Banbi

Short sleeved clothing

Banbi

Woman wearing a duijin banbi.

Chinese name
Chinese| 半臂
Literal meaning| half-arm
| Transcriptions

Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin| Bànbì
Alternative Chinese name
Chinese| 半袖
Literal meaning| half-sleeve
| Transcriptions

Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin| Bànxiù
Korean name
Hangul| 반비
Hanja| 半臂
Japanese name
Kanji| 半臂
Hiragana| はんぴ
| Transcriptions

Romanization| Hanpi

This article is about the traditional short-sleeved upper garment. For the beizi with long sleeves, see Beizi.

Banbi (Chinese: 半臂; lit. 'half-arm'),[1] also known as banxiu (Chinese: 半袖; lit. 'half-sleeves')[2] and sometimes referred as beizi (Chinese: 褙子) or half-beizi (i.e. short-sleeved beizi) before the term beizi eventually came to refer to a long-sleeved beizi in the Song dynasty,[3] and referred as dahu in the Yuan dynasty,[2] is an upper garment item in Hanfu. The banbi is in the form of a waistcoat or outerwear with short sleeves, which could either be worn over or under a long-sleeved ruqun.[1] The style of its collar varies; it can also be secured at the front either with ties or a metal button.[4]

## Classification

[edit]

See also: Garment collars in Hanfu

There were various forms of banbi throughout history. In present days, the different forms of banbi are generally classified based on their collar shapes: e.g. duijin (Chinese: 对襟) which is straight or parallel in shape; jiaoling (Chinese: 交领) which is cross-collared in shape; tanling (Chinese: 坦领) which is U-shaped,[5][4] yuanling (Chinese: 圆领) which is round-collared in shape; and fangling (Chinese: 方领) which is squared-collared in shape.

## History

[edit]

### Ancient

[edit]

See also: Ru (upper garment)

According to the Chinese records, the banbi was a clothing style, which was invented from the duanru (Chinese: 短襦; lit. 'short jacket') that the Chinese wear.[6] It was first designated as a waistcoat for palace maids, but its popularity soon reached the commoners.[6] It was recorded in the Book of Jin, when Emperor Ming of Wei met Yang Fu, the emperor himself was dressed in commoner's banbi.[6][7]

* Han dynasty banbi
* A woman wearing a cross-collared banbi, Han dynasty.

* Woman wearing a cross-collared banbi, Eastern Han dynasty, 25–220 AD.

* Cao Wei, Jin, Northern and Southern dynasties
* A woman wearing a parallel collar banbi, Northern Wei dynasty, about 522 AD.

* Women wearing parallel collar banbi, Southern Dynasties Brick Relief.

### Tang dynasty

[edit]

See also: Tanling ruqun

During Tang dynasty, the banbi was worn by men and women.[8] The banbi was a staple clothing item for the Tang dynasty women, along with shan (a blouse which could be low cut during this period) and high-waisted skirts.[9] The banbi was worn on the shan.[8][9] The banbi could either be worn under or over the skirt.[1] Banbi could also be worn under the yuanlingshan.[9]

Women of Qiuci wearing U-shaped banbi (middle) which shares similarities in shapes and customs with those worn in the early Tang dynasty, Kizil caves.[10]

During Tang dynasty, there was another form of banbi or short sleeve waistcoat worn called kedang (袔裆). The sleeve covers around the shoulder area and there is no opening in the front or back. In order to wear it, people would have to tuck in, then out from the neck of the clothing. Generally, it's worn outside of a long sleeve shirt. In the "Legend of Huo Xiao Yu" (崔小玉传) that was written during Tang dynasty, the main female character Huo Xiaoyu wear this style most of the time.[6][11] It is suggested that a type of banbi was adopted from Central Asia during the Tang dynasty through the Silk Road when cultural exchanges were frequent, and that it was also known as beizi during Tang dynasty.[12][13] In the early Tang dynasty, the shape of the banbi worn in this period appears to have been mainly influenced by those worn in Qiuci, for example, the shape of the U-shaped banbi in Qiuci shared similarities with those worn in the early Tang dynasty.[10]

In Japan's Nara city, the Todaiji temple's Shosoin repository has 30 banbi (called hanpi in Japan) from Tang dynasty China; they are cross-collared closing to the right, most dating from the 8th century.[14]: 105 The eighth century Shosoin banbi's variety show it was in vogue at the time and most likely derived from much more ancient clothing.[14]: 106

* Tang dynasty banbi
* Court Ladies of the Tang dressed in Banbi with scarfs wrapped around it.

* A painting of a lady during the Tang dynasty.

* A Tang dynasty Woman wearing a green, U-shaped collar banbi.

* Fresco of a Tang dynasty Musician wearing a loose, red cross-collared banbi.

* Fresco of a Tang dynasty Musician wearing a loose, blue cross-collared banbi.

* A Tang dynasty Woman wearing a red U-shaped collar banbi under her skirt.

* The bulges at the woman's shoulders areas hints the presence of a banbi worn under yuanlingshan.

* Baby banbi, Tang dynasty

### Song dynasty

[edit]

In the Song dynasty, the half-beizi (i.e. banbi) was originally a military uniform which was later worn by the commoners and by the literal class.[3]

### Yuan dynasty

[edit]

Main article: Fashion in the Yuan dynasty

In the Yuan dynasty, the casual clothing for men mainly followed the dress code of the Han people and they wore banbi as a casual clothing item while ordinary women clothing consisted of banbi and ruqun.[15] Han Chinese women also wore a combination of a cross-collar upper garment which had elbow length sleeves (i.e. cross-collar banbi) over a long-sleeved blouse under a skirt with an abbreviated wrap skirts were also popular in Yuan;[16]: 19–20 [17]: 142 This form of set of clothing was a style which slightly deviated from the ruqun worn in the Tang and Song dynasties.[17]: 142

There were several types of banbi in the Yuan dynasty: straight collar short shan with half-sleeves (直领短衫), a half-sleeved long robe (changpao 长袍) with a cross-collar closing to the right (jiaoling youren 交领右衽) which was specifically called dahu (was worn by Mongol men during and prior to the founding of the Yuan dynasty[18]: 43, 52 [17]: 139–140 ), and square-collar long robe (方领对襟长袍) with half-sleeves.[19]

* Two women (right) wearing parallel collar banbi, Yuan dynasty

* Women wearing banbi over aoqun.

* Khutughtu Khan wearing a dahu, Yuan dynasty, ca. 1330–32.[20]

* Women depicted in the Fresco in the Hall of King Mingying. Han women wore elbow-length sleeves, cross-collar upper garment over a long-sleeved blouse; the abbreviated skirts were popular in Yuan.[21]

### Ming dynasty

[edit]

In the Ming dynasty, the dahu was either a new type of banbi whose designs was influenced by the Mongol Yuan dynasty clothing.[22][23]

* A Ming dynasty portrait illustrating a woman wearing Banbi

* A Ming dynasty portrait illustrating a woman wearing Banbi

* A man wearing a green dahu, a Ming dynasty painting.

### Qing dynasty

[edit]

In the Qing dynasty dictionary called Gujin Tushu Jicheng《古今圖書集成》, the banbi is depicted with no sleeves.

* Banbi, from the Gujin Tushu Jicheng, section "Ceremonial Usages", between 1700 and 1725

## Derivative and Influences

[edit]

### China

[edit]

Main article: Beizi

It is assumed that the long-sleeved beizi (褙子), which originated in the Song dynasty,[3][24] was derived from the banbi, when the sleeves and the garment were lengthened.[25][26] According to Ye Mende, the beizi was initially worn as a military clothing with "half-sleeves"; the sleeves were later extended and hanging ribbons were added from the armpits and back.[3]

### Japan

[edit]

#### Hanpi

[edit]

Hanpi, from "Depiction of costumes" published by Rinhei Shoten, 1932.

In Japan, banbi are known as hanpi (半臂/はんぴ, lit. "half-arm") and are short coats.[14]: 105 [27] In Japan, the hanpi was either imported from China or were modelled to look very closely to the Tang dynasty banbi.[14] It was as a sleeveless short undergarment for men of the aristocracy;[28] it commonly worn in summer.[27]

### Korea

[edit]

During the rule of Queen Jindeok of Silla (r. 647–654), Kim Chunchu personally traveled to Tang to request for clothing and belts; one of the requested clothing was banbi (반비/半臂).[29] The banbi later reappeared in the clothing prohibition decreed by King Heungdeok of Silla (r. 826–836).[29][8] During the Silla period, the banbi may have been worn on sam (衫, a type of upper garment) which also corresponds to the way banbi was worn by men and women during the Tang dynasty.[8]

The banbi from the Unified Silla period appears to have also been worn in Goryeo.[30][31]

## Similar-looking items

[edit]

* Dahu – A form of banbi in Ming dynasty influenced by the Mongol clothing of the Yuan dynasty
* Beizi \- a long sleeved over jacket in China
* Beixin/Bijia \- Sleeveless jacket in China
* Baeja \- A sleeveless or very short-sleeved vest in Korea

## See also

[edit]

* Hanfu
* List of hanfu

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c Chen, BuYun (2017-01-02). "Material Girls: Silk and Self-Fashioning in Tang China (618–907)". Fashion Theory. 21 (1): 5–33. doi:10.1080/1362704X.2016.1138679. ISSN 1362-704X. S2CID 155949571.
2. ^ a b 张, 国伟 (2013). "元代半臂的形制与渊源". "半臂又做半袖,到元代也称搭护。"
3. ^ a b c d Zhu, Ruixi; 朱瑞熙 (2016). A social history of middle-period China : the Song, Liao, Western Xia and Jin dynasties. Bangwei Zhang, Fusheng Liu, Chongbang Cai, Zengyu Wang, Peter Ditmanson, Bang Qian Zhu (Updated ed.). Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press. pp. 17–18. ISBN 978-1-107-16786-5. OCLC 953576345.
4. ^ a b "Hanfu Making(7) - Banbi Cutting & Sewing Patterns - 2021". www.newhanfu.com. 4 August 2021. Retrieved 2021-12-20.
5. ^ "About Ruqun, You Should Know These - 2021". www.newhanfu.com. 2019. Archived from the original on 2021-05-15. Retrieved 2021-12-20.
6. ^ a b c d Wang Qiao-ling (2008). "Women Fashion of Tang Dynasty and Foreign Cultural Communication". 21. Journal of Zhejiang Wanli University: 1–3. `{{cite journal}}`: Cite journal requires `|journal=` (help)
7. ^ 《晋书·五 行志》云:"魏明帝著绣帽,披缭纵半袖,以见直臣。"
8. ^ a b c d 李, 鳳淑 (1983). "답호에 關한 硏究" [(A) study of Dapho]. 이화여자대학교 대학원.
9. ^ a b c Chen, Bu Yun (2013). Dressing for the Times: Fashion in Tang Dynasty China (618-907) (Thesis). Columbia University. doi:10.7916/d8kk9b6d.
10. ^ a b Zhao, Qiwang; Lyu, Qianyun (2020). "Western Cultural Factors in Robes of Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties as Well as Sui and Tang Dynasties" (PDF). 2020 3rd International Conference on Arts, Linguistics, Literature and Humanities: 141–147. doi:10.25236/icallh.2020.025 (inactive 31 January 2024).`{{cite journal}}`: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of January 2024 (link)
11. ^ Information on Civilian Clothings 不拘一格说便服[permanent dead link] oldbeijing.org Retrieved 2010-02-10
12. ^ Yoon, Ji-Won (2006). "Research of the Foreign Dancing Costumes: From Han to Sui-Tang Dynasty". 56. The Korean Society of Costume: 57–72. `{{cite journal}}`: Cite journal requires `|journal=` (help)
13. ^ Kim, Sohyun. A Study on the Costume of Khotan, The Korean Society of Costume, v. 34, 169-183. 1997.[verification needed]
14. ^ a b c d Dusenbury, Mary M.; Bier, Carol (2004). Helen Foresman Spencer Museum of Art (ed.). Flowers, Dragons & Pine Trees: Asian Textiles in the Spencer Museum of Art (illustrated ed.). Hudson Hills. ISBN 1555952380.
15. ^ "Costume in the Yuan Dynasty
ASEAN
China Center". www.asean-china-center.org. Retrieved 2021-07-18.
16. ^ Sun, Ming-ju (2002). Chinese fashions. Mineola, N.Y.: Dover Publications. ISBN 0-486-42053-1. OCLC 55693573.
17. ^ a b c 5000 years of Chinese costumes. Xun Zhou, Chunming Gao, 周汛, Shanghai Shi xi qu xue xiao. Zhongguo fu zhuang shi yan jiu zu. San Francisco, CA: China Books & Periodicals. 1987. ISBN 0-8351-1822-3. OCLC 19814728.`{{cite book}}`: CS1 maint: others (link)
18. ^ Shea, Eiren L. (2020). Mongol court dress, identity formation, and global exchange. New York, NY. ISBN 978-0-429-34065-9. OCLC 1139920835.`{{cite book}}`: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
19. ^ 张, 国伟 (2013). "元代半臂的形制与渊源". "提出元代半臂的三种形制,即:直领短衫式半臂、交领右衽长袍式半臂(也称搭护)、方领对襟长袍式半臂。"
20. ^ "Vajrabhairava mandala ca. 1330–32". www.metmuseum.org. Retrieved 2021-07-18.
21. ^ Sun, Ming-ju (2002). Chinese fashions. Mineola, N.Y.: Dover Publications. p. 19\. ISBN 0-486-42053-1. OCLC 55693573.
22. ^ Wei, Luo (2018-01-02). "A Preliminary Study of Mongol Costumes in the Ming Dynasty". Social Sciences in China. 39 (1): 165–185. doi:10.1080/02529203.2018.1414417. ISSN 0252-9203. S2CID 149138176.
23. ^ "What is Da Hu - Chinese Traditional Male Clothing - 2021". www.newhanfu.com. 16 April 2021. Retrieved 2021-05-24.
24. ^ B. Bonds, Alexandra (2008). Beijing Opera Costumes: The Visual Communication of Character and Culture. University of Hawaii Press. p. 53\. ISBN 9780824829568.
25. ^ 朱和平 (July 2001). 《中国服饰史稿》 (PDF) (in Chinese) (1st ed.). 中州古籍出版社. pp. 223–224. Retrieved May 20, 2009.
26. ^ Hua, Mei (2011). Chinese Clothing. Cambridge University Press. p. 36\. ISBN 9780521186896.
27. ^ a b Verschuer, Charlotte von (2008-01-01). "Le costume de Heian". Cipango. Cahiers d'études japonaises (in French) (Hors-série): 227–270. doi:10.4000/cipango.1029. ISSN 1164-5857.
28. ^ Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System (2001). "Hanpi 半臂". www.aisf.or.jp. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
29. ^ a b Ju-Ri, Yu; Jeong-Mee, Kim (2006). "A Study on Costume Culture Interchange Resulting from Political Factors". Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles. 30 (3): 458–469. ISSN 1225-1151.
30. ^ Choi, Jeong (2015). "A Study on Historical Research for Costume of Banya(般若) in King Gongmin's Period of Late Goryeo - Focused on the Buddhist Service Costume -". Journal of the Korean Society of Costume. 65 (6): 112–132. doi:10.7233/jksc.2015.65.6.112. ISSN 1229-6880.
31. ^ 이, 은형 (2009). "네이버 학술정보" [Historical analysis and modernization work of Korean traditional Baeja]. academic.naver.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2021-05-14.

* v
* t
* e

Traditional Han Chinese clothing

Characteristics|

| Garment and neckline (list)|

* Jiaoling youren
* Mandarin collar

|

Fastening|

* Pankou
* Chinese button knot
* Zimukou

Styles|

* Baoyi bodai
* Shangjian xiafeng
* Fuyao
* Hufu
* List of hanfu

Textile decoration and craft|

* Diancui
* Chinese knotting
* Chinese embroidery
* Chinese auspicious ornaments in textile and clothing (list)
* Xiangyun
* Lishui (sea-waves)
* Mandarin square
* Chinese ornamental gold silk
* Goldwork
* Chinese patchwork

Belief system and social movement|

* Confucianism
* Taoism
* Wufu
* Wuxing (Chinese philosophy)
* Yin and Yang
* Hanfu movement

Sumptuary laws|

* Tifayifu

Related rituals|

* Guan Li
* Ji Li (ceremony)

Garments|

| Set of attire|

* Ruqun
* Tanling ruqun
* Qixiong ruqun
* Qungua
* Xiuhefu
* Mianfu
* Bianfu
* Tongtianguanfu
* Xuanduan
* Diyi
* Zaju chuishao fu
* Shanku

|

Upper garment|

* Ru
* Yi
* Shan
* Ao
* Chang'ao
* Baijiayi
* Daxiushan
* Bijia
* Banbi
* Dahu
* Beizi
* Pifeng
* Hechang
* Shuitianyi
* Yuanlingshan

Robe|

* Shenyi
* Zhiju
* Quju
* Paofu
* Daopao
* Zhiduo
* Yuanlingpao
* Fanlingpao
* Panling Lanshan
* Longpao
* Mangfu
* Tieli
* Yesa
* Zhisun
* Feiyufu

Inner and undergarment|

* Dudou
* Hezi
* Moxiong
* Maweiqun

Lower garment|

* Ku
* Qun
* Baidiequn
* Mamianqun

Religious clothing|

* Daojiao fushi

Headwear (list)|

| Guan|

* Mianguan
* Fengguan

|

Futou|

* Tang official headwear
* Song official headwear

Mao|

* Humao
* Damao
* Liangmao
* Weimao

Jin|

* Fujin
* Wangjin

Hairpin|

* Chinese hairpin
* Buyao

Comb|

* Shubi

Veil|

* Honggaitou
* Mili

Footwear (list)|

* Xiuhuaxie
* Tiger-head shoes
* Lotus shoes

Accessories (list)|

| Head|

* Lingzi

|

Neck|

* Yingluo
* Yunjian
* Fangxingquling

Shoulders|

* Pibo
* Xiapei

Chest|

* Yajin

Waist|

* Yaoqun

Lap|

* Bixi

Ribbons and knots|

* Lào zi

Portable|

* Hebao
* Xiangnang (fragrant sachet)
* Hu (ritual baton)
* Fu (tally)
* Yufu (fish tally)
* Yudai (fish bag)
* Folding fan
* Tuanshan

Jewellery|

* Longevity lock
* Yupei
* Jinbu

Influenced clothing|

| Traditional clothing|

* Kimono
* Hanbok
* Ryusou
* Vietnamese clothing

|

Performance costume|

* Xifu
* Guzhuang

Cosmetics|

* Huadian

* List of Hanfu

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