(...) clothing is an important topic, which was a significant distinguishing feature of this ethnographic group. The clothing made and worn by this ethnographic group was mainly made of linen and hemp cloth and woolen cloth, most often of a dark brown color. The canvases were usually woven on their own, in home workshops, and at the end of the 19th century, factory-made fabrics were also used. This subject was dealt with more extensively by Dr. Maria Marciniak, who conducted a broader ethnographic research on this subject15.
In interviews16 conducted by Maria Marciniak, the informants stated that the country dress differed from that worn in the city, because - as one of the women recalls - "those from the city were dressed more elegantly, although it depended on who could afford, because they were poor in the city, and even those from the city were dressed worse than those from the villages.
Clothing, especially cloth and clothes bought in the city, was very respected. Shoes were especially respected. One of the inhabitants of Nadolany mentioned in an interview that when he went "dancing" he checked whether the floor in the hall was waxed, if it was not, he would resign so as not to destroy the new "mists "18. Towards the end of the 19th century, the disappearance of the traditional form of clothing becomes apparent. And it completely disappears in the interwar period. This one is replaced with clothes modeled on the city attire. On special occasions and during ceremonies, an outfit referring to the old, traditional one, extended with national elements of Ukrainian (embroidery) or Polish ("Krakow" outfit). Some efforts were made to maintain at least some elements of the traditional costume, incl. in Kuźmin, the priest during the sermon advised parishioners not to dress "in black like Jews", but to wear nicely dressed in "linen clothes", which was commented by the faithful as follows: "it was a bit of inhibition not to dress like you, because wherever the wealthier peasant could find clothes, because they kept more with the gentlemen. More than once they shouted at the peasant not to dress like a gentleman or a Jew ”19. In the villages of Dolinia, mostly inhabited by Ruthenians, changes are noticeable, especially in the interwar period, and the attire has changed. The influence of Ukrainian organizations, in particular "Prosvity", which promoted Ukrainian patterns, is particularly evident here. The youth associated with the organization wanted to emphasize their national identity with the outfits. Shirts with cross-stitch embroidery, usually placed on the sleeves, and blouses, often with a sailor's collar, also with such embroidery, as well as rectangular aprons decorated with fringes and cross-stitch embroidery, have become common in girls' attire. In men's attire, this influence is also visible in shirts whose fronts, collars and cuffs are covered with strict cross-stitch embroidery with geometric motifs.
Traditional men's clothing consisted of a shirt made of hemp or linen (Christmas ones were made of a finer, thinner, whiter cloth). In the preserved archival photographs from the interwar period, it is clearly visible that the shirts reached the middle of the thigh, sometimes even up to the knees . They were worn over the top of the trousers, tied with a belt. In the case of the Christmas shirt, they had a small collar under the neck, and the everyday one was finished with a stitching. The sleeves were long finished with cuffs. Pants were also made of homespun, linen or hemp linen. They had quite wide legs. The linen pants called pants were worn all year round, in winter sometimes two pairs were dressed. A vest was worn over the shirt. It was made of homespun cloth, loose, with a notch around the neck, trimmed with red string. From the mid-nineteenth century, vests were sewn from factory fabrics (with a cut to fit the figure). An important part of men's clothing was the belt. Belts 4-5 cm wide, fastened with one or two buckles, were commonly worn. Wide belts fastened with three buckles were also worn, they had a money compartment, the so-called pulares or a purse and a pocket for tinder and tinder. Belts were worn over the top of the shirt. The outer garments were a linen coat called a cloth coat, a caftan made of linen or hemp (poncho-cut). Czemera differed from the cloth and the caftan in the folds at the back. The winter coat was also hunia, sewn from dark brown cloth, white hunie was worn by wealthy farmers. It was knee-length, with long sleeves, fastened with hooks or pins.
Hunie was also worn - fitted at the top, widened from the waist, called the entourage (it showed the wealth of the owner). Another type of cloth cloak was worn, spacious, over the shoulders of the chuchania - it had long, sewn sleeves serving as bags and a large collar with drawstrings falling down on the back. At the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, coats sewn from factory cloth, known as bundys, burnuses, appeared. In winter, wealthy farmers wore long sheepskin coats with a large collar that fell down over the shoulders. Sweatshirts, also known as spencers, were also worn - they were sewn from homespun cloth, their cut resembled jackets. People went barefoot in the warmer seasons, sometimes even until frost. Leather clogs were common footwear, while boots with uppers were festive. In summer, a straw hat was worn on the head, in winter, sheepskin caps and magierki caps were common. In the 19th century, felt hats, usually black, were also worn.
In the case of women's clothing, shirts were made of homespun cloth, reaching up to the knees (sometimes lower). The sleeves were long finished with cuffs fastened with a button. Below the belt they had the so-called lap, sewn from another cloth, a collar with pointed or rounded corners under the neck. Christmas shirts were made of better, cotton cloth, often finished at the neck with a large embroidered collar. Vests made of thin wool in a dark color were worn for the shirts. The vests were simple, not too tight, reaching to the waist. At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, corsets made of velvet or plush (black, navy blue, blue, maroon) appear. They were matched. A linen or hemp skirt called an apron was worn, reaching the ankles. 1-2 aprons were worn every day, 3-4 on Christmas. The aprons were heavily starched (it gave the effect of spaciousness). Until the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century, skirts called burqas, made of homespun linen or hemp cloth, were worn in winter. The clasp was worn on linen aprons. It was made of homespun linen or hemp cloth. The top autumn and winter clothing were jackets called kacabajka, kaftanik, and kabat. They were often made of plush, the most common colors: black, dark brown, dark maroon. They had a loose or fitted cut, with a turn-down collar or a stand-up collar, and had long sleeves.
In winter, they wore a jupka, i.e. a cloth coat, most often navy blue or dark blue, lined with a sheepskin coat (wealthy women wore a cloth coat). They also wore czemery, white, long linen cloaks heavily crinkled on the back. A linen bedspread was worn on the shoulders, its ends sometimes reaching the knees (it was called a sheet, seam, cloth). Linen bedspreads were worn on outer garments both in winter and summer. At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, sheets were replaced by factory scarves. The summer ones were called lats, they were made of thin wool. In winter, they were covered with woolen scarves.
Usually people walked barefoot or in leather clogs. On public holidays, high boots were worn. The girls wore long hair in braids. Married women pinned their hair up on a straw (it had the shape of a circle, it was made of wood, e.g. hazel or wire). They put a cap on their hair that had been combed through it. Both girls and older women wore linen scarves on their heads. In winter, they wore woolen handkerchiefs. In a festive outfit, beads were an integral part (usually 4-5 ropes were worn).
As of today, the valley costume has not been recreated, except for the reconstruction for the needs of the folk band and the Rural Housewives' Association. The only place where it is exhibited is the Museum of Folk Architecture in Sanok.
The only decorative element (also found in the Bojka and Lemko groups) was the so-called "Rosette" often called "Carpathian rosette". Often, surrounded by a rosette, you could see the symbol of the cross and the crescent. They are very well preserved in the valley buildings presented at the Museum of Folk Architecture in Sanok.
The text comes from the study "INVENTORY OF CULTURAL RESOURCES OF THE BORDERLAND - THE ETHNOCARPATHIA PROJECT" realized by the Maria Curie-Skłodowska University for the District Museum in Rzeszów.
Author: Mr. Marcin Krowiak.
Elements of the valley costume:
The clothes were made of linen and hemp linen and woolen cloth, most often of a dark brown color, from their own workshops, a festive outfit referring to the old, traditional, extended with elements of a Ukrainian (embroidery) or Polish national character ("Krakow" outfit).
Men's stand: a shirt made of hemp or linen cloth, trousers made of homespun cloth, a vest trimmed with red strings, a belt, a coat (cloth), a poncho-cut caftan, winter hunia made of dark-brown cloth.
Women's attire: long linen shirts, dark woolen vests, corsets of velvet or plush (black, navy blue, blue, burgundy), linen or hemp skirt with apron, winter skirt (burka), aprons, black, dark brown or maroon winter jackets ( kacabajka, kaftanik, kabat), cloth coat (jupka), linen or woolen scarves, bonnets (married women), Christmas beads (4-5 strings).
Login
