koreans keep a
hanbok for special times in their
life such as wedding, Chuseok
(Korean Thanksgiving), and Seoll-
nal (Korean New Year’s), Children
wear hanbok to celebrate their
first birthday etc. While the tra-
ditional hanbok was beautiful
in its own right, the design has
changed slowly over the gener-
ations. The core of hanbok is its
graceful shape and vibrant col-
ors, it is hard to think of hanbok
as everyday wear but it is slowly
being revolutionized through the
changing of fabrics, colors and
features, reflecting the desire of

people.

The color of hanbok symbolized social position
and marital status. Bright colors, for example, were
generally worn by children and girls, and muted hues
by middle aged men and women. Unmarried wom-
en often wore yellow jeogori and red chima while
matrons wore green and red, and women with sons
donned navy. The upper classes wore a variety of
colors. Contrastingly, commoners were required to
wear white, but dressed in shades of pale pink, light
green, gray and charcoal on special occasions.


Also, the status and position can be identified by the
material of the hanbok. The upper classes dressed in
hanbok of closely woven ramie cloth or other high
grade lightweight materials in warmer months and
of plain and patterned silks throughout the remain-
der of the year. Commoners, in contrast, were re-
stricted to cotton. Patterns were embroidered on
hanbok to represent the wishes of the wearer. Pe-
onies on a wedding dress, represented a wish for
honor and wealth. Lotus flowers symbolized a hope
for nobility, and bats and pomegranates showed the
desire for children. Dragons, phoenixes, cranes and
tigers were only for royalty and high-ranking offi-
cials.

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SOCIAL STATUS

“Especially from the Goryeo Dynasty, the hanbok started to determine differ-
ences in social status through the many types, components and their characteristics-
from people with the highest social status (kings), to those of the lowest social status
(slaves).Although the modern Hanbok does not express a person’s status or social po-
sition, Hanbok was an important element of distinguishment especially in the Goryeo

and Joseon Dynasties.”

CLOTHES

Hwarot or Hwal-Ot was Wonsam was a cere- Dangui or Tangwi Jeokui or Tseog-
the full dress for a prin- monial overcoat for a were minor cere- wi was arranged
cess and the daughter married woman in the monial robes for through the use of
of a king , formal dress Joseon dynasty.It was the queen, a prin- different colors as a
for the upper class, and mostly worn by royal- cess, or wife of a status symbol with-
bridal wear for ordi- ty, high-ranking court high ranking gov- in the royal family.
nary women during the ladies, and noblewom- ernment official The empress wore
Goryeo and Joseon dy- en and the colors and while it was worn purple-red colored
nasties. A woman usu- patterns represented during major cer- Jeokui, the queen
ally wore a scarlet-col- the various elements emonies among wore pink, and the
ored skirt and yellow or of the Korean class sys- the noble class in crown princess wore
green-colored Jeogori, tem. The empress wore the Joseon dynas- deep blue. “Jeok”
a traditional Korean yellow; the queen wore ty. The materials means pheasant,
jacket. Hwal-Ot was red; the crown princess used to make var- and so Jeokui often
worn over the Jeogori wore a purple-red color; ied depending on had depictions of
and skirt. A woman meanwhile a princess, the season, so up- pheasants embroi-
also wore her hair in a a king’s daughter by a per-class women dered onto it.

bun, with an ornamen- concubine, and a wom- wore thick in win-
tal hairpin and a cere- an of a noble family or ter while they wore
monial coronet. A long lower wore green.All the thinner layers in
ribbon was attached to upper social ranks usu- summer. Dang-Ui
the ornamental hairpin, ally had two colored came in many col-
the hairpin is known as stripes in each sleeve- ors.Ordinary wom-
Yongjam. In more re- but all women usually en wore Dang-Ui as
cent times, people wear completed their outfit part of their wed-
Hwal-Ot on their wed- with traditional Korean ding dress.

ding day shoes.

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Binyeo

Binyeo or Pinyeo was a traditional ornamental hairpin, and it had a different-shaped
tip again depending on social status.As a result, it was possible to determine the
social status of the person by looking at the binyeo. Women in the royal family
had dragon or phoenix-shaped Binyeo while ordinary women had trees or Japanese
apricot flowers.And Binyeo was a proof of marriage. Therefore, to a woman, Binyeo
was an expression of chastity and decency.

Accessories

N Daenggi
o
r Daenggi is a
i traditional Ko-
g rean ribbon
a made of cloth
e to tie and to
decorate braid-
Norigae was a typical tradi- ed hair.
tional accessory for women; it
was worn by all women regard- Danghye or
less of social ranks.However,
the social rank of the wearer Tanghye were
determined the different sizes
and materials of the norigae. shoes for mar-

ried women in

the Joseon dy-

nasty. Danghye

were decorat-

ed with trees

bearing grapes,

pomegranates,

chrysanthe-

mums, or pe-

onies: these

Danghye were symbols

of longevity.

18

“MODERN
TIME”

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Although hanbok is a traditional costume,
it has been re-popularized in modern fashion.
Contemporary brands, such as the Modern
Hanbok of the “Korean in Me” and Kim MeHee,
have incorporated traditional designs in their
upscale modern clothes. Modern hanbok has
been featured in international haute couture;
on the catwalk, in 2015 when Karl Lagerfield
dressed Korean models for Chanel, and during
Paris Fashion Week in photography by Phil Oh.
It has also been worn by international celebri-
ties, such as Britney Spears and Jessica Alba,
and athletes, such as tennis player Venus Wil-
liams and football player Hines Ward.

Hanbok is also popular among Asian-Amer-
ican celebrities, such as Lisa Ling and Miss Asia
2014, Eriko Lee Katayama. It has also made ap-
pearances on the red carpet, and was worn by
Sandra Oh at the SAG Awards, and by Sandra
Oh’s mother who made fashion history in 2018
for wearing a hanbok to the Emmy Awards.

The South Korean government has sup-
ported the resurgence of interest in hanbok
by sponsoring fashion designers. Domestical-
ly, hanbok has become trendy in street fash-
ion and music videos. It has been worn by the
prominent K-pop artists like Blackpink and BTS,
notably in their music videos for “How You Like
That” and “Idol.” As the hanbok continues to
modernize, opinions are divided on the rede-
signs.

“I can feel the attitude
toward hanbok has really

changed in five years”

“But this does not mean
that we are losing our
tradition. We are actual-
ly getting back in touch

with tradition.”

- Choi Ji-won -

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