Traditional Samurai Clothing

Kimono used to be the main clothing of the Samurais. The kimonos were made up off either cotton or silk materials. The elite class amongst the Samurais preferred the silk kimonos to the cotton ones, due to their finesse and glaze. Their relative coolness and lightweight were also the reasons for which, they were the favorite nightdress of the Samurais, especially during summer. During the winter, the heavier kimonos were worn by them. The kimonos worn by men consisted of two parts – the inner and the outer parts.

Interestingly, the colors of the kimonos were in consonance with the status of the people in the society. While men avoided kimonos with bright colors or any bizarre shades, as they were generally frowned upon, the women’s kimonos were in accordance with social and economic status of their husbands. But, most of the children wore kimonos with vibrant colors

The Samurais wore a loincloth inside the kimono, which was called the ‘fundoshi’. They came in two types. While the first one was kind of a diaper, the other one was generally worn under armor.

During the rainy season, the Samurais wore their raincoats over the kimonos and also used umbrellas. They used foot-wears that were made up of straw, cotton threads, woods etc. They either used the sandals (waraji) or clogs (geta) along with socks. The upper class generally used the sandals (waraji). Use of boots made up of bear skins was initiated among the Samurais as late as 16th century.

The hitatare were a minor variance of the kimono and was popular during the 12th and 17th century. While the kimonos were single piece cloth, the hitatare consisted of two pieces. The hitatare had special significance and was mostly used by people in their official capacity.

The swords and daggers were the important items that the Samurais carried almost always. The swords were generally tied through a belt (obi) around the waist on the left side. Apart from the weapons, the belt also carried a fan or tissues on formal occasions.

Later, the hitatares were replaced by kamishimos. Like the hitatare, it also consisted of two pieces. They were worn while going out or during formal occasions and generally made a statement of the status of the person. The practice of wearing a black colored silk cap (eboshi), was also in vogue for some period amongst the Samurais.

Posted in Uncategorized