Please Can You Explain The Difference Of Meaning Between Hanfu And Huafu ? Sorry If You Already Got The

Please can you explain the difference of meaning between hanfu and huafu ? Sorry if you already got the question

Hi, thanks for the question, and sorry for taking ages to reply! (hanfu photo via)

The term “hanfu” (traditional Chinese: 漢服, simplified Chinese: 汉服) literally means “Han clothing”, and refers to the traditional clothing of the Han Chinese people. “Han” (漢/汉) here refers to the Han Chinese ethnic group (not the Han dynasty), and “fu” (服) means “clothing”. As I explained in this post, the modern meaning of “hanfu” is defined by the hanfu revival movement and community. As such, there is a lot of gatekeeping by the community around what is or isn’t hanfu (based on historical circumstances, cultural influences, tailoring & construction, etc). This isn’t a bad thing - in fact, I think gatekeeping to a certain extent is helpful and necessary when it comes to reviving and defining historical/traditional clothing. However, this also led to the need for a similarly short, catchy term that would include all Chinese clothing that didn’t fit the modern definition of hanfu -- enter huafu.

The term “huafu” (traditional Chinese: 華服, simplified Chinese: 华服) as it is used today has a broader definition than hanfu. “Hua” (華/华) refers to the Chinese people (中华民族/zhonghua minzu), and again “fu” (服) means “clothing”. It is an umbrella term for all clothing that is related to Chinese history and/or culture. Thus all hanfu is huafu, but not all huafu is hanfu. Below are examples of Chinese clothing that are generally not considered hanfu by the hanfu community for various reasons, but are considered huafu:

1. Most fashions that originated during the Qing dynasty (1644–1911), especially late Qing, including the Qing aoqun & aoku for women, and the Qing changshan and magua for men. I wrote about whether Qing dynasty clothing can be considered hanfu here. Tangzhuang, which is an updated form of the Qing magua popularized in 2001, can also fit into this category. Below - garments in the style of Han women’s clothing during the Qing dynasty (清汉女装) from 秦綿衣莊 (1, 2).

2. Fashions that originated during the Republican era/minguo (1912-1949), including the minguo aoqun & aoku and qipao/cheongsam for women, and the minguo changshan for men (the male equivalent of the women’s qipao). I wrote about why qipao isn’t considered hanfu here. Below - minguo aoqun (left) & qipao (right) from 嬉姷.

Below - Xiangsheng (crosstalk) performers Zhang Yunlei (left) & Guo Qilin (right) in minguo-style men’s changshan (x). Changshan is also known as changpao and dagua.

3. Qungua/裙褂 and xiuhefu/秀禾服, two types of Chinese wedding garments for brides that are commonly worn today. Qungua originated in the 18th century during the Qing dynasty, and xiuhefu is a modern recreation of Qing wedding dress popularized in 2001 (x). Below - left: qungua (x), right: xiuhefu (x).

4. Modified hanfu (改良汉服/gailiang hanfu) and hanyuansu/汉元素 (hanfu-inspired fashion), which do not fit in the orthodox view of hanfu. Hanfu mixed with sartorial elements of other cultures also fit into this category (e.g. hanfu lolita). From the very start of the hanfu movement, there’s been debate between hanfu “traditionalists” and “reformists”, with most members being somewhere in the middle, and this discussion continues today. Below - hanyuansu outfits from 川黛 (left) and 远山乔 (right).

5. Performance costumes, such as Chinese opera costumes (戏服/xifu) and Chinese dance costumes. These costumes may or may not be considered hanfu depending on the specific style. Dance costumes, in particular, may have non-traditional alterations to make the garment easier to dance in. Dunhuang-style feitian (apsara) costumes, which I wrote about here, can also fit into this category. Below - left: Chinese opera costume (x), right: Chinese dance costume (x).

6. Period drama costumes and fantasy costumes in popular media (live-action & animation, games, etc.), commonly referred to as guzhuang/古装 (lit. “ancient costumes”). Chinese period drama costumes are of course based on hanfu, and may be considered hanfu if they are historically accurate enough. However, as I wrote about here, a lot of the time there are stylistic inaccuracies (some accidental, some intentional) that have become popularized and standardized over time (though this does seem to be improving in recent years). This is especially prevalent in the wuxia and xianxia genres. Similarly, animated shows & games often have characters dressed in “fantasy hanfu” that are essentially hanfu with stylistic modifications. Below - left: Princess Taiping in historical cdrama 大明宫词/Palace of Desire (x), right: Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji in wuxia/xianxia cdrama 陈情令/The Untamed (x).

7. Any clothing in general that purposefully utilizes Chinese style elements (embroidery, fabrics, patterns, motifs, etc). Chinese fashion brand Heaven Gaia is a well-known example of this. Below - Chinese-inspired designs by Heaven Gaia (x).

8. Technically, the clothing of China’s ethnic minorities also fit under the broad definition of huafu, but it’s rarely ever used in this way.

From personal observation, the term “huafu” is mainly used in the following situations:

1. Some large-scale events to promote Chinese clothing, such as the annual “华服日/Huafu Day”, will use “huafu” in their name for inclusivity.

2. For the same reason as above, Chinese clothing including hanfu will often be referred to as “huafu” on network television programs (ex: variety shows).

3. A few Chinese clothing shops on Taobao use “huafu” in their shop name. Two examples:

明镜华服/Mingjing Huafu - sells hanfu & hanyuansu.

花神妙华服/Huashenmiao Huafu - sells Qing dynasty-style clothing.

With the exception of the above, “huafu” is still very rarely used, especially compared to “hanfu”. It has such a broad definition that it’s just not needed in situations for which a more precise term already exists. However, I do think it’s useful as a short catch-all term for Chinese clothing that isn’t limited to the currently accepted definition of hanfu.

If anyone wants to add on or correct something, please feel free to do so! ^^

Hope this helps!

MDZS Vol 2 Annotations, part 2

Here is Part 2 of my annotations of MDZS Volume 2, pages 87 - 160.

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mdzs mdzs novel grandmaster of demonic cultivation mxtx mxtx novels translations MDZS novel translation MDZS novel annotations

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weishenmewwx

3 years ago

Get to know you?

Tagged by @theji

Tag some number of people you want to get to know better/catch up with.

Last song - #357 of a 413- song Zhou Shen playlist. I’m working my way through ALL of Zhou Shen’s songs!

One of my favorite recent discoveries (I am truly grateful to all those Youtubers who put these long playlists together) is when some show had some people in costume trying to sing 芒种Mang Zhong and doing a terrible job of it -- like, it sounded like me trying to sing, and my kids won’t even let me sing them lullabies --, and then Zhou Shen struts in with an entourage, singing with confidence, power, perfect pitch, and crazy charisma. It’s worth it to hear the bad singing in the beginning just to more fully experience and understand just how different and special Zhou Shen’s singing is.

And then he sang a little bit of 左手指月(Left Hand Pointing at the Moon). Wow.

Last movie - The last movie I watched that was new to me was 刻在你心底的名字 Your Name Engraved Herein, on Netflix. It was crazy good. It was so good that I spent the next week obsessing over it and not feeling the slightest bit tired (my new measure for how strongly something affects me: if it can replace sleep, it’s Good). Some reviews mention that the movie is sad, but I watched through to the last second and actually found it quite positive. It ends with happiness and hope. That’s enough for me to look forward to a(n emotionally wrenching but ultimately sweet) re-watch.

The last movie that I actually watched was 闪光少女Our Shining Days (no longer on Netflix, but still free on Youtube!). It’s the perfect antidote to all emotionally wrenching media, while still being beautiful and subtle and, actually, kinda deep and meaningful, especially for those of us who really care about traditional Chinese arts. And it’s hilarious and the music is Awesome.

Currently reading - 镇魂 Guardian by Priest. I’m only on Chapter 4, but I’m totally enamored. I am still getting used to the new vocabulary and sentence structures of Priest (new to me) vs 墨香铜臭Mo Xiang Tong Xiu (魔道祖师 x2!), though, so it’s slow going right now.

Currently watching - ...still on Street Dance of China Season 3. Someday I’ll finish Episode 9. I really like it, honestly! I just really like to give it my full attention, read all the cute little pop-up comments, and, well, I haven’t figured out yet just when I’m (stealing my kids’ ipad and) doing that.

Currently craving - Anything Asian. Please!

Tagging: @herr-zhou, @coffintownkids, @bimingjue

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zhou shen guardian novel Your Name Engraved Herein Our Shining Days

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weishenmewwx

1 year ago

MDZS Vol 4 Annotations

Part 2, pages 51 - 88

Part 2!

Some anti-slang annotations, a few Chinese Family / People Terminology reminders.

Yes, the literal translation is “miraculous.”

No, MXTX is not trying to invoke or reference either Jesus or Marinette Dupain-Cheng.

She’s just trying to show that WWX has fast reflexes.

More below the cut:

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novel mdzs grandmaster of demonic cultivation mo dao zu shi mxtx translation seven seas translations volume 4

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weishenmewwx

2 years ago

Super-Vocal 声入人心

I have been obsessed with listening, and occasionally watching, song clips from Super Vocal recently.

YouTube

声入人心单曲纯享

Yes, yes - everyone who likes 周深 Zhou Shen had recommended to watch the whole thing multiple times, but I never had any desire to expand beyond Zhou Shen until recently.

Maybe it was seeing 刘宪华 Henry Lau's expressions as he watched other people sing.

Such a cutie. A polyglot polymath cutie with really nice abs (you all saw the movie Double World, yah?)

Or maybe it was Zheng Yunlong (I still don't think he's fair. Nothing about Zheng Yunlong is fair. Not his height, not his face, not his singing. It's just not fair. Especially when they put him in costume. Any costume. Or do his hair. Any hairstyle. ）

And it's all been incredibly wonderfully ... gay? Since they only have men on the show, all the duets have been between guys. They didn't even bother changing the lyrics to pretend they were singing about girls -- it's just "Oh, 哥 big brother, I miss you" etc. So awesome.

And the men are so wonderfully put together. And talented.

Anyway, I highly recommend it. Everyone was right - Super-Vocal is totally worth listening to / watching. (Maybe someday I'll get to watch the entire thing instead of just listening at work.)

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henry lau zhou shen Super-Vocal Zheng Yunlong

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weishenmewwx

4 years ago

https://player.vimeo.com/video/428359960

For those who watched The Untamed on Youtube and Netflix, here is the true ending we deserved. The same footage shown in a different order tells a completely new story.

As you may know, drama aired in Japan wouldn’t have to work around the same restrictions that the original version faced, so two guys getting their Happily Ever After isn’t going to get a show axed at the censorship board there. This is from the finale last night – what the show’s cast and crew would’ve wanted you to see.

(source: https://m.weibo.cn/profile/5813837205)

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weishenmewwx

4 years ago

listen, i’m a sucker for all of wei ying’s different smiles😤

this awkward and confused why is he being nice to me because he loves you dumbass smile

this haha that was kinda embarrassing haha sorry sheepish grin

this watery god i love you so much you fuddy-duddy

the i am literal sunshine and i know it

the pained but silent resignation

just. evil. and maybe illegal

the i’m babie smile reserved for shijie and shijie only

the drunk cutie

this maybe i am up to no good hehe smile

smiling through the rain. i mean pain

that’s it for now but ik there’s definitely more so feel free to add to it!!

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weishenmewwx

1 year ago

Concept Arts And Sample Insert Illustrations By Marina Privalova (@Baoshan_Karo) For Sha Po Lang Russian

Concept arts and sample insert illustrations by Marina Privalova (@Baoshan_Karo) for Sha Po Lang Russian Edition of the book shared by Istari Comics Publishing.

If you haven't seen the beautiful cover arts, here's the link.

Yes, the same artist behind MDZS insert illustrations for EN and RUS license.

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novel danmei stars of chaos sha po lang gu yun chang geng changgu

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weishenmewwx

4 years ago