Traditional costumes of Greece, Italy and Portugal

Kyriaki Gaitanidou

GreeceThe costumes of Greece are a beautiful part of a very rich cultural history. This is just a brief overview of the subject and will include only a few representative examples of some of the costumes that were worn traditionally by the Greek people.

Greece – characteristics of costumes

• Greek folk costumes can be traced back to elements in ancient Hellenic and Byzantine costumes.

• the costumes of the mainland and of the islands are different. Furthermore, the costumes of each area tend to have several elements in common.

• All Greek costumes share similar materials, construction, parts, and designs, but the costumes in the local regions share other individual characteristics which are often very different from those of the costumes of other regions.

Greece – characteristics of costumes• we can identify costumes as being from Epiros, or

Mesogeia, or Makedonia; however, we can further narrow the identification of costumes to smaller areas within these broader geographical and cultural areas.

• We can even identify a costume's village based on individual features such as the shape of a costume part, or the colors or the embroidery designs used.

Greece- women’s costumes• One generalization about the Women's costumes concerns

the main parts of their traditional dress. Most of the mainland costumes in particular feature a cotten chemise (poukamiso) as the basic garment. On the body, over the chemise, there is a sleeveless vest which is usually made of wool. These may be short or long. Sometimes they are of homespun wool, but in some areas they are made from finer factory woven wools. They are sometimes black, sometimes white. Sometimes in urban areas, they are made from velvet. Other important elements of the women's costumes are various types of aprons, sashes, and head coverings. The head coverings are usually large scarves of various materials and colors. They are often decorated with block printing or embroidery. Materials and colors often vary, as do the local names of all of these costume elements.

Greece- women’s costumes

These parts may include: • 1) a long chemise, the Poukamiso;

2) a sleeveless vest, the Segouni; 3) an apron, the Bodia;4) a sash, the Zonari;5) a scarf, the Mandili;6) shoes or other foot coverings, the Tsarouhia;7) various decorative jewelry decorates the chest, head covering, neck, and/or other areas

Greece- men’s costumes• Some generalizations about the Men's costumes also hold true. There

are two main types of costumes found on the mainland. The most popular (especially since the War for Independence of 1821) has been the Foustanella and its variations. Variations of this costume for men with the distinctive skirt or kilt exist in all regions of the mainland. Sometimes the kilt is connected to an upper part to help hold it up, while in other areas the skirts are worn as a separate part around the waist. There are also variations in color, style, and decoration. Another type of Men's costumes features some sort of baggy or full cut trousers in place of the skirt or kilt. Sometimes these are present as a variant type of costume in place of the foustanella in a given region or village. An example of this is the men's trouser variation that coexists with the skirt type costume in Metsovon. On the islands, however, the very full cut Vraha which reaches to just below the knees takes the place of the skirts or kilts of the mainland Greek.

Once again, we can make some generalizations about the main parts of the traditional dress of the men. Materials, cut, and colors, often vary.

Greece- men’s costumes

We most often find these elements in the men's costumes:• 1) a shirt, the Poukamiso;

2) a vest, the Yeleko or Meindani;3) a skirt or kilt, the Foustanella;4) leg coverings, the Kaltses;5) leg garters, the Gonatares;6) a sash, the Zonari;7) a hat, the Fesi, or Koukos;8) shoes or other foot coverings, the Tsarouhia;9) various decorative belts or jewelry often decorate the chest or other areas

Video

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLFVcgkw9xo&feature=player_detailpage

Italy• One notable traditional Italian fabric is a

waterproof type of wool called orbace.

• The women wear colorful embroidered skirts and bodices over light-weight chemises or blouses, with elaborate hats decorated with flowers or fruit. Men's traditional clothing tends to be simpler, but doesn't lack from attention to detail, with embroidery and metal buttons and pins. These costumes evolved from simpler peasant dress in the Middle Ages.

Women’s costumes• Peasant women wore hats that covered the head with a

square, flat section that curved or angled down to cover the back of the head and the neck. The flat top helped the women carry baskets to market. This style eventually evolved into hats with artificial flowers or fruits worn by upper class women, mimicking a peasant carrying a basket on her head.

• The clothes worn by wealthy Italian women looked like peasant garb, but they used richer fabrics like silk and velvet. The rich also had access to colorful dyes, so the color palette varied more widely. Upper-class Italian women also tended to wear more jewelry than peasants

• For special festivals even peasant women had beautiful dresses and bodices. These were dyed in bright colors, hand-crafted with detailed embroidery and sometimes used better fabrics. The dresses were passed from mothers to daughters for generations. Because many of the special events the dresses were worn for were harvest festivals, food and nature themes are prevalent in the design. Later, the Catholic Church co-opted these celebrations and turned them into saints' days, so Christian themes appear often as well.

Women’s costumes

• Traditional men´s costumes were less elaborate. Usually consisting of tight pants tucked inside long boots. Obviously, white trousers dirtied easily and were, in the past, difficult to clean, so white pants were worn only on special days when farmers did not work, or worn by more affluent men who did not work on the land. They also wore a shirt with a tight waistcoat, often a vest or a jacket and a hat. The shape of the hat depended on the region. In the North people wore harder, more rigid hats, whereas, in the South, people wore a softer one such as a berretta.

men’s costumes

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRersmDsH1Y&feature=player_detailpage

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Video

• Bright and vivid colors are a peculiar feature of Portuguese national clothes. Women prefer bouffantlong skirts made of striped or checkered fabrics (known as saia), while men - shortened leggings (calsas), waistcoats and sombreros. Kerchief is an obligatory part of the national costume of the Portuguese women. Moreover, the national

clothing style might vary regionally: from the rich and colorful costumes in Minho to the shy dresses and black kerchiefs in Coimbra.

Portugal

• The cultural heritage of Portugal is a blend of complex civilizations as the country possesses a very long history. The Portuguese people are very well-known for the festive and cultural celebrations and participations in carnivals, art performances, music and dances.

• Traditional dress of Portugal is truly a gift of centuries old civilization and in every region; you’ll find slight variations in the traditional costumes. For men, the traditional dress may commonly include berets, stocking caps, baggy shirts and trousers while for women, long dresses, skirts, scarves and shawls may be the traditional stuff.

Portugal

• The typical traditional Portuguese woman with puffy skirt and kerchief along with loose and white blouse. She’ll love to wear such skirt with lace-trimmed neckline and cuffs with several petticoats. This skirt is normally

made of heavy wool or linen. If of wool, it has a background color of either red or blue/green, with narrow stripes of other colors widely spaced.

Women’s costumes

Women’s costumes

Headscarf is also a particular choice of a Portuguese woman. In winter, the women also use dark-colored shawls. Colorful embroidery and magnificent patterns on the bodice are significant factors in the traditional outfits of Portuguese women.

• The traditional red outfits are generally considered to be worn by younger women. The blue or green versions are worn in times of semi-mourning or other sadness, such as the absence of a loved one, and by older women. Some women still wear the black-mourning dresses in memory of their loved-ones for a period of two years.

It is also normal to wear gloves  that are made of fine cloth or leather.

Women’s costumes

• The lavradeira folk costume of Portugal is typically associated with the Portuguese culture and people. Viana do Castelo in Portugal is known for the traditional NossaSenhora da Agonia festivals where the women normally dress up in the colorful lavradeira dresses. Elaborate embroidery and gold necklaces are particular features of these dresses.

Women’s costumes

Women’s costumes• The traditional Filigree or filigree ornaments

are so popular among the Portuguese women. These ornaments usually consist of gold and silver jewelry prepared with spectacular and delicate art-work. This art may include in sophisticated curling, twisting and plaiting fine pliable threads of metal, and uniting them at their points of contact with each other, and with the ground, by means of flux such as borax, by the help of the blowpipe.

• The Portuguese men traditionally wear dresses including white and collarless shirts along with jackets and adorned waistcoats. The closing at the top of the shirt is decorative with double collar links. The front of the shirt is often decorated with pleats or lace.

The Portuguese jacket is like a tailcoat that has

been cropped at the waist, with vertical pockets

and a row of buttons on the sleeves.

men’s costumes

men’s costumes

The waistcoat is normally having a V-neck that allows the shirt to be seen. The trousers are normally black and normally are cut straight, without cuffs, and end just above the ankle. The Portuguese men also prefer to wear the wide-brimmed and flat-topped black hats.

• One should not forget that the traditional Portuguese riding outfit is also important part of the country’s heritage which is also known as TrajePortuguês de Equitação. It is thought that the Portuguese started to wear the dress in the late 19th and early 20th centuries as formal attire. old civilization.

men’s costumes

men’s costumes• The dress is even worn by the Portuguese

men and women during horse races, fairs and other major festivities. Nowadays on the spots of tourist attraction many locals fascinate the foreigners by wearing traditional dress of Portugal which is a gift of centuries

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FoksxMZveWo&feature=player_detailpage

Video