"Traditional Clothing in Jordan" by Aya Albsoul
A thawb with red and black tatreez. Photo credit: Albsoul, 2022.
Women’s clothing (Thawb)
Jordanian women's traditional clothing consists of a thawb (a dress). On the front of the dress, there is usually a decorative panel made from embroidery or what we call tatreez. Women frequently wear handcrafted embroidered dresses with red, gold or green accents and a headscarf in the hues of black and red. However, the colors and embroidery style differ in different parts of Jordan.
For example, Shirsh is the name for clothing in northern Jordan (in Irbid). They typically have long, tight sleeves and a low, embroidered neckline, and are the same length all around. The sides and hem of the outfit are also elaborate embroidered with lovely motifs.
A dishdasha and 3 part head covering. Photo credit: Albsoul, 2022.
Men’s Traditional Clothing (Dishdashah)
Jordanian men’s traditional clothing consists of the dishdashah, a long-sleeved one-piece robe that covers the entire body. The dishdashah is made of white or grey cotton in the summer to reflect sunlight. And darker, thicker textiles keep people warmer in the winter.
As for headwear, men wear a three-piece headcover in addition to their dishdashah. The first piece is the thagiyah, the foundation of this head covering, is a white hat that is used to keep the hair in place. The second piece is either one of two different styles of headscarves that are worn on top of the thagiyah. The summertime headdress known as the gutrah, which is white, the shmagh, or kuffiyeh, a heavy red and white checkered head covering for winter. Last piece to keep the scarf in place is the Agal or (I’gal), is a black doubled cord worn on top of the man’s choice of scarf, and it is traditionally made from goat hair. Traditionally in Jordanian tribes, if a man’s Agal is not placed straight but rather slanted to the right, it means he is a leader of the tribe or a Sheikh.
Traditional tatreez for modern fashion. Photo credit: Albsoul, 2022.
Traditional Clothes in Modern Times
In modern cities of Jordan, people are shifting towards more casual wear. Usually, Jordanians are considered to dress more formal than others, with formal pants and blouses and dress shirts. However, a new trend is starting where people include traditions in their modern clothing. Embroidery (tatreez) that is usually used on Jordanian thawbs is now being used to embroider different dresses, blouses, jeans, and even t-shirts! This new method is allowing modern Jordanians to be proud of their culture and traditions while still looking modern and chic.
Aya Albsoul is an Education Abroad Intern at Amideast Jordan.
If you want to learn more about Jordanian traditional clothing by studying abroad in Jordan, Amideast Education Abroad has two program options: Area and Arabic Language Studies and Intensive Arabic - Summer.
