2. GENERAL INFORMATION
Cypriot costumes are an integral component of the traditional
culture of Cyprus. Each one is distinctive of a group of people
who lived on this east Mediterranean island, and who, despite
their idiosyncracies, maintained a uniform identity, keeping alive
the consciousness of their common origin and history.
Study of the different types of Cypriot costume reveals the
island’s relations with neighbouring and far-off lands, through
trade or conquest. The costumes bespeak the Cypriot people’s
ability to assimilate foreigh traits and to re-create them in its
own way, consistent with its own tradition.
Each individual costume is a complex work of art, combining not
only techniques of processing the raw materials, weaving and
embellishment, but also skill and sensitivity in the manner in
which it is cut and sewn. The costume is the true expression of
folk artistic creation.
3. GENERAL INFORMATION
Compared with the costumes of the wider Greek world, those
of Cyprus are simpler and display a greater degree of
uniformity, on account of the island’s limited size. There are,
nevertheless, local variations, both in the kind of costume and
in its details: in the color of the cloth, the combination of its
partial elements, the cut, decoration and in its accessories.
Like Cypriot folk art in general, the costumes are
characterized by a conservatism, though this in no way
detracts from their diversity and charm.
In a more or less egalitarian society, such as that of Cyprus
until the early decades of the present century, the costumes
worn by men and women gave their wearers a sense of
security, confidence and ease.
4. THE MATERIALS
The materials used for the costumes were cotton and silk, the
cultivation, processing and weaving of which have a long
tradition on Cyprus. Wool, mixed with cotton yarn, was used
only rarely for the chemises worn in mountainous villages.
5. THE ALATZIÁ FABRIC
The most usual fabric for the outer garments
was alatziá, a durable cotton cloth rather like
ticking, usually with fine vertical or crossed
stripes in deep red, blue, yellow, orange or
green on a white ground. Men’s shirts and
women’s dresses for everyday wear were
generally of blue alatziá with white stripes.
Black was substituted for blue in the cloth used
for the jackets of elderly men, while those of
younger men were of standard red-striped
alatziá zimpounísimi.
There were also local variations for the festival
costumes, which had a characteristic colour
combination and were named according to their
provenance,
such
as
marathéf tikes ,
morphitoúdes, lapithkiótikes inter alia.
6. FEMALE COSTUMES
The Cypriot female costume
basically consists of the o uter
garment, the chemi se and the
distinctive
l ong
pantal o ons
caught around the ankle.
Two
general
categories
of
Cypri ot female costumes can be
distinguished : urban and rural .
The former display a greater
number of European infl uences,
like
their
counterpar ts
in
Greece,
while
the
l atter
preser ve more of the authentic
local traits and peculiarities .
The most representati ve rural
costumes are those of Karpasia
and Paphos, of the interi or,
mesaritiki , and the mountains,
oreini.
7. THE SAYÁ
The 'saya', a kind of frock
open at the front and sides,
was common in most urban
and rural regions of Cyprus
until the 19th centur y.
Local variants were still
worn in the remoter par ts of
Karpasia and Paphos in the
early
decades
of
the
present centur y .
From the 19th centur y
onwards
the
saya
was
gradually replaced in the
towns by the shor t fitted
jacket and skir t.
8. C O ST U ME S O F K A R PASIA , " SAYA". L AT E 1 9 T H C E NT U RY.
C O L LE CT ION O F T H E C Y P RU S FO L K A RT M U SE U M .
9. THE DOUPLETTI
A peculiar local garment in Karpasia, the northeast part of Cyprus, is the doupletti, a white,
densely pleated skirt, cast double over the
shoulders like a cape; the standing collar, which is
actually the skirt waistband, is embroidered in
white with coloured beads. This skirt was
originally part of the bridal costume, worn with
the sa'rka.
Costume of Karpasia, "saya'" with "douple'tti".
Late 19th Century.
Collection of the Cyprus Folk Art Museum.
10. THE FOUSTÁNI WITH APRON
The
'foustani ',
a
one-piece,
waisted and pleated dress, was
the preferred over-garment in the
rural areas of Cyprus, par ticularly
the plain and the mountains, well
into the 1950s, which decade was
a turning point for modernization
in the countr yside. The festival
foustani was worn with an
embroidered apron, the ever yday
one with a plain. In Paphos the
saya' was retained alongside the
fousta'ni , since it was considered
easier to wear. Both garments,
saya and foustani, had a large
oval
opening
in
front,
the
trachilia ' or dickey, to facilitate
breast-feeding.
11. THE FOUSTÁNI
COSTUME OF THE MESSAORIAS ,
" F O U S TA ' N I " .
E A R LY 2 0 T H C E N T U R Y.
COLLECTION OF THE CYPRUS
FOLK ART MUSEUM.
12. LOCAL VARIATIONS
In Karpasia and other rural regi ons
of the pl ains, the women wo rking in
the fields in the summer lif ted up
the hem of their saya ' or fousta'ni
and tuc ked it in at the wai st. Some
just wore the chemi se and z oma, a
sash improvi sed from a di agonally
folded dark kerchief, tied round the
waist with the pointed end behind.
Analogous with the zoma is the
foutas , a rectangul ar piece of cl oth,
folded diagonally and tied i n front . It
was worn round the wai st like a
broad cummerbund, covering the
chemise below.
In the towns the women used the
foutas in the bath -house . The
pa'nna , an equivalent garment, was
worn in the mountainous regions of
Cyprus and as par t of the festi val
costume.
13. THE AMALIA COSTUME-THE URBAN
From the second half of the
19th centur y, in Nicosia (the
capital of the island) and the
other towns, as in the urban
areas of Greece, variations
of
the
so-called
Amalia
costume came into vogue.
This type of dress dif fused to
the
extensive
rural
settlements of Cyprus too. It
comprises a wide silk skir t, a
shor t
fitted
jacket
with
sleeves, the sarka, which had
a large opening on the chest,
a
fez
and
kerchief.
Characteristic of the Cypriot
version of the pan-Hellenic
Amalia
costume
is
the
sattakrouta
fabric
from
Nicosia, dyed with plant
substances in shades of
yellow, orange, green and
ear th colour s.
kerchief
chemise
sarka
silk skirt
14. THE AMALIA COSTUME-THE URBAN
The best sarkes were produced in
Nicosia, whose seamstresses and
tailors had a high reputation. The
latter sewed and embroidered the
fine costumes, women's sarkes,
men's waistcoats and short jackets
worn all over Cyprus. Local cloth was
used, though black woollen felt,
tsoufa, or velvet was purchased for
"best-wear". The embroidery was
executed in over-sewn metal wire,
ttelia, or silk thread .
The luxurious pure silk chemise worn
under the sarka is visible on the
chest and the sleeves. Both the large
frontal opening, trachilia or dickey,
and the long maniketta or cuffs are
embellished
with
delicate
silk
crochet lace, pipilla.
15. BRIDAL COSTUMES
In contrast to the urban costume,
which frequently became a criterion
of social class, a relative uniformity
is obser ved in the rural world. The
festival dress was usually also the
bridal costume, the addition of
cer tain
accessories
and
the
characteristic scarlet kerchief, worn
in some regions throughout the fir st
year of marriage, being the only
features distinguishing the bride
from the other female guests. Brides
also plaited long strands of wire,
ttelia, in their hair, and these hung
down like a veil concealing the face.
In some regions, such as Karpasia
and the Morphou area, there was a
special bridal headdress, which only
a few women in the community knew
how to arrange .
16. THE KARPASIAN BRIDAL COSTUME
The most popular bridal costume in
Karpasia was a l ocal ver si on of the urban
Amalia costume: It consi sts of a multipleated cotton skir t dyed dark red with
pine bark , routzietti , worn with a shor t
jacket, sa'rka . Rare l ocal examples of the
sa'rka have sur vi ved from Karpasia.
These are made of white cotton fabri c,
lavi shl y
embellished
wi th
applique
decoration and coloured beads.
The entire chest was covered with
jeweller y ; the mirmidi , the cross with the
doudounia and coral s, the nec klace, the
ker tanes and other pieces . The belt
around the waist i s fastened with a sil ver
buc kle . The headdress is par ti cularl y
striki ng : the scarlet kerchi ef, skepi , is
held on the forehead with a frontlet of
three successive ribbons in red, yellow
and green . Af fixed to the headdress i s a
silver ornament, the splinga, from whi ch
chains, coins and col oured beads hang
down the sides of the bride's face .
17. THE HEADDRESS
The female headdress whi ch prevailed not only i n the rural but al so in the
urban world was the kouroukla, a square kerchi ef of fine cotton in dif ferent
colour s; crimson, 'kraseti ' (bordeaux ), dark green for young women and
brown for older ones.
Young girl s were psil oskoufomenes , that is they wore the kerchief tied high
on the head to expose the brow, since, according to a Cypri ot rhyming
couplet, thos e who wore the headdress low, chamil oskoufomenes were
"shamed" . The hair was par ted in the middle and pl aited into two l ong
braids . Old wo men, widows and those in mourni ng wore a black kerchief,
under which they placed a second dark -coloured headsquare , the
kouroukla , which covered the hair, forehead and ear s like a snood, and was
known as the skoufoma .
18. MANDILARIDES
The fl oral desi gns on the border s
are applied with wooden stamps
by special craf tsmen known as
mandila'rides .
The
"best"
kerchi ef s are edged with crochet
trim, pipilla , i n vari ous patterns,
such as yasemoudi n, foulin,
kamaroudin etc., named af ter
the basic moti f. The kerchief was
folded diagonally, the triangle
behind, and the two l oose ends
turned bac k and tied high up at
the side so that their lace edging
was di splayed . A sil ver kerchief
pin, 'kar fitsa tou mandiliou', a
flower of croc heted sil k , or real
flower was placed in the bow.
19. THE HEADDRESS
The wealthy bourgeoise ladies wore the singular polychrome silk
kerchiefs known as koilaniotika. These were tie-dyed with plant
colorants in vivid hues, predominantly vermilion, kraseti, gold and
green. The technique was exclusive to the village of Koilani and
these highly -prized kerchiefs were expor ted, mainly to Kastellorizo.
In the mountainous villages of the Troodos, the women wore a
woollen kerchief with fringing, krossia, the tsemberi. Embroidered
in one corner of the festival or bridal kerchief was a bird,
generically called peacock , pagoni, or a flower, which could be seen
on the triangle behind.
20. THE SHOES
Town-dwelling women of the
19th centur y wore boots
and slipper s of yellowish
leather while in the 20th
centur y black cour t shoes
became fashionable. In the
rural areas, and especially
the mountains, women wore
shor t
hob-nailed
boots,
potinia, made by the same
cobbler s, skarparides, as
fashioned the men's boots
or podines.
Cypriot women rarely wore
hose; in keeping with the
strict moral code obser ved,
the
long
pantaloons
covered even the soles of
the feet.
21. OTHER ACCESSORIES
Essential accessories of the costume of the wealthiest urban
women were various items of gold jewellery, indicative of their
social rank and economic status. However, most women wore
silver and gilded ornaments with the festival costume, and those
worn in the villages were often of silvered bronze.
22. JEWELLERY
The commonest articles were pins, splidzies, worn in the
headscarf or on the chest, rows of chains upon the chest,
mirmidia, from which hung tiny Turkish coins, pparaoudkia,
and gems of coral or glass, necklaces - kertanedes and
skalettes - various crosses, such as the trifourenos with tiny
filigree spheres and coral, earrings, bracelets and finger rings.
23. JEWELLERY
Some bridal costumes included a
velvet belt ernbroidered with metallic
thread, fastened with a silver buckle,
poukles. The broad sash worn by
women in the towns had silkembroidered ends and two large,
shiny metal buckles at the front.
Cypriot jewellery was wrought by local
goldsmiths in Nicosia and was
embellished with filigree trifoureni,
pierced,
hammered
and
cast
decoration.
24. MALE COSTUMES
There are ver y few
distinct
regional
differences in the male
costume of Cyprus. Its
basic components are
the
densely
pleated
baggy trousers, vra'ka,
which held sway in all
the C,reek islands, and
the waistcoat, yilekko,
or jacket, zibouni. Yet
this apparent uniformity
is punctuated by some
local features, manifest
in the size of the vraka
and the colour of the
cloth used for the chest
garment.
These
diacritical traits used to
be indicative of the
wearer's origin.
Rural male costume
Urban male costume
25. THE VRAKA
The vra'ka was made of coar se
hand -woven dimity, whi ch was
dyed, af ter sewing, by local dyer s,
poyatzides ; bl ack for elderl y men,
blue for younger ones. The vraka
varied i n si z e and shape from
regi on to regi on. That for "best"
wear was ver y wide, requiring
for ty piches (yards) of di mity,
according to the popular Cypri ot
disti ch . The bustl e, sella , which
hung
behind,
was
densel y
pleated, prosiasma. This was
normall y tuc ked up i nto the belt
and onl y lef t to hang freely when
the wearer went to c hurc h. In
Oreini Ni cosia, the vra'ka , known
here
as
tsiatta'lin ,
was
appreciabl y narrower than in
other
regi ons.
White
cotton
underpants
were
worn
underneath.
26. THE CHEMISE OR SHIRT
The v ra 'ka is wo rn wi t h a c hemise
o r shi r t , o f da rk s t ri pe d c ot ton
ma te rial eve r yday an d o f silk on
Sun days . The silk shi r t was a basic
ga rme n t o f the g room 's c ostume ,
being a present from his bri de - to be , like his ke rc hie f whic h was
sym bolic o f thei r union an d tie d
a ro un d
his
ne c k
durin g
t he
we ddi ng ce remony. The c ut o f t he
shi r t, the manne r i n which i t was
sewn a n d em bellishe d, va rie d
a c co rding to region . Tha t o f t he
M esao ria is par t i c ula rl y ela bora te,
being m a de o f highl y - prize d t ais to
silk wit h a sho ul de r pie ce a n d
t raver sa in fron t , c ut on t he c ross
an d t rimme d wi t h t uc ks an d
E uro pea n lace . The sleeves a re
volumino us ,
w i th
c uf fs
an d
poma 'niko , tha t is a t riang ula r
inset to the un de r -a rm seam to
fa c i lit a te fre e do m o f m ove men t .
In many districts, including the Mesaoria,
men also wore a vest next to the skin. This
was of hand-woven cotton and embroidered
in those places visible beneath the shirt,
such as the neck opening and the cuffs. In
rural areas a knitted vest of home-spun wool
was worn in winter.
27. THE YILEKKO AND ZIBOUNI
Though the vra'ka and shir t were
more or less the same all over
the island, there were more
obvious variations in the jacket
worn with them. This garment is
shor t, fitted, straight or crossed
over and fastened. The sleeveless ver sion is the yilekko, the
sleeved the zibouni or zibouna.
The ver tical opening down the
back , which enabled the wearer
to make expansive movements,
was fastened with a cord or
ribbon. The yilekka and zibounia
worn in countr y districts were of
the same cotton alatzia ' as the
female over-garment . In summer
the waistcoat was worn on its
own, in winter under the zibouni.
yilekko
zibouni
28. THE DECORATION
The edges, back and pocket of the festival waistcoat were
embroidered, in contrast to the ever yday version which was quite
plain. The oldest zibouni in Karpasia, the perikos, was embelished
with white loom-embroider y with coloured "stones", petrou'des, ver y
similar to that on the women's festival saye's (A . Pieridou, op. cit.,
p.28). Jackets for Sunday wear in this region had a cross-over
fastening and were thus known as stavrote's. Wile the zibou'nia and
yile'kka worn in the rural areas were made in the villages, the
sklavou'nika worn in the towns were sewn by professional tailors in
Nicosia. They were of ready -made woollen cloth and elaborately
decorated with embroider y of over-sewn twisted cotton thread.
There were even waiscoats of velvet and the famous sattakrou'ta
silk , with which the Nicosian ladies made their skir ts.
The groom's yilekkozi'bouna was usually made of dark velvet with
brightly coloured applique designs of birds and animals on the
back , such as confronting lions, a symbol of virility.
29. THE ZONARI
A broad cummerbund, zona'ri,
was worn around the waist. This
was of black dimity with fringing
at the narrow ends for older men
and of brightly coloured silk,
ttalapoulou'zi, in the young
men's festival attire and the
groom's costume. A knitted
purse hung from the sash, or a
bought purse, kkeme'ri, was
tucked inside it.
30. THE SHOES
All year round, the men in the rural par ts of Cyprus wore heavy, hobnailed boots to protect them from snakes which abound on the
island. Flat-soled and made by specialist cobblers, skarpa'rides,
these are the most expensive item in the male costume. In the town
men wore European-style boots, frangopodi'nes, or shoes, ska'rpes.
In some districts the groom wore leather slippers with a bow,
syriane's. The knitted cotton or woollen socks worn with the boots
or shoes were attached to the bottom, podina'ria, of the baggy
trousers with laces.
31. THE HEADDRESS
The
male
costume
was
formerly completed by a fez,
either worn alone of with a
kerchief tied with the triangle
at the side, the kouroukli'n .
The male headdress was later
simplified
and
only
the
kerchief
remained.
The
groom's kerchief, of brightly
coloured wool, was bought.
The edges were trimmed with
crochet lace, pipi'lla, or fine
fringing.
The
ever yday
kerchiefs were just the same
as the kourou'kles worn by
the women, with stamped
designs; young men wore light
ones, old men dark . The
farmer s of the plain wore a
straw hat.
