Li Costume
01 · Historical Records
The form of Li ethnic dress rests on the long accumulation of four crafts — spinning, dyeing, weaving and embroidery — with raw materials drawn from island cotton, hemp, kapok, bark fiber and silk, weaving and stitching completed in one. This entire practice has been transmitted on Hainan Island for several thousand years, arising alongside the island's early inhabitants' long ages of gathering, farming and migration. The dress uses woven brocade as its main material. The brocade surface carries a great variety of patterns, classifiable into six categories — human figures, animals, flowers, plants, implements and geometric forms — numbering over a hundred in all. The brocade designs of a single village are usually passed down unchanged for generations; to change the design is to change the style, and it serves as the mark by which locals identify one another's home village.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Li ethnic dress, as transmitted in Hainan Province, is based on the four great traditional Li crafts of spinning, dyeing, weaving and embroidery, and is woven and sewn from island cotton, hemp, kapok, bark fiber and silk, among other materials; its evolution spans several thousand years. Traditional Li dress uses woven brocade as its material, with a great variety of patterns, brilliant colors, and exquisite, beautiful workmanship. It has more than 160 designs, falling mainly into six types of pattern: human figures, animals, flowers, plants, implements and geometric forms.
The joined sequence of spinning, dyeing, weaving and embroidering
One garment passes through spinning, dyeing, weaving and embroidery, and doing all four on one pair of hands keeps the pattern aligned.
Arranging the six pattern families
Patterns fall into figure, animal, flower, plant, utensil and geometric families; the main motif is placed before the border pattern.
Festive dress at weddings and holidays
Ceremonial sets use woven brocade with figure and animal motifs, worn as matched top and skirt with silver ornaments.
Passing on the four skills
The four skills are handed down in sequence within one household; mastering only one does not count as completing the training.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Li ethnic dress divides into distinct strands in the central mountain region and the southern mountain region of Hainan Island. The mountain and river-valley climates and production conditions differ, so the thickness of the garments and the number of ornaments vary accordingly; the differences between villages can be told at a glance. The same design may have different variants among the different branches, and things of the same name are often called differently. Therefore, when enterprises such as Hainan Jinxiu Zhibei take on restoration or custom commissions, they first confirm the branch and the village before arranging the materials. Before a finished garment is delivered, the occasion of wearing must also be considered: festival garments emphasize pattern and accessories, while everyday garments emphasize sturdiness and economy of material; with both demands pressing on the same brocade, the intended use has to be settled first.
Other submitting regions for the same item: Li Costume.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
Traditional Li dress is rooted in the social life of the Li people, with content and form in harmonious unity, displaying distinct local characteristics and rich ethnic cultural connotations; it is of extremely important reference value for the study of the history of social development, folklore, religious belief, and production and daily life among the Li people of Hainan. As modernization accelerates, the self-sufficient natural economy of the Li region of Hainan has been disrupted. Under these circumstances, fewer and fewer people master the traditional crafts of spinning, dyeing, weaving and embroidery, and the transmission of Li ethnic dress has suffered a severe shock; it faces the danger of disappearing and urgently needs rescue and protection.
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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