The most interesting folklore

Chapter 12 The most interesting clothing culture (4)
Fu: Whichever it can be identified, the pattern in the shape of "Ya" is for the monarch and his ministers to help each other, seeing evil to improve, and turning evil to be good.

31. What is going on with "Red to Thirty and Green to Old"
There are clear requirements for the color of clothing in folk clothing, so no one wears the "green headscarf".Because green is a cheap color, the three dynasties of Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties designated it as the clothing color of prostitutes, actors and other low-level industries.Those who wear green headscarves in brothels and let their wives and daughters work as prostitutes are called "turtle slaves".Later, the society referred to those whose wives were raped as "green turbans", so green should not be used as the color of hats to avoid lowliness, uncleanness and filth.Traditional clothing colors are yellow, purple, and fragrant. "Yellow" is the color of the emperor's special clothing. The golden robes and dragon robes symbolize wealth and dignity.The folks also regard white and black as fierce colors. They wear black gauze and white mourning clothes for funerals, but they are not allowed to wear them at ordinary times.For bright colors such as red and green, the folks are based on age.Young women and children regard gorgeousness as their beauty, while married women regard dark colors as their beauty. It is called "red to thirty and green to old", and some say "red to thirty and green to forty".

32. What are the folk customs of drying clothes
"Underwear is not exposed to the sun" refers to the folk custom of drying clothes.Underwear, because it comes into contact with male and female sexual organs, is unclean and mysterious, so it cannot be exposed to the public outside. "Shi Shuo Xin Yu" records that in the old days, July [-]th was a day to dry clothes, and Ruan Xian took out his underpants to dry in the yard, and was criticized by people.Not only can underwear not be exposed to the sun, but it should not be placed in a conspicuous place in the house. "Notes" said that underwear should not be placed on the bedside for people to see, it should be hidden.So far, the folks still believe that if a woman's underwear and menstrual belt are exposed to the sun outside the house, it will attract evil and lead to a deformed fetus.

In terms of clothes-drying customs, the folks also pay attention to children’s and women’s clothes not being exposed at night, and they must be packed and brought into the house before sunset, otherwise they will be touched and irradiated by night stars, causing diseases and disasters.According to folklore, hanging children and women on high places while drying in the sun can cause children to be frightened and have nightmares, and women to have abnormal fetal positions and dystocia during pregnancy.

The folks also taboo women's clothes to dry in passing places, and taboo men to walk under women's underwear.Women's clothes are usually hung to dry next to the toilet.If you walk under a woman's clothes to dry, just like a man's clothes step over and trample on a woman, the man will be unlucky.

33. Did buttons replace belt knots from the Ming Dynasty?

There have been many new changes in the clothing of the Ming Dynasty, the most prominent feature is that the use of front buttons instead of knotted buttons for thousands of years is also a change, reflecting the progress of the times.Compared with Tang suits, Ming costumes lie in the obvious inversion of the proportions of the clothes and skirts. The tops are short and the bottoms are long, the tops are gradually lengthened, and the length of the exposed skirt is shortened.The collar has also changed from the opposite collar in the Song Dynasty to the round collar.

The clothes of ordinary people in the Ming Dynasty were either long or short, or shirts, or skirts, basically inheriting the old tradition, and the variety was very rich.In terms of clothing colors, ordinary wives and daughters can only use purple, green, pink and other colors, so as not to mix with official clothes, and working people are only allowed to wear brown.

Men in the Ming Dynasty wore their hair in a bun, wore loose clothes, stockings and shallow shoes.Men's clothing is represented by square scarves and round collars. The clothes worn by Confucian scholars are very similar to those worn by Peking opera scholars on the stage today.It is characterized by wide sleeves, soap (black) edge, blue round neck, and soap sash soft towel hanging belt.

Women's jackets in the Ming Dynasty had three collars and narrow sleeves, three feet in length, and two or three inches of exposed skirts.Skirt pleats are very popular, with fine pleats and large pleats.The pleated decoration is very particular.Women in the Ming Dynasty used to wear a back shirt or cloud shoulders over their skirts.

Another feature of Ming-style clothing is the pejia ornaments on the breastplate, which are very eye-catching and are made of gold, beads, jade and other materials.Among them, the ones hanging on the chest are called "falling collars"; the ones tied on the front are called "seven things";There is also a special kind of ornament, which is on a gold chain, and four small objects are connected by rings: tweezers, toothpicks, ear picks and knives, which are practical crystals for women's life.

34. What is Dingdai and Hualing
The concept of hierarchy in the Qing Dynasty was strict, and there were strict regulations on official clothing. Official positions were distinguished according to quality, quantity, and color, and abuse was absolutely prohibited.The so-called "top wear" refers to the top of the hat worn by officials. The top wear of each crystal is different.

[-]. Two crystals are divided into pure red and miscellaneous red.Three and four crystals are divided into bright blue and dark blue.Jinshi, Juren, and tribute students all wear gold tops, while students and supervisors wear silver tops.The specific things to wear are as follows:
The first crystal wears coral, the second crystal wears flower coral, the third rank wears sapphire or blue clear glass, the fourth rank wears green gold or blue nirvana glass, the five crystals wear crystal or white clear glass, and the six crystals wear giant clam or white nirvana glass , the seventh grade wears a plain golden dome, the eight crystals wears a flowered golden dome, and the nine crystals wears an engraved golden dome.

"Hua Ling" is a decoration on the hat bestowed by the emperor, and it is generally awarded to those who have military merits or those who have made special contributions to the court.Ling is divided into two types: blue Ling and Hualing.Lan Ling is a cuckoo feather, and Hua Ling is a peacock feather. It has one eye, two eyes, and three eyes.Officials with less than six crystals are only awarded to Lan Ling, and those with five crystals and above are awarded to single-eyed Hua Ling, double-eyed Hua Ling to senior officials, and three-eyed Hua Ling to princes, Baylor and other royal families and ministers with special merits.

35. Are mandarin jackets and vests the same thing?

In the Qing Dynasty, people like to wear a short jacket, that is, a mandarin jacket, outside the long robe or shirt.The mandarin jacket is shorter than the coat, and the length only reaches the waist. There are long-sleeved, short-sleeved, wide-sleeved and narrow-sleeved.There are big front, pipa front and double front.Flush cuffs, non-horseshoe cuffs.According to the season, mandarin jackets can be divided into two types: single type and clip type. The materials are not only silk, satin, cotton and other fabrics, but also fur.Large-breasted mandarin jacket refers to the skirt opening on the right, with a border of different colors around it, mostly for daily wear.The mandarin jacket with a pipa lapel refers to the shortage of the right lapel, which is similar to the gown without a lapel. It is also called a mandarin jacket with a lapel.The mandarin jacket made of fur, with the hair exposed on the outside, is called suede mandarin jacket, also called "end cover".The mandarin jacket was created in the Ming Dynasty. It is a double-breasted style and is worn when riding a horse. ．At the beginning of the Zhu Dynasty, it was only worn by soldiers of the Eight Banners. During the Kangxi period, it was only worn by rich and noble families. After Yongzheng, it was generally worn by the society. The mandarin jacket with large sleeves and double breasts can be used as a formal dress instead of a jacket. The color is mostly sky blue. Officials of all sizes often wear this Because of its long body and narrow sleeves, it is also called "long-sleeved mandarin jacket".

Vest is also called vest, waistcoat (a kind of sleeveless top).It can also be divided into double-breasted, big-breasted, missing-breasted and one-word-breasted.The one with a straight line on the front is called a one-word skirt or a military canopy, and it is also called "Batulu Kanshoulder" in Manchu, which means "warrior clothing" or "heroic clothing".Officials in the Qing Dynasty attached great importance to wearing this kind of vest, which was first made of leather and later made of brocade.In the early days, it was worn inside the outer robe, and later it was worn directly outside. Because it has thirteen buttons, it is commonly known as "Thirteen Taibao".There are single-layer ones and some with belt clips. Most of them are worn by princes and princesses. Later, they became popular among various officials. In the late Qing Dynasty, everyone wore them. They were short and only reached the waist.

36. How did the cheongsam evolve?

Cheongsam is a kind of women's clothing full of ethnic customs in my country, which evolved from the long gown of Manchu women.Because the Manchus are called "bannermen", they are called "cheongsam".In the Qing Dynasty, women's clothing can be described as the coexistence of Manchu and Han.In the early Qing Dynasty, Manchu women mainly wore long gowns, while Han women still wore tops and skirts as fashion; in the mid-Qing Dynasty, Manchu and Han had their own imitations; in the late Qing Dynasty, Manchus imitated the Han nationality, and even the "big half-flag dress" appeared. Han costumes were changed, and the palace robes were cut into short clothes", and the Han nationality imitated the Manchu costumes, and it became popular among some high-ranking officials and ladies at this time.

In the 20s, under the influence of Western clothing, the improved cheongsam gradually became popular among women.This kind of cheongsam was adopted by Han women after absorbing Western clothing styles and making continuous improvements.There are many styles of cheongsam, such as ruyi, pipa, slanted and double fronts; high collar, low collar and no collar; long sleeves, short sleeves and sleeveless cuffs; high slits, low slits Slits; there are also long cheongsam, short cheongsam, clip cheongsam, single cheongsam, etc.The improved cheongsam almost became the standard clothing for Chinese women in the 20s.

37. What is the origin of the black hat?
The black gauze cap was originally a common folk hat. The black gauze cap worn by officials originated in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, but as a part of the official "official uniform", it began in the Sui Dynasty, flourished in the Tang Dynasty, and added wings in the Song Dynasty. After the Ming Dynasty, Wushamao officially became synonymous with being an official.

As early as Emperor Cheng of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, all those who worked in the capital Jiankang (Nanjing) Palace wore a hat made of black gauze, which was called "black gauze hat".By the time of Emperor Song and Ming of the Southern and Northern Dynasties, this kind of hat was also spread among the people.As a result, the "black gauze hat" became a kind of casual hat often worn by the common people.

During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, all the officials and commoners of the emperor wore black gauze hats.However, in order to adapt to the hierarchical system of feudal society, the Sui Dynasty used the number of jade ornaments on the black gauze hat to show the size of the official position: nine pieces for the first grade, eight pieces for the second grade, seven pieces for the third grade, six pieces for the fourth grade, and five pieces for the five crystals. Jade blocks are not allowed below the sixth rank.

After Song Taizu Zhao Kuangyin ascended the throne, in order to prevent the courtiers from whispering to each other, he issued an edict to change the style of the black gauze hat: add a wing on both sides of the black gauze hat, so that as long as the head moves, the soft wings will flicker and vibrate. The emperor is condescending and can see clearly. And decorate different patterns on the black gauze hat to distinguish the level of the official position.

After the founding emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty established his capital in Nanjing, he made a regulation in the third year of Hongwu: All civil and military officials must wear black gauze hats, round-neck shirts and belts when they go to court and work.In addition, champions and Jinshi who have achieved fame but have not been awarded official positions can also wear black hats.Since then, the "black hat" has become a unique symbol of officials.

In the Qing Dynasty, the black gauze caps of officials were replaced by red tasseled caps, but people still use the "black gauze cap" as a symbol of officials.

(End of this chapter)