Kadazan and Iban Traditional Clothes

 

Culture of Malaysia - traditional clothes

 

IBAN

 

 

 

 

The Ibans are an indigenous community in Malaysia. They are known for their warrior-like outfits and weaving of colourful, patterned cotton cloths called "pua kumbu".  

 

The male Iban is dressed in Baju Burung or vest and sirat woven loin-cloth which is a warrior's outfit. They also wear accessories such as a belt, armlet and anklet made from silver and a headgear decorated with hornbill feathers. The Iban maiden wears the ceremonial dress consisting of the bidang cloth, marek empang which is a chest adornment, the sugu tinggi headdress and other silver ornaments such as the coin belt and bangles. The loincloth is a garment of great antiquity, is now distinctively ignored among modern Ibans. Barkcloth is the original material for loincloths. The way to tying a "sirat" is take a strip of material about 10 inches wide and 10 to 12 feet long, the end of the cloth is decorated with beautiful embroidery or weaving. Men's traditional Iban costumes wear “sirat” with a very long loincloth around the waist and between the two stocks, one end through the legs hanging in front which is dress like a apron and the other end around the waist. There should be a little “tail” (iko sirat in Iban) in the back. The loincloth worn in this way is quite secure and will not fall off. Furthermore, they also wear accessories such as a belt, armlet and anklet made from silver and a headgear decorated with hornbill feathers.

 

 

 

 

KADAZAN

Kadazan is an indegenious ethnic group in Sabah, Malaysia. Their traditional attires are well conserved since their past

 

The male Kadazan is wearing a ceremonial costume usually worn during the Sumazau dance. It comprises of a jacket and trousers with gold trimmings and a woven destar cloth headgear known as siga. The female is wearing a ceremonial Kadazan Papar costume made of embroidered colour and gold thread. It is worn with a headgear made of bamboo strips known as siung and silver coin belt. These clothes are usually made from black velvet or silk. The gold-plated silver betawi buttons are looped through a string on the inside. Betawi buttons used to be fixed all the way up to the neck for ceremonial occasions and half way up from the lower end of the blouse for daily wear. Now days, the buttons are tied together from the top down to the bottom of the blouse with a cotton thread. There are thirty or more gold buttons sewn in a double row on sinuangga. “Tapi” is a long cylindrical wrap-skirt and formerly of plain black cotton. Now days, it is often enlivened with siring which is gold trimming, running over the hips, in front of the skirt, crossed by another band of trimming from the waist down.  A Kadazandusun lady wearing the traditional costume normally emphasize the slimness of their waist is considered as beautiful.