Sometimes when we see people in TV dramas wearing clothes with large sleeves while going out, having meals, dating, fighting, or sleeping, it just seems so awkward. Were all the ancient people's clothes with large sleeves? How inconvenient would it be to go to the toilet then?
We usually use the term "broad robes and large sleeves" to describe the characteristics of Hanfu. "Broad robes" means the Hanfu has a loose fit, and "large sleeves" or "wide sleeves" refer to the wide sleeves. However, it should be noted that this is not a universal feature of Hanfu but rather a characteristic of Hanfu formal wear, used to highlight the wearer's status, such as the historical large-sleeved shirts and official uniforms. Except for formal occasions, people in daily life rarely wore such large sleeves.
Various Sleeve Types of Hanfu
If we simply categorize the sleeve types of Hanfu, there are many, suitable for any current daily occasion. To simplify, narrow sleeves are suitable for daily labor, martial arts, etc.; hanging beard sleeves, pipa sleeves, and straight sleeves are suitable for daily occasions without labor; short sleeves are suitable for ordinary outerwear and home wear in summer.
Examples of Sleeve Width
For example, these two plain silk single-layered clothes in the Quju (曲裾) and Zhiju (直裾) styles were used as outerwear for regular formal wear in the Western Han Dynasty. The width of their cuffs was only about 29 centimeters. The width of our normal modern fashion cuffs is around 10 centimeters, and slightly loose sleeves are about 15 centimeters. Even if we count 30 centimeters at most, it's only twice as wide as modern loose sleeves, not particularly large.
Real Large Sleeves
One type of real large sleeves is the ones unearthed from the Northern and Southern Dynasties. The narrow-arm style in the picture has a width of at least about one meter and was mostly worn by ladies, officials, and dancers.
Besides, there is the purple tie-dyed ru (紫缬襦) collected by the National Silk Museum and this tie-dyed silk dress. Their sleeve width is about 40 - 50 centimeters, which is a less exaggerated large sleeve, and people can still take care of themselves in daily life.
The officials in the TV drama Spending the Glorious Years seem to be wearing large sleeves like the unearthed silk clothes.
Another type is the large-sleeved shirts popular during the Tang and Song Dynasties, which were also inherited in the Ming Dynasty. The widest ones can reach 80 - 90 centimeters. These are generally used as formal wear for large occasions such as weddings and investitures. When wearing such large sleeves, there is usually someone to serve the wearer, and they have to take off the large sleeves before going to the toilet.
Ancient People's Way to Simplify
However, careful netizens found that there is a stitched line on the large sleeves in the Zhou's tomb in De'an. It is speculated that this is related to the Song people's concept of simplicity and convenience. The purpose is to "hide" the large sleeves and turn them into narrow or straight sleeves without losing etiquette. Think about how our ancestors tried their best to simplify things, but now in ancient costume dramas, people wear large sleeves for every activity just for the effect.
After all, our smart ancestors wouldn't make things difficult for themselves just because of large sleeves. So, if someone asks you if it's inconvenient to wear Hanfu with large sleeves, you can just share this article with them.
