Here’s a question for all of you: what is Vietnam famous for? Well, the answers could be many, starting from floating markets and beautiful beaches to the pho (the traditional Vietnamese dish), and the celebration of Tet (the Vietnamese New Year). Okay, what else? Turns out, it is also known for ao dai. Wondering what it is? It is the national costume of Vietnam worn traditionally by women. It also has a male counterpart called ao dam. Although the nation has adopted various western styles, the people still continue to wear this attire, especially during occasions.
The look
Simply put, ao dai is a long and tight-fitted tunic that usually comes in vibrant shades and patterns and is accompanied by plain and loose trousers. However, if you go into the intricacies of it, you will find that it consists of ten distinct parts. The back flap is called ‘ta sau’, while the front flap is called ‘ta truoc.’ In contrast, the sleeves are called ‘ong tay.’ Then there is the main hook and hole called ‘nut mock ket thuc’ followed by numerous other hooks used as fasteners and holes. They are called ‘nut bam than ao.’ Then comes the collar called ‘co ao’ and its button called ‘khuy co.’ The waist part is called ‘kich.’ Finally, there’s the seam and the inside seam known as ‘duong may’ and ‘duong ben’ respectively.
The origin
For ages, working class women in Vietnam typically wore yem (a halter top) underneath a blouse accompanied by vay (a skirt). The royals on the other hand donned a cross-collared robe called ao giao linh. Now, fast forward to 1744. At this point of time, Vietnam was divided into two regions, the Inner Land (Dang Trong) and the Outer Land (Dang Ngoai). Now, Lord Nguyen Phuc Khoat of Inner Land wanted to set apart his people from the ones of the Outer Land. Guess what he did? He commissioned a brand-new costume. It was a five-part dress called ao ngu thenn and looked like a front buttoned gown worn over pants. Unfortunately, this dress didn’t take off as he expected. The women sure donned it and sometimes even the men, but nobody seemed to enjoy it. Now, fast forward again to the 1930s, when the dress was simplified by a Vietnamese designer named Le Mur Nguyen Cat Tuong. The front part was made to touch the ankle and it became more fitted in comparison to previous styles. But it still wasn’t accepted by the public until he custom-made the dress for Queen Nam Phuong, the wife of Vietnam’s last monarch Bao Dai. In fact, the artist even named his creation ao dai, in honour of the King. When the Queen wore it and visited a fashion show in Paris, the attire became a hit overnight. All Vietnamese women started to embrace it as the contemporary style and especially chose to wear it during occasions.
Entry into the English dictionary
Since the mid-20th century, ao dai has been in trend. However, the Western world was still a long way from knowing about it. When an American-Canadian historian named Christopher Goscha, who was researching on modern-day Vietnam mentioned about ao dai extensively in his 2016 book The Penguin History of Modern Vietnam, the world got to know about the national costume of Vietnam. Soon, a year down the line, the style became so popular among fashion community that the term ‘ao dai’ was added in English dictionaries worldwide, starting with Oxford.
Interestingly, ao dai is itself a misnomer as it translates to ‘long blouse’ in English but in reality, it is an entire outfit comprising of a long gown and wide trousers. In fact, it symbolises femininity, modesty and sophistication.