Aodai

Two girls wear ao dai. For a time condemned as decadent by the country's rulers, the dress experienced a revival in the 1990s and is once again considered a national costume.

The ao dai (áo dài) is a Vietnamese national costume, now most commonly for women. In its current form, it is a tight-fitting silk tunic worn over pantaloons. The word is pronounced [ǎːwzâːj], approximately ow-zye, in the North, and with a y sound for the d in the South. Áo is derived from a Middle Chinese word meaning "padded coat" (襖).^[1] Dài means "long".^[1]

The word "ao dai" was originally applied to the outfit worn at the court of the Nguyễn Lords at Huế in the 18th century. This outfit evolved into the áo ngũ thân, a five-paneled aristocratic gown worn in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Inspired by Paris fashions, Nguyễn Cát Tường and other artists associated with Hanoi University redesigned the ngũ thân as a modern dress in the 1920s and 1930s.^[2] The updated look was promoted by the artists and magazines of Tự Lực văn đoàn ("Self-Reliant Literary Group") as a national costume for the modern era. In the 1950s, Saigon designers tightened the fit to produce the version worn by Vietnamese women today.^[2] The dress was extremely popular in South Vietnam in the 1960s and early 1970s. The Communist Party, which has ruled Vietnam since 1975, for a time disapproved of the dress and promoted frugal, androgynous styles.^[3] In the 1990s, the ao dai regained popularity.^[3] On Tết and other occasions, Vietnamese men may wear an áo gấm "(brocade robe)", a version of the ao dai made of thicker fabric.

Academic commentary on the ao dai emphasizes the way the dress ties feminine beauty to Vietnamese nationalism, especially in the form of "Miss Ao Dai" pageants, popular both among overseas Vietnamese and in Vietnam itself.^[4] "Ao dai" is one of the few Vietnamese words that appear in English-language dictionaries.^{[nb 1]}

Parts of dress

Diagram that shows the parts of an ao dai.

Nút bấm thân áo: hooks (used as fasteners) and holes

ống tay: sleeve

Đường ben: inside seam

Nút móc kết thúc: main hook and hole

Tà sau: back flap

Khuy cổ: collar button

Cổ áo: collar

Đường may: seam

ống tay: sleeve

Kích (eo): waist

Tà trước: front flap

The ao dai can be worn with a nón lá (pointed leaf hat), a style associated with Huế. On weddings and other formal occasions, a circular headgear called a khăn đóng is worn.

History

The áo tứ thân as worn in the North, 1800s

18th century

Peasant women typically wore a halter top (áo yếm) underneath a blouse or overcoat, that was paired with a skirt (váy).^[5] Influenced by the fashions of China's imperial court, aristocrats favored less revealing clothes.^[6] In 1744, Lord Nguyễn Phúc Khoát of Huế decreed that both men and women at his court wear trousers and a gown with buttons down the front.^{[2][nb 2]} Writer Lê Quý Đôn described the newfangled outfit as an áo dài (long shirt).^{[nb 3]} The members of the southern court were thus distinguished from the courtiers of the Trịnh Lords in Hanoi, who wore a split-sided jacket and a long skirt.^[7]

19th century

The áo tứ thân, a traditional four-paneled gown, evolved into the five-paneled áo ngũ thân in the early 19th century.^[7] Ngũ is Sino-Vietnamese for "five." It refers not only to the number of panels, but also to the five elements in oriental cosmology. The áo ngũ thân had a loose fit and sometimes had wide sleeves. Wearers could display their prosperity by putting on multiple layers of fabric, which at that time was costly. Despite Vietnam's tropical climate, northern aristocrats were known to wear three to five layers.

Two women wear áo ngũ thân, the form of the ao dai worn in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries

The áo ngũ thân had two flaps sewn together in the back, two flaps sewn together in the front, and a "baby flap" hidden underneath the main front flap. The gown appeared to have two-flaps with slits on both sides, features preserved in the later ao dai. Compared to a modern ao dai, the front and back flaps were much broader and the fit looser. It had a high collar and was buttoned in the same fashion as a modern ao dai. Women could wear the dress with the top few buttons undone, revealing a glimpse of their yếm underneath.

Present day

No longer controversial politically, ao dai fashion design is supported by the Vietnamese government.^[7] It often called the áo dài Việt Nam to link it to patriotic feeling. Designer Le Si Hoang is a celebrity in Vietnam and his shop in Ho Chi Minh City is the place to visit for those who admire the dress.^[7] In Hanoi, tourists get fitted for ao dai on Luong Van Can Street.^[8] The elegant city of Huế in the central region is known for its ao dai, nón lá (leaf hats), and well-dressed women.

The ao dai is now standard for weddings, for celebrating Tết and for other formal occasions. A plain white ao dai is a common high school school uniform in the South. Companies often require their female staff to wear uniforms that include the ao dai, so flight attendants, receptionists, restaurant staff, and hotel workers in Vietnam may be seen wearing it.

A schoolgirl in a white ao dai and a nón lá (leaf hat). This ensemble is associated with the central city of Huế

The most popular style of ao dai fits tightly around the wearer's upper torso, emphasizing her bust and curves. Although the dress covers the entire body, it is thought to be provocative, especially when it is made of thin fabric. "The ao dai covers everything, but hides nothing", according to one saying.^[9] The dress must be individually fitted and usually requires several weeks for a tailor to complete. An ao dai costs about $200 in the United States and about $40 in Vietnam.^[10]

"Symbolically, the ao dai invokes nostalgia and timelessness associated with a gendered image of the homeland for which many Vietnamese people throughout the diaspora yearn", wrote Nhi T. Lieu, an assistant professor at the University of Texas at Austin.^[4] The difficulties of working while wearing an ao dai link the dress to frailty and innocence, she wrote.^[4] Vietnamese writers who favor the use of the ao dai as a school uniform cite the inconvenience of wearing it as an advantage, a way of teaching students feminine behavior such as modesty, caution, and a refined manner.^[11]

The ao dai is featured in an array of Vietnam-themed or related movies. In Good Morning Vietnam (1987), Robin Williams's character is wowed by ao dai-clad women when he first arrives in Saigon. The 1992 films Indochine and The Lover inspired several international fashion houses to design ao dai collections,^[12] including Prada's SS08 collection and a Georgio Armani collection. In the Vietnamese film The White Silk Dress (2007), an ao dai is the sole legacy that the mother of a poverty-stricken family has to pass on to her daughters.^[13] The Hanoi City Complex, a 65-story building now under construction, will have an ao dai-inspired design.^[14] Vietnamese designers created ao dai for the contestants in the Miss Universe beauty contest, which was held July 2008 in Nha Trang, Vietnam.^[15]

Gallery

A Nguyen Dynasty princess in ao dai	Dancing high school students	Hanoi during APEC summit	Our Lady, Phát Diệm Cathedral
Graduation	Contemporary ao dai designs	Wikipe-tan wearing ao dai

See also

• Culture of Vietnam
• History of Vietnam
• Qipao
• Vietnamese clothing

Notes

Footnotes

Citations

External links

• Creative Pictures of Ao Dai. Ao Dai.
• Ao Dai - Vietnamese Traditional Dress - A high quality online Flash album.
• Ao Dai - Soul of Vietnam. The history of the ao dai in photos.
• Ao Dai Project. More photos. Less history and more makeup.
• Ao Dai - The Traditional Vietnamese Dress. A video showing various styles of ao dai.
• History Of VN Long Dress.
• The Ao Dai Blog. The latest in ao dai-related news.
• The Evolution of the Ao Dai Through Many Eras, Gia Long Alumni Association of Seattle, 2000.
• Vietnam: Mini-Skirts & Ao-Dais. A video that shows what the women of Saigon wore in 1968.
• Fashion Ao Dai. A blog about Ao Dai.