Afghanistan Clothing Culture
Afghanistan’s traditional clothing has always been distinguished by its unique and beautiful designs and colors. During the reign of King Zahir Shah in the 1950s, Afghanistan’s fashion style was similar to that of the Western world, with women in the capital city of Kabul wearing short sleeve shirts and mini skirts. Men’s traditional clothing included a variety of coats, hats, and dresses.
One such garment was a warm lamb skin coat fully lined with lamb skin, even in the arms and cuffs, and adorned with embroidery on the body and sleeves. This coat, with its soft, long sheep or goat hair trim, was particularly suitable for the cold winters in Afghanistan’s mountainous regions.
“These coats were made to last for many years and had a vintage appearance. They were fully hand-stitched and adorned with a psychedelic pattern in purple and yellow silk thread on the front and back. They were particularly stylish when paired with a Qarakul hat, also made of lamb skin.
The Qarakul is a flat, distinctive hat traditionally worn by Afghan men. It was especially popular in the 1960s and 1970s, but has become more expensive due to a lack of investment in its production. Despite this, it is still commonly worn by some Afghans, including President Hamid Karzai.”
In Afghanistan, cotton and wool are the primary materials used in clothing. Silk is also used, but it is more expensive and is primarily used in clothing and crafts such as carpets or rugs. During the Taliban regime, women were required to wear a long dress with trousers, covered by a burqa (chadari) that extended from the head to the ankles.
The front of the burqa extends down to the knees, while the back extends to the ankles. During the Taliban regime, women were only allowed to wear black shoes and were forbidden from wearing white shoes because they are the same color as the Taliban flag. It was believed that by wearing white shoes, women were being disrespectful and stepping on the flag.
The traditional men’s clothing in Afghanistan is called a perahan tunban, which consists of a gold or silver embroidered waistcoat and paizar foot wear. This outfit, also known as a kamiz shalwar in some southern parts of Afghanistan, became more common during the Taliban regime when foreign styles of clothing such as suits, jeans, and pants were banned.
The Traditional Women Clothing in Afghanistan
The traditional women’s clothing in Afghanistan is known for its beautiful, handmade embroidery and design. It consists of a long cotton dress with a combination of different colors, matching trousers, a head scarf, a purse, and a pair of flat shoes called paizar.
Over the years, the style of traditional Afghan clothing has changed due to several decades of war and the influence of neighboring countries on the region. Currently, the most common clothing worn by women in Afghanistan is shirts with jeans, a Pakistani and Indian style dress and trousers called a panjabi, along with a matching head scarf.
These types of clothing are often worn at home and in family gatherings, but the attire of formal office or governmental employees may differ. Some women wear a dress shirt with a long ankle-length skirt and head covering at work, while others wear a black suit.
Women’s clothing for inside the house is typically a long knee-length dress with a white, black, or matching cotton trousers, which is worn in the summer. This is the foundation of Afghanistan’s clothing for women. In the northern areas, striped materials are used, often dyed red from madder or in shades of blue and brown. Loose sleeveless, hip-length jackets or full-length striped coats are worn for warmth.
The typical Afghanistan clothing for men
The traditional clothing for men in Afghanistan is the long knee-length dress with baggy trousers called a perahan tunban or kamiz shalwar. However, many people also wear jeans and suits. Men also wear a long-sleeved, calf-length coat called a chapan, which is typically made of silk and comes in striped colors such as green and black. A well-made chapan can be very expensive and is usually worn over the perahan tunban, and only wealthy or influential people can afford to wear it.
Men cover their heads with various types of hats, each with its own particular name such as a qarakul (made from lamb skin), pakool (made of wool), turban (made of silk or cotton), or regular caps, which are mostly available in white and black colors. The current footwear products in Afghanistan are mostly Chinese, with a small percentage of consumers using Western-made footwear products from the second-hand market. People normally wear flip-flops, sandals, and regular shoes in the summer and calf-length boots in the winter due to the large amounts of snow and mud on the ground.
In the southern part of the country, particularly in the Kandahar, Helmand, and Jalalabad provinces in the east, people have their own most common footwear, a black leather sandal called a chablee, which is a part of Afghanistan’s Pashton clothing. In the winter, people wear thick woolen, hand-knitted stockings with leather boots and warm hats due to the very cold weather.
Traditional Afghan kids clothes
The traditional Afghan children’s clothing is similar in style and design to adult clothing. For boys, it consists of a chest piece embroidered perahan tunban with a golden stitch embroidered waistcoat and a golden or silver stitch embroidered hat. However, perahan tunban, as well as t-shirts and pants, are mostly worn inside or outside the house. The traditional girls’ clothing is a smaller version of the women’s traditional clothing, known as a lebassay Afghani or Afghan dress, and comes with a small head scarf and shoes. Currently, the normal or informal children’s clothing consists of jeans and t-shirts or cotton pants with shirts for boys and a two-piece knee-length dress with trousers known as a panjabbi for girls.
The current clothing for men in Afghanistan, as shown in the news, is a mix of different types of clothing, including some interesting blends of western and Afghan styles. For people who cannot afford to buy new, custom-made clothes, there is a second-hand market called the bazzar-e-lilami, or second-hand clothing market, which sells clothes imported from Western countries.
Conclusion
Afghanistan has a diverse and unique clothing culture that has been influenced by its history, geography, and cultural interactions with neighboring countries. Traditional Afghan clothing for men and women often consists of long dresses and trousers, adorned with intricate embroidery and design. During the Taliban regime, women were required to wear a specific type of dress and head covering, while men were limited in the types of clothing they could wear. In recent years, there has been more flexibility in the clothing worn by Afghans, with a mix of traditional and western styles being accepted. Children’s clothing is often similar in style to adult clothing, with some variations for boys and girls. The availability of second-hand Western clothing has also influenced the clothing culture in Afghanistan.