Dudou

A child's dudou from the early 20th century, missing its strings.
A Vietnamese woman wearing her yem as a blouse.

A dudou (Chinese: 肚兜, p dùdōu, lit. "belly cover"), formerly romanized as tu-tou,[n 1] is a traditional Chinese form of the bodice. Dudou is also sometimes translated as "bib"[2] owing to its similar appearance, but it is not used to protect other clothes while eating.

History

The dudou was popularized under the Ming dynasty (14th–17th centuries) and has remained a traditional item of Chinese clothing.[4] Its original development is sometimes credited to Yang Yuhuan, the curvy consort of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang still remembered as one of China's Four Beauties,[5] but the importance of the stomach as the origin of the body's blood and qi in traditional Chinese medicine[6] has meant that variations of the undershirt are found as early as the Qin's tunic-like xièyī (t 褻衣, s 亵衣).[7] The medicinal aspect of the dudou was underscored by its common incorporation of small pockets to hold snatches of ginger, musk, or other herbs intended to boost the stomach's qi.[1]

The dudou inspired similar fashions elsewhere in East Asia, including the Vietnamese yem. Within China, it fell out of favor towards the end of the Qing as part of the drive to modernize the country and has been mostly displaced by European-style bras.[8] They first became an object of Western fashion in the year 2000, when variations of the Chinese design appeared in the summer collections of Versace, Versus, and Miu Miu; this development inspired some Chinese women, including Zhang Ziyi,[5] to begin wearing the dudou as an article of outerwear.[4]

Design

The typical design of a dudou consists of a single rectangular or rhomboidal piece of fabric which covers the breasts and belly, tied to the neck and waist with attached strings.[4] Richer women use silk yarn or brocade while the poor make do with cotton.[8] Popular colors are red, pink, and green and they are often embroidered with flowers, butterflies, or Mandarin ducks.[4] Formerly popular designs included bats (homophonous with "happiness" in Chinese), peaches ("longevity"), guavas (whose many seeds caused it to represent fertility), and virtuous expressions.[8]

Under the Ming and Qing, dudous were solely items of underwear and were used to flatten women's breasts,[4] similar to a gentle corset.[5] Wealthier families used bronze, silver, or gold chains instead of silk thread.[8] The first dudous were simple rectangles, but by the Qing they had been turned to form a diamond shape, exposing more of the shoulders.[8]

Some variants have a collar which is lowered around the head. Western-influenced dudous may be made of other fabrics, including leather or transparent cloth.[4]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ It is also less often known as the doudu, tou-tu,[1][2] or doudou.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 "The Ancient Art of Women's Underwear", China Daily, 4 March 2011.
  2. 1 2 Lewandowski, Elizabeth J., "doudu", The Complete Costume Dictionary, p. 91.
  3. ↑ Gao Wanlong; et al. (2012), A Handbook of Chinese Cultural Terms, Trafford Publishing, p. 51.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Xu Xiaomin (20 June 2000), "Do You Dare to Wear a Dudou?", Shanghai Star.
  5. 1 2 3 "History of Dudou", Chinese Fashion.
  6. ↑ Maciocia, Giovanni, The Foundations of Chinese Medicine, 3d ed., Edinburgh: Elsevier, p. 194.
  7. ↑ "Secrets of Women's Underwear in Ancient China", China Culture, Ministry of Culture, 2003.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 Lu Chang (30 October 2003), "Keeping Abreast of Change", Shanghai Star.
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