Hanfu

Fashion designers in China have embraced the Christmas spirit this year, transforming the ancient Han dress into festive colors and styles.  Hanfu, or ethnic Han clothing, date back 4,000 years and typically features a sweeping robe depicting dragons or lotus flowers, a cross collar, wide sleeves and a sash.  But just as designers have done with the kimono in Japan, China’s Hanfu has been dramatically reworked too. Yet while many young people have welcomed putting a Christmas spin on the centuries-old attire, Hanfu traditionalists remain concerned at such innovations, said Tan Ningijng, the brand director of Guanzhi Weavings, one of China’s largest online Hanfu stores. Tan said traditionali

Across China, some young people are switching from jeans and T-shirts to long dresses, silky robes and black hats. They’re not cosplayers or period drama actors, but rather members of a booming movement to turn Hanfu, or ethnic Han clothing, into everyday wear. The so-called Hanfu movement has gained a large following among the ethnic Han Chinese group, which makes up more than 90% of the Chinese population. Supporters say Han people need traditional attires to celebrate their own ethnic identity, just like the kimono in Japan and the hanbok in Korea. Critics, however, have accused the movement of promoting Han supremacism and fuelling tensions between the country’s Han majority and ethnic m