Many people associate Ukrainian national clothing with an embroidered shirt, wide Cossack trousers, red boots, women's wreaths of bright flowers and multi-colored ribbons. Although all these elements are indeed characteristic of traditional clothing and are present in it, the Ukrainian national costume is much more complex and multifaceted. It combines the originality of Slavic culture, the exoticism of Eastern images, and the refined elegance inherent in European clothing. The main details of the national outfit were invented before the formation of Kievan Rus, over time it changed, and completed its formation by the 17th-18th centuries.
Characteristic features
Despite the fact that the main elements of national clothing are the same throughout Ukraine, differences are inherent in almost every region. The costume was influenced by the climatic and ethnic characteristics of the area, which is why there are nuances in the silhouette, cut, color scheme, and way of wearing.
The clothing of the central, south-eastern, northern and western regions differs significantly. It has some features of the outfits of neighboring countries - Russia, Belarus, Poland, Moldova. Despite this, the classic costume of the Ukrainian people is considered to be the one worn in the Middle Dnieper region - the historical, cultural center of Ukraine. The main features of the Ukrainian national costume can be described as follows:
- silhouette with smooth lines;
- contrasting color combinations, their symbolism;
- embroidery with original patterns or ornaments;
- bright shoes, accessories.
The main elements of the Ukrainian men's costume were and remain: a shirt (sorochka), trousers (sharovary), a belt (sash), light outerwear (svitka or zhupan), a fur hat with a shlyk, red leather boots (choboty). Women's costume consists of a shirt, skirt, belt, embroidered jacket, a flower wreath with ribbons for girls and a namitka for women, red boots.
Types of outfits
Ukrainian clothes, despite a certain complexity, are practical and comfortable. They consist of simple, but uniquely decorated details. It is because of the bright colors of fabrics, patterns, accessories that wardrobe items look elegant.
Female
In the past, unmarried girls wore an embroidered shirt with a skirt tied with a long, wide belt. The head was decorated with a red ribbon, which was woven into a braid. Ukrainian women's shirts were longer than men's, always decorated with embroidery along the neck, front, sleeves, and hem. They were often sewn from two parts, the lower one was made of thicker fabric. In cold weather, they put on a jacket or svitka, boots. Married women's clothing was more varied. A shirt was worn with a skirt, which could be of three types:
- derga - a variant for work, it was made from dark, coarse fabric, without decorations;
- spare - everyday clothing made of plain fabric, consisting of two parts;
- plakhta – a festive garment made of fine wool with an embroidered checkered pattern (in the old days it was made of silk or brocade).
An embroidered jacket was put on top of the shirt, and the women's heads had to be covered. The headdress of Ukrainian women was a scarf or a long strip of fabric tied in a certain way.
Male
It is interesting that the men's suit almost exactly copied the clothes of the Zaporozhian Cossacks. This becomes clear if we consider that the history of Ukraine in recent centuries is inextricably linked with them. The outfit consisted of a shirt, red or blue trousers, a long wide belt, leather boots. Outwardly, it did not differ much from the East Slavic Russian or Belarusian, had features of Eastern, Asian clothing. After all, historically it turned out that the culture of Ukraine was influenced by the Turkic peoples.
The collar, front, and cuffs of the men's Ukrainian shirt were also decorated with embroidery. The design of the top of this product was different. In the southern regions, the neck was trimmed with braid. In the central regions, shirts had a narrow stand-up collar, while in the western regions, they had a turn-down collar.
The shirt was never worn loose, but tucked into the trousers, which were tied with a belt. This piece of clothing had not only a practical meaning, but also a symbolic one - the belt was considered a talisman, it protected the body from physical and magical damage. It was wrapped around the waist in several layers, and the ends, decorated with tassels, were lowered down.
Children's
National Ukrainian clothing for children was no different from adult clothing. However, it was not as colorful and was made a little simpler. A girl's costume consisted of:
- A white shirt with simple but obligatory embroidery. It had a clasp or was tied at the neck with a ribbon.
- Skirts, which were often made shorter and fuller than in adult attire. They were made in different colors, but the patterns on the fabric were present.
- An apron that was the same color as the skirt or a different color.
- Accessories - a traditional wreath and beads.
- Neat, elegant shoes.
The Ukrainian costume for a boy consisted of a long-sleeved shirt with embroidered cuffs and collar, dark wide trousers, and a deep red belt. Shoes were ordinary, appropriate for the occasion.
Coloring and decor
The main colors of the Ukrainian national costume are white (shirt), red or blue (pants), red, black, brown (skirts). In addition, shades of the same colors were used, as well as green, gray, blue, and less often yellow. The difference in color is especially noticeable in embroidery.
Each region had a preference for certain tones, styles and embroidery techniques. For example, in Poltava and Chernigov regions, embroidery is single-color (white threads on light fabric), in central Ukraine – two-color (mostly red and black). In the western and southern regions, multi-color decoration was used (mostly a combination of red, green, and yellow shades).
In the old days, embroidery often played not only a decorative but also a social role – it could be used to determine a person’s status in society, their marital status. And for those who believed in magical powers, the embroidered shirt also served as a talisman designed to protect the owner from the influence of unkind people. The national costume is characterized by plant and geometric patterns. They were used to create various ornaments, also specific to each Ukrainian region.
Materials
Previously, natural fabrics were used to make national clothing: linen, hemp, wool. From such inexpensive, often homespun material, everyday items were sewn. Rich and noble people wore outfits made of Chinese silk, satin, velvet, brocade, decorated with gold and silver threads.
Nowadays, suits are made not only from natural materials, but also from synthetic ones. And the embroidery is even more lush and intricate than on classic versions of the outfit.
Modern traditional Ukrainian costumes look no less luxurious than those worn in past centuries. As for accessories, the variety is amazing: jewelry is made not only from semi-precious stones, glass, wood, as it was before, but also from modern materials. The main thing is that they resemble ethnic ones as much as possible and match the style of the costume.
Shoes and accessories
Previously, one of the footwear options was postoly. These are something like low boots made of a piece of leather. Unlike regular boots, they were not sewn together, but wrapped around the foot in a certain way, then tied with a rope for strength. In the northern and northeastern regions, they wore bast shoes, which were also tied crosswise to the foot.
Rawhide boots were popular footwear, although they were considered a luxury item. They were made with or without heels. Women wore light boots (shoes) in the summer.
National Ukrainian women's jewelry is no less famous than the vyshyvanka. It is a wreath of natural, and more often artificial flowers (poppy, peony, cornflowers, roses, lilies, mallow, chamomile, viburnum), multi-colored ribbons. Each flower or ribbon had its own meaning.
Ukrainian women's costume was not complete without beads - a very popular decoration. They were mostly voluminous, in several rows.
Previously, coral beads were considered an expensive gift for a girl, today it is red accessories that women wear most often. However, in addition to corals, any stones and coins were widely used. A man's suit was not decorated with anything except embroidery and a belt.
Ukrainian costume is a bright, distinctive garment that embodies the character and talent of the people, its interesting, rich history. That is why they treat it in a special way in the country. More and more people today express a desire to dress in national clothes for holidays, many have if not a whole suit, then at least an embroidered shirt.
Video
