Hanfu Movement

Hanfu Movement
Two Hanfu promoters at the Chinese Cultural Festival in Guangzhou
Simplified Chinese	汉服运动
Traditional Chinese	漢服運動
Literal meaning	"Han clothing movement"
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Hànfú yùndòng

The Hanfu Movement (simplified Chinese: 汉服运动; traditional Chinese: 漢服運動; pinyin: Hànfú yùndòng), also known as the Hanfu Revival Movement (汉服复兴运动; 漢服復興運動; Hànfú fùxīng yùndòng),^[1] is a homegrown, grassroots cultural movement^[2] in Mainland China seeking to revive or revitalize Han Chinese fashion, aesthetics and cultural identity via public wearing of pre-Qing dynasty traditional ethnic clothing of the Han Chinese, i.e. hanfu. The movement began as a subculture of nostalgic pastime among elegance-seeking, historically conscious netizens, and has since evolved into a trendy nationwide movement boasting a new clothing industry with millions of young fashion-conscious consumers.^[3][4][5][6] It has also slowly gained traction amongst the Chinese diaspora, especially in countries like Singapore.

The Hanfu movement started in 2003, and its emergence can be credited to Zhang Congxing, a Singaporean Chinese who wrote an article about Wang Letian, a man from Zhengzhou who was photographed dressed in a homemade shenyi, a type of robe often worn as Confucian academic dress.^{[1][7][8][9][10][11][12]} This spurred online discussion and spontaneous acts of imitation, culminating in the formation of a rapid-growing organic movement. Its ready adoption by trendy fashion-conscious young women has been accelerated by social media, which then were predominantly online forums, has helped to propagate the trend via photo sharing, traditional clothing design comparisons, cosplaying, and historical and philosophical discussions. Later online platforms such as Bilibili, Instagram and Douyin have further contributed to its resurgence by allowing youth to showcase and easily share their dress fittings and experience.^[13] The popular clothing styles are typically ceremonial attires worn by royalty and aristocrats, scholar-officials and soldiers, although there have been calls to promote more commoners' clothing that are more compatible with work, sports and modern daily life.

The popularity of the movement, especially among Gen Y and Gen Z, can be attributed to a burgeoning national pride associated with the rise of China as an economic, technological and military powerhouse in the world stage, to draw historical sustenance and justification for national rejuvenation,^[14][15] and to express subtle support for Han nationalism and discontent against affirmative action and legal leniency favoring ethnic minorities (which Han nationalists viewed as a form of reverse discrimination).^[16][17][18] Additionally, the aesthetics of traditional Han garments is considered a more authentic representation of Chinese culture and history^[19] than the cheongsam and tangzhuang then-promoted by the Chinese Ministry of Culture and the Chinese television industry, as those are Manchu-influenced clothings that are considered historical products of violent forced assimilation during the 17th century conquest by the Qing dynasty and are often also seen as being associated with the century of humiliation. It can also be seen as a nationalistic salute to the Chinese Dream by paying homage to past golden ages of Pax Sinica, when Chinese culture, aesthetics and philosophy had significant influences over the surrounding regions.

• Youth in Hanfu
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  School pupils in Hanfu
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  Night wear of Hanfu
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  Hanfu street fashion
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  Male in Hanfu