Hello all, Today I will cover the last province of Norway, Hordaland. This is one of the great centers of Norwegian folk costume, having large areas in which the costume continues to be a living tradition to this day. Hordaland is divided into five districts. It also includes the second largest city in Norway, Bergen. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hordaland The folk costumes of this province are mostly similar to each other, being of the bringeduk type, with a separate plastron. As one would expect with a living tradition, individual costumes differ in details, there being room for individual expression. There are also commonly different costumes for married women and unmarried girls, and winter vs summer. The inland areas have traditions that are still living, but many of the coastal regions have reconstructed their costumes based on a wealth of evidence. Sunnhordland This province is along the southern part of the coast. Stord and Bømlo I believe that this bunad is also worn in Sveio, as I have been unable to find any for that municipality. cat 4 Fitjar This municipality has a bunad similar to the others found on the coast, as well as a plain dark drakt called stasklede. both cat 4 This image shows the bunad from Tysnes on the left, and Fitjar on the right. Etne This bunad is distinguished by the embroidered braces which are part of the costume, possibly holding up the skirt as they once did in Tinn. It also has a loose pocket, which most of the costumes in this province do not. cat 4 Kvinnherad The blue hat is worn by both married and unmarried women, and for formal occasions, the women wear a white kerchief, and unmarried girls wear a white hat. The inset tends to be plain cloth with an ornamented band at the top. women cat 2, men cat 4 Tysnes cat 3 Midhordland This consists of the center part of the coast, around the city of Bergen. Fusa The bunad as worn today is a reconstruction of the clothing worn in the early to mid 1800s. The blue cap was worn by both girls and women, but women wore the white kerchief over it for formal occasions. This municipality is just across the fjord from Kvinnherad, so there are similarities. It is somewhat short waisted, and a variety of aprons are used. cat 3 Samnanger cat 4 Os The reconstructed bunad of Os represents the mid 1800s, cat 3 This is the way that unmarried girls dressed their hair. Hair was never worn loose in public except on her wedding day. The bunad as redesigned in the early 20th cent. cat 4 Austevoll The hair in all of these areas that have strong memories of tradition was put up in braids or twists, covered by a linen cap, and the headdress worn on top in such a way that none of the hair was visible. A kerchief is worn over the cap for formal occasions, with white embroidery for unmarried girls and black embroidery for married women. Men would wear an embroidered linen scarf on such occasions. woman cat 3, men cat 4 Sotra This is an island north of Austevoll, which consists of the municipalities of Sund and Fjell. Married women wear a green vest with red sleeves, and unmarried girls wear the opposite. Both wear the black winter bunad. cat 4 Askøy This municipality consists of an island group northeast of Stord and northwest of the current municipality of Bergen. cat 4 Laksevåg This was a former municipality which has been combined with a few others into the municipality of Bergen. It is now a borough of the Bergen Municipality. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laksev%C3%A5g The bunad is cat 4 The woman on the left is from Laksevag, the woman on the right is from Os. Fana This was a former municipality which is also now a borough of the municipality of Bergen. It consists of the entire southern part of the current Bergen Municipality. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fana The folk costume - bunad of this area has never ceased being a living tradition. The married women's costume is distinguished by the kerchief over the head rail, while unmarried girls wear a headband. The girls' bodice is edged in blue, while the women's is green or patterned silk. The apron features open work of many kinds, hardangersom, crochet, and other techniques are used. The apron may also be of printed cloth, however it always has a notched or toothed edge, unlike the other regions of Hordaland. The men wear two vests, one over the other. cat 1 Bergen City The city itself has two designed drakts of the livkjol type. They are the only such costumes in Hordaland. Bergendrakt The embroidery was taken from an old shawl. This embroidery was applied to the whole costume. On the skirt the embroidery was not altered to fit, but simply executed in L shapes around the hem. There is no apron. As Bergen is a major city, this drakt is very popular. cat 5 Much less well known is the Bjørgvindrakt cat 5 Nordhordland There is one man's bunad for Nordhordland cat 4 Outer Nordhordland There is a recently reconstructed bunad with a green jacket inside the bodice. The girls' hair is wrapped in ribbons and then wound around the top of the head. Married women wear a bag shaped kerchief. cat 3 This girl is wearing her hair incorrectly, loose under a fake hair roll. There is also a version of the bunad which was designed in the early 20th cent. cat 4 Osterøy This is very similar to the previous bunad, but there is a padded roll under the women's headdress, and the pleated skirt has a green hem, as in Voss. cat 4 Masfjorden There is a version of this bunad which was designed in the 1970s. cat 4 There is also a more recently reconstructed version which differs little. cat 3 Voss Both of the inland costumes represent unbroken living traditions. Voss has separate bunads for marrried women and single girls. It also has a summer and winter bunad, which is very common for Hordaland. Married women have a deep green hem on the skirt edged with silver lace, while unmarried girls have three narrow black velvet bands. Married women also wear the headpiece. There are two types of jacket worn with this bunad, one which shows the stomacher, the bringeduk, and one which closes down the middle. women cat 1, men cat 4 Hardanger The district of Hardanger is generally considered to have one bunad, which is a living tradition. There is a great deal of variety in the ornamentation of the bodice inset, both beadwork and embroidery. Previously the bodice was of many colors and materials, but under the influence of the National Bunad, it is almost always red today. The white apron with hardangersom is worn for formal occasions, but other aprons are worn as well. There is also a winter bunad here, as is the case in the rest of Hordaland. I will cover some of the distinctions between the regions, which do not always follow the municipalities. Generally, most of the images which are just labelled Hardanger are from Ullensvang or Sorfjorden, or are of the old National costume. women cat 1, men cat 4 Ulvik, Eidfjord and Granvin The women's bunad is distinct in a couple of different ways. Firstly, the bodice opening does not have a notch, but extends smoothly from the closure to the neck, similar to the Voss bunad. Secondly, the married women wear a different headpiece, consisting of a kerchief worn over a head rail, somewhat similar to that of Fana. Both summer and winter bunads are shown in the following images. The men's bunad varies, that of Granvin and Ulvik each being distinct, and that of Eidfjord being shared with Ullensvang and Sorfjorden. Ulvik Granvin Eidfjord The western regions have a woman's headdress that is similar from one to another, but of a somewhat different shape. It is finely pleated and starched to obtain its distinctive form. The men of Ullensvang and Sorfjorden wear the same bunad as they do in Eidfjord. The men of Kvam and Jondal each have a distinct bunad. In Torvikbygd the mean wear the Jondal bunad, even though the town is in Kvam. Ullensvang In this photo, the headdress does not have the fold which is found in the versions further west. I have only found one photo of this exact type of headdress, so I am not certain if this is an actual distinction. The man is wearing the red 'bridegroom's jacket'. Kvam. In Kvam the headdress has the fold by the temples, but the headdress itself is a somewhat different shape, being higher and rounder in front. You will sometimes see women from Kvam wearing the more general headdress though. The men wear a distinct bunad with a green vest and patterned stockings. Jondal The women's costume is very close to that of Sorfjorden, differing only in minor details. There is only one band hanging from the belt. In the above regions there usually tend to be two. The man's bunad is distinct, and is also worn in Torvikbygd. Sørfjorden This means south fjord, and refers to a side fjord which extends to the south from the main Hardangerfjord. The area around this fjord is home to the classic version of the Hardanger bunad and folk costume. It includes the northernwestern parts of Ullensvang and Odda municipalities. Married women wear the flat top version of the headdress, as they do in Jondal, and which is often seen in other parts of Hardanger as well. They may also wear three bands hanging from the belt with the formal costume. Unmarried girls wear their hair in braids, and may wrap them with ribbons and put them up. Little girls wear a bonnet. The bodice and jacket both have the notch in front, as do all of the western variants. The bodice may be of many materials or colors. The plastron, or bodice inset has hundreds of different designs, executed in either beadwork, applique, or embroidery of various kinds, or in a combination of techniques. My next article will be an overview of different types of insets. The blouses may have Hardanger embroidery, other whitework, or blackwork. Røldal This is a former municipality which currently makes up the southeastern part of Odda municipality. It was originally part of Suldal parish, which lies further down the same valley and which today is in Rogaland. The bunad is distinct. cat 4 Nasjonal or National bunad This was popular at the beginning of the 20th century, especially in areas which had not yet developed or reconstructed their own bunads. It is a simplified form of the Hardanger bunad, using simplified beadwork for the inset, a red bodice to reflect the national flag, and a beaded version of the little girls' bonnet for all women. This concludes my overview of Norwegian costume. I will certainly do more articles on individual subjects in Norway in the future as well. Thank you for reading. I hope that you have found this to be interesting and informative. Roman K email:[email protected] Source Material: Source Material: Aagot Noss, 'Draktskikk i Aust-Telemark', Oslo, 2010 Kari-Anne Pedersen, 'Folkedrakt blir Bunad', Cappelen Damm, 2013 Bjorn Sverre hol Haugen, 'Norsk Bunadleksikon' Oslo, 2009 Kjersti Skavhaug et al, 'Norwegian Bunads', Oslo, 1991 Heidi Fossnes, 'Norges Bunader og Samiske Folkedrakter', Oslo, 1993 Ellen Scheel et al, 'Bunad-Brodering', Oslo, 1997 Janice Stewart, 'The Folk Arts of Norway', University of Wisconsin, 1953 Guvnor Traetteberg, 'Folk Costumes of Norway', Oslo, 1966, 1976 Thorbjorg Ugland, 'A Sampler of Norway's Folk Costumes', Oslo, 1996 Laila Duran, 'Scandinavian Folklore vol I - III', Sweden, 2011-2013 Laila Duran, 'Populaere Bunader', 2014

Last year I began reading the blog, Folklore Fashion, it was brim full of breathtaking photography of Scandinavian folk costumes antiques and reproductions. Having never really studied much about this type of costume - I was quite intrigued. Some of the techniques I recognize (the gauging on the skirts, for instance) from 1860s sewing, but as for the stunning color, fabric, and embroidery combinations - I think they are just fascinating! It's amazing how all the different regions have their own distinct folk costume! They are so varied and each just gorgeous....looks like the stuff of fairytales.... These images are from the new book Scandinavian Folklore, which I plan on adding to my research collection as soon as I can budget it in! :) Looks like a beautiful resource book! 

Hello all, I am sorry that I have not posted in a while, but sometimes things get in the way. It occurred to me during my last post that there are entire nations which I have not yet addressed, and I thought I should remedy this. I noticed in particular that I have not yet written anything about Scandinavia. I suppose I should mention that there is somewhat of a controversy as to what 'Scandinavia' includes, the most restrictive definition would include only Sweden and Norway; most people would also include Denmark, even though it is not located on the Scandinavian Peninsula, on historical, cultural and linguistic grounds. Likewise, the Faroe Islands and Iceland are often included for the same reasons. On the other hand, some people would include Sabme [Lappland] and Finland because of geographic proximity and some similarity of culture, even though they are very different in origin and language. But the Finns are very closely related to the Veps, Karelians, Ingrians, Izhorians, Estonians, and other peoples to the south and east, which arguably are located on the same peninsula, so where do you draw the line? I will take Scandinavian to refer to those people who speak a north Germanic language. Scandinavia is very rich in folk costumes, although for the most part they fall into a definite 'type', this one is an exception. Norway has some very beautiful folk costumes, and they are very proud of them. I will elaborate somewhat on the costume of the upper Hallingdal, especially the region of Gol. In Norway, traditional regional costumes which are officially recognized by the appropriate government agency are referred to by the term 'Bunad'. If a local form of dress is not so recognized, or if it belongs to another ethnic group, the term 'Drakt' is used. Two examples of such are the Saami [ Lapp ] costumes, and a costume which has been designed for the city of Oslo, called Samisk Drakt and Oslodrakt, respectively. The Halling valley, or the Hallingdal, [ dal means valley, so to say Hallingdal Valley is redundant], is found in the northern part of the province of Buskerud, which is shown in red in the south center of this map, although unfortunately it, like its neighboring province of Oppland to the north which is shown in green, is not labelled. I will be focusing on the 'Festbunad', the festive dress of the area around Gol, Hemsedal, Hol, and Ål. These areas, along with Nes and Flå constitute the traditional region of Hallingdal. Here is a very extensive webpage of the costumes and embroidery of this region, if you wish to peruse it. It is, of course, completely in Norwegian, and also covers costume types which I will not address in this posting. http://home.online.no/~vi-hjoen/index.html The base garment is the shirt, which was originally a chemise, and later became separated into two garments. There is of course, one or more petticoats worn as well. The Shirt is of the standard Norwegian cut, with stand up collars, collar pins and cufflinks. Most commonly the collar and cuffs have white counted-thread embroidery. The shirt is made of white linen. In order to be completely correct, over the shirt and petticoats, but under the festbunad, the everyday garment should be worn. This is known as heljestakk, and is a simpler version of the outer garment, made either in plain black or plaid. This has a woven band around the hem, straps over the shoulders, and is worn belted. When worn as the outer garment for everyday dress, the shirt is often of cotton calico. Since this does not show when worn under the festbunad, it is usually omitted today. The outer garment is black wool, with dense embroidery on the straps, breastband, hem, and back piece. A rose printed apron is worn in Gol and Hemsedal. In lower Hallingdal; Nes and Flå, the apron is black with white lines in a checkerboard pattern. This type of apron includes an embroidered band on the lower edge, the 'forklebord'. In upper Hallingdal; Hol and Ål, a plain black wool or damask apron with embroidered forklebord that matches the skirt is worn, this may be seen in the first image above. There is also embroidery on the purse, which does not hang from the belt as is usual, for obvious reasons. A very short jacket may be worn, as in some of these images above. There are silver fittings with a chain which closes the jacket, which may be worn directly on the dress if the jacket is not worn. Silver brooches with dangling 'spoons' are usually worn on the breast of the shirt. There are several possible headpieces, the most popular and simplest of which is an embroidered cap. Most of Norway's folk costumes include embroidery. The local embroidery in Hallingdal is one of several regional styles based loosely on Rosemaling, which is a type of folk painting used to decorate chests and furniture. This is called Rose embroidery, Rosesom or Rosesaum in Norwegian. There are a limited number of motifs, which are large, consist of parallel bands of color, and have distinctive notches in their outlines. These may be arranged in different ways, and the spaces in between are filled in with teardrop shaped motifs. The main color, as in most folk embroidery, is red. Bright colors tend to be used, as opposed to the more muted shades of Telemark. The motifs cover the ground cloth densely, and stems do not form part of the composition. The embroidery is executed in satin stitch [plattsom], stem stitch, [kontursting], and running stitch [attersting]. The bodice which Mary Gostelow illustrates in her book 'The Complete International Book of Embroidery', on which she bases a project and which she attributes to Telemark, is clearly from Hallingdal. This last example is from the area around Nes, which has a somewhat different style of embroidery. Here is one from Flå, also in lower Hallingdal. The costume is completed with wool stockings with patterns knitted in, and black leather shoes with buckles, such as are worn all over Norway. Here are two versions of the man's costume of Hallingdal, with some details of embroidery. Here are just a couple more images of this costume. In the first image, you can clearly see that her apron is damask. Thank you for reading, I hope that you have found this informative, interesting, and perhaps inspiring. This type of embroidery would be well suited for many types of projects. Here is a video showing closeups of embroidery from Hallingdal, including some examples of the style of Lower Hallingdal, which is somewhat different. http://home.online.no/~vi-hjoen/files/noen%20broderier%20fra%20Hallingdal,%20nesbyen.swf Here is a video showing a small town celebration of Norway's 'Constitution Day', May 17. This video includes closeups of this and other bunads. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHFqU-tOMMM A couple in everyday Halling costume doing an old dance common all over Norway, the Pols. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGhqxpJI-SM&feature=related Here is a video of a couple performing a very old dance of this area on stage, the Hallingspringar. This is an improvised dance with complicated steps and rhythm. The woman is wearing the festbunad and the man is wearing the simple costume without jacket. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRYlBTG-vd Here is the same couple performing the same dance, in a studio. For those who are interested, the footwork is more visible. She is wearing a fancy version of the everyday costume in this one. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccSh1VQ6ghY&feature=related Here is the most famous dance of the area, which is called simply Halling, or Hallingdans. This is a dance for young men. The woman holding his hat is in a formal version of the Halling festbunad, note that her skirt is longer than that in the other video. Although this dance is native to this region, it has become very popular with young men throughout Norway who wish to challenge themselves. This is very worth a watch. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Wq6If8MsFQ&feature=related Norwegian costumes are readily available, there are numerous businesses which will gladly make one for you, or send you a kit so that you can sew them yourself. These are known generally as Husflid. Here is the website of one such company. http://www.norskflid.no/bunad/bunader/ Here is another http://www.heimen.net/Produkt/57 see also links on the webpage which I referenced at the beginning of the article. http://home.online.no/~vi-hjoen/index.html They are, however, expensive, as Norwegians believe in paying people who weave by hand or embroidery professionally a living wage. What a concept! Feel free to contact me with requests for research. I hope to eventually cover all of Europe and the Former Russian Empire/Soviet Union. I also gratefully accept tips on source materials which i may not have. I also accept commissions to research/design, sew, and/or embroider costumes or other items for groups or individuals. I also choreograph and teach folk dance. Roman K. [email protected] Source Material: The website http://home.online.no/~vi-hjoen/index.html Mary Gostelow, 'The Complete International Book of Embroidery', New York, 1977 Kjersti Skavhaug et al, 'Norwegian Bunads', Oslo, 1991 Heidi Fossnes, 'Norges Bunader og Samiske Folkedrakter', Oslo, 1993 Ellen Scheel et al, 'Bunad-Brodering', Oslo, 1997 Janice Stewart, 'The Folk Arts of Norway', University of Wisconsin, 1953 Guvnor Traetteberg, 'Folk Costumes of Norway', Oslo, 1966, 1976 Thorbjorg Ugland, 'A Sampler of Norway's Folk Costumes', Oslo, 1996

Hello all, This is the second part of my overview of the costumes of Norway. This will cover the central row of provinces in Eastern Norway, the yellow and orange ones on the map below, minus the ones I covered in the first article. This includes the provinces of Oppland, Buskerud, Telemark, and East and West Agder. All of these have at least some areas in which folk costumes were a living tradition or within living memory at the beginning of the 20th cent. The National Bunad Council Bunad- og Folkedraktrådet , the authority on national costumes appointed by the government, has developed five categories to grade modern day bunads according to ‘authentic’ regional folk clothing: The National Bunad Council Bunad- og Folkedraktrådet , the authority on national costumes appointed by the government, has developed five categories to grade modern day bunads according to ‘authentic’ regional folk clothing: Category 1 – a bunad that represents a final link in the development of a folk costume. This is basically an original folk costume that has taken on the function of a bunad. Category 2 – a bunad that has a background in a particular folk costume that is out of use but not forgotten. It is generally reconstructed from first-hand knowledge, with many examples extant. Category 3 – a bunad that has been reconstructed from preserved folk garments which reflect the actual time and region of the piece. Pictures and writings may be used as sources in reconstruction. Category 4 – a bunad that has been made based on random and incomplete folk material. Missing pieces have been designed to match the style of the materials. Category 5 – a bunad that has been completely or partially freely composed. It was the 1800s bunad movement that has given these types of bunad their status. New bunads are being designed every year, and must go through the strict judgement process of the National Bunad Council in order to be classified as a proper ‘bunad’. The council is very strict in making sure new additions follow closely the traditions and history of the area. Because of this, many designs today, even though they have the same function as a bunad, generally don’t make the cut and thus can not be called ‘bunads’. They receive the name ‘drakt’ instead. Costumes are readily available in Norway, there are many businesses which make them. These are called Husflid. They are, however, expensive, as the Norwegians believe in paying a living wage to people who do things like embroider or weave by hand. For every one of these costumes, whether bunad or drakt, there is at least one sewing house, or husflid, which specializes in making it. So let us continue. Oppland This is divided into the three districts of Vestoppland, Gudbrandsdal, and Valdres. The image at the top of the article is one of the bunads from Gudbrandsdal which has never gone out of usage, the Rondestakken. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oppland Vestoppland One of the costumes which represent this region was designed by the noted artist Alf Lundeby in 1932. The Lundeby costume comes in black, blue, or white. It remains very popular. Lundeby Drakt cat 5 Vestoppland Bunad This was designed in 1937 from pieces found in different parts of Vestoppland. cat 5 The next three costumes each represent a part of Vestoppland. Hadeland Bunad Hadeland is the southern part of Vestoppland, around Randsfjord. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hadeland The Hadeland Bunad is an accurate reconstruction of the local dress in the mid 1800s. It was made in plaids of different colors. Plaids are common in several neighboring districts as well. Girls wore a pale cap, married women a black one. The cap had a lace ruffle, similar to that in some Danish costumes. Like with all bunads, an underskirt must be worn. cat 3 Toten is in the east central part of Vestoppland. Toten drakt This design was finalized in 1971, based on pieces of costume found in this area. men cat 5, women cat 4 Land, or Nordre Land, is in the northern part of Vestoppland. Landingsdrakt Work on the costume started in 1927 and was finalized in 1980. The embroidery was taken from an old shawl found in Hadeland. cat 5 Gudbrandsdal Gudbrandsdal is a valley which extends from Lillehammer to the northwest. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gudbrand_Valley The men wear a red wool plaid vest, or, for more formal occasions, a brocade vest may be worn. Sometimes an older form of frock coat may be worn as well. This is shown in the second image. cat 4 Rondastakken or Livkjol cat 1 This bunad is part of a living tradition in the valley. It is not designed or reconstructed.The most recent version is called rondastakken, which means 'striped skirt'. These were made with homewoven cloth, striped for the skirt, and plaid for the attached bodice. Livkjol means 'bodice skirt' and refers to the construction. Other types of cloth were also used in the past, and these have now come back into use. It was known that in the early 1800's it was the fashion to wear embroidered skirts. Some of these skirts have been preserved in museums. Embroidery from these skirts were copied onto wool and used to make a livkjol with an embroidered skirt. This was the origin of the Gudbrandsdal Bunad. The original skirt for this embroidery was from Lom. cat 4 The same embroidery was used in the 1920s to make the Gudbrandsdal Formal bunad. The bodice was also made of wool most often of the same color and also received embroidery, as did the pocket. An apron with matching embroidery was also sometimes worn. This became very popular and was the origin of the Embroidered Bunad type which was copied in so many places around Norway with different embroidery patterns, several of which we have already seen. cat 5 Another designed bunad used embroidery from a skirt found at the Graffer Farm. This is called the Graffer Bunad and remains very popular today. cat 4 Jorde Bunad This was designed by Maria Jorde from Bøverdal in Lom. cat 5 Other similar bunads represent particular parts of Gudbrandsdal. Lesja Bunad or Rutastakk cat 2 Gausdals Bunad cat 4 Dovre Bunad cat 5 Lillehammer Bunad. This comes in blue with multicolored embroidery, or green or red with monochromatic gold embroidery of the same design. cat 5 Valdres This valley lies in the southern part of Oppland. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valdres Rutastakken This is the Valdres equivalent of the Rondestakken of Gudbrandsdal. In this bunad, the skirt as well as the bodice is plaid, of many kinds. The matching mens costume also features a plaid wool vest and a black jacket. This was common in the second half of the 19th cent. cat 3 Valdres has two livkjol type embroidered bunads. The 'Old' Valdres Bunad This was designed in 1914. cat 5 The 'New' Valdres Bunad This was designed in 1948. cat 5 The South. or lower Valdres Bunad cat 3 Upper Valdres Bunad, or Bringedukdrakt This has been established as the bunad for Upper Valdres, namely Vang and Slidre. The second term refers to the stomacher or plastron which is inserted into the bodice. This was typical for the first half of the 19th cent. The everyday costume is plain blue. cat 3 Buskerud Buskerud borders on Oslo on the southeast, but also extends up into two major mountain valleys, Hallingdal and Nemedal. These border Valdres, Telemark and Hordaland, all areas in which the costume tradition is strong. There are also smaller distinct areas in central Buskerud, Ringerike in the north, and the coherent costume region of Siggdal-Eggedal-Krødsherad in the center. The lowland areas lost their costume tradition early, but the high mountain valleys were still wearing their traditional costumes at the beginning of the 20th century when the bunad movement began. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buskerud Ringerike This is just downstream from Valdres in the same valley. In the past it was an independent fief. It extends south to the province of Oslo. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringerike_(traditional_district) There is both a local drakt cat 4 and an embroidered bunad. cat 5 Mends bunad is cat 3 Ådal is a valley in the municipality of Ringerike They have their own embroidered bunad, designed in 1938 cat 5 Hønefoss This bunad was designed in 1954 cat 5 Lower Buskerud This is shown in light blue on the map with the exception of Ringerike. In these low lying areas close to the capitol, the bunads are designed or recreated. There is an embroidered bunad, cat 5,which was designed in 1939 for all of Lower Buskerud: Eiker, Lier, Drammen, Modum, Hurum, Sandsvaer and Røyken. Some of these also have their own bunads or drakten. Hurum Bunad This was a free composition in 1994 cat 5 Røyken drakt A free composition in 1992 cat 5 Lier Bunad This was a free composition completed in 1974. men cat 4, women cat 5 Modum drakt cat 5 Eiker drakt cat 5 Kongsberg drakt cat 5 Hallingdal This is one of the most famous valleys of Norway for costume, embroidery and folklore. These three valleys have distinct costumes, but they intergrade from one to the other. I have written an article on Hallingdal already. I may have to update it, as I have learned more since I wrote it. http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2012/06/bunad-and-rosemaling-embroidery-of.html This is an area where the local costume is well remembered, and there are many examples to be found around the valley. Upper Hallingdal cat 1 This consists of the municipalities of Hol and Ål. This man is in a Rogaland Bunad, not Hallingdal The upper Hallingdal bunad is noted for its embroidery, an extremely short bodice, black apron for the dress bunad, and quite complex headdresses for both married women and single girls, as seen in the last two images above. Hulda Garborg, who was so instrumental in reviving interest in Norwegian folk costumes in the early 20th cent. thought that it was important to make the costumes modern and easy to wear. She took this costume and simplified it. Perhaps the biggest change is that she replaced the headdress with a simple embroidered cap similar to that worn in Lower Hallingdal. This simplified bunad became very popular, and many people mistakenly believe it to be the authentic Upper Hallingdal bunad. Here are some examples. Lower Hallingal This consists of the municipalities of Hemsedal, Gol, and Nes. The costumes are quite similar to that of Upper Hallingdal, but they traditionally wore the cap, they used a flowered or plaid apron for the formal costume, and there are other minor differences. They sometimes wore a kerchief tied around the cap, as is the custom in mid Buskerud. cat 1 There are two mens bunads, one is rather plain black, cat 1, and the other is highly embroidered, cat 4. The second is very popular with men all over Norway who want a colorful embroidered bunad. The everyday bunad from Hallingdal is also well remembered and still worn. It has no apron and is black or plaid. Mid Buskerud This consists of Sigdal - Eggedal, Krødsherad, and sometimes Flå. Flå This municipality is technically in Lower Hallingdal, but the costume is perhaps closer to the Mid Buskerud costume. cat 4 Sigdal - Eggedal, Krødsherad cat 3 Numedal This lies over the mountains south of Hallingdal, and is north of Telemark. Mans bunad There are three. The gray jacket is used all over the valley, but there are also two different black bunads for Lower and upper Numedal Gray Jacket cat 2 Lower Numedal mens bunad with round jacket cat 3 Upper Numedal mens bunad with short jacket. cat 3 Lower Numedal, Flesberg cat 2 Upper Numedal cat 3 There is also an embroidered bunad which was designed for Numedal in 1938. cat 4 Telemark https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telemark Telemark is perhaps the richest province in Norway as regards costumes. The costumes were a living tradition well into the 20th cent. There are many examples of different embroideries and cuts. However, many of these reflect individual variations and different time periods. There are only three costume districts in Telemark: East Telemark, West Telemark and Tinn. This map also separates the coastal area. This was distinct culturally, but did not keep much in the way of costume. I have written a series of articles on Telemark already. http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/beltestakk-and-gratrje-costumes-of-east.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/gratrje-costume-of-east-telemark-norway.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/east-telemark-norway-embroidered-shirts.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/east-telemark-norway-socks-and-shoes.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2012/06/costume-and-rosemaling-embroidery-of.html Tinn Mens Bunad cat 3 Omslagsliv The embroidered bands which cross over the shoulders were originally suspenders which held up the skirt. The bodice was attached to the second underskirt. The embroidery is often done freehand, and there is much individual variation. cat 1 Skjaelingskleda This is an older costume from the early 1800s which shows the influence of neighboring Numedal. cat 3 East Telemark Mans bunad with gray jacket cat 2 This is the most common version. It comes from the same period as the beltestakk. Stakk og Liv This means skirt and bodice. It is the most recent and simplest form of the East Telemark folk costume which was in use into the 1970s. cat 1 Beltestakk cat 2 This is an older form of the costume which was revived. It has a great deal of ornament in the form of ribbon, but has embroidery only on the shirt. The skirt is exceptionally full, which makes it fun to dance in. Because of the lack of embroidery, it is fairly inexpensive and very popular today. It is named after the very wide woven sash which is an integral part of this costume. Raudtroje This means red jacket and is the common embroidered form of the East Telemark Bunad. It is based on an even older form of the folk costume. cat 3 - West Telemark The costume and embroidery tradition is just as rich in West Telemark. The various costume types are associated with different periods of history. The older, more elaborately embroidered forms were used as the basis for the modern bunad. Raudsaumsbunad This is the most recent form of the costume, this came into being around 1910. This was thought at the time to be stylishly modern. It reintroduced the old embroidery on the bodice. cat 1 Fløyesliv This bunad was in use roughly from 1895 to 1915 or so. It is distinguished by the embroidered bib attached to the front of the bodice. The apron was sometimes embroidered. cat 2 Rundtroje This is the most recent living form of the mans bunad in plain black. It matches the two womens bunads above. cat 1 Bringeklutbunad and Gray Jacket bunad These were worn in the early to mid 1800s by women and men, respectively. Relatively recently they have been reconstructed and begun to be worn again. cat 3 Vest Telemark bunad The most popular bunad today is the elaborately embroidered one which was worn even earlier, roughly from 1750 to 1850. cat 4 Drangedal This is a coastal area. To my knowledge this is the only coastal costume to be reconstructed in Telemark. cat 4 Agder In ancient times this was a petty kingdom, The name is so old that the meaning of it has been lost. Today it is divided into two provinces, West Agder and East Agder. This is the southernmost point of Norway. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agder This area is small, and I am surprised that It was divided in two. It is sometimes referred to as the southland. It includes Setesdal in which the folk costume is a living tradition, and coastal areas which have revived theirs. You will notice part of the coast is depicted in white with the heading 'unspecified'. Setesdal This district holds much the same position in Norway that Andalusia does in Spain. The costume is iconic for the country, but is not at all typical. cat 1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Setesdal The everyday costume for the women is a white jumper with black bands on the hem. The men wear a sort of overall. For Sundays and feast days, a second black jumper with bands of red and green on the hem was worn over this. The men put on an embroidered vest with either a fancy knitted sweater or short embroidered jacket. Åmli The bunad was reconstructed from old costume pieces in 1926. There are various kerchiefs and aprons preserved with different embroidery designs. cat 4 Iveland This began to be reconstructed in 1917. This bunad may be worn with a variety of embroidered pockets, many of which are to be found. Very similar pockets are also worn in West Agder. cat 4 West Agder There is only one bunad for most of West Agder. The striped skirt is worn by unmarried girls or by married women on regular days. On feastdays married women wear a finely pleated black skirt. The colorful high headdress was worn by married women. Girls wore a lower one which was much less ornamented. The skirt was held up by buttoning it to woven suspenders. Shawls with various embroidery patterns were also worn. As in Iveland, the embroidery on the pockets varied quite a bit. cat 4 Here are some embroidered shawls from West Agder with the names of the locations in which they were found. Sirdal cat 4 This is the northernmost valley of Vest Agder There is also an Agderdrakt which is a free composition for all of Agder. It features several local wildflowers. I have only seen one photo of it. cat 5 This concludes part 2. Thank you for reading. I hope that you have found this to be interesting and informative. I hope that some of you might be inspired to try some of the incredible embroidery which is found in this area. email: [email protected] Source Material: Bjorn Sverre hol Haugen, 'Norsk Bunadleksikon' Oslo, 2009 Kjersti Skavhaug et al, 'Norwegian Bunads', Oslo, 1991 Heidi Fossnes, 'Norges Bunader og Samiske Folkedrakter', Oslo, 1993 Ellen Scheel et al, 'Bunad-Brodering', Oslo, 1997 Janice Stewart, 'The Folk Arts of Norway', University of Wisconsin, 1953 Guvnor Traetteberg, 'Folk Costumes of Norway', Oslo, 1966, 1976 Thorbjorg Ugland, 'A Sampler of Norway's Folk Costumes', Oslo, 1996 Laila Duran, 'Scandinavian Folklore vol I - III', Sweden, 2011-2013

The Norwegian folk dress has gained in popularity in recent years. A 20th century invention based on traditional folk costumes, the bunad is available for both men and women.

Eén van de mooiste blogs over Scandinavische Folklore is dat van Laila Durán, eigenaresse van het Zweedse bedrijf Duran Textiles. Haar blog FOLKLORE FASHION bestaat sinds september 2010. Regelmatig plaatst Laila foto's en informatie over Scandinavische klederdracht en de vorderingen van haar boeken SCANDINAVIAN FOLKLORE (ook Engelstalig). In mei 2011 verscheen haar eerste boek. Nu, een jaar later, is Scandinavian Folklore II verschenen. De eerste bladzijden voor deel III zijn net klaar. Laila Durán maakte voor beide boeken de foto's en schreef over de klederdracht van Zweden. Anne Kristin Moe, conservator van het Norsk Folkemuseum, schreef het deel over de Noorse klederdracht. Niet alleen de klederdracht is prachtig in beeld gebracht, maar de locaties zijn ook een lust voor het oog. Enkele persfoto's van beide boeken. Neem een kijkje in DEEL I en DEEL II. De boeken zijn nu ook in Nederland verkrijgbaar, de gegevens vind je HIER. BLOG FOLKLORE FASHION. Ga je deze zomer naar Noorwegen? NORSK FOLKEMUSEUM OSLO ...

Hello all, Today I will try to cover all of Norway. Norway has many beautiful costumes, and the folk costume culture is alive and well. The scene above, showing five different costumes is not unusual for festivals. The National Bunad Council Bunad- og Folkedraktrådet , the authority on national costumes appointed by the government, has developed five categories to grade modern day bunads according to ‘authentic’ regional folk clothing: Category 1 – a bunad that represents a final link in the development of a folk costume. This is basically an original folk costume that has taken on the function of a bunad. Category 2 – a bunad that has a background in a particular folk costume that is out of use but not forgotten. It is generally reconstructed from first-hand knowledge, with many extant examples. Category 3 – a bunad that has been reconstructed from preserved folk garments which reflect the actual time and region of the piece. Pictures and writings may be used as sources in reconstruction. Category 4 – a bunad that has been made based on random and incomplete folk material. Missing pieces have been designed to match. Category 5 – a bunad that has been completely or partially ‘freely composed’. It was the 1800s bunad movement that has given these types of bunad their status. New bunads are being designed every year, and must go through the strict judgement process of the National Bunad Council in order to be classified as a proper ‘bunad’. The council is very strict in making sure new additions follow closely the traditions and history of the area. Because of this, many designs today, even though they have the same function as a bunad, generally don’t make the cut and thus can not be called ‘bunads’. They receive the name ‘drakt' instead. Costumes are readily available in Norway, there are many businesses which make them. These are called Husflid. They are, however, expensive, as the Norwegians believe in paying a living wage to people who do things like embroider or weave by hand. For every one of these costumes, whether bunad or drakt, there is at least one sewing house, or husflid, which specializes in making it. Norway has a long history, even though for several centuries it was ruled by Denmark. Norway has only two minority peoples, the Saami and the Kven. The Saami, also known as the Lapps, inhabit all of northern Scandinavia, and speak several languages which are related to each other, but unrelated to Norwegian. The Kven were settlers from Finland in the 18th and 19th cent. Very few of them today still speak the Kven language. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norway The map above shows the Norwegian provinces, and I will consider them one by one, starting in the southeast, treating the capitol area, and then the eastern provinces north to south, and continuing around the coast. This is the traditional order of presentation. Some of the Norwegian costumes represent living traditions, however many of them are reconstructions, or designed from the ground up. I will not show every costume, as that would be too much to cover, but I will show the major variants from each province. The Norwegian language is made up of quite a few mostly mutually intelligible dialects, with a strong distinction between east and west. Norwegian is unique in having two literary norms, Bokmål and Nynorsk. The first means 'book language', and is used by most people, even though it is heavily influenced by Danish. The latter was an attempt to make a more purely Norwegian literary standard, and is more popular in the west. Both are recognized by the government. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norwegian_language The following map shows which parts of the nation lean towards Bokmal, [red], and which towards Nynorsk [blue]. Many municipalities are officially neutral, [gray]. It is interesting that most of the territories which have strong costume traditions favor Nynorsk. Oslo Oslo is a province as well as a city. Oslo, like many cities around Norway has its own drakt, specially designed for the purpose. cat 5 Here we see the first example of the most popular cut for bunads. This is basically the Gudbrandsdal festive bunad with embroidered made over with different colors and embroidery. This has been done over and over again in many places. This has come to be understood as the classic Norwegian costume cut. The gray band set above the hem features realistic embroidery of Norwegian wildflowers, and the pocket is embroidered with the figure of St. Halvard, patron of the city. Here is another drakt which was designed for the 1000 yr jubillee of the city, which features a more urban look. Notice the subtle damask design on the women's jacket. cat 5 Sørkedalen This is an agricultural valley outside of the city, but still within the northwest part of the Oslo municipality . This is another remake of the Gudgrandsdal festbunad. cat 5 Østfold This lies between Oslo and Sweden, on the east bank of the Oslo fiord. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%98stfold The most common bunads are those which are considered to belong to the province as a whole, as they were reconstructed from pieces found all over the province. The proximity to Sweden is evident in the most common men's costume, particularly in the cloth for the vest and the cut of the long coat. cat 3 As often happens, the embroidery on the bunad was taken from one old piece found in someone's attic. This the variety of embroidery used is very limited. The most common women's bunad, designed in 1936 comes in green and red variants. cat 4 The embroidery on the shoulder shawl also has two variants. Another bunad was designed in the 1960's. cat 4 A popular and attractive costume from this area is the Løkendrakt, designed in 1946. Another example of a remade Gudbrandsdal festbunad. cat 5 One local costume which has achieved the status of bunad is that of Mysen and Eidsberg. cat 5 Vestfold Vestfold lies on the west bank of the Oslo fiord. This is the smallest province by area. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vestfold This is also only one region. The bunads are used over the entire province. There are two types of the man's bunad. The first one comes with either a black jacket and red vest or red jacket and gold vest. cat 3 This is sometimes worn with natural color leather knickers instead of black wool. The second is called the 'blue jacket' bunad. It is mostly black, with long pants and a brocade vest in blue and dark red. cat 3 Several bunads have been designed for women. The earliest is the 1932 model. This has woven ribbon trim around the bodice and on the hem of the skirt, and an embroidered pocket, but no apron. It is made in a couple of different colors. cat 5 The 1956 model is similar, but adds more color options and features a woven apron. cat 4 This apron is based on an old photograph from about 1890. There are two more common versions of the Vestfold woman's bunad. This one is called the brocade bodice bunad. It features an embroidered linen apron, which was copied from one made in the early 19th cent. The embroidery on the pocket is different. cat 4 The linen apron is also worn with the other bunad. The last of the common variants is the velvet bodice bunad. This features a dark apron, and a bodice of a different cut. cat 4 All of the above bunads were based on actual found materials. There is another bunad which was designed in the 1930's as a 'free composition'. This is much less commonly seen but features embroidery on the dress, which everyone wants. Segerbrandt-Bunad This comes in black, blue, and white, with rosemahl type embroidery. Another example of a remade Gudbrandsdal festbunad. cat 5 Akershus Akershus surrounds Oslo except on the northwest. This is a very densely populated area, including as it does some of the suburbs of Oslo. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akershus This is the first province in which we encounter different districts, as can be seen on the map. Akerdrakt This can be worn by anyone in the province, but especially those in urban areas near Oslo. men cat 5, women cat 4 Baerum There is one Baerum bunad which comes in a variety of colors and choice of aprons. Plaids are common in Folk costumes all over north Europe, they are not restricted to Scotland. men cat 3, women cat 4 Asker women cat 4, men cat 5 The above is the festive bunad, there is also a winter bunad. and a summer bunad. The men wear embroidered braces under their vests. Follo There are currently two costumes from Follo. The Follobunad. men cat 3, women cat 5 This features a linen apron with white openwork embroidery and rococo embroidery on white on the damask skirt, pocket and cap of blue or red. Follo Festdrakt This is a less expensive alternative now available based on brocades rather than embroidery. cat 5 Romerike The men's bunad. cat 5 The Romerike women's festive bunad comes in three colors, blue, green and red. It also comes in three models which vary in type of bodice and embroidery. The three models, believe it or not, are called L40, L46, and L55. The unique Romerike embroidery was taken from an old horse blanket. The apron may be of the same embroidered wool or may be of printed linen. cat 5 L40 This features a bodice which is the same color wool as the skirt and pocket. The bodice is cut straight at the waist and seems to be connected with the skirt. L46 This features a separate bodice with a peplum, the cut of which is copied from an old bodice found in the area. The embroidery, while similar, is distinct if you look carefully, both on the skirt and on the pocket. Here we see the two side by side. L55 This model features yet different, although still similar embroidery, and a bodice with a straight cut that is made of damask. Romerike also has an everyday bunad for both men and women. There are two municipalities in the north of Romerike which have their own local bunads. Both are of the modified Gudbrandsdal festbunad type. Hurdal Bunad cat 5 Eidsvoll Bunad cat 5 Hedmark This province is found to the north of Akershus, and is one of only two landlocked provinces in Norway. It is very rural still. This is a much larger province than the ones we covered previously. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedmark This area mostly did not wear folk costumes within living memory at the beginning of the folk movement in the early 20th cent., but there were historical records and paintings which showed the costumes. Thus the reconstructions are more historical than in the provinces to the south. There are three traditional districts: Hedmarken, Solør-Odal, and Østerdal. This last is the largest and is shown on the map above as three sub districts, south, north, and east. Hedmarken This is a district within Hedmark province. The man's bunad for Hedmarken cat 3 Here are the most recent reconstructed women's bunads for Hedmark. They greatly resemble the common bunads for Solør-Odal and Østerdalen. cat 3 Here is the 'traditional' bunad from Hedmarken. In the first image we see, from left to right, the 1935 model, the1955 model, and the 1985 model. cat 5 Here is the distinct bunad from Vallset in the south of Hedmarken. cat 5 Solør-Odal This district is in the south of the province of Hedmark, south of Hedmarken. The man's bunad is similar to that worn in Østerdal and Gudbrandsdal. The woman's has a unique bodice with scalloped peplum and fine leather edging. The bunad may be made from various different types of cloth, which is also true of the Østerdal bunad. cat 4 This district also has an embroidered bunad in the Gudbrandsdal cut, designed in 1940. Hulda Garborg was part of the committee that designed this bunad. cat 5 This is the everyday bunad of the area. In the east of this district is the municipality of Grue, which includes an area known as Finnskogen, because there was in the 17th century a large group of Finns who settled there. They have to some extent kept their traditions and culture to this day. This drakt is a reconstruction from old photographs.cat 4 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finnskogen Østerdal This is the largest district in Hedmark. According to costumes, it can be divided into south, north and east subregions. The man's bunad of this area has two forms, the older, which resembles that of Hedmarken and Gudbrandsdal is reminiscent of lumberjack dress, with a plaid wool vest and hat with a bill, cat 4, and the newer reconstruction which is more urban in character.cat 3 Here is an old print which is one of the main sources for the reconstruction of the bunads of this district. Marie Aaen Bunad One of the first bunads designed to represent this district was by Marie Aaens, from Tynset in the north. She won a contest with this design in 1947. It definitely is quite attractive, and she paid attention to the traditions of the area, note the bodice with peplum and the plaid apron.compare to the image above. She also added some very attractive embroidery, taken from rosemahling [folk painting] of the area. It remains popular today. The bodice and skirt may be in black with green trim or in green with black trim. cat 5 Another bunad to be used over all of Østerdal is less well known but has a very similar history.This one was designed by Ruth Arnestad Lødrup. cat 5 Lødrup Bunad South Østerdal Østerdal is the largest district in this province, and has several divisions, and bunads for each. This is the bunad for the south part, shown on the map above. Note the similarity to the reconstructed Hedmarken bunad above. Since this is based on multiple museum pieces, there are a variety of possible fabrics for the bunad. One can wear a shirt and bodice, or a jacket. The most commonly used apron has a woven in leaf design. The blouses do not have cuffs or collars, but do feature white openwork. cat 4 South Østerdaln also has an everyday bunad. North Østerdal This is similar to the south Østerdal bunad, but has a plaid apron, an embroidered pocket and differs in other small details. The men's bunad is the same cat 4 There are other bunads and drakts for specific areas in Østerdal. Here is one from the eastern part. men cat 4, women cat 5 Trysil Bunad The rest of these are all from specific areas in the north of Østerdal. The original costume traditions lasted longest in the north.Each of these three areas have two bunads. Alvdal Bunad cat 4 Alvdal Bunad with embroidery cat 5 Folldal Bunad cat 5 Folldal Bunad with plaid skirt. cat 4 Kvikne Bunad cat 4 Kvikne Bunad with embroidery, or Kvikne Church Bunad This has exceptionally nice embroidery. cat 5 It looks like my article on Norway will turn into a series of four articles. This is enough for one. Thank you for reading, I hope that you have found this interesting and informative. email [email protected] Source Material: Bjorn Sverre hol Haugen, 'Norsk Bunadleksikon' Oslo, 2009 Kjersti Skavhaug et al, 'Norwegian Bunads', Oslo, 1991 Heidi Fossnes, 'Norges Bunader og Samiske Folkedrakter', Oslo, 1993 Ellen Scheel et al, 'Bunad-Brodering', Oslo, 1997

Hello all, Today I will cover the last province of Norway, Hordaland. This is one of the great centers of Norwegian folk costume, having large areas in which the costume continues to be a living tradition to this day. Hordaland is divided into five districts. It also includes the second largest city in Norway, Bergen. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hordaland The folk costumes of this province are mostly similar to each other, being of the bringeduk type, with a separate plastron. As one would expect with a living tradition, individual costumes differ in details, there being room for individual expression. There are also commonly different costumes for married women and unmarried girls, and winter vs summer. The inland areas have traditions that are still living, but many of the coastal regions have reconstructed their costumes based on a wealth of evidence. Sunnhordland This province is along the southern part of the coast. Stord and Bømlo I believe that this bunad is also worn in Sveio, as I have been unable to find any for that municipality. cat 4 Fitjar This municipality has a bunad similar to the others found on the coast, as well as a plain dark drakt called stasklede. both cat 4 This image shows the bunad from Tysnes on the left, and Fitjar on the right. Etne This bunad is distinguished by the embroidered braces which are part of the costume, possibly holding up the skirt as they once did in Tinn. It also has a loose pocket, which most of the costumes in this province do not. cat 4 Kvinnherad The blue hat is worn by both married and unmarried women, and for formal occasions, the women wear a white kerchief, and unmarried girls wear a white hat. The inset tends to be plain cloth with an ornamented band at the top. women cat 2, men cat 4 Tysnes cat 3 Midhordland This consists of the center part of the coast, around the city of Bergen. Fusa The bunad as worn today is a reconstruction of the clothing worn in the early to mid 1800s. The blue cap was worn by both girls and women, but women wore the white kerchief over it for formal occasions. This municipality is just across the fjord from Kvinnherad, so there are similarities. It is somewhat short waisted, and a variety of aprons are used. cat 3 Samnanger cat 4 Os The reconstructed bunad of Os represents the mid 1800s, cat 3 This is the way that unmarried girls dressed their hair. Hair was never worn loose in public except on her wedding day. The bunad as redesigned in the early 20th cent. cat 4 Austevoll The hair in all of these areas that have strong memories of tradition was put up in braids or twists, covered by a linen cap, and the headdress worn on top in such a way that none of the hair was visible. A kerchief is worn over the cap for formal occasions, with white embroidery for unmarried girls and black embroidery for married women. Men would wear an embroidered linen scarf on such occasions. woman cat 3, men cat 4 Sotra This is an island north of Austevoll, which consists of the municipalities of Sund and Fjell. Married women wear a green vest with red sleeves, and unmarried girls wear the opposite. Both wear the black winter bunad. cat 4 Askøy This municipality consists of an island group northeast of Stord and northwest of the current municipality of Bergen. cat 4 Laksevåg This was a former municipality which has been combined with a few others into the municipality of Bergen. It is now a borough of the Bergen Municipality. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laksev%C3%A5g The bunad is cat 4 The woman on the left is from Laksevag, the woman on the right is from Os. Fana This was a former municipality which is also now a borough of the municipality of Bergen. It consists of the entire southern part of the current Bergen Municipality. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fana The folk costume - bunad of this area has never ceased being a living tradition. The married women's costume is distinguished by the kerchief over the head rail, while unmarried girls wear a headband. The girls' bodice is edged in blue, while the women's is green or patterned silk. The apron features open work of many kinds, hardangersom, crochet, and other techniques are used. The apron may also be of printed cloth, however it always has a notched or toothed edge, unlike the other regions of Hordaland. The men wear two vests, one over the other. cat 1 Bergen City The city itself has two designed drakts of the livkjol type. They are the only such costumes in Hordaland. Bergendrakt The embroidery was taken from an old shawl. This embroidery was applied to the whole costume. On the skirt the embroidery was not altered to fit, but simply executed in L shapes around the hem. There is no apron. As Bergen is a major city, this drakt is very popular. cat 5 Much less well known is the Bjørgvindrakt cat 5 Nordhordland There is one man's bunad for Nordhordland cat 4 Outer Nordhordland There is a recently reconstructed bunad with a green jacket inside the bodice. The girls' hair is wrapped in ribbons and then wound around the top of the head. Married women wear a bag shaped kerchief. cat 3 This girl is wearing her hair incorrectly, loose under a fake hair roll. There is also a version of the bunad which was designed in the early 20th cent. cat 4 Osterøy This is very similar to the previous bunad, but there is a padded roll under the women's headdress, and the pleated skirt has a green hem, as in Voss. cat 4 Masfjorden There is a version of this bunad which was designed in the 1970s. cat 4 There is also a more recently reconstructed version which differs little. cat 3 Voss Both of the inland costumes represent unbroken living traditions. Voss has separate bunads for marrried women and single girls. It also has a summer and winter bunad, which is very common for Hordaland. Married women have a deep green hem on the skirt edged with silver lace, while unmarried girls have three narrow black velvet bands. Married women also wear the headpiece. There are two types of jacket worn with this bunad, one which shows the stomacher, the bringeduk, and one which closes down the middle. women cat 1, men cat 4 Hardanger The district of Hardanger is generally considered to have one bunad, which is a living tradition. There is a great deal of variety in the ornamentation of the bodice inset, both beadwork and embroidery. Previously the bodice was of many colors and materials, but under the influence of the National Bunad, it is almost always red today. The white apron with hardangersom is worn for formal occasions, but other aprons are worn as well. There is also a winter bunad here, as is the case in the rest of Hordaland. I will cover some of the distinctions between the regions, which do not always follow the municipalities. Generally, most of the images which are just labelled Hardanger are from Ullensvang or Sorfjorden, or are of the old National costume. women cat 1, men cat 4 Ulvik, Eidfjord and Granvin The women's bunad is distinct in a couple of different ways. Firstly, the bodice opening does not have a notch, but extends smoothly from the closure to the neck, similar to the Voss bunad. Secondly, the married women wear a different headpiece, consisting of a kerchief worn over a head rail, somewhat similar to that of Fana. Both summer and winter bunads are shown in the following images. The men's bunad varies, that of Granvin and Ulvik each being distinct, and that of Eidfjord being shared with Ullensvang and Sorfjorden. Ulvik Granvin Eidfjord The western regions have a woman's headdress that is similar from one to another, but of a somewhat different shape. It is finely pleated and starched to obtain its distinctive form. The men of Ullensvang and Sorfjorden wear the same bunad as they do in Eidfjord. The men of Kvam and Jondal each have a distinct bunad. In Torvikbygd the mean wear the Jondal bunad, even though the town is in Kvam. Ullensvang In this photo, the headdress does not have the fold which is found in the versions further west. I have only found one photo of this exact type of headdress, so I am not certain if this is an actual distinction. The man is wearing the red 'bridegroom's jacket'. Kvam. In Kvam the headdress has the fold by the temples, but the headdress itself is a somewhat different shape, being higher and rounder in front. You will sometimes see women from Kvam wearing the more general headdress though. The men wear a distinct bunad with a green vest and patterned stockings. Jondal The women's costume is very close to that of Sorfjorden, differing only in minor details. There is only one band hanging from the belt. In the above regions there usually tend to be two. The man's bunad is distinct, and is also worn in Torvikbygd. Sørfjorden This means south fjord, and refers to a side fjord which extends to the south from the main Hardangerfjord. The area around this fjord is home to the classic version of the Hardanger bunad and folk costume. It includes the northernwestern parts of Ullensvang and Odda municipalities. Married women wear the flat top version of the headdress, as they do in Jondal, and which is often seen in other parts of Hardanger as well. They may also wear three bands hanging from the belt with the formal costume. Unmarried girls wear their hair in braids, and may wrap them with ribbons and put them up. Little girls wear a bonnet. The bodice and jacket both have the notch in front, as do all of the western variants. The bodice may be of many materials or colors. The plastron, or bodice inset has hundreds of different designs, executed in either beadwork, applique, or embroidery of various kinds, or in a combination of techniques. My next article will be an overview of different types of insets. The blouses may have Hardanger embroidery, other whitework, or blackwork. Røldal This is a former municipality which currently makes up the southeastern part of Odda municipality. It was originally part of Suldal parish, which lies further down the same valley and which today is in Rogaland. The bunad is distinct. cat 4 Nasjonal or National bunad This was popular at the beginning of the 20th century, especially in areas which had not yet developed or reconstructed their own bunads. It is a simplified form of the Hardanger bunad, using simplified beadwork for the inset, a red bodice to reflect the national flag, and a beaded version of the little girls' bonnet for all women. This concludes my overview of Norwegian costume. I will certainly do more articles on individual subjects in Norway in the future as well. Thank you for reading. I hope that you have found this to be interesting and informative. Roman K email:[email protected] Source Material: Source Material: Aagot Noss, 'Draktskikk i Aust-Telemark', Oslo, 2010 Kari-Anne Pedersen, 'Folkedrakt blir Bunad', Cappelen Damm, 2013 Bjorn Sverre hol Haugen, 'Norsk Bunadleksikon' Oslo, 2009 Kjersti Skavhaug et al, 'Norwegian Bunads', Oslo, 1991 Heidi Fossnes, 'Norges Bunader og Samiske Folkedrakter', Oslo, 1993 Ellen Scheel et al, 'Bunad-Brodering', Oslo, 1997 Janice Stewart, 'The Folk Arts of Norway', University of Wisconsin, 1953 Guvnor Traetteberg, 'Folk Costumes of Norway', Oslo, 1966, 1976 Thorbjorg Ugland, 'A Sampler of Norway's Folk Costumes', Oslo, 1996 Laila Duran, 'Scandinavian Folklore vol I - III', Sweden, 2011-2013 Laila Duran, 'Populaere Bunader', 2014

The Swedish National Dress (Sverigedräkten) and regional traditional folk costumes (Folkdräkter) has both seen a serious revival over the past few d

Hello all, This is the second part of my overview of the costumes of Norway. This will cover the central row of provinces in Eastern Norway, the yellow and orange ones on the map below, minus the ones I covered in the first article. This includes the provinces of Oppland, Buskerud, Telemark, and East and West Agder. All of these have at least some areas in which folk costumes were a living tradition or within living memory at the beginning of the 20th cent. The National Bunad Council Bunad- og Folkedraktrådet , the authority on national costumes appointed by the government, has developed five categories to grade modern day bunads according to ‘authentic’ regional folk clothing: The National Bunad Council Bunad- og Folkedraktrådet , the authority on national costumes appointed by the government, has developed five categories to grade modern day bunads according to ‘authentic’ regional folk clothing: Category 1 – a bunad that represents a final link in the development of a folk costume. This is basically an original folk costume that has taken on the function of a bunad. Category 2 – a bunad that has a background in a particular folk costume that is out of use but not forgotten. It is generally reconstructed from first-hand knowledge, with many examples extant. Category 3 – a bunad that has been reconstructed from preserved folk garments which reflect the actual time and region of the piece. Pictures and writings may be used as sources in reconstruction. Category 4 – a bunad that has been made based on random and incomplete folk material. Missing pieces have been designed to match the style of the materials. Category 5 – a bunad that has been completely or partially freely composed. It was the 1800s bunad movement that has given these types of bunad their status. New bunads are being designed every year, and must go through the strict judgement process of the National Bunad Council in order to be classified as a proper ‘bunad’. The council is very strict in making sure new additions follow closely the traditions and history of the area. Because of this, many designs today, even though they have the same function as a bunad, generally don’t make the cut and thus can not be called ‘bunads’. They receive the name ‘drakt’ instead. Costumes are readily available in Norway, there are many businesses which make them. These are called Husflid. They are, however, expensive, as the Norwegians believe in paying a living wage to people who do things like embroider or weave by hand. For every one of these costumes, whether bunad or drakt, there is at least one sewing house, or husflid, which specializes in making it. So let us continue. Oppland This is divided into the three districts of Vestoppland, Gudbrandsdal, and Valdres. The image at the top of the article is one of the bunads from Gudbrandsdal which has never gone out of usage, the Rondestakken. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oppland Vestoppland One of the costumes which represent this region was designed by the noted artist Alf Lundeby in 1932. The Lundeby costume comes in black, blue, or white. It remains very popular. Lundeby Drakt cat 5 Vestoppland Bunad This was designed in 1937 from pieces found in different parts of Vestoppland. cat 5 The next three costumes each represent a part of Vestoppland. Hadeland Bunad Hadeland is the southern part of Vestoppland, around Randsfjord. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hadeland The Hadeland Bunad is an accurate reconstruction of the local dress in the mid 1800s. It was made in plaids of different colors. Plaids are common in several neighboring districts as well. Girls wore a pale cap, married women a black one. The cap had a lace ruffle, similar to that in some Danish costumes. Like with all bunads, an underskirt must be worn. cat 3 Toten is in the east central part of Vestoppland. Toten drakt This design was finalized in 1971, based on pieces of costume found in this area. men cat 5, women cat 4 Land, or Nordre Land, is in the northern part of Vestoppland. Landingsdrakt Work on the costume started in 1927 and was finalized in 1980. The embroidery was taken from an old shawl found in Hadeland. cat 5 Gudbrandsdal Gudbrandsdal is a valley which extends from Lillehammer to the northwest. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gudbrand_Valley The men wear a red wool plaid vest, or, for more formal occasions, a brocade vest may be worn. Sometimes an older form of frock coat may be worn as well. This is shown in the second image. cat 4 Rondastakken or Livkjol cat 1 This bunad is part of a living tradition in the valley. It is not designed or reconstructed.The most recent version is called rondastakken, which means 'striped skirt'. These were made with homewoven cloth, striped for the skirt, and plaid for the attached bodice. Livkjol means 'bodice skirt' and refers to the construction. Other types of cloth were also used in the past, and these have now come back into use. It was known that in the early 1800's it was the fashion to wear embroidered skirts. Some of these skirts have been preserved in museums. Embroidery from these skirts were copied onto wool and used to make a livkjol with an embroidered skirt. This was the origin of the Gudbrandsdal Bunad. The original skirt for this embroidery was from Lom. cat 4 The same embroidery was used in the 1920s to make the Gudbrandsdal Formal bunad. The bodice was also made of wool most often of the same color and also received embroidery, as did the pocket. An apron with matching embroidery was also sometimes worn. This became very popular and was the origin of the Embroidered Bunad type which was copied in so many places around Norway with different embroidery patterns, several of which we have already seen. cat 5 Another designed bunad used embroidery from a skirt found at the Graffer Farm. This is called the Graffer Bunad and remains very popular today. cat 4 Jorde Bunad This was designed by Maria Jorde from Bøverdal in Lom. cat 5 Other similar bunads represent particular parts of Gudbrandsdal. Lesja Bunad or Rutastakk cat 2 Gausdals Bunad cat 4 Dovre Bunad cat 5 Lillehammer Bunad. This comes in blue with multicolored embroidery, or green or red with monochromatic gold embroidery of the same design. cat 5 Valdres This valley lies in the southern part of Oppland. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valdres Rutastakken This is the Valdres equivalent of the Rondestakken of Gudbrandsdal. In this bunad, the skirt as well as the bodice is plaid, of many kinds. The matching mens costume also features a plaid wool vest and a black jacket. This was common in the second half of the 19th cent. cat 3 Valdres has two livkjol type embroidered bunads. The 'Old' Valdres Bunad This was designed in 1914. cat 5 The 'New' Valdres Bunad This was designed in 1948. cat 5 The South. or lower Valdres Bunad cat 3 Upper Valdres Bunad, or Bringedukdrakt This has been established as the bunad for Upper Valdres, namely Vang and Slidre. The second term refers to the stomacher or plastron which is inserted into the bodice. This was typical for the first half of the 19th cent. The everyday costume is plain blue. cat 3 Buskerud Buskerud borders on Oslo on the southeast, but also extends up into two major mountain valleys, Hallingdal and Nemedal. These border Valdres, Telemark and Hordaland, all areas in which the costume tradition is strong. There are also smaller distinct areas in central Buskerud, Ringerike in the north, and the coherent costume region of Siggdal-Eggedal-Krødsherad in the center. The lowland areas lost their costume tradition early, but the high mountain valleys were still wearing their traditional costumes at the beginning of the 20th century when the bunad movement began. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buskerud Ringerike This is just downstream from Valdres in the same valley. In the past it was an independent fief. It extends south to the province of Oslo. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringerike_(traditional_district) There is both a local drakt cat 4 and an embroidered bunad. cat 5 Mends bunad is cat 3 Ådal is a valley in the municipality of Ringerike They have their own embroidered bunad, designed in 1938 cat 5 Hønefoss This bunad was designed in 1954 cat 5 Lower Buskerud This is shown in light blue on the map with the exception of Ringerike. In these low lying areas close to the capitol, the bunads are designed or recreated. There is an embroidered bunad, cat 5,which was designed in 1939 for all of Lower Buskerud: Eiker, Lier, Drammen, Modum, Hurum, Sandsvaer and Røyken. Some of these also have their own bunads or drakten. Hurum Bunad This was a free composition in 1994 cat 5 Røyken drakt A free composition in 1992 cat 5 Lier Bunad This was a free composition completed in 1974. men cat 4, women cat 5 Modum drakt cat 5 Eiker drakt cat 5 Kongsberg drakt cat 5 Hallingdal This is one of the most famous valleys of Norway for costume, embroidery and folklore. These three valleys have distinct costumes, but they intergrade from one to the other. I have written an article on Hallingdal already. I may have to update it, as I have learned more since I wrote it. http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2012/06/bunad-and-rosemaling-embroidery-of.html This is an area where the local costume is well remembered, and there are many examples to be found around the valley. Upper Hallingdal cat 1 This consists of the municipalities of Hol and Ål. This man is in a Rogaland Bunad, not Hallingdal The upper Hallingdal bunad is noted for its embroidery, an extremely short bodice, black apron for the dress bunad, and quite complex headdresses for both married women and single girls, as seen in the last two images above. Hulda Garborg, who was so instrumental in reviving interest in Norwegian folk costumes in the early 20th cent. thought that it was important to make the costumes modern and easy to wear. She took this costume and simplified it. Perhaps the biggest change is that she replaced the headdress with a simple embroidered cap similar to that worn in Lower Hallingdal. This simplified bunad became very popular, and many people mistakenly believe it to be the authentic Upper Hallingdal bunad. Here are some examples. Lower Hallingal This consists of the municipalities of Hemsedal, Gol, and Nes. The costumes are quite similar to that of Upper Hallingdal, but they traditionally wore the cap, they used a flowered or plaid apron for the formal costume, and there are other minor differences. They sometimes wore a kerchief tied around the cap, as is the custom in mid Buskerud. cat 1 There are two mens bunads, one is rather plain black, cat 1, and the other is highly embroidered, cat 4. The second is very popular with men all over Norway who want a colorful embroidered bunad. The everyday bunad from Hallingdal is also well remembered and still worn. It has no apron and is black or plaid. Mid Buskerud This consists of Sigdal - Eggedal, Krødsherad, and sometimes Flå. Flå This municipality is technically in Lower Hallingdal, but the costume is perhaps closer to the Mid Buskerud costume. cat 4 Sigdal - Eggedal, Krødsherad cat 3 Numedal This lies over the mountains south of Hallingdal, and is north of Telemark. Mans bunad There are three. The gray jacket is used all over the valley, but there are also two different black bunads for Lower and upper Numedal Gray Jacket cat 2 Lower Numedal mens bunad with round jacket cat 3 Upper Numedal mens bunad with short jacket. cat 3 Lower Numedal, Flesberg cat 2 Upper Numedal cat 3 There is also an embroidered bunad which was designed for Numedal in 1938. cat 4 Telemark https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telemark Telemark is perhaps the richest province in Norway as regards costumes. The costumes were a living tradition well into the 20th cent. There are many examples of different embroideries and cuts. However, many of these reflect individual variations and different time periods. There are only three costume districts in Telemark: East Telemark, West Telemark and Tinn. This map also separates the coastal area. This was distinct culturally, but did not keep much in the way of costume. I have written a series of articles on Telemark already. http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/beltestakk-and-gratrje-costumes-of-east.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/gratrje-costume-of-east-telemark-norway.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/east-telemark-norway-embroidered-shirts.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/east-telemark-norway-socks-and-shoes.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2012/06/costume-and-rosemaling-embroidery-of.html Tinn Mens Bunad cat 3 Omslagsliv The embroidered bands which cross over the shoulders were originally suspenders which held up the skirt. The bodice was attached to the second underskirt. The embroidery is often done freehand, and there is much individual variation. cat 1 Skjaelingskleda This is an older costume from the early 1800s which shows the influence of neighboring Numedal. cat 3 East Telemark Mans bunad with gray jacket cat 2 This is the most common version. It comes from the same period as the beltestakk. Stakk og Liv This means skirt and bodice. It is the most recent and simplest form of the East Telemark folk costume which was in use into the 1970s. cat 1 Beltestakk cat 2 This is an older form of the costume which was revived. It has a great deal of ornament in the form of ribbon, but has embroidery only on the shirt. The skirt is exceptionally full, which makes it fun to dance in. Because of the lack of embroidery, it is fairly inexpensive and very popular today. It is named after the very wide woven sash which is an integral part of this costume. Raudtroje This means red jacket and is the common embroidered form of the East Telemark Bunad. It is based on an even older form of the folk costume. cat 3 - West Telemark The costume and embroidery tradition is just as rich in West Telemark. The various costume types are associated with different periods of history. The older, more elaborately embroidered forms were used as the basis for the modern bunad. Raudsaumsbunad This is the most recent form of the costume, this came into being around 1910. This was thought at the time to be stylishly modern. It reintroduced the old embroidery on the bodice. cat 1 Fløyesliv This bunad was in use roughly from 1895 to 1915 or so. It is distinguished by the embroidered bib attached to the front of the bodice. The apron was sometimes embroidered. cat 2 Rundtroje This is the most recent living form of the mans bunad in plain black. It matches the two womens bunads above. cat 1 Bringeklutbunad and Gray Jacket bunad These were worn in the early to mid 1800s by women and men, respectively. Relatively recently they have been reconstructed and begun to be worn again. cat 3 Vest Telemark bunad The most popular bunad today is the elaborately embroidered one which was worn even earlier, roughly from 1750 to 1850. cat 4 Drangedal This is a coastal area. To my knowledge this is the only coastal costume to be reconstructed in Telemark. cat 4 Agder In ancient times this was a petty kingdom, The name is so old that the meaning of it has been lost. Today it is divided into two provinces, West Agder and East Agder. This is the southernmost point of Norway. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agder This area is small, and I am surprised that It was divided in two. It is sometimes referred to as the southland. It includes Setesdal in which the folk costume is a living tradition, and coastal areas which have revived theirs. You will notice part of the coast is depicted in white with the heading 'unspecified'. Setesdal This district holds much the same position in Norway that Andalusia does in Spain. The costume is iconic for the country, but is not at all typical. cat 1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Setesdal The everyday costume for the women is a white jumper with black bands on the hem. The men wear a sort of overall. For Sundays and feast days, a second black jumper with bands of red and green on the hem was worn over this. The men put on an embroidered vest with either a fancy knitted sweater or short embroidered jacket. Åmli The bunad was reconstructed from old costume pieces in 1926. There are various kerchiefs and aprons preserved with different embroidery designs. cat 4 Iveland This began to be reconstructed in 1917. This bunad may be worn with a variety of embroidered pockets, many of which are to be found. Very similar pockets are also worn in West Agder. cat 4 West Agder There is only one bunad for most of West Agder. The striped skirt is worn by unmarried girls or by married women on regular days. On feastdays married women wear a finely pleated black skirt. The colorful high headdress was worn by married women. Girls wore a lower one which was much less ornamented. The skirt was held up by buttoning it to woven suspenders. Shawls with various embroidery patterns were also worn. As in Iveland, the embroidery on the pockets varied quite a bit. cat 4 Here are some embroidered shawls from West Agder with the names of the locations in which they were found. Sirdal cat 4 This is the northernmost valley of Vest Agder There is also an Agderdrakt which is a free composition for all of Agder. It features several local wildflowers. I have only seen one photo of it. cat 5 This concludes part 2. Thank you for reading. I hope that you have found this to be interesting and informative. I hope that some of you might be inspired to try some of the incredible embroidery which is found in this area. email: [email protected] Source Material: Bjorn Sverre hol Haugen, 'Norsk Bunadleksikon' Oslo, 2009 Kjersti Skavhaug et al, 'Norwegian Bunads', Oslo, 1991 Heidi Fossnes, 'Norges Bunader og Samiske Folkedrakter', Oslo, 1993 Ellen Scheel et al, 'Bunad-Brodering', Oslo, 1997 Janice Stewart, 'The Folk Arts of Norway', University of Wisconsin, 1953 Guvnor Traetteberg, 'Folk Costumes of Norway', Oslo, 1966, 1976 Thorbjorg Ugland, 'A Sampler of Norway's Folk Costumes', Oslo, 1996 Laila Duran, 'Scandinavian Folklore vol I - III', Sweden, 2011-2013

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Hello all, This is the second part of my overview of the costumes of Norway. This will cover the central row of provinces in Eastern N...

Hello all, This is the second part of my overview of the costumes of Norway. This will cover the central row of provinces in Eastern N...

Hello all, Today I will try to cover all of Norway. Norway has many beautiful costumes, and the folk costume culture is alive and well. The scene above, showing five different costumes is not unusual for festivals. The National Bunad Council Bunad- og Folkedraktrådet , the authority on national costumes appointed by the government, has developed five categories to grade modern day bunads according to ‘authentic’ regional folk clothing: Category 1 – a bunad that represents a final link in the development of a folk costume. This is basically an original folk costume that has taken on the function of a bunad. Category 2 – a bunad that has a background in a particular folk costume that is out of use but not forgotten. It is generally reconstructed from first-hand knowledge, with many extant examples. Category 3 – a bunad that has been reconstructed from preserved folk garments which reflect the actual time and region of the piece. Pictures and writings may be used as sources in reconstruction. Category 4 – a bunad that has been made based on random and incomplete folk material. Missing pieces have been designed to match. Category 5 – a bunad that has been completely or partially ‘freely composed’. It was the 1800s bunad movement that has given these types of bunad their status. New bunads are being designed every year, and must go through the strict judgement process of the National Bunad Council in order to be classified as a proper ‘bunad’. The council is very strict in making sure new additions follow closely the traditions and history of the area. Because of this, many designs today, even though they have the same function as a bunad, generally don’t make the cut and thus can not be called ‘bunads’. They receive the name ‘drakt' instead. Costumes are readily available in Norway, there are many businesses which make them. These are called Husflid. They are, however, expensive, as the Norwegians believe in paying a living wage to people who do things like embroider or weave by hand. For every one of these costumes, whether bunad or drakt, there is at least one sewing house, or husflid, which specializes in making it. Norway has a long history, even though for several centuries it was ruled by Denmark. Norway has only two minority peoples, the Saami and the Kven. The Saami, also known as the Lapps, inhabit all of northern Scandinavia, and speak several languages which are related to each other, but unrelated to Norwegian. The Kven were settlers from Finland in the 18th and 19th cent. Very few of them today still speak the Kven language. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norway The map above shows the Norwegian provinces, and I will consider them one by one, starting in the southeast, treating the capitol area, and then the eastern provinces north to south, and continuing around the coast. This is the traditional order of presentation. Some of the Norwegian costumes represent living traditions, however many of them are reconstructions, or designed from the ground up. I will not show every costume, as that would be too much to cover, but I will show the major variants from each province. The Norwegian language is made up of quite a few mostly mutually intelligible dialects, with a strong distinction between east and west. Norwegian is unique in having two literary norms, Bokmål and Nynorsk. The first means 'book language', and is used by most people, even though it is heavily influenced by Danish. The latter was an attempt to make a more purely Norwegian literary standard, and is more popular in the west. Both are recognized by the government. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norwegian_language The following map shows which parts of the nation lean towards Bokmal, [red], and which towards Nynorsk [blue]. Many municipalities are officially neutral, [gray]. It is interesting that most of the territories which have strong costume traditions favor Nynorsk. Oslo Oslo is a province as well as a city. Oslo, like many cities around Norway has its own drakt, specially designed for the purpose. cat 5 Here we see the first example of the most popular cut for bunads. This is basically the Gudbrandsdal festive bunad with embroidered made over with different colors and embroidery. This has been done over and over again in many places. This has come to be understood as the classic Norwegian costume cut. The gray band set above the hem features realistic embroidery of Norwegian wildflowers, and the pocket is embroidered with the figure of St. Halvard, patron of the city. Here is another drakt which was designed for the 1000 yr jubillee of the city, which features a more urban look. Notice the subtle damask design on the women's jacket. cat 5 Sørkedalen This is an agricultural valley outside of the city, but still within the northwest part of the Oslo municipality . This is another remake of the Gudgrandsdal festbunad. cat 5 Østfold This lies between Oslo and Sweden, on the east bank of the Oslo fiord. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%98stfold The most common bunads are those which are considered to belong to the province as a whole, as they were reconstructed from pieces found all over the province. The proximity to Sweden is evident in the most common men's costume, particularly in the cloth for the vest and the cut of the long coat. cat 3 As often happens, the embroidery on the bunad was taken from one old piece found in someone's attic. This the variety of embroidery used is very limited. The most common women's bunad, designed in 1936 comes in green and red variants. cat 4 The embroidery on the shoulder shawl also has two variants. Another bunad was designed in the 1960's. cat 4 A popular and attractive costume from this area is the Løkendrakt, designed in 1946. Another example of a remade Gudbrandsdal festbunad. cat 5 One local costume which has achieved the status of bunad is that of Mysen and Eidsberg. cat 5 Vestfold Vestfold lies on the west bank of the Oslo fiord. This is the smallest province by area. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vestfold This is also only one region. The bunads are used over the entire province. There are two types of the man's bunad. The first one comes with either a black jacket and red vest or red jacket and gold vest. cat 3 This is sometimes worn with natural color leather knickers instead of black wool. The second is called the 'blue jacket' bunad. It is mostly black, with long pants and a brocade vest in blue and dark red. cat 3 Several bunads have been designed for women. The earliest is the 1932 model. This has woven ribbon trim around the bodice and on the hem of the skirt, and an embroidered pocket, but no apron. It is made in a couple of different colors. cat 5 The 1956 model is similar, but adds more color options and features a woven apron. cat 4 This apron is based on an old photograph from about 1890. There are two more common versions of the Vestfold woman's bunad. This one is called the brocade bodice bunad. It features an embroidered linen apron, which was copied from one made in the early 19th cent. The embroidery on the pocket is different. cat 4 The linen apron is also worn with the other bunad. The last of the common variants is the velvet bodice bunad. This features a dark apron, and a bodice of a different cut. cat 4 All of the above bunads were based on actual found materials. There is another bunad which was designed in the 1930's as a 'free composition'. This is much less commonly seen but features embroidery on the dress, which everyone wants. Segerbrandt-Bunad This comes in black, blue, and white, with rosemahl type embroidery. Another example of a remade Gudbrandsdal festbunad. cat 5 Akershus Akershus surrounds Oslo except on the northwest. This is a very densely populated area, including as it does some of the suburbs of Oslo. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akershus This is the first province in which we encounter different districts, as can be seen on the map. Akerdrakt This can be worn by anyone in the province, but especially those in urban areas near Oslo. men cat 5, women cat 4 Baerum There is one Baerum bunad which comes in a variety of colors and choice of aprons. Plaids are common in Folk costumes all over north Europe, they are not restricted to Scotland. men cat 3, women cat 4 Asker women cat 4, men cat 5 The above is the festive bunad, there is also a winter bunad. and a summer bunad. The men wear embroidered braces under their vests. Follo There are currently two costumes from Follo. The Follobunad. men cat 3, women cat 5 This features a linen apron with white openwork embroidery and rococo embroidery on white on the damask skirt, pocket and cap of blue or red. Follo Festdrakt This is a less expensive alternative now available based on brocades rather than embroidery. cat 5 Romerike The men's bunad. cat 5 The Romerike women's festive bunad comes in three colors, blue, green and red. It also comes in three models which vary in type of bodice and embroidery. The three models, believe it or not, are called L40, L46, and L55. The unique Romerike embroidery was taken from an old horse blanket. The apron may be of the same embroidered wool or may be of printed linen. cat 5 L40 This features a bodice which is the same color wool as the skirt and pocket. The bodice is cut straight at the waist and seems to be connected with the skirt. L46 This features a separate bodice with a peplum, the cut of which is copied from an old bodice found in the area. The embroidery, while similar, is distinct if you look carefully, both on the skirt and on the pocket. Here we see the two side by side. L55 This model features yet different, although still similar embroidery, and a bodice with a straight cut that is made of damask. Romerike also has an everyday bunad for both men and women. There are two municipalities in the north of Romerike which have their own local bunads. Both are of the modified Gudbrandsdal festbunad type. Hurdal Bunad cat 5 Eidsvoll Bunad cat 5 Hedmark This province is found to the north of Akershus, and is one of only two landlocked provinces in Norway. It is very rural still. This is a much larger province than the ones we covered previously. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedmark This area mostly did not wear folk costumes within living memory at the beginning of the folk movement in the early 20th cent., but there were historical records and paintings which showed the costumes. Thus the reconstructions are more historical than in the provinces to the south. There are three traditional districts: Hedmarken, Solør-Odal, and Østerdal. This last is the largest and is shown on the map above as three sub districts, south, north, and east. Hedmarken This is a district within Hedmark province. The man's bunad for Hedmarken cat 3 Here are the most recent reconstructed women's bunads for Hedmark. They greatly resemble the common bunads for Solør-Odal and Østerdalen. cat 3 Here is the 'traditional' bunad from Hedmarken. In the first image we see, from left to right, the 1935 model, the1955 model, and the 1985 model. cat 5 Here is the distinct bunad from Vallset in the south of Hedmarken. cat 5 Solør-Odal This district is in the south of the province of Hedmark, south of Hedmarken. The man's bunad is similar to that worn in Østerdal and Gudbrandsdal. The woman's has a unique bodice with scalloped peplum and fine leather edging. The bunad may be made from various different types of cloth, which is also true of the Østerdal bunad. cat 4 This district also has an embroidered bunad in the Gudbrandsdal cut, designed in 1940. Hulda Garborg was part of the committee that designed this bunad. cat 5 This is the everyday bunad of the area. In the east of this district is the municipality of Grue, which includes an area known as Finnskogen, because there was in the 17th century a large group of Finns who settled there. They have to some extent kept their traditions and culture to this day. This drakt is a reconstruction from old photographs.cat 4 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finnskogen Østerdal This is the largest district in Hedmark. According to costumes, it can be divided into south, north and east subregions. The man's bunad of this area has two forms, the older, which resembles that of Hedmarken and Gudbrandsdal is reminiscent of lumberjack dress, with a plaid wool vest and hat with a bill, cat 4, and the newer reconstruction which is more urban in character.cat 3 Here is an old print which is one of the main sources for the reconstruction of the bunads of this district. Marie Aaen Bunad One of the first bunads designed to represent this district was by Marie Aaens, from Tynset in the north. She won a contest with this design in 1947. It definitely is quite attractive, and she paid attention to the traditions of the area, note the bodice with peplum and the plaid apron.compare to the image above. She also added some very attractive embroidery, taken from rosemahling [folk painting] of the area. It remains popular today. The bodice and skirt may be in black with green trim or in green with black trim. cat 5 Another bunad to be used over all of Østerdal is less well known but has a very similar history.This one was designed by Ruth Arnestad Lødrup. cat 5 Lødrup Bunad South Østerdal Østerdal is the largest district in this province, and has several divisions, and bunads for each. This is the bunad for the south part, shown on the map above. Note the similarity to the reconstructed Hedmarken bunad above. Since this is based on multiple museum pieces, there are a variety of possible fabrics for the bunad. One can wear a shirt and bodice, or a jacket. The most commonly used apron has a woven in leaf design. The blouses do not have cuffs or collars, but do feature white openwork. cat 4 South Østerdaln also has an everyday bunad. North Østerdal This is similar to the south Østerdal bunad, but has a plaid apron, an embroidered pocket and differs in other small details. The men's bunad is the same cat 4 There are other bunads and drakts for specific areas in Østerdal. Here is one from the eastern part. men cat 4, women cat 5 Trysil Bunad The rest of these are all from specific areas in the north of Østerdal. The original costume traditions lasted longest in the north.Each of these three areas have two bunads. Alvdal Bunad cat 4 Alvdal Bunad with embroidery cat 5 Folldal Bunad cat 5 Folldal Bunad with plaid skirt. cat 4 Kvikne Bunad cat 4 Kvikne Bunad with embroidery, or Kvikne Church Bunad This has exceptionally nice embroidery. cat 5 It looks like my article on Norway will turn into a series of four articles. This is enough for one. Thank you for reading, I hope that you have found this interesting and informative. email [email protected] Source Material: Bjorn Sverre hol Haugen, 'Norsk Bunadleksikon' Oslo, 2009 Kjersti Skavhaug et al, 'Norwegian Bunads', Oslo, 1991 Heidi Fossnes, 'Norges Bunader og Samiske Folkedrakter', Oslo, 1993 Ellen Scheel et al, 'Bunad-Brodering', Oslo, 1997

Hello all, This is the second part of my overview of the costumes of Norway. This will cover the central row of provinces in Eastern Norway, the yellow and orange ones on the map below, minus the ones I covered in the first article. This includes the provinces of Oppland, Buskerud, Telemark, and East and West Agder. All of these have at least some areas in which folk costumes were a living tradition or within living memory at the beginning of the 20th cent. The National Bunad Council Bunad- og Folkedraktrådet , the authority on national costumes appointed by the government, has developed five categories to grade modern day bunads according to ‘authentic’ regional folk clothing: The National Bunad Council Bunad- og Folkedraktrådet , the authority on national costumes appointed by the government, has developed five categories to grade modern day bunads according to ‘authentic’ regional folk clothing: Category 1 – a bunad that represents a final link in the development of a folk costume. This is basically an original folk costume that has taken on the function of a bunad. Category 2 – a bunad that has a background in a particular folk costume that is out of use but not forgotten. It is generally reconstructed from first-hand knowledge, with many examples extant. Category 3 – a bunad that has been reconstructed from preserved folk garments which reflect the actual time and region of the piece. Pictures and writings may be used as sources in reconstruction. Category 4 – a bunad that has been made based on random and incomplete folk material. Missing pieces have been designed to match the style of the materials. Category 5 – a bunad that has been completely or partially freely composed. It was the 1800s bunad movement that has given these types of bunad their status. New bunads are being designed every year, and must go through the strict judgement process of the National Bunad Council in order to be classified as a proper ‘bunad’. The council is very strict in making sure new additions follow closely the traditions and history of the area. Because of this, many designs today, even though they have the same function as a bunad, generally don’t make the cut and thus can not be called ‘bunads’. They receive the name ‘drakt’ instead. Costumes are readily available in Norway, there are many businesses which make them. These are called Husflid. They are, however, expensive, as the Norwegians believe in paying a living wage to people who do things like embroider or weave by hand. For every one of these costumes, whether bunad or drakt, there is at least one sewing house, or husflid, which specializes in making it. So let us continue. Oppland This is divided into the three districts of Vestoppland, Gudbrandsdal, and Valdres. The image at the top of the article is one of the bunads from Gudbrandsdal which has never gone out of usage, the Rondestakken. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oppland Vestoppland One of the costumes which represent this region was designed by the noted artist Alf Lundeby in 1932. The Lundeby costume comes in black, blue, or white. It remains very popular. Lundeby Drakt cat 5 Vestoppland Bunad This was designed in 1937 from pieces found in different parts of Vestoppland. cat 5 The next three costumes each represent a part of Vestoppland. Hadeland Bunad Hadeland is the southern part of Vestoppland, around Randsfjord. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hadeland The Hadeland Bunad is an accurate reconstruction of the local dress in the mid 1800s. It was made in plaids of different colors. Plaids are common in several neighboring districts as well. Girls wore a pale cap, married women a black one. The cap had a lace ruffle, similar to that in some Danish costumes. Like with all bunads, an underskirt must be worn. cat 3 Toten is in the east central part of Vestoppland. Toten drakt This design was finalized in 1971, based on pieces of costume found in this area. men cat 5, women cat 4 Land, or Nordre Land, is in the northern part of Vestoppland. Landingsdrakt Work on the costume started in 1927 and was finalized in 1980. The embroidery was taken from an old shawl found in Hadeland. cat 5 Gudbrandsdal Gudbrandsdal is a valley which extends from Lillehammer to the northwest. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gudbrand_Valley The men wear a red wool plaid vest, or, for more formal occasions, a brocade vest may be worn. Sometimes an older form of frock coat may be worn as well. This is shown in the second image. cat 4 Rondastakken or Livkjol cat 1 This bunad is part of a living tradition in the valley. It is not designed or reconstructed.The most recent version is called rondastakken, which means 'striped skirt'. These were made with homewoven cloth, striped for the skirt, and plaid for the attached bodice. Livkjol means 'bodice skirt' and refers to the construction. Other types of cloth were also used in the past, and these have now come back into use. It was known that in the early 1800's it was the fashion to wear embroidered skirts. Some of these skirts have been preserved in museums. Embroidery from these skirts were copied onto wool and used to make a livkjol with an embroidered skirt. This was the origin of the Gudbrandsdal Bunad. The original skirt for this embroidery was from Lom. cat 4 The same embroidery was used in the 1920s to make the Gudbrandsdal Formal bunad. The bodice was also made of wool most often of the same color and also received embroidery, as did the pocket. An apron with matching embroidery was also sometimes worn. This became very popular and was the origin of the Embroidered Bunad type which was copied in so many places around Norway with different embroidery patterns, several of which we have already seen. cat 5 Another designed bunad used embroidery from a skirt found at the Graffer Farm. This is called the Graffer Bunad and remains very popular today. cat 4 Jorde Bunad This was designed by Maria Jorde from Bøverdal in Lom. cat 5 Other similar bunads represent particular parts of Gudbrandsdal. Lesja Bunad or Rutastakk cat 2 Gausdals Bunad cat 4 Dovre Bunad cat 5 Lillehammer Bunad. This comes in blue with multicolored embroidery, or green or red with monochromatic gold embroidery of the same design. cat 5 Valdres This valley lies in the southern part of Oppland. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valdres Rutastakken This is the Valdres equivalent of the Rondestakken of Gudbrandsdal. In this bunad, the skirt as well as the bodice is plaid, of many kinds. The matching mens costume also features a plaid wool vest and a black jacket. This was common in the second half of the 19th cent. cat 3 Valdres has two livkjol type embroidered bunads. The 'Old' Valdres Bunad This was designed in 1914. cat 5 The 'New' Valdres Bunad This was designed in 1948. cat 5 The South. or lower Valdres Bunad cat 3 Upper Valdres Bunad, or Bringedukdrakt This has been established as the bunad for Upper Valdres, namely Vang and Slidre. The second term refers to the stomacher or plastron which is inserted into the bodice. This was typical for the first half of the 19th cent. The everyday costume is plain blue. cat 3 Buskerud Buskerud borders on Oslo on the southeast, but also extends up into two major mountain valleys, Hallingdal and Nemedal. These border Valdres, Telemark and Hordaland, all areas in which the costume tradition is strong. There are also smaller distinct areas in central Buskerud, Ringerike in the north, and the coherent costume region of Siggdal-Eggedal-Krødsherad in the center. The lowland areas lost their costume tradition early, but the high mountain valleys were still wearing their traditional costumes at the beginning of the 20th century when the bunad movement began. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buskerud Ringerike This is just downstream from Valdres in the same valley. In the past it was an independent fief. It extends south to the province of Oslo. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringerike_(traditional_district) There is both a local drakt cat 4 and an embroidered bunad. cat 5 Mends bunad is cat 3 Ådal is a valley in the municipality of Ringerike They have their own embroidered bunad, designed in 1938 cat 5 Hønefoss This bunad was designed in 1954 cat 5 Lower Buskerud This is shown in light blue on the map with the exception of Ringerike. In these low lying areas close to the capitol, the bunads are designed or recreated. There is an embroidered bunad, cat 5,which was designed in 1939 for all of Lower Buskerud: Eiker, Lier, Drammen, Modum, Hurum, Sandsvaer and Røyken. Some of these also have their own bunads or drakten. Hurum Bunad This was a free composition in 1994 cat 5 Røyken drakt A free composition in 1992 cat 5 Lier Bunad This was a free composition completed in 1974. men cat 4, women cat 5 Modum drakt cat 5 Eiker drakt cat 5 Kongsberg drakt cat 5 Hallingdal This is one of the most famous valleys of Norway for costume, embroidery and folklore. These three valleys have distinct costumes, but they intergrade from one to the other. I have written an article on Hallingdal already. I may have to update it, as I have learned more since I wrote it. http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2012/06/bunad-and-rosemaling-embroidery-of.html This is an area where the local costume is well remembered, and there are many examples to be found around the valley. Upper Hallingdal cat 1 This consists of the municipalities of Hol and Ål. This man is in a Rogaland Bunad, not Hallingdal The upper Hallingdal bunad is noted for its embroidery, an extremely short bodice, black apron for the dress bunad, and quite complex headdresses for both married women and single girls, as seen in the last two images above. Hulda Garborg, who was so instrumental in reviving interest in Norwegian folk costumes in the early 20th cent. thought that it was important to make the costumes modern and easy to wear. She took this costume and simplified it. Perhaps the biggest change is that she replaced the headdress with a simple embroidered cap similar to that worn in Lower Hallingdal. This simplified bunad became very popular, and many people mistakenly believe it to be the authentic Upper Hallingdal bunad. Here are some examples. Lower Hallingal This consists of the municipalities of Hemsedal, Gol, and Nes. The costumes are quite similar to that of Upper Hallingdal, but they traditionally wore the cap, they used a flowered or plaid apron for the formal costume, and there are other minor differences. They sometimes wore a kerchief tied around the cap, as is the custom in mid Buskerud. cat 1 There are two mens bunads, one is rather plain black, cat 1, and the other is highly embroidered, cat 4. The second is very popular with men all over Norway who want a colorful embroidered bunad. The everyday bunad from Hallingdal is also well remembered and still worn. It has no apron and is black or plaid. Mid Buskerud This consists of Sigdal - Eggedal, Krødsherad, and sometimes Flå. Flå This municipality is technically in Lower Hallingdal, but the costume is perhaps closer to the Mid Buskerud costume. cat 4 Sigdal - Eggedal, Krødsherad cat 3 Numedal This lies over the mountains south of Hallingdal, and is north of Telemark. Mans bunad There are three. The gray jacket is used all over the valley, but there are also two different black bunads for Lower and upper Numedal Gray Jacket cat 2 Lower Numedal mens bunad with round jacket cat 3 Upper Numedal mens bunad with short jacket. cat 3 Lower Numedal, Flesberg cat 2 Upper Numedal cat 3 There is also an embroidered bunad which was designed for Numedal in 1938. cat 4 Telemark https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telemark Telemark is perhaps the richest province in Norway as regards costumes. The costumes were a living tradition well into the 20th cent. There are many examples of different embroideries and cuts. However, many of these reflect individual variations and different time periods. There are only three costume districts in Telemark: East Telemark, West Telemark and Tinn. This map also separates the coastal area. This was distinct culturally, but did not keep much in the way of costume. I have written a series of articles on Telemark already. http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/beltestakk-and-gratrje-costumes-of-east.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/gratrje-costume-of-east-telemark-norway.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/east-telemark-norway-embroidered-shirts.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/east-telemark-norway-socks-and-shoes.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2012/06/costume-and-rosemaling-embroidery-of.html Tinn Mens Bunad cat 3 Omslagsliv The embroidered bands which cross over the shoulders were originally suspenders which held up the skirt. The bodice was attached to the second underskirt. The embroidery is often done freehand, and there is much individual variation. cat 1 Skjaelingskleda This is an older costume from the early 1800s which shows the influence of neighboring Numedal. cat 3 East Telemark Mans bunad with gray jacket cat 2 This is the most common version. It comes from the same period as the beltestakk. Stakk og Liv This means skirt and bodice. It is the most recent and simplest form of the East Telemark folk costume which was in use into the 1970s. cat 1 Beltestakk cat 2 This is an older form of the costume which was revived. It has a great deal of ornament in the form of ribbon, but has embroidery only on the shirt. The skirt is exceptionally full, which makes it fun to dance in. Because of the lack of embroidery, it is fairly inexpensive and very popular today. It is named after the very wide woven sash which is an integral part of this costume. Raudtroje This means red jacket and is the common embroidered form of the East Telemark Bunad. It is based on an even older form of the folk costume. cat 3 - West Telemark The costume and embroidery tradition is just as rich in West Telemark. The various costume types are associated with different periods of history. The older, more elaborately embroidered forms were used as the basis for the modern bunad. Raudsaumsbunad This is the most recent form of the costume, this came into being around 1910. This was thought at the time to be stylishly modern. It reintroduced the old embroidery on the bodice. cat 1 Fløyesliv This bunad was in use roughly from 1895 to 1915 or so. It is distinguished by the embroidered bib attached to the front of the bodice. The apron was sometimes embroidered. cat 2 Rundtroje This is the most recent living form of the mans bunad in plain black. It matches the two womens bunads above. cat 1 Bringeklutbunad and Gray Jacket bunad These were worn in the early to mid 1800s by women and men, respectively. Relatively recently they have been reconstructed and begun to be worn again. cat 3 Vest Telemark bunad The most popular bunad today is the elaborately embroidered one which was worn even earlier, roughly from 1750 to 1850. cat 4 Drangedal This is a coastal area. To my knowledge this is the only coastal costume to be reconstructed in Telemark. cat 4 Agder In ancient times this was a petty kingdom, The name is so old that the meaning of it has been lost. Today it is divided into two provinces, West Agder and East Agder. This is the southernmost point of Norway. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agder This area is small, and I am surprised that It was divided in two. It is sometimes referred to as the southland. It includes Setesdal in which the folk costume is a living tradition, and coastal areas which have revived theirs. You will notice part of the coast is depicted in white with the heading 'unspecified'. Setesdal This district holds much the same position in Norway that Andalusia does in Spain. The costume is iconic for the country, but is not at all typical. cat 1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Setesdal The everyday costume for the women is a white jumper with black bands on the hem. The men wear a sort of overall. For Sundays and feast days, a second black jumper with bands of red and green on the hem was worn over this. The men put on an embroidered vest with either a fancy knitted sweater or short embroidered jacket. Åmli The bunad was reconstructed from old costume pieces in 1926. There are various kerchiefs and aprons preserved with different embroidery designs. cat 4 Iveland This began to be reconstructed in 1917. This bunad may be worn with a variety of embroidered pockets, many of which are to be found. Very similar pockets are also worn in West Agder. cat 4 West Agder There is only one bunad for most of West Agder. The striped skirt is worn by unmarried girls or by married women on regular days. On feastdays married women wear a finely pleated black skirt. The colorful high headdress was worn by married women. Girls wore a lower one which was much less ornamented. The skirt was held up by buttoning it to woven suspenders. Shawls with various embroidery patterns were also worn. As in Iveland, the embroidery on the pockets varied quite a bit. cat 4 Here are some embroidered shawls from West Agder with the names of the locations in which they were found. Sirdal cat 4 This is the northernmost valley of Vest Agder There is also an Agderdrakt which is a free composition for all of Agder. It features several local wildflowers. I have only seen one photo of it. cat 5 This concludes part 2. Thank you for reading. I hope that you have found this to be interesting and informative. I hope that some of you might be inspired to try some of the incredible embroidery which is found in this area. email: [email protected] Source Material: Bjorn Sverre hol Haugen, 'Norsk Bunadleksikon' Oslo, 2009 Kjersti Skavhaug et al, 'Norwegian Bunads', Oslo, 1991 Heidi Fossnes, 'Norges Bunader og Samiske Folkedrakter', Oslo, 1993 Ellen Scheel et al, 'Bunad-Brodering', Oslo, 1997 Janice Stewart, 'The Folk Arts of Norway', University of Wisconsin, 1953 Guvnor Traetteberg, 'Folk Costumes of Norway', Oslo, 1966, 1976 Thorbjorg Ugland, 'A Sampler of Norway's Folk Costumes', Oslo, 1996 Laila Duran, 'Scandinavian Folklore vol I - III', Sweden, 2011-2013

Hello all, This is the second part of my overview of the costumes of Norway. This will cover the central row of provinces in Eastern Norway, the yellow and orange ones on the map below, minus the ones I covered in the first article. This includes the provinces of Oppland, Buskerud, Telemark, and East and West Agder. All of these have at least some areas in which folk costumes were a living tradition or within living memory at the beginning of the 20th cent. The National Bunad Council Bunad- og Folkedraktrådet , the authority on national costumes appointed by the government, has developed five categories to grade modern day bunads according to ‘authentic’ regional folk clothing: The National Bunad Council Bunad- og Folkedraktrådet , the authority on national costumes appointed by the government, has developed five categories to grade modern day bunads according to ‘authentic’ regional folk clothing: Category 1 – a bunad that represents a final link in the development of a folk costume. This is basically an original folk costume that has taken on the function of a bunad. Category 2 – a bunad that has a background in a particular folk costume that is out of use but not forgotten. It is generally reconstructed from first-hand knowledge, with many examples extant. Category 3 – a bunad that has been reconstructed from preserved folk garments which reflect the actual time and region of the piece. Pictures and writings may be used as sources in reconstruction. Category 4 – a bunad that has been made based on random and incomplete folk material. Missing pieces have been designed to match the style of the materials. Category 5 – a bunad that has been completely or partially freely composed. It was the 1800s bunad movement that has given these types of bunad their status. New bunads are being designed every year, and must go through the strict judgement process of the National Bunad Council in order to be classified as a proper ‘bunad’. The council is very strict in making sure new additions follow closely the traditions and history of the area. Because of this, many designs today, even though they have the same function as a bunad, generally don’t make the cut and thus can not be called ‘bunads’. They receive the name ‘drakt’ instead. Costumes are readily available in Norway, there are many businesses which make them. These are called Husflid. They are, however, expensive, as the Norwegians believe in paying a living wage to people who do things like embroider or weave by hand. For every one of these costumes, whether bunad or drakt, there is at least one sewing house, or husflid, which specializes in making it. So let us continue. Oppland This is divided into the three districts of Vestoppland, Gudbrandsdal, and Valdres. The image at the top of the article is one of the bunads from Gudbrandsdal which has never gone out of usage, the Rondestakken. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oppland Vestoppland One of the costumes which represent this region was designed by the noted artist Alf Lundeby in 1932. The Lundeby costume comes in black, blue, or white. It remains very popular. Lundeby Drakt cat 5 Vestoppland Bunad This was designed in 1937 from pieces found in different parts of Vestoppland. cat 5 The next three costumes each represent a part of Vestoppland. Hadeland Bunad Hadeland is the southern part of Vestoppland, around Randsfjord. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hadeland The Hadeland Bunad is an accurate reconstruction of the local dress in the mid 1800s. It was made in plaids of different colors. Plaids are common in several neighboring districts as well. Girls wore a pale cap, married women a black one. The cap had a lace ruffle, similar to that in some Danish costumes. Like with all bunads, an underskirt must be worn. cat 3 Toten is in the east central part of Vestoppland. Toten drakt This design was finalized in 1971, based on pieces of costume found in this area. men cat 5, women cat 4 Land, or Nordre Land, is in the northern part of Vestoppland. Landingsdrakt Work on the costume started in 1927 and was finalized in 1980. The embroidery was taken from an old shawl found in Hadeland. cat 5 Gudbrandsdal Gudbrandsdal is a valley which extends from Lillehammer to the northwest. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gudbrand_Valley The men wear a red wool plaid vest, or, for more formal occasions, a brocade vest may be worn. Sometimes an older form of frock coat may be worn as well. This is shown in the second image. cat 4 Rondastakken or Livkjol cat 1 This bunad is part of a living tradition in the valley. It is not designed or reconstructed.The most recent version is called rondastakken, which means 'striped skirt'. These were made with homewoven cloth, striped for the skirt, and plaid for the attached bodice. Livkjol means 'bodice skirt' and refers to the construction. Other types of cloth were also used in the past, and these have now come back into use. It was known that in the early 1800's it was the fashion to wear embroidered skirts. Some of these skirts have been preserved in museums. Embroidery from these skirts were copied onto wool and used to make a livkjol with an embroidered skirt. This was the origin of the Gudbrandsdal Bunad. The original skirt for this embroidery was from Lom. cat 4 The same embroidery was used in the 1920s to make the Gudbrandsdal Formal bunad. The bodice was also made of wool most often of the same color and also received embroidery, as did the pocket. An apron with matching embroidery was also sometimes worn. This became very popular and was the origin of the Embroidered Bunad type which was copied in so many places around Norway with different embroidery patterns, several of which we have already seen. cat 5 Another designed bunad used embroidery from a skirt found at the Graffer Farm. This is called the Graffer Bunad and remains very popular today. cat 4 Jorde Bunad This was designed by Maria Jorde from Bøverdal in Lom. cat 5 Other similar bunads represent particular parts of Gudbrandsdal. Lesja Bunad or Rutastakk cat 2 Gausdals Bunad cat 4 Dovre Bunad cat 5 Lillehammer Bunad. This comes in blue with multicolored embroidery, or green or red with monochromatic gold embroidery of the same design. cat 5 Valdres This valley lies in the southern part of Oppland. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valdres Rutastakken This is the Valdres equivalent of the Rondestakken of Gudbrandsdal. In this bunad, the skirt as well as the bodice is plaid, of many kinds. The matching mens costume also features a plaid wool vest and a black jacket. This was common in the second half of the 19th cent. cat 3 Valdres has two livkjol type embroidered bunads. The 'Old' Valdres Bunad This was designed in 1914. cat 5 The 'New' Valdres Bunad This was designed in 1948. cat 5 The South. or lower Valdres Bunad cat 3 Upper Valdres Bunad, or Bringedukdrakt This has been established as the bunad for Upper Valdres, namely Vang and Slidre. The second term refers to the stomacher or plastron which is inserted into the bodice. This was typical for the first half of the 19th cent. The everyday costume is plain blue. cat 3 Buskerud Buskerud borders on Oslo on the southeast, but also extends up into two major mountain valleys, Hallingdal and Nemedal. These border Valdres, Telemark and Hordaland, all areas in which the costume tradition is strong. There are also smaller distinct areas in central Buskerud, Ringerike in the north, and the coherent costume region of Siggdal-Eggedal-Krødsherad in the center. The lowland areas lost their costume tradition early, but the high mountain valleys were still wearing their traditional costumes at the beginning of the 20th century when the bunad movement began. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buskerud Ringerike This is just downstream from Valdres in the same valley. In the past it was an independent fief. It extends south to the province of Oslo. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringerike_(traditional_district) There is both a local drakt cat 4 and an embroidered bunad. cat 5 Mends bunad is cat 3 Ådal is a valley in the municipality of Ringerike They have their own embroidered bunad, designed in 1938 cat 5 Hønefoss This bunad was designed in 1954 cat 5 Lower Buskerud This is shown in light blue on the map with the exception of Ringerike. In these low lying areas close to the capitol, the bunads are designed or recreated. There is an embroidered bunad, cat 5,which was designed in 1939 for all of Lower Buskerud: Eiker, Lier, Drammen, Modum, Hurum, Sandsvaer and Røyken. Some of these also have their own bunads or drakten. Hurum Bunad This was a free composition in 1994 cat 5 Røyken drakt A free composition in 1992 cat 5 Lier Bunad This was a free composition completed in 1974. men cat 4, women cat 5 Modum drakt cat 5 Eiker drakt cat 5 Kongsberg drakt cat 5 Hallingdal This is one of the most famous valleys of Norway for costume, embroidery and folklore. These three valleys have distinct costumes, but they intergrade from one to the other. I have written an article on Hallingdal already. I may have to update it, as I have learned more since I wrote it. http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2012/06/bunad-and-rosemaling-embroidery-of.html This is an area where the local costume is well remembered, and there are many examples to be found around the valley. Upper Hallingdal cat 1 This consists of the municipalities of Hol and Ål. This man is in a Rogaland Bunad, not Hallingdal The upper Hallingdal bunad is noted for its embroidery, an extremely short bodice, black apron for the dress bunad, and quite complex headdresses for both married women and single girls, as seen in the last two images above. Hulda Garborg, who was so instrumental in reviving interest in Norwegian folk costumes in the early 20th cent. thought that it was important to make the costumes modern and easy to wear. She took this costume and simplified it. Perhaps the biggest change is that she replaced the headdress with a simple embroidered cap similar to that worn in Lower Hallingdal. This simplified bunad became very popular, and many people mistakenly believe it to be the authentic Upper Hallingdal bunad. Here are some examples. Lower Hallingal This consists of the municipalities of Hemsedal, Gol, and Nes. The costumes are quite similar to that of Upper Hallingdal, but they traditionally wore the cap, they used a flowered or plaid apron for the formal costume, and there are other minor differences. They sometimes wore a kerchief tied around the cap, as is the custom in mid Buskerud. cat 1 There are two mens bunads, one is rather plain black, cat 1, and the other is highly embroidered, cat 4. The second is very popular with men all over Norway who want a colorful embroidered bunad. The everyday bunad from Hallingdal is also well remembered and still worn. It has no apron and is black or plaid. Mid Buskerud This consists of Sigdal - Eggedal, Krødsherad, and sometimes Flå. Flå This municipality is technically in Lower Hallingdal, but the costume is perhaps closer to the Mid Buskerud costume. cat 4 Sigdal - Eggedal, Krødsherad cat 3 Numedal This lies over the mountains south of Hallingdal, and is north of Telemark. Mans bunad There are three. The gray jacket is used all over the valley, but there are also two different black bunads for Lower and upper Numedal Gray Jacket cat 2 Lower Numedal mens bunad with round jacket cat 3 Upper Numedal mens bunad with short jacket. cat 3 Lower Numedal, Flesberg cat 2 Upper Numedal cat 3 There is also an embroidered bunad which was designed for Numedal in 1938. cat 4 Telemark https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telemark Telemark is perhaps the richest province in Norway as regards costumes. The costumes were a living tradition well into the 20th cent. There are many examples of different embroideries and cuts. However, many of these reflect individual variations and different time periods. There are only three costume districts in Telemark: East Telemark, West Telemark and Tinn. This map also separates the coastal area. This was distinct culturally, but did not keep much in the way of costume. I have written a series of articles on Telemark already. http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/beltestakk-and-gratrje-costumes-of-east.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/gratrje-costume-of-east-telemark-norway.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/east-telemark-norway-embroidered-shirts.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2014/05/east-telemark-norway-socks-and-shoes.html http://folkcostume.blogspot.com/2012/06/costume-and-rosemaling-embroidery-of.html Tinn Mens Bunad cat 3 Omslagsliv The embroidered bands which cross over the shoulders were originally suspenders which held up the skirt. The bodice was attached to the second underskirt. The embroidery is often done freehand, and there is much individual variation. cat 1 Skjaelingskleda This is an older costume from the early 1800s which shows the influence of neighboring Numedal. cat 3 East Telemark Mans bunad with gray jacket cat 2 This is the most common version. It comes from the same period as the beltestakk. Stakk og Liv This means skirt and bodice. It is the most recent and simplest form of the East Telemark folk costume which was in use into the 1970s. cat 1 Beltestakk cat 2 This is an older form of the costume which was revived. It has a great deal of ornament in the form of ribbon, but has embroidery only on the shirt. The skirt is exceptionally full, which makes it fun to dance in. Because of the lack of embroidery, it is fairly inexpensive and very popular today. It is named after the very wide woven sash which is an integral part of this costume. Raudtroje This means red jacket and is the common embroidered form of the East Telemark Bunad. It is based on an even older form of the folk costume. cat 3 - West Telemark The costume and embroidery tradition is just as rich in West Telemark. The various costume types are associated with different periods of history. The older, more elaborately embroidered forms were used as the basis for the modern bunad. Raudsaumsbunad This is the most recent form of the costume, this came into being around 1910. This was thought at the time to be stylishly modern. It reintroduced the old embroidery on the bodice. cat 1 Fløyesliv This bunad was in use roughly from 1895 to 1915 or so. It is distinguished by the embroidered bib attached to the front of the bodice. The apron was sometimes embroidered. cat 2 Rundtroje This is the most recent living form of the mans bunad in plain black. It matches the two womens bunads above. cat 1 Bringeklutbunad and Gray Jacket bunad These were worn in the early to mid 1800s by women and men, respectively. Relatively recently they have been reconstructed and begun to be worn again. cat 3 Vest Telemark bunad The most popular bunad today is the elaborately embroidered one which was worn even earlier, roughly from 1750 to 1850. cat 4 Drangedal This is a coastal area. To my knowledge this is the only coastal costume to be reconstructed in Telemark. cat 4 Agder In ancient times this was a petty kingdom, The name is so old that the meaning of it has been lost. Today it is divided into two provinces, West Agder and East Agder. This is the southernmost point of Norway. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agder This area is small, and I am surprised that It was divided in two. It is sometimes referred to as the southland. It includes Setesdal in which the folk costume is a living tradition, and coastal areas which have revived theirs. You will notice part of the coast is depicted in white with the heading 'unspecified'. Setesdal This district holds much the same position in Norway that Andalusia does in Spain. The costume is iconic for the country, but is not at all typical. cat 1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Setesdal The everyday costume for the women is a white jumper with black bands on the hem. The men wear a sort of overall. For Sundays and feast days, a second black jumper with bands of red and green on the hem was worn over this. The men put on an embroidered vest with either a fancy knitted sweater or short embroidered jacket. Åmli The bunad was reconstructed from old costume pieces in 1926. There are various kerchiefs and aprons preserved with different embroidery designs. cat 4 Iveland This began to be reconstructed in 1917. This bunad may be worn with a variety of embroidered pockets, many of which are to be found. Very similar pockets are also worn in West Agder. cat 4 West Agder There is only one bunad for most of West Agder. The striped skirt is worn by unmarried girls or by married women on regular days. On feastdays married women wear a finely pleated black skirt. The colorful high headdress was worn by married women. Girls wore a lower one which was much less ornamented. The skirt was held up by buttoning it to woven suspenders. Shawls with various embroidery patterns were also worn. As in Iveland, the embroidery on the pockets varied quite a bit. cat 4 Here are some embroidered shawls from West Agder with the names of the locations in which they were found. Sirdal cat 4 This is the northernmost valley of Vest Agder There is also an Agderdrakt which is a free composition for all of Agder. It features several local wildflowers. I have only seen one photo of it. cat 5 This concludes part 2. Thank you for reading. I hope that you have found this to be interesting and informative. I hope that some of you might be inspired to try some of the incredible embroidery which is found in this area. email: [email protected] Source Material: Bjorn Sverre hol Haugen, 'Norsk Bunadleksikon' Oslo, 2009 Kjersti Skavhaug et al, 'Norwegian Bunads', Oslo, 1991 Heidi Fossnes, 'Norges Bunader og Samiske Folkedrakter', Oslo, 1993 Ellen Scheel et al, 'Bunad-Brodering', Oslo, 1997 Janice Stewart, 'The Folk Arts of Norway', University of Wisconsin, 1953 Guvnor Traetteberg, 'Folk Costumes of Norway', Oslo, 1966, 1976 Thorbjorg Ugland, 'A Sampler of Norway's Folk Costumes', Oslo, 1996 Laila Duran, 'Scandinavian Folklore vol I - III', Sweden, 2011-2013

Hello all, This is the second part of my overview of the costumes of Norway. This will cover the central row of provinces in Eastern N...

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Hello all, The Sarafan has become one of the symbols of Russia. In spite of the fact that the garment is only a couple hundred years old, It has permeated from its point of origin in the extreme northwest of the country to be found in many parts of that country. In fact, it is likely that the sarafan originated from the traditional costumes of the Finnic peoples around the area of Olonets, Arkhangelsk and vicinity, many of whom have been fully assimilated by the Russian people at this point in time. The sarafan consists of a long full skirt which hangs just below the arms and has straps or an extremely abbreviated bodice which secures it over the shoulders. The sarafan may be gathered at the top like these two examples from Arkhangelsk. Or it may be cut on an angle and flare towards the bottom, like this example from Olonets. It may be made of costly materials, like this example from the Urals. Or it may be made of homespun striped, plaid or block printed cloth, like the example at the top of the article. It is often worn unbelted, but sometimes it is worn with a sash. An apron may be worn with it, sometimes hanging from the waist, like most aprons do, but more commonly tied around the body at the top of the sarafan, like these two examples from Vologda. This was quite fashionable in St. Petersburg and other cities at one time, often made very full and long as in these two drawings by Maliavin, made around 1904. This basic concept has apparently been at the center of the fashion world a few times. As a result, there are folk costumes which resemble the sarafan scattered around Europe. There is no genetic relationship between them, but rather are examples of a similar idea arising or being retained from popular fashion in different places at different times. Each locality developed a distinct outfit with specific forms of ornamentation and accessorization. So today we will take a tour of Europe and view various 'cousins' of the sarafan. Some are belted, some are not, some have the full apron like the Russian form often does, some do not. Finns and related peoples It is no surprise that the northern Finnic peoples which are within Russia, or border on Russia in Finland wear a type of sarafan. These ARE genetically related to the sarafan of Russia. Komi Karelians Veps [Vepsians] Finns West Karelia, which is in Finland The Karelian Isthmus and Ingria, which is along the coast south of the current Russian/Finnish border. Many Finns and closely related peoples [Luud',Votes, Izhorians, etc] lived in this area before it was annexed by Russia, and some still do. The rest of the costumes I will cover today are not related to the sarafan directly. They are each found in a small area, and none are considered typical or representative of their respective nations. However each of these is alive and preserved with great pride by the local people of these communities. Sweden Two neighboring communities of Vingåker and Österåker Province of Södermanland or Sörmland These two communities have very similar costumes. This type of dress is called Livkjol in Swedish. Vingåker Österåker Norway Gol, Ål, Flå and neighboring communities in upper Hallingdal and Hemsedal Province of Buskerud There are several similar costumes worn in various communities in this area. Of all the costumes in this posting, this one has the widest distribution. They have a very distinct form of embroidery in this region, based on Rosemaling. Mary Gostelow has a project based on this costume in her work 'The Complete International Book of Embroidery', however she incorrectly identifies it as being from Telemark. In Telemark they also do Rosemaling embroidery, but it is of a different style. Spain Valley of Ansó, region of Huesca Province of Aragon This is a very beautiful and distinct costume. I am indebted to Marco Leon of Madrid for the following information. 'The "basquiña" is the local name for the green garment without sleeves. In Ansó, the black garment like basquiña, used for religious ceremonies, is called "saigüelo", and there is another dress like those called "saya" with sleeves, worn only on very special days. All three names (basquiña, saigüelo & saya) have centuries of use in Spanish costume, both rural and urban, referring to different types of dresses and skirts. So there is no special relationship with Basque costume, but these terms belong to Spanish (or occidental) rural costume in general.' Lilla Fox writes that the term basquina indicated that the costume had been picked up from the Basques. This seems to be a conclusion on her part which in which she was apparently mistaken. Switzerland Valleys of Verzasca and Maggia Canton of Ticino These two neighboring valleys in the center of Ticino have costumes that differ primarily in color, Verzasca having a light colored dress and that of Maggia being made of dark colors. Austria Region of Bregenzerwald Province of Voralrberg This costume has the same construction as a sarafan, but it is pleated and the upper part has the pleats sewn together, as indeed the Russian sarafan sometimes is. It is always worn with a belt. The complex gold cap for girls is found in many German speaking areas. Brides wear a larger version of it. There is beautiful embroidery around the neck While this region is next to Switzerland, it is not close to Val Verzasca. Italy Community of Guardia Piemontese Province of Calabria This isolated community in Calabria has an interesting history. They are traditionally Waldensian, and settled in the area a few hundred years ago. They staunchly keep their costume alive, as well as their unorthodox faith. The costume they currently wear has nothing in common with that of Valais, however. Croatia Zlarin, Korčula and coastal region Province of Dalmatia Some of the costumes found on the islands and Adriatic coast of Dalmatian Croatia bear some resemblance to the sarafan. It is interesting to note that this is the only Slavic nation that I could include in this article. The Island of Zlarin The Island of Korčula A couple more costumes from the Dalmatian Coast. The beautiful costume on the right is a good example, but I have been unable to find out the exact community which it is from. Greece Island of Skopelos, the Sporades This type of costume was formerly found on Crete and other islands as well, as we know from Museum collections. This dress is known as foustana or stofa. There may well be more, but if so, then I am unaware of them. I would be glad to include any others which you may know of, as I am always glad to learn more. Also if anyone knows the origin of the mystery costume from Dalmatia, I would love to find that out as well. So you can see that particular concepts in costume can be widespread and may have arisen in different places at different times independently. I find this to be one fascinating example. The fact that Slavic nations are almost unrepresented in this survey lends weight to the idea that the sarafan does not have Slavic roots. Thank you for reading, I hope that you have found this interesting and informative. Roman K. Feel free to contact me with requests for research. I hope to eventually cover all of Europe and the Former Russian Empire/Soviet Union. I also gratefully accept tips on source materials which i may not have. I also accept commissions to research/design, sew, and/or embroider costumes or other items for groups or individuals. I also choreograph and teach folk dance. Roman K. [email protected] Source Material: This article has a very extensive bibliography, if anyone wishes information as to some of my sources, I will gladly provide them for a specific region. I will be building it slowly. L. Molotova, 'Russian Folk Clothing', Leningrad, 1984 S. Gorozhanina et al, 'Russkij Narodnyj Svadebnyj Kostium', Tver, 2003 Viola Malmi et al, 'Kostium i Prazdnyk', Petrozavodsk 'Karelia', 2008 T. Jashkova, 'Kostium Karelii', Petrozavodsk, 2009 Sylvi Kauhanen & Alli Touri, 'Kansallispukuja', Helsinki, 1952 Ritva Somerma, 'Finnish National Dresses' [sic], Helmi Vuorelma Oy, Lahti, Finland, 1987 Inga Arno Berg et al, 'Folk Costumes of Sweden - a living tradition', Orebro, 1985 Anna-Maja Nylen, 'Folkdrakter', Arlov, 1982 Bent Vanberg, Kjersti Skavhaug et al, 'Norwegian Bunads', Oslo, 1991 Heidi Fossnes, 'Norges Bunader', Oslo, 1994 Lilla Fox, 'Folk Costume of Southern Europe', Boston, 1972 Jose Ortiz Echague, 'Espana, Tipos y Trajes', Madrid, 1953 Cesar Justel, 'Espana, Trajes Regionales', Madrid, 1997 Plinio Grossi, 'Rachele Giudici e i Suoi Costumi', Bellinzona, CH, 1978 Louise Witzig, 'Schweizer Trachtenbuch', Zurich, 1954 Lotti Schurch et al, 'Trachten der Sweiz', Bern, 1978 Louise Witzig et al, 'Costumes Suisse', Payotte Lausanne, Berne Maria Rehm, 'Oesterreichs Trachtenbuechlein', Innsbruck, 1981

Geographically, Sweden is one of the Scandinavian countries, so its national costumes have a lot of features in common with neighboring Norway, Denmark, etc. But there is a number of differences that make Swedish folk outfits unique. We’ll tell you about some of them in this material. Discover the beauty of folk dress in Sweden with us. Let’s look at these top-5 curious facts about Swedish traditional clothing.

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Folk dresses from Sweden, Norway, Dutch and Germany.