Traditional dress and ornament of the Zeliangrong of North East
- Part 1 -

Budha Kamei *

Traditional dress and ornament of the Zeliangrong people as seen at State level Gaan-Ngai 2014 at Keikhu, Kabui Village in January 2014
Pix - Ashok Ningthoujam

The present research article attempts to look into the material culture of Zeliangrongs. Generally, dress means covering, or clothing and accessories for the human body.Thus, the term dress has encompassed not only such familiar garments as shirts, skirts, trousers, jackets and coats but also foot wears, caps and hats, sleep wears, sports cloths, corsets and gloves. Hairstyles and the wearing of beards, moustaches, and wigs at different times and in various forms are all linked to the history of fashion and dress. The same is true of the use of cosmetics and jewelry and other forms of body decoration.

Man is the only animal that uses an artificial covering for the body. The primary use and meaning of dress is not so much to provide and adaptation to a climate as to enable man to be superior to weather. In other words, the use of dress enables him to move and be active in forests where animals seek shelter.

It is difficult to trace how man began to wear cloth. Perhaps there are some obvious reasons which may lead to the invention of garments among mankind. The factors are:
(a) to protect from sudden falls in the temperature, rains and winds and burning sunshine, the danger of injuring the feet and the skin of the body generally when in the forest, and the need of body-armour against the attacks of insects and of dangerous animals,
(b) to use as decoration and ornamentation of the body in order to keep the body strong and beautiful. The wearing of bands round the ankles, knees, wrists and elbows, which is clearly to protect the sinews and muscles from strains. T.C. Hudson writes, the Nagas wear black rings of cane round the knees–as some say, to give strength for climbing. The Malays use to wear bands and ligatures to protect the muscles and prevent strains, as for instance, round the wrists and below the knee,
(c) to make the married woman unattractive to others and to conceal her body from other men's eyes.

In fact, dressing is a secondary human character. It must be treated, as regards its origins, in the same way as human weapons, tools, and machines. Dress does increase the static resisting power of the surface of the body, just as tools increase the dynamic capacity of the limbs. It is an extension (and thereby an intension) of the capacity of the passive area of the person, just as a tool is of the active mechanism of the arm. Thus, dress may be treated as a second skin, because it covers the body, like a house it gives shelter for human being to protect from his surroundings. Anon says, "The body is the shell of the soul, and dress the husk of that shell, but the husk often fell the kernel is."

In all civilizations, dress is worn for warmth, protection modesty (to enhance the appearance of the wearer), and to proclaim his place in society, including rank, occupation, age, sex, place of origin, marital status, and religion. For instance, about 4,000 years ago in the warm Indus valley, an assured little dancing girl from Harappa felt well-dressed wearing only bracelets, knowingly massed, a necklace, and well coiffed hair.

The proud Maya nobles of Central America wore many garments for protection. They used elaborate head dresses, decorated gaiters, and much jewelry, besides tattooing their bodies, artificially shaping their heads, filing their teeth, and crossing their eyes. In many cultures throughout the world various segments of society have been clearly differentiated by their dress. Distinctive national fashions or folk costumes developed over hundred of years, and in many countries traditional fashions are worn for special holdings and for ceremonial occasions. There existed distinct differences between male and female attire.

In every land and every period of history the way people dress was affected by various social, political, economic, and geographic conditions as well as by artistic or aesthetic ideals. The prevailing style of dress may have reflection of the political and social change or the industrial advancement of a given period or group of people. Although distinctive dress still predominant in some countries and regions, for the most part fashion in the 20th century has become international and is dominated by the culture of the western world.

In the ancient world, there existed two basic kinds of dress, suitable for two different climates and types of society – the fitted leather garments of the nomadic warrior – herdsmen of the cold Asian steppes and the draped women clothing of the settled peoples of warm Mesopotamia and the Mediterranean. The first clothes were made from readily available materials, such as grass, bark, and animal skins. It was with the development of textiles in the Old Stone Age before 9000 B.C., the basic garment forms were established. The loose- fitting tunic, the loin cloth wrapped around hips and groin, and a loose outer garment, similar to a clock or shawl, had appeared in many different places as the earliest means of covering, protecting, and decorating the human body.

Greece:

From the Homeric age (about 1000 B.C.) to the Hellenistic age (ending 1st Century), Greeks used simple dress which permitted the sport-loving Greeks maximum freedom. In fact, the Greeks who had idealized the form in art sought to maintain grace and beauty in their clothing and wore garments that gave perfect freedom of action to the body. Their dress was consisted of two basic draped rectangles worn variably by both sexes. The Peplos and the Chiton were shirt like garments while the Himation and the Chalmys, a long outer wrap. All women wore the Peplos until the 6th century B.C.

The Peplos, colorfully dyed wool, was heavy and close fitting. The Chiton, knee length for men and ankle length for women was the basic garment. It was made of two wide pieces of fabric sewn up the right side and sewn or caught along the upper edge from the neck to each wrist. The material of the dress was white linen, often gauzy or creped and sometimes patterned in purple, that fell in flowing folds or pleats, shown on vases and in status and bas-reliefs.Both married men and women wore a long outer wrap made of wool, the Himation. Travelers and soldiers used the Chalmys, a short cloak that fastened on one shoulder. A breast support was used by the Greek women.

Greek women lavished great care on their hair and often wore it pulled back into a knot. This is known as Chignon. They often wore the Tholia, a straw hat with a high pointed crown, with the Himation. Jewelry, such as gold fibulace was worn chiefly by women. Originally, men kept their hair long but later on, it was worn shorter about the end of the 5th century B.C. And the peasants and travelers wore the Pilos, or Phrygian bonnet which derived from the Seythians, and the broad-brimmed petsus.

Both men and women went barefoot at home. Later, sandals were worn by both sexes when they went outside. High boots were used for hunting and travel. Umbrellas and walking sticks were signs of distinctions.

Rome:

The Romans wore the Toga and Tunic as the common garments from 700 B.C. to 500 A.D. Originally, the Toga was used as an outer garments by both men and women. It was forbidden to slaves and exiles. The woolen Toga was similar to the Greek Himation but elliptical rather than rectangular and carefully draped around the body under the right arm and over the left. It eventually became the official garment of the upper classes and indicated social position. It is said that Gentlemen did not appear in public without the Toga. The Romans introduced the practice of using purple color to indicate highest rank in the society. The magistrates, priests and other high officials wore the purple-bordered Toga praetexta. The emperor and victorious generals used the toga picta, a purple Toga with gold embroidery.

A simple wool or linen tunic, sewn at the side and shoulders, was worn belted and slightly blouse, often with one shoulder bare. The soldiers, slaves and common people wore this garment. Aristocratic women had dressed in a richly ornamented tunic, the Stola, and an outer wrap, the Palla, which was similar to the Toga. A breast band was worn by Roman women when exercising and bathing in public baths. It was a fitted loincloth which resembled the 20th century bikini.

In the Roman Republic, the hairstyle of women was simple but gradually, it became more complicated with elaborate curls, waves, and hairpieces. It was mainly due to foreign influences as Rome became more deeply involved in foreign conquest and trade. Until the 2nd century B.C. Roman men wore beard and long hair. In the 1st century, the beard was reintroduced by Hadrian and later, it became a symbol of youth. Men shaved their beards when they began to turn gay.

Various types of sandals similar to Grecian style were worn by both men and women. It also signified social status. They wore footwear like Soleac (Slippers) or Soccae (light shoes) in the house. Men wore leather Calcci on the street. The soldiers wore hobnailed Caligae, both strapped to varying heights.

How a man orders his materials, no less than what he says them or describes them to be, reflects the direction of his self and defines the character of something in his world. The properties of things are defined by being brought into relation to us. This is accomplished not only by saying something about them, but by doing something to them and or, making something out of them.

The custom of wearing body ornament had begun with the imaginative Homo sapiens. As recorded in history, there are excavations in terms of beads necklace, carved from the tusk of a mammoth, a string of snail shells and also necklace made of pointed teeth of predatory animals, foxes, wolves, bears etc. There must be reasons for using all this ornament. In some case, they might have used them to ensure the success of the hunt by depicting animals being killed through the efforts of hunters which was practiced by their ancestors. For the Zeliangrongs, ornaments are more than a matter of aesthetic, it is the identity of individuals and groups, it helps make statements, and definition. Indeed, ornaments are part of the definition of being truly human, because it is only from a corpse that ornaments are removed.

To be continued...