Jews wear on the belt. National costume of the Jews: photo, description

Who can name the main sign that distinguishes Jews from other peoples? The National costume. A description of it will be presented to your attention in the article, since it is clothing that always distinguishes a Jew from the crowd.

Jews are the people of the West Semitic group, related to the Arabs and Amharts (Ethiopians). Yes, no matter how strange it may seem, Arabs and Jews, who are always at war and do not like each other, are close relatives, much like Russians and Poles.

However, religion, culture in general and clothing in particular among these peoples are not at all similar. The traditional clothing of the Jews is very colorful and distinguishes the representatives of this nation from the crowd. To people modern and far from religion - and the manner of Jews dressing is entirely based on religious beliefs- it may seem ridiculous and some kind of old-fashioned, "anachronistic". What does the national costume of the Jews look like? Black frock coats, hats, belts - these items of Jewish costume became " calling card"a true Jew. A little less known is the yarmulke - a round hat. However, this is not all the details of the Jewish wardrobe. What does the national costume of the Jews look like? The photo in the article shows us the image of a real Jew, dressed according to all the rules of his people.

Jewish ideology in clothes

The peoples of the Jews have their roots in ancient times. Over the centuries, they have been constantly changing, and the reason for this is the desire of the Jews to disguise themselves (after all, in many countries they were forbidden to live at all or were allowed to settle in strictly designated places) or assimilate. The last trend appeared at the beginning of the 19th century: educated representatives Jewish people decided to change their traditional outfit for European clothes; they began to dress in the fashion of those times - so those very long black frock coats and hats entered into Jewish life. Later, this style was “mothballed” and became one of the variants of the “traditional Jewish” attire, while in the rest of the world it went out of fashion.

But this transformation has a certain meaning - national, ideological and even religious. His principle is reflected in a common anecdote. Allegedly, at the beginning of the 19th century, one of these educated Jews approached the rabbi, who seemed to be the custodian of ancient piety, and, deciding to “prick” him, asked: “Rebbe, what did our forefather Abraham wear?” The rabbi calmly replied: “My son, I don’t know what Abraham wore - in a silk robe or shtreimla; but I know exactly how he chose his clothes: he looked at how non-Jews dressed, and dressed differently.

Indeed, the Jews strove to be different from all other peoples and did this with more fanaticism than all other Eastern peoples. pagan religion Jews are still stubbornly refused to be called “paganism” (although, if strictly according to science, only the Jewish faith can be recognized as real “paganism”, since it practically did not undergo mixing with foreign cults).

Jewish music, cooking, behavior, clothing - all this should always be different from the surroundings, but exactly how it should look is the tenth thing. Even kashrut - a list of culinary (and not only) dogmas - many Orthodox Jews interpret only this way: "Kashrut was introduced in order to distinguish a Jew from a non-Jew." Same with cutting...

Therefore, it is not surprising that the Western European costume of the beginning of the century before last is officially considered traditional Jewish clothing today. The national costume of the Jews in Russia may seem something strange and unusual, but a different people that must be respected.

Yermolka

It's the same round hat. Jews from former USSR used to think that its name is derived from the Russian name Yermolai. But when they come to Israel, locals they are explained that the cap is so called from the expression "yere malka" - "afraid of the lord." That is, wearing a yarmulke, in theory, means that its owner deeply and sacredly believes in God.

How to choose a yarmulke?

Choosing a yarmulke is not as simple a task as it seems to the uninitiated. In Israeli stores, they are sold as ordinary hats - yarmulkes of the most different sizes, materials, colors and styles. However, which one the buyer chooses depends on the characteristics of his religion and mental attitude. For example, Hasidim do not recognize velvet and knitted yarmulkes. A religious Jew acquires a cap of the style worn in his community. This is also a reflection of the principles of Judaism: to outside observers, it seems to be a monolithic, uniform cult, but in fact it is divided into dozens of movements that differ in dogma, rules, clothing, etc. Relations between many movements are far from friendly.

Cape

The national costume of the Jews includes a cape. In Hebrew, it is called "talit katan" or "arbekanfes." Like the yarmulke, this is also an obligatory attribute of the Jewish costume. It is a piece of quadrangular matter with a hole for the head and four tassels (tzitzit) along the edges. The cape can be worn under clothing or worn over the top like a shirt, but the tassels are always placed over trousers. Each brush has eight threads. Here, too, there are elements characteristic of certain currents of Judaism.

The most interesting and even mysterious part is one (there may be two) thread in the brush, dyed in blue color. It means that the owner of this cape is Radzinsky or Izhbitsky Hasid. There is a legend about the origin of such threads. It is believed that the blue dye - "teylet" - was present on Jewish clothing in ancient times, but two thousand years ago the recipe for its preparation was lost. At the end of the 19th century, the Hasidic rabbi Gershon-Khanoch received the khalet again, but his recipe was not recognized by the majority of the Jewish community as “the same” paint. Therefore, this tailet remained the property of only the indicated Jewish movements.

In fact, attempts to restore the ancient recipe and get thailet have been proposed by many Western and Jewish scholars since the Middle Ages. Archaeologists, who have explored the remains of ancient factories, and modern chemists have also contributed to this matter.

Tzitzit, according to religious canons, must be worn by all men who have reached the age of 13. This means coming of age (Bar Mitzvah). Wearing brushes indicates that the boy is already able to take responsibility for his actions and participate in the affairs of adults, including reading and discussing the Torah in the synagogue.

Casket and hat

The national costume of the Jews necessarily includes a headdress. Everyone must wear a yarmulke religious jew. However, it is usually hidden under the second headdress. It can be a cap, a hat or a "casket" (aka "dashek") - an old-style cap. The latter is especially popular among Russian and Polish Jews, including Hasidim.

But the most famous traditional one is worn by Jews on weekdays. Do not think that all hats are the same: according to her appearance even more can be said about the personality of its owner than from a passport. The size of the hat, its position on the head, the nature of the crease and other elements testify to which stream of Judaism the owner of the hat belongs to and even which social status he has.

Strimble

The shtreimble is the third type of headdress that is included in the national costume of the Jews. But it is common only among the Hasidim. Shtreimble - a cylindrical fur hat. They also have more than two dozen types. This highlights three large groups: actual shtreimble - wide and low, regular shape; Chernobyl - just low, more free form; and spodik - a very high fur hat. Shtreimble Hasidim wear only on solemn occasions - on Shabbat, at weddings and other holidays, during a visit to the rabbi. There are also types of shrimble that are worn only by the heads of communities.

Tie and beard

There are elements of clothing that only some Jewish communities recognize. One of them is a tie. It is the prerogative of the Litvaks only. But the Hasidim hate ties fiercely; this they explain by saying that the first step in tying a tie is to tie a knot in the shape of a cross. Everything that is connected with the cross, a zealous Jew is supposed to hate.

Another part of the "clothing" is the beard. Some Jews go clean-shaven, others trim their beards neatly, but the Hasidim do not recognize any modification of the beard at all, so they have the thickest and blackest among all Jews.

tailcoat

What else can be included in the national costume of the Jews? In some communities (for example, among the Litvaks), such an old-fashioned according to European concepts, element of the wardrobe as a tailcoat has been preserved. It is also black, long and has no pockets. It is interesting that the buttons on the tailcoat (and on any Jew) are fastened so that the right half covers the left - that is, from the point of view of a non-Jew, “like a woman”. Jews put on a tailcoat, as a rule, during a holiday.

What does the national costume of the Jews look like? The photos in the article clearly demonstrate to us a colorful and unusual style of clothing for a simple European. This may seem strange to many, but this is what Jews are special about. They are firm in their views and true to their customs. And these features would not interfere with every nation!

An Orthodox Jew must observe a minimum of 613 rules of the Pentateuch daily. According to them, not only food, but also clothes are kosher. Blogger Sergei Anashkevich decided to figure out exactly how religious Jews dress and why they have such clothes.

If you think that they are all equally black and white, then you are very mistaken. It turns out that there are 34 types of black hats alone, each of which carries information about its owner. Knowledgeable people by the color of the stockings, the material of the lapserdak and the shape of the headdress, they can accurately indicate: this is Yerushalmi, this is a Hasid of such and such an Admor, this is Bakhur, and this one has already married.

— Rebbe, did Abraham wear a black frock coat?
“I don’t know,” the Rebbe replied, “whether Abraham walked around in a silk robe and shtreiml. But I know exactly how he chose clothes. I looked at how non-Jews were dressed - and dressed differently.

Already in biblical times, the Jews dressed differently from other nations, and, according to Jewish sages, the people of Israel were honored with the exit from Egypt because they did not change their clothes. The Jewish people have since been scattered all over the world. But only its religious representatives, having met, will be able to recognize in each other a brother in blood by the characteristic appearance of black clothes.

According to the Orthodox themselves: “Clothes not so much hide as reveal the essence of a person. It is written: "Be humble before the Almighty." We prefer dark suits because they are modest, festive and neat. That is why white shirts are "in vogue" of Orthodox Jewry. That is why God-fearing Jews will never allow themselves to go out in sandals on their bare feet.

There is a basic dress - halachic, which is worn by any Jew who keeps the commandments. This garment includes a head covering and 4-edged tzitzit. Mandatory element is a quadrangular cape (poncho) with a hole for the head and four tassels along the edges. The cape itself, called the tallit katan (or arbekanfes), may be hidden under clothing or worn over a shirt, but the tassels are always straightened over trousers. It is made of white wool with or without black stripes. The corners are reinforced with overlays made of simple fabric or silk, threads of tsitsis are threaded through the holes in the corners - brushes commanded by the Torah.

If there are two (or one) threads of blue in the brush, then most likely you have a Radzin or Izhbitsky Hasid. The secret of making thailet, a blue paint obtained from the chiloson mollusk, was lost almost 2000 years ago and rediscovered at the end of the last century by Rabbi Gershon-Hanoch of Radzin. However, most of the rabbis did not recognize his recipe. The Sephardim and many Hasidim have not one, but two holes on each corner of the tallit katan. In addition, on some brushes, in addition to the four (double) obligatory knots, you can see from 13 to 40 small knots on the turns of the thread. On this basis, members of different communities can also be distinguished.

Traditional Jewish men's clothing is a tailcoat or frock coat. The tail coat has no pockets and is fastened from right to left, like all traditional Jewish men's clothing (according to non-Jewish standards, "in a feminine way"), it has a deep slit and two buttons at the back (where the strap is).

Robe - as a rule, clothing for special occasions: festive silk, embroidered with black on black pattern, tish robe for festive dinners, unlined yeshiva robe from the cheapest fabric - for classes in a yeshiva or koilel. On Shabbat and Yom Tov, many Hasidim wear a special black satin cloak - bekeche. Both the bonnet, and the frock coat, and the Hasid's robe must be tied with a belt woven from black silk thread or fabric.

Litvaks can wear jackets on weekdays. Hasidim wear hoods (rackle), which also naturally have differences. For example, lapels are pointed or rounded, or instead of the usual three buttons - six (two rows of three), this is the case with Satmar Hasidim. In addition to the hoods, there are also bekechi (bekeshi), zhugshtsy (jube). And it's all strictly black.

Trousers can be either ordinary black, or knee-length - ealb-goyen. Short trousers are worn by Hungarian Hasidim, they tie a trouser leg with a drawstring under the knee and put on black stockings - zokn. In some communities, on holidays or Shabbat, it is customary to change black stockings for white ones. Gher Hasidim tuck regular trousers into knee-highs. This is called "Cossack" stockings (Cossack-zokn).

Clothing of a non-black color is worn mainly by Reb Arele Hasidim and some of the Breslov and other Hasidic inhabitants of the Meo Sheorim quarter. On weekdays, they look like this: a plush (flying saucer) on the head, under it - weisse yarmulke - a white knitted kippah with a tassel in the center of the dome. White shirt, woolen tallit katan, waistcoat and caftan made of a special fabric (kaftn).

The kaftna fabric is white or silver with black or navy blue stripes. This fabric is produced only in Syria and smuggled into East Yerushalayim. On Shabbat, the flying saucer will be replaced by a Chernobyl or ordinary shtreiml, and instead of a caftan with a silver background, the Hasid will put on a gold one. A brown satin bekesha with an embroidered collar is sometimes thrown over the caftan (and on Shabbat and the holiday it is mandatory).

Let's get back to the hats. Over the kippah (yarmolka) the Jew almost always puts on a hat or cap. In rare cases, it can be a cap of the old European cut, usually worn by old Hasidim from Russia and Poland - kasket (kashket or dashek). Remotely resembling a casket, gray six-panel caps are worn by children and teenagers in Litvak families. On weekdays, most traditional Jews wear a black hat. According to the assurances of the hat dealers, there are 34 main types of hats, each of which testifies to the origin, community affiliation, and even social status owner.

The traditional hat of the hereditary Jews of Yerushalmi is plush. It is also called a flicker-teller - in a simple way, a flying saucer or super. It has a wide brim, but a low crown - only 10 cm.

Other types of hats are made of velor (rather like velvet or even short-haired black fur), which is not inferior in hardness to ten millimeter plywood. Among these hats, one can single out the samet, one of the most expensive and luxurious styles, its owner is probably a Hungarian Hasid.

A simple Litvak or Lubavitcher Hasid wears a kneich hat with a longitudinal crease. Litvak, who occupies a high position in the community, will replace the kneich with an expensive hamburg (or maftir-gitl) - without creases and dents. Many Hasidim wear on weekdays the simplest of hats - capelush, similar to kneich, but without creases in the crown and bends of the brim. All of them are made of hard felt.

But the most “bright” and eye-catching headdress of all is the shtreiml. This is the most natural fur hat. Only Hasidim wear it and only on Shabbat, yom tov, at a wedding or to meet with a rebbe. And there are more than two dozen types.

Usually, it is a black velvet kippah trimmed with fox or sable tails. Wide and low, regular cylindrical shape is actually “shtreiml”, low and wide non-strict forms, shaggy-shaggy are called “chernobl”, and a tall black cylindrical fur hat is called “spodik”.

The price of a shtreiml can reach several thousand dollars. The history of shtreiml began many years ago, when non-Jews ordered the Jews of one of the communities to wear the tail of an animal on their heads. The purpose of this order was to humiliate and shame the Jew. The Jews had no choice, and they took the tails of animals and made hats out of them.

A simple shtreiml is worn by Hungarian, Galician and Romanian Hasidim, a shaggy Chernobyl is worn by Ukrainians, and a spodik is worn by Polish Hasidim. There are special styles of shtreiml, which are not worn by entire communities, but only by their heads, slaves. This group includes sobl or tsoybl - high shtreiml made of sable fur, kolpik - something between a spodik and shtreiml.

Shtreiml are only worn married men. The only exceptions are a few dozen hereditary families in Yerushalayim. In these families, a boy puts on a shtreiml for the first time on the day of majority, a bar mitzvah at the age of thirteen.

In 2010, animal rights activist and fashion model Pamela Anderson wrote a letter to Knesset members hoping to persuade them to ban the sale of natural furs and to stop the Orthodox from wearing these shtreimls.

Who can name the main sign that distinguishes Jews from other peoples?

The National costume. A description of it will be presented to your attention in the article, since it is clothing that always distinguishes a Jew from the crowd.

Jews are the people of the West Semitic group, related to the Arabs and Amharts (Ethiopians).

Yes, no matter how strange it may seem, Arabs and Jews, who are always at war and do not like each other, are close relatives, much like Russians and Poles.

However, religion, culture in general and clothing in particular among these peoples are not at all similar.

The traditional clothing of the Jews is very colorful and distinguishes the representatives of this nation from the crowd.

To people modern and far from religion - and the way Jews dress is entirely based on religious ideas - it may seem ridiculous and some kind of old-fashioned, "anachronistic".

Black frock coats, hats, belts - these items of Jewish costume have become the "calling card" of a real Jew. A yarmulke is a little less known - a round hat.

However, this is not all the details of the Jewish wardrobe.

The photo in the article shows us the image of a real Jew, dressed according to all the rules of his people.

Jewish ideology in clothes

The national costumes of the peoples of the Jews are rooted in ancient times.

Over the centuries, they have constantly changed, and the reason for this is the desire of the Jews to disguise themselves (after all, in many countries they were forbidden to live at all or were allowed to settle in strictly designated places) or assimilate.

The last trend appeared at the beginning of the 19th century: educated representatives of the Jewish people decided to change their traditional attire for European clothes; they began to dress in the fashion of those times - so those very long black frock coats and hats entered into Jewish life.

Later, this style was “mothballed” and became one of the variants of the “traditional Jewish” attire, while in the rest of the world it went out of fashion.

But this transformation has a certain meaning - national, ideological and even religious.

His principle is reflected in a common anecdote.

Allegedly, at the beginning of the 19th century, one of these educated Jews approached the rabbi, who seemed to be the custodian of ancient piety, and, deciding to “prick” him, asked: “Rebbe, what did our forefather Abraham wear?”

The rabbi calmly replied: “My son, I don’t know what Abraham wore - in a silk robe or shtreimla; but I know exactly how he chose his clothes: he looked at how non-Jews dressed, and dressed differently.

Indeed, from time immemorial, the Jews have strived to be different from all other peoples and have done this with more fanaticism than all other Eastern peoples.

The pagan religion of the Jews is still stubbornly refused to be called "paganism" (although, if strictly according to science, only the Jewish faith can be recognized as real "paganism", since it practically did not undergo mixing with foreign cults).

Jewish music, cooking, behavior, clothing - all this should always be different from the surroundings, but exactly how it should look is the tenth thing.

Even kashrut - a list of culinary (and not only) dogmas - many Orthodox Jews interpret only this way: "Kashrut was introduced in order to distinguish a Jew from a non-Jew." Same with cutting...

Therefore, it is not surprising that the Western European costume of the beginning of the century before last is officially considered traditional Jewish clothing today.

The national costume of the Jews in Russia may seem strange and unusual, but these are the traditions of another nation that must be respected.

Yermolka

It's the same round hat.

Jews from the former USSR are accustomed to believing that its name is derived from the Russian name Yermolai. But when they come to Israel, the locals explain to them that the hat is so called from the expression "yere malka" - "afraid of the lord." That is, wearing a yarmulke, in theory, means that its owner deeply and sacredly believes in God.

How to choose a yarmulke?

Choosing a yarmulke is not as simple a task as it seems to the uninitiated. In Israeli stores, they are sold like ordinary hats - yarmulkes of various sizes, materials, colors and styles are laid out on the shelves. However, which one the buyer chooses depends on the characteristics of his religion and mental attitude. For example, Hasidim do not recognize velvet and knitted yarmulkes. A religious Jew acquires a cap of the style worn in his community. This is also a reflection of the principles of Judaism: to outside observers, it seems to be a monolithic, uniform cult, but in fact it is divided into dozens of movements that differ in dogma, rules, clothing, etc. Relations between many movements are far from friendly.

Cape

The national costume of the Jews includes a cape. In Hebrew, it is called "talit katan" or "arbekanfes." Like the yarmulke, this is also an obligatory attribute of the Jewish costume. It is a piece of quadrangular matter with a hole for the head and four tassels (tzitzit) along the edges. The cape can be worn under clothing or worn over the top like a shirt, but the tassels are always placed over trousers. Each brush has eight threads. Here, too, there are elements characteristic of certain currents of Judaism.

The most interesting and even mysterious part is one (there may be two) thread in the brush, dyed blue. It means that the owner of this cape is Radzinsky or Izhbitsky Hasid. There is a legend about the origin of such threads. It is believed that the blue paint - "teylet" - was present on Jewish clothing in ancient times, but two thousand years ago the recipe for its preparation was lost. At the end of the 19th century, the Hasidic rabbi Gershon-Khanoch received the khalet again, but his recipe was not recognized by the majority of the Jewish community as “the same” paint. Therefore, this tailet remained the property of only the indicated Jewish movements.

In fact, attempts to restore the ancient recipe and get thailet have been proposed by many Western and Jewish scholars since the Middle Ages. Archaeologists, who have explored the remains of ancient factories, and modern chemists have also contributed to this matter.

Tzitzit, according to religious canons, must be worn by all men who have reached the age of 13. This means coming of age (Bar Mitzvah). Wearing brushes indicates that the boy is already able to take responsibility for his actions and participate in the affairs of adults, including reading and discussing the Torah in the synagogue.

Casket and hat

The national costume of the Jews necessarily includes a headdress. Every religious Jew is required to wear a yarmulke. However, it is usually hidden under the second headdress. It can be a cap, a hat or a “casket” (aka “dashek”) - an old-style cap. The latter is especially popular among Russian and Polish Jews, including Hasidim.

But the most famous is the traditional black hat. Jews wear it on weekdays. You should not think that all hats are the same: by its appearance, you can tell even more about the personality of its owner than by a passport. The size of the hat, its position on the head, the nature of the crease and other elements testify to which stream of Judaism the owner of the hat belongs to and even which social status he has.

Strimble

The shtreimble is the third type of headdress that is included in the national costume of the Jews. But it is common only among the Hasidim. A shtreimble is a cylindrical fur hat. They also have more than two dozen types. At the same time, three large groups are distinguished: the shtreimble itself - wide and low, of the correct form; Chernobyl is just low, more free-form; and spodik - a very high fur hat. Shtreimble Hasidim are worn only on solemn occasions - on Shabbat, at weddings and other holidays, during a visit to the rabbi. There are also types of shrimble that are worn only by the heads of communities.

Tie and beard

There are elements of clothing that only some Jewish communities recognize. One of them is a tie. It is the prerogative of the Litvaks only. But the Hasidim hate ties fiercely; this they explain by saying that the first step in tying a tie is to tie a knot in the shape of a cross. Everything that is connected with the cross, a zealous Jew is supposed to hate.

Another part of the "clothing" is the beard. Some Jews go clean-shaven, others trim their beards neatly, but the Hasidim do not recognize any modification of the beard at all, so they have the thickest and blackest among all Jews.

tailcoat

What else can be included in the national costume of the Jews? In some communities (for example, among the Litvaks), such an old-fashioned according to European concepts, element of the wardrobe as a tailcoat has been preserved. It is also black, long and has no pockets. It is interesting that the buttons on the tailcoat (and on any Jewish men's clothing) are fastened so that the right half covers the left - that is, from the point of view of a non-Jew, "like a woman." Jews put on a tailcoat, as a rule, during a holiday.

What does the national costume of the Jews look like?

The photos in the article clearly demonstrate to us a colorful and unusual style of clothing for a simple European.

This may seem strange to many, but this is what Jews are special about. They are firm in their views and true to their customs.

And these features would not interfere with every nation!

Eastern European Jewish women costume.

Women of the old faith dressed in Long Dresses kind of cover. The design of the corsage included lace, frills and folds, beautiful hand embroidery. Puffy sleeves, gathered at the shoulder and gradually tapering, fastened at the wrist with a button. In shape, they resembled a leg of lamb, for which they received the same name. The stand-up collar tightly covered the neck and was decorated with lace. Along the hem of the dress were several rows of lush frills. The skirt of the dress was straight in front, and gathered in folds at the back, which turned into a train. The waist was formed with a belt, which was created from the same fabric as the dress, or from leather. This was the fashionable national costume of the Jews in the last decades of the 19th century and in the early years of the 20th century.

On the head is a wig, over which is put on a lace cap and a sterntihl that holds the head cover - a shleyer. On the neck - a pearl necklace in two rows. On the chest (a colored insert on the blouse) there is a brustichl made of colorful and bright fabric.

Dolls in folk costumes №73. Eastern European Jewish women's costume. Photo of a doll. Since Jewish culture was purely urban, Jewish women did not weave fabric for the dress themselves, but used purchased fabric. The fabric for women's skirts and sweaters depended on their wealth and local fashion.

The main decoration of the costume was a kind of shirt-front - brustihl.

A skirt worn with two aprons - front and back. The ornament on the fabrics, as a rule, was floral, repeating the one that could be seen on expensive European fabrics.

IN late XIX centuries, yielding to the influence of urban fashion, Jewish women, especially wealthy ones, began to wear hats, and they demanded hairstyles. Then wigs came into use. At first they were not made from hair, it was a primitive imitation of a hairstyle. Currently, wigs are routinely worn by women only in ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities.

The preferred color for a summer suit was white. Winter clothes were usually dark shades of blue or Brown color. The costumes were different age categories and depending on the role of women in the family. It was very rare to see a woman wearing a brightly colored dress (such as green and red). Elderly women could go out in blue-gray or beige.

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In addition to dresses, the national costume of the Jews also allowed the wearing of blouses and skirts.

Women's aprons served not only their economic purpose, but were also considered a protective element, protection from the evil eye. Festive aprons were embroidered, carefully starched and ironed.

Obuvt - black boots with high tops, laced up to the top and put on stockings, knitted by hand and held with garters at the level of the knees or higher.

Who can name the main sign that distinguishes Jews from other peoples?

The National costume. A description of it will be presented to your attention in the article, since it is clothing that always distinguishes a Jew from the crowd.

Jews are the people of the West Semitic group, related to the Arabs and Amharts (Ethiopians).

Yes, no matter how strange it may seem, Arabs and Jews, who are always at war and do not like each other, are close relatives, much like Russians and Poles.

However, religion, culture in general and clothing in particular among these peoples are not at all similar.

The traditional clothing of the Jews is very colorful and distinguishes the representatives of this nation from the crowd.

To people modern and far from religion - and the way Jews dress is entirely based on religious ideas - it may seem ridiculous and some kind of old-fashioned, "anachronistic".

Black frock coats, hats, belts - these items of Jewish costume have become the "calling card" of a real Jew. A yarmulke is a little less known - a round hat.

However, this is not all the details of the Jewish wardrobe.

The photo in the article shows us the image of a real Jew, dressed according to all the rules of his people.

Jewish ideology in clothes

The national costumes of the peoples of the Jews are rooted in ancient times.

Over the centuries, they have constantly changed, and the reason for this is the desire of the Jews to disguise themselves (after all, in many countries they were forbidden to live at all or were allowed to settle in strictly designated places) or assimilate.

The last trend appeared at the beginning of the 19th century: educated representatives of the Jewish people decided to change their traditional attire for European clothes; they began to dress in the fashion of those times - so those very long black frock coats and hats entered into Jewish life.

Later, this style was “mothballed” and became one of the variants of the “traditional Jewish” attire, while in the rest of the world it went out of fashion.

But this transformation has a certain meaning - national, ideological and even religious.

His principle is reflected in a common anecdote.

Allegedly, at the beginning of the 19th century, one of these educated Jews approached the rabbi, who seemed to be the custodian of ancient piety, and, deciding to “prick” him, asked: “Rebbe, what did our forefather Abraham wear?”

The rabbi calmly replied: “My son, I don’t know what Abraham wore - in a silk robe or shtreimla; but I know exactly how he chose his clothes: he looked at how non-Jews dressed, and dressed differently.

Indeed, from time immemorial, the Jews have strived to be different from all other peoples and have done this with more fanaticism than all other Eastern peoples.

The pagan religion of the Jews is still stubbornly refused to be called "paganism" (although, if strictly according to science, only the Jewish faith can be recognized as real "paganism", since it practically did not undergo mixing with foreign cults).

Jewish music, cooking, behavior, clothing - all this should always be different from the surroundings, but exactly how it should look is the tenth thing.

Even kashrut - a list of culinary (and not only) dogmas - many Orthodox Jews interpret only this way: "Kashrut was introduced in order to distinguish a Jew from a non-Jew." Same with cutting...

Therefore, it is not surprising that the Western European costume of the beginning of the century before last is officially considered traditional Jewish clothing today.

The national costume of the Jews in Russia may seem strange and unusual, but these are the traditions of another nation that must be respected.

Yermolka

It's the same round hat.

Jews from the former USSR are accustomed to believing that its name is derived from the Russian name Yermolai. But when they come to Israel, the locals explain to them that the hat is so called from the expression "yere malka" - "afraid of the lord." That is, wearing a yarmulke, in theory, means that its owner deeply and sacredly believes in God.

How to choose a yarmulke?

Choosing a yarmulke is not as simple a task as it seems to the uninitiated. In Israeli stores, they are sold like ordinary hats - yarmulkes of various sizes, materials, colors and styles are laid out on the shelves. However, which one the buyer chooses depends on the characteristics of his religion and mental attitude. For example, Hasidim do not recognize velvet and knitted yarmulkes. A religious Jew acquires a cap of the style worn in his community. This is also a reflection of the principles of Judaism: to outside observers, it seems to be a monolithic, uniform cult, but in fact it is divided into dozens of movements that differ in dogma, rules, clothing, etc. Relations between many movements are far from friendly.

Cape

The national costume of the Jews includes a cape. In Hebrew, it is called "talit katan" or "arbekanfes." Like the yarmulke, this is also an obligatory attribute of the Jewish costume. It is a piece of quadrangular matter with a hole for the head and four tassels (tzitzit) along the edges. The cape can be worn under clothing or worn over the top like a shirt, but the tassels are always placed over trousers. Each brush has eight threads. Here, too, there are elements characteristic of certain currents of Judaism.

The most interesting and even mysterious part is one (there may be two) thread in the brush, dyed blue. It means that the owner of this cape is Radzinsky or Izhbitsky Hasid. There is a legend about the origin of such threads. It is believed that the blue paint - "teylet" - was present on Jewish clothing in ancient times, but two thousand years ago the recipe for its preparation was lost. At the end of the 19th century, the Hasidic rabbi Gershon-Khanoch received the khalet again, but his recipe was not recognized by the majority of the Jewish community as “the same” paint. Therefore, this tailet remained the property of only the indicated Jewish movements.

In fact, attempts to restore the ancient recipe and get thailet have been proposed by many Western and Jewish scholars since the Middle Ages. Archaeologists, who have explored the remains of ancient factories, and modern chemists have also contributed to this matter.

Tzitzit, according to religious canons, must be worn by all men who have reached the age of 13. This means coming of age (Bar Mitzvah). Wearing brushes indicates that the boy is already able to take responsibility for his actions and participate in the affairs of adults, including reading and discussing the Torah in the synagogue.

Casket and hat

The national costume of the Jews necessarily includes a headdress. Every religious Jew is required to wear a yarmulke. However, it is usually hidden under the second headdress. It can be a cap, a hat or a “casket” (aka “dashek”) - an old-style cap. The latter is especially popular among Russian and Polish Jews, including Hasidim.

But the most famous is the traditional black hat. Jews wear it on weekdays. You should not think that all hats are the same: by its appearance, you can tell even more about the personality of its owner than by a passport. The size of the hat, its position on the head, the nature of the crease and other elements testify to which stream of Judaism the owner of the hat belongs to and even which social status he has.

Strimble

The shtreimble is the third type of headdress that is included in the national costume of the Jews. But it is common only among the Hasidim. A shtreimble is a cylindrical fur hat. They also have more than two dozen types. At the same time, three large groups are distinguished: the shtreimble itself - wide and low, of the correct form; Chernobyl is just low, more free-form; and spodik - a very high fur hat. Shtreimble Hasidim are worn only on solemn occasions - on Shabbat, at weddings and other holidays, during a visit to the rabbi. There are also types of shrimble that are worn only by the heads of communities.

Tie and beard

There are elements of clothing that only some Jewish communities recognize. One of them is a tie. It is the prerogative of the Litvaks only. But the Hasidim hate ties fiercely; this they explain by saying that the first step in tying a tie is to tie a knot in the shape of a cross. Everything that is connected with the cross, a zealous Jew is supposed to hate.

Another part of the "clothing" is the beard. Some Jews go clean-shaven, others trim their beards neatly, but the Hasidim do not recognize any modification of the beard at all, so they have the thickest and blackest among all Jews.

tailcoat

What else can be included in the national costume of the Jews? In some communities (for example, among the Litvaks), such an old-fashioned according to European concepts, element of the wardrobe as a tailcoat has been preserved. It is also black, long and has no pockets. It is interesting that the buttons on the tailcoat (and on any Jewish men's clothing) are fastened so that the right half covers the left - that is, from the point of view of a non-Jew, "like a woman." Jews put on a tailcoat, as a rule, during a holiday.

What does the national costume of the Jews look like?

The photos in the article clearly demonstrate to us a colorful and unusual style of clothing for a simple European.

This may seem strange to many, but this is what Jews are special about. They are firm in their views and true to their customs.

And these features would not interfere with every nation!

Eastern European Jewish women's costume.

Women of the old faith dressed in long dresses of a peculiar cut. The design of the corsage included lace, frills and folds, beautiful hand embroidery. Puffy sleeves, gathered at the shoulder and gradually tapering, fastened at the wrist with a button. In shape, they resembled a leg of lamb, for which they received the same name. The stand-up collar tightly covered the neck and was decorated with lace. Along the hem of the dress were several rows of lush frills. The skirt of the dress was straight in front, and gathered in folds at the back, which turned into a train. The waist was formed with a belt, which was created from the same fabric as the dress, or from leather. This was the fashionable national costume of the Jews in the last decades of the 19th century and in the early years of the 20th century.

On the head - a wig, over which is put on a lace cap and a sterntihl, holding a head cover - a shleyer. On the neck - a pearl necklace in two rows. On the chest (a colored insert on the blouse) there is a brustichl made of colorful and bright fabric.

Dolls in folk costumes №73. Eastern European Jewish women's costume. Photo of a doll. Since Jewish culture was purely urban, Jewish women did not weave fabric for the dress themselves, but used purchased fabric. The fabric for women's skirts and sweaters depended on their wealth and local fashion.

The main decoration of the costume was a kind of shirt-front - brustihl.

A skirt with two aprons - front and back. The ornament on the fabrics, as a rule, was floral, repeating the one that could be seen on expensive European fabrics.

At the end of the 19th century, yielding to the influence of urban fashion, Jewish women, especially wealthy ones, began to wear hats, and they demanded hairstyles. Then wigs came into use. At first they were not made from hair, it was a primitive imitation of a hairstyle. Currently, wigs are routinely worn by women only in ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities.

The preferred color for a summer suit was white. Winter clothes were usually dark shades of blue or brown. Costumes differed for different age categories and depending on the role of women in the family. It was very rare to see a woman wearing a brightly colored dress (such as green and red). Elderly women could go out in blue-gray or beige.

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In addition to dresses, the national costume of the Jews also allowed the wearing of blouses and skirts.

Women's aprons served not only their economic purpose, but were also considered a protective element, protection from the evil eye. Festive aprons were embroidered, carefully starched and ironed.

Obuvt - black boots with high tops, laced up to the top and put on stockings, knitted by hand and held with garters at the level of the knees or higher.

Dear N.!

It's great that you are interested in the rules of modesty - after all, this is a very important, one might say, fundamental part of the life of a Jewish woman and, ultimately, of the entire Jewish people as a whole. Therefore, every woman needs to know which clothes are suitable, which are not very good, and which are completely unacceptable.

First, let's dwell on the requirements of Jewish law - let's consider the main provisions as they are given in the book "Oz ve-adar levosha" ("Groups in strength and dignity", the title is a quote from Mishlei 31:25), which can be called a kind of encyclopedia zniyuta- Jewish modesty.

First of all, we note: all the rules, except for those relating to the head covering, are the same for the dress of married and unmarried women. Little girls are taught modesty in different communities with different ages: from three or from six to seven years. At twelve, a girl is considered an adult and must thoroughly know and abide by these rules.

Length

Clothing should completely cover the collarbones, shoulders and, of course, the back. The sleeves should be long enough to cover the elbows in any position. Skirt - at least 10 cm below the knee. Pants, even "women's", are not supposed to be worn. Should be given Special attention so that between top clothes and skirt did not show the body or underwear, even when bending over.

Transparency

Everything that should be closed should also not shine through clothing in any light. This is especially true for white or black items - you need to check them before buying by placing them in front of a strong light source. If you still bought a transparent skirt or blouse, you can wear an underskirt or leotard blouse under it. Underwear that shows through clothes also looks immodest.

Blouse and skirt size

Another point to pay attention to is whether the clothes are too tight or too tight. There are gradations here. Blouses and sweaters should not be tight, but they do not have to completely hide the outlines of the figure. Sleeves may fit but not tight. The lower part of the leg should be covered with stockings or pantyhose of sufficient density (the density depends on what is accepted in a given community), and they, of course, tightly fit the leg.

The maximum requirements are imposed on the skirt / lower part of the dress - from the waist to 10 cm below the knee. These pieces of clothing should be tight and loose enough to completely hide the shape of the thigh and lower torso. When trying on a skirt, you should pull it wide to make sure that there is a margin of several centimeters on both sides and it will not fit your hips when walking. It is also necessary to take into account that any cut in the front or back, even a small one, ending below the knee, is strictly prohibited, which automatically makes a narrow pencil skirt unsuitable, in which it is impossible to move without a cut. In straight-cut skirts, in order to expand them without making a cut, special fabric inserts are sometimes sewn into the lower part. The best style (it is also classic) is a skirt that evenly expands from the waist. Some tissues become electrified when walking and "stick" to the body. In this case, the underskirt will help.

Color

The color of clothes and shoes is also very important. It should not be bright and flashy. This is especially true for the red color - it cannot be predominant in the main parts of clothing. Moderate options - burgundy, etc. - are more acceptable, but one must be able to distinguish between acceptable or unacceptable shades, and just in case, it is better not to approach the border of what is permitted. Too large, catchy, lurid and extravagant accessories, large inscriptions or drawings, an excessive abundance of “gold” in jewelry and sparkles on clothes, and a clear discrepancy between costume details are also immodest.

Headdress

A married Jewish woman (and also a woman who has been married in the past) must cover her head so that her own hair is not visible. The exact boundaries of the cover require a separate study, and the type of headgear (wig, scarf, hat, beret, etc.) is chosen depending on what is accepted in the community where the woman lives. As for unmarried girls, they are not required to cover their heads, but their hairstyles should be modest, their hair color should be natural, their hair below the shoulders should be gathered in a ponytail or braid.

Is it possible unmarried woman cover your head? As far as I know, this is not accepted. Of course, you can wear a hat to protect from the sun or cold. There are also communities where girls cover their heads when reciting blessings or lighting Shabbat candles, but this is not customary in most communities.

In a word, moderation in dress and general harmony in appearance and in all behavior are welcomed in Jewish life. Jewish woman should not attract attention either by loud conversation / laughter, or by too catchy outfit, or by a sharp “dissimilarity” to the surrounding women. (Of course, if everyone around is dressing immodestly, they should not be imitated, they should dress according to Jewish law, even if this alone makes a woman "dramatically different" from others). Clothing and hairstyle should be neat and harmonious so that the whole look is perceived as a whole - inner content in a decent frame.

The laws of modesty are numerous and detailed, and every woman is obliged to know and fulfill them. For this, the Creator promises the greatest reward in this world and in the future. May God grant that we all receive this award!



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