In traditional Chinese dress, a changshan (traditional Chinese: 長衫; simplified Chinese: 长衫; pinyin: Chángshān literally “long shirt”) is the male equivalent of the women’s qipao (cheongsam). It is also known as a changpao or dagua .
The Mandarin word changshan is cognate with the Cantonese term chèuhngsàam, which has been borrowed into English as ‘cheongsam’. Unlike the Mandarin term, however, Cantonese chèuhngsàam can refer to both male and female garments,and in Hong Kong it is frequently used for the body-hugging female garment rather than for the male changshan. The Hong Kong usage is reflected in the meaning of“cheongsam” in English, which refers exclusively to the female garment.
Changshan, along with qipao, were introduced to China during the Qing Dynasty (17th century–20th century). The Manchus ordered that all Han Chinese should adopt the changshan style of dress—or face execution. Thus, the traditional Chinese Hanfu style of clothing was gradually replaced. Over time, the Manchu style gained popularity.
Changshan was formal dress for Chinese men before Western-style suits became common in China.
The male changshan went well with the western overcoat, fedora, and scarf, and portrayed a unique East Asian modernity.
The 1949 Communist Revolution ended the wearing of changshan and other similar clothing in Shanghai, but Shanghainese emigrants and refugees brought the fashion to Hong Kong where it has remained popular. Recently there has been a revival of the Shanghainese changshan in Shanghai and elsewhere in mainland China.
excellent post,but i experience some difficulty in understanding the last paragraph, can you please explain a little bit more?
Thanks for sharing this great post, i really adore your weblog, but i have some issue i dont know whether it is my side issue or on your site? some words from the submit in your weblog have charactor encoding issue, yes i use auto detecting, can u pls look into this problem a bit?
Fantastic weblog! I dont imagine Ive observed the many angles of this topic the way youve pointed them out. Youre a true star, a rock star guy. Youve obtained a great deal to say and know so much regarding the issue that i feel you really should just teach a class about it…HaHa!
excellent article,but i’ve some trouble in understanding the last section, would you please make it clear a bit more?
Love the new look. I enjoyed this article. Thanks for the excellent work.
Very cool! I absolutely love your site.