Lithuanian national costumes

1. Lithuanian national costumes

2. The term national costume refersto clothing unique to a nation and worn by its people on a daily basis or on special occasions, i.e., holidays or celebrations. Festive garments are usually more elegant, colorful and elaborate than ordinary clothes worn every day. In all nations, the attire of men varied from that of women,was made and decorated differentely. Lithuanian folk national costumes,those worn by the rural population, are extremely varied and homespun. The patterns are complex and the color combinations subtle. Lithuanian national costumes are classified according to geographic region: Samogitia, Highland, Kapsai, Dzūkija, Zanavykija.

3. Women‘s national costumes have more diversity than those of men. They incorporate more patterns, the colors are move varied, the weave, style and method of wear are estabilished by tradition. Of utmost importance is that married and unmarried women wear different headcoverings. People dressed one way for a wedding and another to go visiting or to church. National garments have never been a uniform, they were used for festive occasions, individual pieces were frequently changed creating new combinations and method of adornment.

4. The basic pieces of a woman‘s national costume consist of: a long patterned or stripes skirt, an apron, a shirt, a bodice in a smaller patter or striped to match the skirt; a headcovering and amber beads as neck ornaments. The legs are covered with patterned or striped stockings and shod with soft-sole leather, wooden or low-heeled black shoes.

5. Men‘s national costumes are also homespun festive garments. The basic pieces consist of: long striped, diagonally striped or checked trousers onto whose lower partion darker stripes or patterns have been woven. A wide sash is also worn with the vest,tied at the waist and to one side with the ends hanging to the knees. The shirt is made of thin white linen with long wide cuffed sleeves and an inverted collar. Apatterned sash or checked scarf is tied under the collar. The headcovering is a wide-brimmed straw hat. In certain regions of Lithuania men‘s attire is more colorful and patterned while in others more subdued and darker.

6. Boys‘ national costumes are similar to men‘s but they usually do not wear vests or jackets. Girls‘ garments are similar to women‘s. Young girls wear short schecked or patterned skirts and white aprons embroidered wih traditional motifs. The beads they wear are smaller, paliner and they usually do not tie sashes around their waists. Adolescent girls wear calf-length skirts. Girls wear small crowns with ribbons hanging down their back ir flower wreaths.

7. Women may wear amber beads (along with broches) as neck arnaments. National costumes should be worn with proper respect, decorum, pride and solemnity. He or she should not promenade with buttons undone and shirts hanging out or behave in a disorterly fashion for this casts a shadow on the entire Lithuanian nation.