Since ancient times, the beauty of the Slavs has evoked enthusiastic responses from representatives of European and Asian peoples. Travelers from different countries, describing Slavic men and women, certainly noted their high stature, proud posture, white skin with a bright blush, thick brown hair. The folk costume helped to emphasize their proud beauty with its silhouette, color and decorative solutions.
Shirt as the main element of Russian folk costume
The main elements of the Russian folk men's costume were a shirt, trousers, a headdress and shoes - bast shoes. The shirt was, perhaps, its main and most ancient component. The name of this element of the folk costume comes from the root "rub", which means "piece" or "cut". He was related to the word "cut", which previously had the meaning of "cut". The first Slavic shirt was a simple piece of fabric that was folded in half, provided with a hole for the head and fastened with a belt. Subsequently, the side seams were sewn together, sleeves were added.
Scientists call this cut "tunic-like" and believe that it was approximately the same for all segments of the population. The only difference was the material and the nature of the finish. People from the common people dressed in shirts made of linen, in the cold season they sometimes wore shirts made of "tsatra" - fabric made of goat down.
There was one more name for a shirt, "shirt" or "shirt". However, some researchers believe that the "shirt" and "shirt" are different elements of the costume. The long shirt was made of a denser and coarser fabric, while the short and light shirt was made of a thinner and softer one. Over time, the shirt turned into underwear, and the top shirt was called "top".
The length of the men's shirt was about knee-deep. It was obligatory to girdle it, supporting it in such a way that its upper part turned into a bag for necessary items. Since the shirt was directly adjacent to the body, during its manufacture it was considered necessary to “secure” the holes in the finished garment: collar, sleeves and hem. The protective function was performed by embroidery, each element of which carried its own magical meaning.
Slavic shirts did not have turn-down collars. The gate was more like a modern "rack". The collar incision was usually made straight - in the middle of the chest, but it was also oblique, to the right or to the left. The collar was buttoned up. It was considered a particularly "magically important" piece of clothing, because after death the soul flew out through it. The sleeves of the shirt were wide and long, and were tied with a braid at the wrist.
Belt and pants in the composition of the costume
Belt belts were considered one of the primary symbols of male prestige. Every adult free man was a warrior, and belts were almost the main sign of military dignity. No wonder in Russia there was an expression "to deprive the belt", which meant "to deprive the military rank" (hence - "got loose").
Belts made of wild tur leather were highly valued. They tried to get leather for the belt right on the hunt, when the tour was already mortally wounded, but still alive. Such belts were considered a huge rarity, since forest bulls were very dangerous.
The pants were brought to Europe, incl. to the Slavs, nomads and were originally intended for horseback riding. They were made not very wide, about ankle-length and tucked into onuchi on the lower leg. The trousers did not have a slit and were held on the hips with the help of a lace called “gashnik”. This is where the expression “keep in store” came from, i.e. behind the drawstring for the pants. Another name for pants is "trousers" or "leggings".
Russian folk men's costume was significantly inferior in variety to women's and was approximately the same for all Russian provinces.
