National costume is a cultural, historical, folklore heritage of a certain people, passed down from generation to generation. The Armenian costume perfectly emphasizes the traditions and history of its people.
History of the Armenian folk costume
The history of Armenians as a nation begins in the 9th century BC. since the creation of the Urartian kingdom. This nation throughout its existence was constantly subjected to attacks by foreigners and persecution from the developed territories, and also experienced many difficult years of domination by foreign states. Wars of conquest interspersed with periods of peace, when culture and traditions flourished. Therefore, the costume of the Armenians has both elements for carrying weapons and details borrowed from the clothes of the peoples with whom they interacted (Persians, Tatar-Mongols, Byzantines, Iranians, Arabs, Greeks, Chinese). Moreover, during the war with the Persians, the Armenians were conditionally divided into Western and Eastern. This split later influenced the features of the national costume of both.
After a long historical path, undergoing many metamorphoses, the Armenian folk costume, the description of which willpresented to your attention in the article, retained its originality.
Women's suit
The female Armenian folk costume "taraz" traditionally consisted of a long shirt, bloomers, arkhaluka or a dress and an apron (not in all regions).
The shirt, or “khalav”, was white (in the west) or red (in the east), long, with side wedges and straight sleeves. The neck "halava" was round, the chest was opened with a longitudinal neckline, decorated with embroidery. Under the shirt, they wore underwear pants "pohan" of red color with an assembly at the bottom. Their open part was decorated with gold-tone embroidery. From above they put on "arkhaluk" - a long caftan of bright (green, red, purple) color. The cut of the archaluk provided for a clasp only at the waist, a beautiful neckline on the chest and cuts from the thigh on the sides, dividing its hem into three parts. "Gognots", or an apron, was worn by Armenian women of the western regions. In the eastern regions, it was not a mandatory attribute of the costume. The shirt and pants were sewn mainly from cotton. Arkhaluk could be silk, chintz or satin. The quality of the fabric depended on the financial security of the family.
During the holidays, Armenian women put on an elegant “mintana” dress on the arkhaluk. "Mintana" repeated the cut of the archaluk in silhouette, but there were no side slits on the dress. The sleeves of the dress with slits from the elbow to the wrist were edged with a beautiful thin braid with a button closure or a bracelet.
In the western regions, women's clothing was very diverse. Instead of arkhaluk, they wore a dress, the cut of whichprovided for side slits from the hip line, as well as flared sleeves. They called such a dress "antari" or "zpun". It was sewn from cotton and silk.
On top of the "antari" they put on a dress without side slits, called "juppa", "khrha", "khatifa" or "confused". All these varieties of dresses differed in cut and fabric. Their only feature was that “antari” sleeves were supposed to open from under the sleeves of the dress.
"Gognots" - an apron with a thin belt, containing elements of embroidery from bright braid. The words: “To good he alth” were embroidered on the belt. A wide belt or a scarf made of silk or wool replacing it was always tied over the arkhaluk or dress. We althy Armenian women wore gold and silver belts.
When leaving the house, a woman had to put on a veil covering her whole body. It was woven from fine woolen fabric. Young girls wore white veils, while older women chose blue shades.
In the cold, Armenian women kept warm with a long warm coat of red velvet trimmed with fox or marten fur.
Women's jewelry
Jewellery was not the last place in the image of the Armenian woman. Jewelry has been collected throughout life and passed down from generation to generation.
Jewelry was worn on various parts of the body: on the neck, on the chest, on the arms and legs, on the ears, on the temples and on the forehead. In some tribes, turquoise jewelry was inserted into the nose.
Headdresses of Armenian women
Headdresses of Western and Armenian womenEastern Armenia varied greatly. Eastern Armenian women wore a low hat made of cotton fabric soaked in paste. A ribbon with a floral or geometric ornament was placed on the cap in front. A ribbon with precious coins was tied under a cap on the forehead, and whiskey was decorated with balls or corals. A white scarf was tied on top, covering the back of the head, neck and part of the face. And on top they covered a green or red scarf.
Western Armenian women preferred to wear high wooden headbands - "seals" and "wards". The "cat" in the front was sheathed in velvet with pearl embroidery depicting the sky, stars and the sun. Amulets made of silver plates were sewn onto velvet. "Ward" differed only in embroidery depicting the Garden of Eden, birds and flowers. On the sides of the "vard" one large button was attached, ribbons with two rows of gold coins were put on the forehead, the largest coin flaunted in the center. The temporal part was decorated with strings of pearls. "Ward" was worn on top of a red cap with a tassel.
Unmarried girls braided a lot of braids mixed with woolen threads, which gave volume to their hair. The pigtails were decorated with balls and tassels. The head was covered in the eastern part with a scarf, and in the western part with a felt hat without a tassel.
Men's folk costume
The set of the national men's costume of Eastern Armenians included a shirt, bloomers, arkhaluk and "chuha".
"Shapik" is a shirt made of cotton or silk, with a low collar, with a fastener on the side. Then the Armenians put onwide trousers "shalvar" made of blue cotton or woolen fabric. At the waist, a braid with tassels at the ends was inserted into the “shalvar” seam. On top of the "shapika" and "shalvar" they wore "arkhaluk". Archaluk made of cotton or silk was fastened with hooks or small buttons, starting from the stand-up collar and ending with the hem to the knees. Then a “chukha” (Circassian) was put on the “arkhaluk”. The Circassian coat was longer than the “arkhaluk”, was sewn from woolen fabric and was always put on by a man when leaving the house. The cut of the Circassian suggested long folding sleeves and a hem gathered at the waist. They girded the “chukha” with a leather or inlaid silver belt. In winter, men wore long sheepskin coats.
Wardrobe of Armenians in the western regions was somewhat different from their eastern neighbors. The male Armenian folk costume here consisted of a shirt, trousers, a caftan and a jacket.
In the western regions, the fabric for the shirt, along with cotton and silk, was woven from goat hair. Vartik bloomers were narrowed at the bottom and wrapped in fabric. Instead of an arkhaluk, a “Yelek” caftan was put on over the shirt, and an upper one-piece “bachkon” jacket was worn over it. "Bachkon" was tied up in several layers at the waist with a wide fabric scarf. Weapons, money, tobacco were stored in layers of fabric. In the cold season, they kept warm with goat fur sleeveless jackets.
Armenian headdress
Men wore a variety of hats made of fur, wool or cloth. Astrakhan hats dominated in eastern Armenia. Some representatives of the people wore hats in the form of a cone with red silktip. In the west, hats knitted from monophonic or multi-colored (with a predominance of red) wool were worn in the form of a hemisphere. A scarf twisted with a plait was tied on top of such hats.
Shoes
The most common type of shoes among Armenians, both men and women, were bast shoes “three” made of cattle skin. Three were distinguished by pointed noses and long laces encircling the shin to the knee. An important element of the costume were socks. They were knitted both plain and colored. Gulpa women's socks were an integral part of the traditional Armenian costume. Their history began from the beginning of the existence of the Urartian kingdom and continued until the middle of the 20th century. Socks were even part of the bride's dowry. Men's "legs" or "windings" were also knitted from colored wool or sewn from fabric. They were worn over socks and laced up.
Women wore pointy-toe mules with small heels as their day-off shoes. They were made of leather, the sole was hard. This kind of shoes were represented by many models. In any case, a woman had to wear socks under her shoes in order to maintain the boundaries of decency.
The Three were more common in the countryside, while in the city men wore black leather boots and women wore leather shoes.
Shoes in the western part were slightly different. Here, men and women wore pointed solera shoes, on the heels of which a horseshoe was nailed. Women's shoes were yellow, green, red, men - red and black. Flat-soled boots were also popular.who wore mules with heels. Men, in addition to shoes, wore boots made of red leather.
Colors in the Armenian national costume
The Armenian folk costume, the photo of which you see in the article, is distinguished by its brightness and color saturation. In men, the color palette is more restrained than in women, dark or white shades predominate. Eastern Armenians have more diverse colors in clothes than Western ones.
Women's clothing is mainly represented by two colors: red and green. Each color is a specific symbol. From time immemorial, red has been considered the color of prosperity, love and fertility. Green color identified spring, prosperity and youth. The wedding dress of an Armenian woman combined both of these colors. Red was the symbol of marriage, so a married woman wore a red apron. Older women wore blue. Blue color meant old age, death. For Armenians, it was known as the color of mourning. And at the same time, it was famous for its healing power from the evil eye and damage. The blue color was used for conspiracies by local magicians.
Black color was associated with evil spirits. Black clothes were worn during the days of mourning. Young women were allowed to wear black mourning clothes only after the death of their husband. In other cases, it was considered dangerous because of the fear of losing the reproductive function. The white color, on the contrary, was especially revered, considering it blessed. A white robe, for example, accompanied the baptism of an infant and the funeral of the deceased.
Armenians avoided yellow, considering it a coloraging, ailments, associated it with the yellow color of bile.
Ornaments in the national costume of Armenians
The ornamental coloring of Armenian clothes is not only the embodiment of cultural values, but also a kind of story about the history of the people, about the beauty of the region in which this people lives, about what they live and do.
Historically, ornamental symbolism had, first of all, a magical orientation. Ornaments and patterns were located around the open areas of the body (neck, arms, legs), as if protecting their owner from evil spirits. Belts, aprons, bibs, socks had the same meaning. Armenian craftswomen used various techniques for applying ornaments: embroidery, appliqués, knitting, heels. The materials were also varied: beads, buttons, beads, various quality threads (including gold and silver) and, surprisingly, fish scales.
Ornaments on the Armenian folk costume were applied on one of the following topics:
- flora;
- fauna;
- geometric shapes.
Also depicted drawings depicting buildings, in particular the church.
Floral ornament
Trees, twigs, leaves were most often embroidered from vegetation. Trees were an object of worship among the Armenians, as they were considered a symbol of fertility, motherhood. Wavy lines, meaning branches, were applied to the border of aprons, and this symbolized the immortality of the spirit.
Images of flowers were applied to the clothes of innocent girls as a sign of purity and youth.
Almond-shaped patterns were often included in the ornament, which, according to popular beliefs, protected from evil people.
Images of the animal world
From the world of fauna you can see images of snakes, roosters, artiodactyl horns. Horns meant fertility, we alth. Snakes were depicted not only on clothes, but also on weapons, household items, and jewelry. The snake was a symbol of prosperity, family happiness.
The rooster was especially revered by the Armenians and was rather the patron of the bride and groom at the wedding. Rooster feathers were present in the wedding headdress of a man.
Geometric patterns
Geometric patterns were dominated by circles, squares, rhombuses, triangles and crosses. All figures carried a certain interpretation. The circle, similar to an egg, a fetus, symbolized life, performed a protective function.
The square was also known as a talisman. His image carried a deep semantic load. The four sides can be compared with the fundamental concepts associated with the four - cardinal points, seasons in a year, the number of elements. The intersection of horizontal (female lines) and vertical lines (male lines) carry the designation of fertilization. Therefore, the cross and square symbolize fertility. Rhombuses and triangles were applied mainly to women's clothing. They symbolized the masculine (the apex of the triangle is directed upwards) and the feminine (the apex of the triangle is directed downwards). The rhombus meant their merging into a single whole, which also meantfertility.
How to draw an Armenian folk costume?
Drawing any folk costume is quite difficult. Armenian, due to the presence of complex ornaments, many details, is a hundred times more difficult. But it’s worth a try, because the result will be a drawing that reveals all the splendor of the outfit. You need to carefully and carefully go through several stages:
- Make a sketch indicating all the main elements of the costume, respecting the proportions.
- Draw all the details of the costume, including the little things.
- It is necessary to show curves, waves, chiaroscuro in the figure.
- Draw patterns, ornaments and decorations.
- The coloring of the Armenian folk costume should be carried out after studying the combination of national colors.
The pattern is ready.
To get to know the multifaceted world of the great Armenian culture, it is enough to study all the smallest details of the national costume of this people. Each element will answer many questions. Beauty, love for life, for the motherland, a sea of positive energy and, of course, the courage and unity of the people are intertwined in the Armenian folk costume.
