I’m not being that productive nowadays, partly because I’m only watching a drama right now and my internet connection is still merciless to give me opportunity to watch even that single drama. With that reason, I am currently watching the dramas that I’ve watched before (only bits, I skipped some parts that annoyed me). I came across some periodic or historical Kdramas, which is also known as sageuk, and I’m thinking, “How about searching for some info about the clothing?” The colorful hanboks always make the actors and actresses look better, so why not gain some knowledge about them, even only by knowing their names? It doesn’t hurt anybody, I think. And another reason : because I miss the actors and actresses in hanboks.
Before that, still recognize them?
The gisaeng-turned-fighter, and
the fighter-turned-gisaeng?
Let’s start our lesson!^^
Basically, traditional Korean clothing is known as hanbok. The term is used generally to describe the outfit for both men and women, so don’t get confused! What makes the difference between them is the parts of the hanbok.
For women, hanbok consists of two main parts: jeogori (저고리):the blouse-like top part, and chima (치마): the skirt-like bottom part. The fabric and colors used to make jeogori and chima depend on the status of the person wearing it. The royalties, court figures, and upper class people (yangban) use expensive materials such as silk and satin with bright colors like blue, red, green, and yellow. The middle-class and lower-class people always use cheap and durable fabric that can be worn for a long time like ramie, hemp, and cotton with light earth colors, for instance, brown, light blue, and green.
Hyo-Eun dons a bright-colored hanbok, befitting her status as Minister of War’s daughter
Yoon-Hee wears a light blue jeogori and blue chima
As for the entertainers like gisaengs and dancers, they don bright-colored hanbok too, fitting their roles in society as people who attract others’ attentions. Gisaengs, for instance, wear hanbok made of silk and satin that enhance their beauty with the usage of pretty and high quality fabrics. The fabric used for a gisaeng’s jeogori is usually of translucent type such as gossamer silk, which gives off a sexier vibe, fitting a gisaeng’s identity. For the chima, one of a gisaeng’s usually made from silk material.
Jeon-Hyang donning a translucent crimson jeogori
Yoon-Bok with a translucent blue jeogori on while Hong-Do wears an ordinary brown (woman’s) jeogori
Yoon-Bok wearing a crimson jeogori during her disguise as a gisaeng (again)
A norigae (노리개), a common, pendant-like ornament is tied to the jeogori’s string or waist of the chima to give a luxurious look to the whole outfit.
Jeon-Hyang having a butterfly-shaped norigae tied to her jeogori
Jangot (장옷) is a clothing used by women as veil to cover their faces. It is almost the same as jeogori and durumagi, but it is longer and it has collar. It is worn over the head, covering the head, body, and face.
Yoon-Hee with a green jangot around her body and head
Another type of veil, known as sseugae chima, is made like a chima, but it is used as a veil to cover women’s face.
Yoon-Hee wearing a sseugae chima to hide from Seon-Joon
Jeon-Hyang is helping her maid wearing sseugae chima
As for men, they also have jeogori as a part of their hanbok. However, the jeogori for men are usually longer than women’s jeogori. They wear it with baji (바지), a type of traditional Korean pants. Sometimes, baji is also used as undergarment clothing for women. Both jeogori and baji are usually of made of same fabric of light colors, such as light blue or white.
Lee Sun-Joon wears white jeogori and baji
Most of the time, men wear another layer of clothing on top of them, which is generally known as durumagi (두루마기), or an overcoat. It was commonly used by upper class men for housecoat but only used by commoners as an outdoor cloth. Women also wear durumagi for special occasions.
Yoon-Hee and Sun-Joon wearing durumagi inside the house while Sun-Joon is looking quite scary here^^;
There’s another type of overcoat in hanbok, known as po (포). It is worn by scholars as their daily garment and government officers when they’re out for private business.
Yoon-Hee and a bunch of other scholars behind her are wearing po
Some men also wear baeja (배자) or magoja (마고자) on top of their jeogori. Baeja is a sleeveless outer jacket or vest worn on their own while magoja is an outer jacket with long sleeves worn with a thin vest inside called jokki (조끼).
Dol-Yi with an orange baeja on
For children, they have special hanbok for them. For boys, a type of po called sagyusam (사규삼) is worn on top of jeogori. It is usually paired with hogeon (호건), a headdress made of black fabric with golden embroidery on it while for girls, saekdongot (색동옷), a type of overcoat with patches of multi-colored fabric sewn together, is worn along with batssi daenggi on the hair.
The young princes are wearing sagyusam and hogeon; Shin in red and Yul in green
Little Geom is wearing maroon hogeon while little Eun-Chae is wearing saekdongot and baetssi daenggi
Now, moving on to the endless type of hats, headgears, and accessories.
Most of the sageuks that I’ve watched before this must have featured at least one of the women wearing heaps of her hair on her head. I remembered those silly old days of mine where I tried to imitate that hair and hanbok using towel and blanket. Hum. As for women, the accessories worn by them depends on their hairstyles.
The most common hairstyle in Kdramas, known as ‘Daenggi Meori’ (댕기 머리), is a style where the hair is made into single braid and a large ribbon, known as daenggi (댕기), is attached to the end of the braid, thus earning the style its name. Only unmarried women wear this kind of hairstyle. Besides daenggi, another additional accessory, known as baetssi daenggi (배씨 댕기), is also worn on top of the head. Baetssi daenggi can be made of thin, cloth-like material or soft material like cotton stuffed into colored cloth.
Hyo-Eun wears red daenggi and baetssi daenggi
Eun-Hye with another type of baetssi daenggi on
For married women, they have another hairstyle, known as ‘Jjeokjin Meori’ (쪽진 머리), where the hair is brought to the back and tied into a bun behind the neck. A pin, known as binyeo (비녀), is used to hold and fasten the bun in its position. The design of binyeo reflects the social status of the person wearing it. The length also varies, depending on its function: whether for a pin or for decoration purpose. Some smaller pins called dwikkoji (뒤꽂이) are sometimes pinned on the bun. Both binyeo and dwikkoji also have another function: serving as an an earpick (..oh). Also, people of the palace, such as royalties and court ladies wear another accessory, known as cheopji (첩지), on their head. Cheopji, unlike baetssi daenggi, is made of metals in the shape of dragon, peacock, phoenix, duck, bird, frog, or flowers. Some shapes of cheopji are restricted according to the rank, for instance, dragon for the queens and phoenix for the princesses.
Wol-Hee wearing a binyeo made of wood
Queen Min wearing a gold binyeo, a yellow dwikkoji, and dragon-shaped cheopji
Sometimes, the married women also tie their hair into a bun and bring it to the top of their head. This style, ‘Eonjun Meori’ (얹은 머리), is quite popular too. Just like what in sageuks, wigs, known as gache (가체), is used to make the bun fuller and more impressive. At first, real hair was used, but there was death recorded due to too much weight of the wigs, so it was switched to false hair. Binyeo, combs, and pins are used to decorate the gache. Because gache was so expensive, not many women could afford it, and this style were more popular among gisaeng. When they went out, they donned jeonmo (전모), a hat made of bamboo and paper, or cloth.
Jeon-Hyang wears gache decorated with hair pins and ribbon
Cho-Sun with her gache and her pretty jeonmo
For queens, king’s wives, and queen mothers, they use ‘Eoyeo Meori’ (어여머리) hairstyle, also known as royal hairstyle. Consisting of false hair, it is made into a thick braid and secured on top of the head, with the original hair showing in front of the false one. The braid is decorated with ribbon and a pair of tteoljam (떨잠), round-shaped ornaments with fluttering metals. The ornaments depict the person’s rank and position.In special ocassions, high-ranking court ladies also wear this hairstyle.
Queen Mother with the braid and tteoljam
Queen Soheon with the eoyeo meori style, together with tteoljam and binyeo
Finally, ‘Keun Meori’ (큰머리) : a hairstyle that can only be seen worn by people of the palace. It is the same as Eoyeo Meori, but it has an additional part called tteoguji (떠구지) that is added for emphasis. Originally, it is also made of human hair, but because of its weight (again), it is replaced with wood, carved and painted black to match the hair.
Chae-Kyung wearing the braid, tteoljam, and tteolguji for her first night ritual
Lee Seol acting as a princess, dressed completely with braid, tteoljam, and tteolguji
When winter comes, women usually wear a variety of caps to keep their head warm. There are a variety of such caps, such as pungcha, ayam (아얌), jobawi (조바위), and nambawi (남바위). They differ in length and size. Some are lined with fur and decorated with ornaments and gemstones such as jade and amber.
Dong-Nyeo wearing nambawi without fur lining
Gwi-Dong with another version of nambawi, lined with fur but without any gems
In-Kyung the widow is wearing a jobawi
Geum-Ok wearing pungcha, covering the ears and neck.
As for men, they only have two hairstyles : whether to bring the hair to the top and tie it into a knot known as sangtu (상투), or let it loose down, like what the two Iljimaes and Moon Jae-Shin do. But men have many hats to be worn with their simple hairstyle.
Rugged hairstyle of Moon Jae-Shin
Gat (갓) is the generic term for the hat worn by the noblemen. The most common hat worn by men is made of horse hair and transparent black in color. Not only it protects the sangtu, it also represents the rank of the person wearing it. The black hat is known as heukrip (흑립) and worn by upper class men. For commoners, a hat made of bamboo, known as paeraengi (패랭이) is widely used.
Yong-Ha with a transparent black gat
Sun-Joon shooting an annoying glance at his gat
In-Soo wearing a heukrip
Chang-Hwi wearing a paerangi
Iljimae wearing a smaller size paerangi
Remember those long, colourful string of beads hanging from Yong-Ha and other noblemen’s gat? It is known as gatkkeun (갓끈) or hat strings and not everyone has the chance to wear it. It is only restricted to the noblemen and the men of lower class can only wear the gat.
Sometimes, men wear tanggeon (탕건), a type of hat under the gat. It can also be used indoor.
The bookstore owner with his tanggeon on his head
Underneath the gat and/or tanggeon,, the sangtu is held together using a pin called donggot, and to keep the hair from falling, a headband, manggeon (망건), is worn on the forehead.
Sun-Joon a.k.a Yoochun with sangtu and donggot
Yoon-Hee and Sun-Joon wearing manggeon on their foreheads
Thanks to Karen, I found out another thing. There are a pair of small buttons attached to the manggeon. Depending on the shape, the name varies. Gwanja (관자) have the shape of rings while pyungjam have the shape of half-moon. Both of them have similar purpose: they function as decorative ornaments as well as denoting the rank of the wearer.
In-Soo wearing gwanja
Yong-Ha and Moon Jae-Shin with gwanja, with Yong-Ha having them matching with his hanbok colour for fashion
Another common type of hat, satgat (삿갓), is a conical-shaped hat made of straw, is commonly used by farmers or monks, and mostly used as an undercover hat in sageuk. There’s another variation of satgat, called banggat (방갓).
Iljimae with a banggat
Kong-He, also wearing a satgat
For military personnel, they wear a special hat called beonggeoji (벙거지). Also known as jeonrip, it is styled according to the wearer’s rank.
Iljimae wearing a jeonrip during his escape
Another version of Iljimae is wearing beonggeoji during one of his disguise
Moo Hyul with a jeonrip decorated with beads, fitting his rank as Royal Chief Commander
For Confucian scholars, they wear bokgeon (복건), a headdress made of black fabric. It later evolves and is used as a headdress for boys.
Prof Jung and Prof Yoo both wear bokgeon
For noblemen, they often choose to wear jeongjagwan, another type of headdress. It is usually worn indoor and consists of several layers, whether double or triple and has pointed ends. It is also made from horsehair.
Minister of War is wearing jeongjagwan behind the veil
Finally, the clothes for special ceremony and/or restricted to people of the palace.
Hwarot (활옷) is reserved for princesses for ritual attire. It is also used by noble families as a topcoat for the bride during wedding ceremonies. It is worn along with hwagwan (화관), a traditional Korean coronet and ap daenggi, a type of daenggi which is worn in pairs and hanging from a long yongjam, a long hairpin which has a dragon head patterin on one of its end. Ap daenggi is hung in the front, while another type of daenggi called doturak daenggi, a wider silk with golden patterns, is hung from the coronet at the back. Daedae, a red colored sash made of silk with golden patterns is worn around the waist like a belt and tied at the back of the hwarot.
A hwarot hung inside Princess Kyung Hye’s quarters alongside some dangui and wonsam
Mi-ho looking over at a bride wearing a hwarot, hwagwan, and ap daenggi
Eon-Nyeon in a hwarot, with a jokduri and a pair of ap daenggi hanging from a yongjam
Wonsam (원삼) is another type of topcoat worn by royalties, high-ranking court ladies, and noble women during ceremonies. The colors and decorations of the wonsam determine the rank of the person wearing it. For commoners, wonsam is another choice for wedding topcoat as hwarot can be too expensive for some household. Jokduri (족두리), another type of coronet but less elaborate in terms of decorations compared to hwagwan, is usually donned with wonsam.
Chae-Kyung with a light green wonsam decorated with gold prints, daedae, and a jokduri
Court Lady Choi with a dark green wonsam
Hyang-Dan wearing a wonsam with less decoration and jokduri. The daedae and doturak daenggi at the back are quite visible here
Dangui (당의) is a type of upper garment, usually worn on top of jeogori. It is worn by queens, queen mothers, princesses, and court ladies. The difference between dangui of royalties and of court ladies is the golden pattern on it, called geumbak (금박), that can only be worn by royalties. Geumbak is also put on chima that is going to be worn with the dangui.
Chae-Kyung wearing a dark green dangui, with binyeo, dwikkoji, and cheopji
For government officers, their daily clothes when they are out doing their official tasks is generally called gwanbok. It differs according to various ranks and positions of the wearer. There is also another type of clothing, known as cheollik, worn by kings and officers. Both gwanbok and cheollik is worn with samo (사모), a type of Korean hat and gakdae (각대), a type of Korean belt. Gwanbok is also worn by commoners during their wedding ceremony.
Jalgeum Quartet in dark green gwanbok and samo
Hong-Do and Yoon-Bok showing off their blue gwanbok and gakdae
Special for kings, their daily garment is called hongryongpo, decorated with patterns of dragon in gold. It is worn along with ikseongwan, a type of headgear and gakdae.
The most handsome version of King Jeongjo in a red hongryongpo with ikseongwan and gakdae
King Sejong, also with a red hongryongpo, ikseongwan, and gakdae
For special ceremonies, the civil officers will wear an outfit, jobok with a headgear called yanggwan.
Chae-Kyung’s father wearing jobok and yanggwan during her wedding
In-Soo with a yanggwan during a praying ceremony at Sungkyunkwan
For very very special occasions such as ritual and formal ceremonies like wedding, daeryebok is worn together by the king, together with the special headdress, myonrugwan. The queen will wear an outfit, whether noeui or cheokui, with daesu, a type of headgear. Noeui was worn during Joseon Dynasty but later, during the Korean Empire, cheokui was made by revising the design of neoui.
King Jeongjo donning daeryebok with myonrugwan
Yeon-Woo donning the noeui and daesu for her wedding ceremony with Lee Hwon
Lee Shin and Chae-Kyung during their wedding ceremony. He wears the daeryebok and myonrugwan while she is wearing blue cheokui together with the heavy daesu
For those who have seen episode 17 of Tree with Deep Roots, there is a scene where Sejong presents his drink to the best student of gwageo, or royal government examination, while the student is wearing a hat with flowers branching out if it. The flowery hat is a special one called aisahwa, where it is a reward for the top scorer in the exam. The hanbok he’s wearing is called aengsam and it is worn by students when they are sitting for the royal government exam or for any official ceremonies of the government.
About the shoes and socks..ermm..it’s quite hard to capture it because it’s hidden under the hanbok and baji for most of the time. Luckily, my current addiction to sageuks makes me watch again Sungkyunkwan Scandal and I realize that it does have some beautiful shots of shoes. Now, let’s get to know them!
Beoseon (버선) is the general term for socks. They are worn by everyone regardless of the social statuses for protection and warmth. Beoseon are made from white cloth. Their shapes, types and sewing methods differ according to gender.
Jipsin (짚신) is a type of sandals made from straw. They are worn by commoners, servants, and people going for outing (usually scholars). As they are pretty durable and affordable, they are widely used and chosen as daily footwear.
Hye (혜) are low cut shoes, like loafers and flats that we have today. They are many variations of hye for men and women. Women’s shoes usually have pointed fronts while men’s shoes have blunt fronts. One of the women’s shoes, unhye (운혜), are made from silk and decorated with colorful silk in shapes of clouds. As they are quite pricey, they are only worn by yangban women. At special occasions like weddings, commoners are allowed to wear unhye.
Danghye (당혜) are another type women’s shoes made from leather. They are decorated with scroll decoration. They might look similar to the men’s taesahye, but danghye have pointed fronts and have more color variations.
Taesahye (태사혜) are men’s shoes. Made from animal skin with scroll decoration and lined with silk inside, only the yangban men could afford to buy taesahye.
Heukhye is another type of men’s shoes, probably the most common ones after jipsin. They are made from leather and fleece, most of the time black in color. Officials, scholars, and yangban men wear them as parts of their daily garments.
Hwa (화) – general term for boots. Made from leather or velvet, they are usually black in color. They are used by guards, government officers and court members together with their official garments. Sometimes, hwa made from more affordable animal skin are also worn by those who have an active lifestyle, such as people who travel a lot and swordsmen (Think Moon Jae-Shin, Lee Dae-Gil, Kang Chae-Yoon, or Yoon Pyung).
Lee Hwon’s hwa is a little bit unique: matching red color with his royal robe and gold patterns sewn on them.
With the footwear section somehow covered, the mini lesson of traditional Korean clothing is now over! Yeay! But that doesn’t mean I’ll just leave this post like this. I f I do encounter some new things about them, I’ll just update or put any additional parts in the entry. If you have any inquiries about this, just drop by and ask me. Although I’m not that knowledgeable about it (and I’m not a Korean either^^;), maybe I could help you to find what you’re curious about. Thanks for spending your time to read this lengthy post^^
For more details about the clothing and the ornaments:
- Moon, Sun, and Stars in Hanbok
- Joseon’s Court Attire: Kdrama Style
- Hanbok for Men: Kim Boong-Do’s Style
- Hanbok for Women: Lee Se-ryung’s Style
- Rings and Earrings: throughout the Dynasties
- A Guide to Joseon Hairstyles and Headgears
Image credit : me and various sites
the talking cupboard 
Thanks very much for the post!! It was so interesting to know about the many many details!! ^-^ I was sooo curious about all the clothes and accessories (save the shoes :P) but there’s zilch on wikipedia :C Komapsumnida ♥
The only question left is: why do all the women in the palace tuck their hands behind the dangui?? And are there different ways of sitting in a hanbok i.e. when speaking to your superiors vs. your subordinates?
Hemm..for the questions, I’m too not sure about it either :S
Here’s my view : for the hands thing, I think it symbolizes the shyness of women as they should not be showing inappropriate body parts to others, so they should cover everything, including their hands. It may also represent a sign of respect towards the royalties (if they’re they’re the court ladies) and willingness to keep secrets.
For the sitting positions, someone would always sit with one of his knees stood up and and put his hand on it if he’s talking to his underlings to show his power (and arrogance maybe), but if he’s talking to his superior, the person would would sit cross-legged or in position like kneeling and hold the head down to show respect.
That’s just my opinion, based on my observation from the sageuks 😀
what is the name of the red coloured ornament on the eo’ yeo meori?
I’m sorry, I tried to find something about but I couldn’t. huhu. but I think it’s a type of daenggi, or the ribbon tied to long hair. hope this helps.
What drama are the first few (or maybe all of?) screen caps from?? Also thank you for this blog, it’s really informative! : D
ohh..you’re welcome! although I’m going to update once or twice only per week due to my holiday, I’m glad you like this blog T^T
the screen caps? okay, let me see..
– the first two are from Sungkyunkwan Scandal & Return of Iljimae
– those with park min young, song joong ki , yoo ah in, kim min seo, seo hyo rim & yoochun are from Sungkyunkwan Scandal (one of my favorite dramas^^)
– those with bae soo bin, moon geun young & moon chae won are from Painter of the Wind
– those with yoon eun hye are from Princess Hours / Goong (my other favorite)
– jang geun suk (Hong Gil Dong), jung il woo (Return of Iljimae), lee jun ki (Iljimae)
– there are some from My Girlfriend is a Gumiho, The Tale of Hyang Dan, The Duo, My Princess (not a sageuk actually), & Jeon Woo Chi (film)
hope this can help you~ 😀
Thanks so much – I have been wondering, but I couldn’t find the right terms to search for. My quest right now is to figure out what the button thingies on the headbands in Sungkyunkwan scandal are for.
buttons? do you mean those on both sides or those that look like a jewel in front?
those one the sides – in front of the ears. They look purely functional, but I can’t figure out the function.
done, found it! it is known by gwanja if the shape is like a ring or pyungam if it’s in half moon shape. it serves as a decoration and also denotes the rank of the wearer. that’s why some of the noblemen wear jade, gold, silver, and other precious stones as their gwanja or pyungjam.
thanks for the info that helps a lot
Thank you so much for posting all of this! I was trying to look up more information on traditional Korean garments/hats and this really made everything so much simpler – especially with all of the pictures!
What a great post! It is so interesting, informative and lovely to look at with all the beautiful pics of each example. This must have taken you a long time to research and write! Thank you so much! It goes so far beyond the baji and chima, that I knew before I read this 🙂 This is my first visit to your blog, but it certainly will not be the last!
Awesome post! Thanks so much for this – this must have been a ton of work, but it’s so helpful and answers so many questions!
Wow, thank you very much! Very informative and CORRECT!
I applaud you in research and I love that you show images of it all and not just descriptions – it really helps. I learnt alot!
Just found your blog. Great post. I have a question, may I? After seeing KSH on TMTETS poster, ohmy MoonSun it is, I’ve been wondering about the belt on the king clothes or any formal high ranking male figure, actually it’s been bugging me for quite some time. I knew that in some other saeguk dramas those belts are also extra loose, so when I saw the King’s clothes in TWDR, it puts smile on my face, that’s a better one, way much better. I guess the extra loose one is more historically accurate isn’t it? That’s a good thing to consider, but just to tweak the outing is not so taboo right? Or maybe it is for MBC, well I think they should consider it. SJK looks awesome in it. Very nice screencaps btw.
hi! thanks for dropping by^^ don’t worry, I love every questions posted here as I can always learn something new from what people are curious about..
from what I found, the belt or dae (the generic term) differs according to the wearer’s rank. Kings will wear belts made from jade, while the officials will wear those made from bone etc. as for the length, it’s still a mystery as little is known about the details of the belt from the Joseon dynasty. I think they made the belt for props based on what they know, but still, they may alter it according to their own preferences. That depends on the broadcast station too, just like what you stated. But SBS once used a long belt too for King Jeongjo in Painter of the Wind^^
I have to say that MoonSun has pretty hanboks! Hoping that they won’t reuse those hanboks from Dong Yi and Yi San. I want to see something new ^^;
Thank you for the answer ::sigh:: still hope they go with the kind of “dae” in TWDR which I haven’t watched btw, just seeing the pictures everywhere.
How about the Three Kingdoms Hanbok, or is that an impossible thing to ask for? Especially compared and broken down by time period and company plus ranking with hairstyles… (I find mostly Shilla. I did find a rough break down for the Gaya version too.)
Also do you know when the satgat came to Korea? I can’t find the answer with American resources.
that’s indeed a good idea to work for! but then, there are many things that are almost the same, especially the parts of hanbok during Three Kingdoms period with Joseon’s hanbok. after all, it’s where Joseon inherited its style.
there aren’t that much source (in English especially) talking about Three Kingdoms’ style and there are not many arecords survived the time from those period, except for some (eg. Samguk Yusa, Silla’s crown and royal girdle), so I’m afraid it’ll take more time to do the background reading and reorganizing those information.
but their ornaments are beautiful and I love their accessories!^^
satgat or conical hats are quite popular in East Asia and some sources linked it with the Buddhist monks. As most of East Asia had Buddhism as their religion, I believe satgat came to Korea with the arrival of Buddhism there..around the 4th century.
Thanks for the answer on the satgat. I was hoping I could slide the hat in for my novel if I brought a man from China and made him look like a cool assassin ala Tree with Deep Roots, Iljimae, etc. (OK, I’m a sucker.) Set the novel first century though. Darn it. Can’t make him look cool with a shadowed face like in the sageuk and imagine cheesy dark music for him. Dol Bokiya~~
Yeah, I have the Samguk Yusa. Resources on Korean hanbok pre Joseon is difficult, but I’ve found the search kind of fun… because the set up was slightly different… and the crowns and stuff look like they are pretty–the hair was different too??? (rope braids?) I noticed less one gathered top knots, and more half up models. ( http://i669.photobucket.com/albums/vv54/0rch1d/misc/KimSuro1.jpg [the Indian clothes are inaccurate for the time period from my research.], http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-b2nMcWWSX-g/Ta8Ie7vnWpI/AAAAAAAABdc/Qx4LznE9aeI/s1600/queen-seon-deok-gallery-1.jpghttp://www.koreandrama.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/jumong9.jpg) Also on the headband there seems to be center jewelry for the princes.
The hanbok also is different men v. women. Less gat overall too. (Not a lot of hats going around at all.) Longer robes. The chima and chegori aren’t separate so much on the women? or is it there are more over coats? Bride of the Water God (Manhwa) has a bunch. I haven’t been able to get my hands on a Three Kingdoms hanbok. There also seems to be a large wide belt rather than ties at the chest on the royalty and then occasionally a rope belt over the top. http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_3VC02jleae4/TAIt4xXCYDI/AAAAAAAAE_w/a02MML5nh8w/s1600/201005281343361001_1.jpg [Gaya] Not true of Silla though. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/Korea-Gyeongju-Queen%27s_hanbok_during_the_Silla_kingdom-01.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/Korea-National.Folk.Museum-01.jpg
http://167.206.67.164/WebImages/FA_Images/hersced/shilla%20gold%20crown%202.jpg but some stunning Jewelry that imitates a stag’s horns…
Though, looking at the mudang clothes in the sageuk they don’t seem consistent during the samguk period.
LOL the assassins. don’t worry, they won’t look out of place even they’re walking around during the day, wearing fully black clothes with a satgat on and even though being the only one with such outfit amidst the white-clothes-loving-commoners, no one around them would dare to steal a look at him.
yes, the accessories are prettier than those during Joseon, maybe because during the Three Kingdoms period there are abundance of gold during that time and they put more emphasize on gold craft, producing more ornaments especially for the royals. those gold crowns with snail-shaped jade (known as gogok) might cause us a fortune nowadays..
that’s true…women preferred to tie their hair into rope-like, bulky braids behind and at the sides of their head (and managed to look so pretty, if what they depicted in the dramas were true) while the men preferred to let their hair down. it should be the other around logically, but they might loved men with pretty, long flowing hair. hihi. the men’s hairstyle were also brought into Joseon’s culture (according to the dramas-to be more detailed, from Chuno) but not that popular: men let some of their hair down before they got married, but after, they tied the hair into single topknot (sangtu).
about the hats and their cousins..I think hats made its entrance to Korea during Chinese Dynasties invasion, so not much hats could be seen around the kingdoms as they’re not invaded yet at that time. And for hanbok..they did have the basic patterns, and just like what you said, they wore one (or more) longer robe(s) on top of their jeogori and chima. the arms of the outer robe were also wider, calling for wider belt-like fabrics or simply belts used to hold the robe in its place..
since Korea inspired their clothes mostly from China, it might have started during the Three Kingdoms period and the Chinese Dynasties continued to influence dynasties of Korea. some of the attires were almost the same, but what made them different was the alterations and changes made by the Koreans in order to showcase their own identity 🙂
wow, if one could produce a post about how Chinese clothing were linked to Korean ones, that would be so amazing ^^; but it’s hard work! btw, love all the pictures you included..maybe I ought to put this into work..an introduction to Three Kingdoms’ hanbok 😉
another thing, mudang did have the freedom to wear anything she (most of the cases it’s women, right?) wanted to, as she had the power to cure etc. maybe that’s why there wasn’t any fixed styles for them..
ah, talking about these things made me really happy 🙂
hello^^
I’m not good at English sorryㅠㅠ…….
Goguryeo, Baekje, Shilla clothing similar to each other…
Goguryeo murals on the clothes are depicted and
Clothing for bringing so Baekje to Japan
Beginning Kimono is very similar to the initial Baekje hanbok
Drama Kig geunchogo’s not perfect, but it is the most historical research
By adding….
Koryo Dynasty had a very colorful hanbok The influence of Buddhism..
Buddhist painting can be found at..
Lift up the head circle, wearing a colorful decoration and Jewelry decoration fastened.. Also Black silk from head drawn on the floor and went
Fashion big wigs in the Chosun Dynasty
During the Chosun dynasty, forbade the luxury
영어를 엄청 싫어했어서 영어를 못해요 ㅠㅠ
위에 글은 번역기 써서 무슨 말인지 알아 보기 어려우실 꺼에요 ㅠ
위에 글을 한글로 쓰자면
삼국시대 한복은 삼국이 서로 비슷했어요.
고구려한복은 고구려고분벽화에 잘 나타나 있어요.
백제한복은 백제가 왜(일본)에 의복 만드는 기술을 전해 줘서
기모노와 백제옷이 아주 비슷해요.
완벽하지는 않지만 드라마 근초고왕이 그나마 가장 고증을 잘한 케이스에요.
가채 (가발)은 삼국시대부터 있었고 고구려고분벽화에 있는 그림이 가장
오래된 그림이에요. 하지만 드라마에 나오는 커다란 가발은 조선시대에
등장해요. 대신 이때는 화려한 장신구나 금으로 만든 왕관, 금모자등을 머리에 썼어요. 특히 신라가 가장 사치가 심했는데 신라에 왔던 이슬람상인이 강아지의
목줄도 금으로 만들었다고 일기에 기록을 남겼습니다.
추가로 고려시대는 불교의 영향으로 문화가 아주 화려했던 시대에요.
건물이나 의복이 가장 화려했던 시절이죠 이 시절 의복은 고려불화에서 확인할 수 있어요. 송나라의복의 영향을 받았고 화려한 수나 그림이 그려진 비단을 여러겹 겹쳐서 입었습니다. 머리모양은 동그랗게 위로 올리고 리본장식과 보석으로 만든 화려한 장신구로 장식하고 때로는 긴 검은 비단을 정수리부터 땅에 끌리게
하고 다녔습니다.
조선시대에는 유교의 영향으로 사치는 부끄러운 것이라 생각했고 사치를 금지했습니다. 대신 한국드라마에 자주 나오는 커다란 가발은 이때 유행해요.
조선시대 이전에 커다란 가발은 고증이 잘못된 거에요 ㅠ (제발 고증 좀 똑바로 해줘ㅜ) 가발은 매우 비싸서 고급한옥을 10개를 살 정도 였다고 해요. 점점 가발 사치가 심해져서 커다란 가발을 사용했고 숙종(1661 ~ 1720)시절 가장 절정에 다랬어요. 근데 이 가발이 매우 무거워서 어린 궁녀가 목이 부러져서 죽는 경우도
있었다고 해요. 결구 이런 폐단으로 가발을 금지하지만 가발대신 머리위에 장식하던 족두리를 값비싼 보석으로 장식해서 아이러니하게 가발보다 더 비쌌다고 해요^^;;
번역하기 힘들겠지만..sorry
Awww it’s okay, dear! Thanks for dropping by and I’ll ask my friend to help me translating the comment. Thanks a lot! 고마워요! ^^
Thanks for the information. Yes, I know, black clothes in a village of people dressing in white not even wearing hats like that doesn’t look suspicious at all and is definitely not for visual effect. Haha. 그런데…진짜 멋있서요~
So I guess the uniform for mudang shown in Three Kingdoms dramas is somewhat for visual grouping and effect rather than reality? ’cause I’d like to dress them in bright colors like the modern mudang. =D Modern mudang clothing seems to be very Mongolian shamanism clothing in derivation from what I read and muism has many similarities to other shamanistic religions in the area. Historical examples of mudang clothes was near to impossible to find before the Joseon era though. TT (Especially in English)
I did find a few resources–or at least arguments about how Chinese and Korean clothes were linked. (most of the arguing was on how rather than if.)
I believe the male version of a mudang is a baksu (박수)? Or at least that’s what I found… Also a number of them were shown to wear women’s clothing and have a similarity to the idea of the Two-spirit (Being neither male nor female). But that’s a tangent.
You’re probably busy, but a post on mudang might be good timing for Moon that Embraces the Sun~ I’ve got resources for that in English, but not Korean…
For the sake of making our hero looks all mighty and glorious in the midst of common people..that’s what Kdramas always do ^^;
I prefer the colorful ones, rather than those black or white attires 🙂 like here, http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n528/kaeru-sama/TreeWithDeepRootsEp21avi_002260560.jpg although this is during Joseon and I love the hat! hihi
well, although mudang was quite respected during Three Kingdoms, they’re considered as low lives during Joseon, so that might be the reason why there isn’t many records survived, except for stories from the older generations passed to the younger ones. and yeah, baksu is the male counterpart of mudang (or many other names according to what types of ghost that possessed the shaman). there might be more women getting possessed by the spirits or ghosts than men, maybe because they’re somehow weaker in nature,especially in their spiritual/emotions. just like the current situations, there are not much men being possessed by spirits compared to women, so that might explain why we always see the shaman being depicted as being women and very few, as men.
There are some hanbok, especially those worn by Joseon scholars that were so similar to those Chinese Dynasties’ scholars. Confucianism might be the reason why Korean Dynasties adapted the way of dressing from China, as those were the ideals and models to depict their strong belief in Confucius..
Shamanism itself was one of the things that Joseon didn’t favor that much, unlike its predecessors, so I was kind of puzzled to find out about Hwon, being the imaginary Joseon king, will be asking the help from a shaman like Wol..so I’m going to check Moon that Embraces the Sun out first and maybe I could learn something about the shamanism itself 😀
an post on introduction to korean shamanism might be nice, but I’m afraid I’m going to lag a bit ^^; classes are going to start soon, but I’ll give it a try! hehe…still trying to finish my post on joseon’s social strata: it’s been months and the resources keep increasing..and it’s harder for me to ignore them just like that! but you really have the resources? wow..do you mind telling me about it? or if you’re willing, we can always work on the post together 😉
Haha. I’m a sucker for the hat too.
http://www.asian-fiction.com/screencapture13.png <– another type of hat? Seems like the ceremonial one. From Moon that Embraces the Sun. It's not in your post…
I learned quite a bit about Korean shamanism, but it's a bit difficult since I am no longer fluent in Korean. =P Used to be, with saturi to boot… but I can't read formal Korean that well. ^^;;
What I know is that Korean shamanism used to be run by both men and women but that the majority of the spirits were attributed to women, not men. This makes me think (considering how men are. ^.~) that the religion was mostly run by women and maybe some men either looking for prestige or men who did not fit in normal society, such as being gay, intersexed, etc. This would fit into the modern version of shamanism throughout East Asia. (Wuism and very early Shintoism).
The shamanism is thought to come mostly from Mongolian practices, including the crown. I found some documents in English and Korean about it. The speculation is that because of the connection with the deer, the type of music, that Shamans came at around the same time, but different group from the ruling class. Shamans later were shunned and as they were shunned, men fled (cowards. ^.~) and then the occupation became solely that of women. The thought that women were weaker, fed into shunning the religion more, but before that time it seems like men and women shared a certain amount of power, until the Joseon era and neo-confucianism. As Buddhism took over, it also absorbed a certain amount of the local shamanism, and the local muism also absorbed some of the Buddhism. (Buddhism had already absorbed some Taoism by that point). Separating the Buddhism and the Shamanism was a bit difficult… Shamanism took a further dive with the introduction of Christianity… and was outright shunned by the government or often mocked. But I don't think there is a "wrong" in Shamanism, since of the three religions it tends to be more nature-aware. I'm not sure if this conflicts with the current industrial attitude of Korea, (If so, that would be a good psychological reason to shun it, yes?) but I do know from the anthropological reports that the practice is kind of dying to the point that tang'ol of the south and mudang are being blended (Much to the traditional practitioner's discontent.) Some of the gap left behind by Shamanism is being filled with fortunetellers of various kinds, including tarot readers, palm, and also Buddhist monks (Which is not common in other countries)–so while the original practice is dying, it seems to be disseminating into other sectors–showing there is still a kind of need or thirst for it in contemporary Korea.
Anyway Shaman spells are usually used for good luck on various things. Foretelling the future, good health, good luck on exams, beliefs and they put on quite a good show with kkut and sacrificing the occasional chicken. Loud, and usually rural. I'm taking a stab that they probably were the earliest healers in the region before Chinese Medicine and Monks took it over. I'm dying to see a kkut in person translated for me from people who believe in it. I heard that mudang sometimes mock their guests while in a trance or make fun of the political leaders… so it can be loud, but funny and entertaining.
I do believe that shamanism probably always had bright colors–if you're dancing around you don't want to blend in. This would be consistent with the Mongolian tradition. Women also often dress as men and men as women, as it is thought to increase the spiritual power. Modern-day Paksu mostly dress as women since it increases their power (further making me think that women had more power in the past before the Joseon era during the height of Muism)
Best guess from what I have. I collected a ton of research and archived it, cross referenced it against the Samguk Yusa and the bit of cultural Anthro knowledge I have. I also found video of kkut and there is a mudang website up–though it clearly doesn't hold the same power it once did. I'm still working through writing the novel with a very fictional reason for Muism dying. I'm likely to uncover more as I go. I'm determined to do it justice better than the sageuk I've seen. (And I admit making it slightly more women-centric with better clothing. No hats… ㅠㅠ.)
it’s yanggwan 🙂 here https://thetalkingcupboard.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/mbc-goong-ep03-avi_001609743.jpg and https://thetalkingcupboard.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/sungkyunkwan-scandal-ep-01-avi_001137137.jpg the one that Ha In-Soo worn in SKKS was slightly different in color..
wow..that’s interesting! and what I can see in MoonSun is that, it’s because the Queen Dowager’s love and interest towards premonitions(and black magic apparently) that makes the shamans accepted and respected(or people just plain scared of them? not sure about it..) during the supposed Joseon time..it’s all possible since it’s purely fiction, but if I’m not mistaken, Joseon kings don’t believe in shamanism , right? I read it somewhere that even Buddhism was regarded as a religion for commoners and women, while the noblemen and kings all devoted to Confucianism..well, except for King Sejong, who tries to bring in Buddhism into the palace but got strong opposition from the officials..so I think that’s why shamans, nuns, and monks were regarded as low status during that time..
haha..so that’s why the shamans are always depicted to do everything in shouting mode 😀 their colorful dresses definitely give them the attention from others. I believe as modern as Korea is becoming nowadays, some of them are still believing what their ancestors believed in, so turning back to shamanism (and tarot cards etc) isn’t so out-of-world. and about the novel..that’s really neat! it’s interesting to be able to read something and you can learn a lot from it. haha..women do have better colorful clothes, and I believe their wigs and ornaments can compensate the loss of the hats ^^; wish I can read your novel one day 🙂
what a great post! learned a lot, and i loved reliving all those scenes from dramas past 🙂
http://www.dramacrazy.net/korean-movie/hanbok-traditional-korean-dress-watch/
I found this documentary as well… though it is disputed, but I think it really doesn’t matter what the exact origin of the clothes are (I’m more interested in the why than the where.)–I love just seeing them change over time. I didn’t know the thing about the Chegori being so short either.
I think original Muism wasn’t so much “Black Magic” which is an entirely Christian notion. It probably was like it is in most countries–used for good or evil, but I think in most cases it was used for good. Such as asking for a good fishing season, asking for a safe childbirth, good luck on an exam, asking the dead to go home, etc. Most religion in Korea does some sort of version of this, though the method might not be the same. Magic is mostly a tool. The only thing that Muism seems to have besides the loud method and asking for lots of patience from the god(s) is the ability of premonition (Which is in the Samguk Yusa). The whole use for evil probably came in with the men wanting to feel superior to the remaining practicing women. ^.~
You can see such a transition in stories about how the Hwarang came to exist over the Wonrang (Samguk Yusa). What’s the principle excuse for the transition? Women are too petty and emotional to be intelligent and smart. But since men tend to gravitate towards positions of power, it’s more likely women lost traction over time. So I think Muism, which was largely associated with women at the time also fell with it.
Today real kkut are large events filled with noise and dancing around to invoke the gods, so that thing where she simply raised her hands–I didn’t buy it. She would have to channel a god and become one with the God (for that section of Korea). Also there has to be odd offerings on the table to the specific God’s liking, much like the death commemoration ceremony.
I do believe the bit about the charms, etc. That’s pretty well documented across East Asia.
I would imagine the ceremony being musicians there, other mudang to witness and help, long flowing colorful robes and lots of noise as she dances around like wild, chanting until she becomes one with the God. Then once she becomes one with it, the Dowager Queen would ask the God through her a favor. The God would mock the Dowager Queen (which is funny in terms of the drama), and ask what does the Dowager Queen give for this favor? The Dowager Queen would answer and then it would turn into a bidding war. (Like at the market), until a price was settled while the mudang dances about in a trance-like state. The Dowager Queen, praising the God, would then thank the God and give the offering. Then the God would make the promise.
That would be more true to Muism of today, and I doubt it changed that much. But I think doing that would be funny to watch for the serious enemy to be begging a God to kill someone.
“100 Nyang and three head bows.”
“No! I will not go below 150! Do you know who owns the Mudang and this Pavilion?”
“Ohoho! I do! Even if you get rid of this Pavilion, I will still own them.”
Haha. Which is probably why the author didn’t do it. ^_^ But I will.
Most of the ceremonies are for good luck these days. And luck is a type of magic too.
I did have a thought that the reason Confucianism was against Muism was because Muism says that a woman can automatically leave her husband if she gets a “sickness” and is possessed in such a way the only way out is to become a mudang. With the hierarchy of Confucianism, and the downgrading of women (Women are below their husbands and fathers), don’t you think that would give rise and reason for conflict?
have you seen “hello miss” – it’s on Dramafever. They wear tons and tons of Hanbok even tho it is set in modern day. The lead is the head granddaughter of a clan and she and her servants/family wear hanbok on a regular basis (she has more variety then they do). at one point, the granny/housekeeper goes to Seoul and wears the least hanboky hanbok – black skirt/white top. There is also a traditional wedding, but I won’t see who is getting married to whom.
not yet ^^; I’m planning to buy the DVD set because it’s too much hassle to stream it for me. it stars Lee Da-Hae, right? I watched it once on my local channel, but only after she comes to the city and no longer wear her hanbok..oh, there’ll be a wedding? looking forward to watch it~ 🙂
Thank you so much for this article. I’ve learned a lot about Korean culture/ dress in saguek, GREAT!
wow big thanks for your artical
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I’ve been looking for a very common hat in the Kdramas but its not listed here. It’s just a silk cap worn by merchants and nobles. It usually has some kind of design in the the rim that covers the forehead. It’s similar to the one that the little kid is wearing in the example here but I see it worn by adult men. I’ve looked everywhere for that but can’t seem to find it and it is probably the most common one worn by men in the kdramas.
Do you mean this one?
