The Huicholes are an ethnic group that inhabit the western central region of Mexico, specifically in the Sierra Madre Occidental of the states of Nayarit and Jalisco. On this occasion, through this article we will learn about the particular and striking Huichol clothing.
How is the clothing of the Huicholes characterized?
To know in depth the peculiarities that characterize this culture, it is ideal to know a little about it. Therefore, the Huicholes, as mentioned above, are an indigenous society, which inhabits the central west of Mexico in the states of Jalisco and Nayarit. This group is called "the people" (Wixarika), they are a family of the auto-Aztec language called waniuki (wixaritari).
The Wixarika area is divided into five societies, where each one is independent and each one has its religious and civil representatives. These civil representatives are managed by a leader entitled "totohuani", who is replaced every year; and the religious representatives who are the singers or priests (akate or maraakames), their primary service or objective within each society is to preserve and safeguard the traditions of each Wixarika (Huichol) society.
The Huicholes (wixarika) are a group very satisfied with the fortune they have as a culture and they identify themselves by their sociable, welcoming and joyful quality; Likewise, their colorful clothing is common among the Wixarika populations.
Undoubtedly, this is a hallmark of the Wixaritari, the striking of their clothing, but above all, they are the mythological stories of their origins and the gods that surround everything from clothing to accessories; Usually these are decorated with symbolism of great importance for this culture, which they have still maintained since ancient times.
The clothing of the Huicholes varies from region to region, but their model is generally showy and original, with a fine tailoring and many shades of color. In addition to presenting the above characteristics, various adornments are used to perfect the clothing of the Huicholes, such as bracelets, necklaces, bags, backpacks, waistbands and rings, these are worked manually with beads or beads; as well as sewing different representations of animals or plants that decorate the costumes, for which the cross-stitch technique is used.
Thus, in each drawing made by the skillful hands of the Huichol culture, often without using a mold, the perspective of a magical universe is represented, in which the man wears more ornate clothing than the women themselves.
Clothing according to gender
These Huichol clothing had differentiations in terms of the female and male gender, each of them will be detailed below:
Huichol Clothing for Women
The woman dresses very simply, with a short blouse to the waist, a skirt with a belt or an iwi that has an embroidered fringe on the lower edge and as a last touch she covers her head with a quechquemitl, which is a rectangular blanket with head opening; also, she uses accessories such as pearl necklaces.
All these garments are embroidered in a traditional way where they tell the mythology of the origin of their culture, the physical life of their ancestors and the spiritual stories of their gods.
Huichol Clothing for Men
As part of a custom, the Huichol garment consists of white pants made of velvety cotton fabric, and a long-sleeved shirt with symmetrical pattern embroidery, which also has a slit in the front area that closes at the waist with a wide wool waistband.
In addition, the Huichol man uses as a complement a palm hat decorated with beads or balls of thread, flowers and feathers, combined with a tuwaxa or scarf tied around the neck that falls over the sword, a small embroidered bag or huaikuri, and as shoes. they wear huaraches; they also add jewelry like pearl bracelets and possibly earrings to their wardrobe.
The older children of the town dress up just like their parents, in contrast to the younger ones who remain semi-naked. In the same way that women's attire is adorned where the history of their ethnic origin is related, and embroideries such as the poyote, the deer, the eagle and the corn are placed.
Curiosities
The beautiful embroidered bags used by Huichol men have pre-eminence in terms of the shades of color that they carry, since according to their color and the number of bags that the individual carries, it indicates the level in society that they carry.
Over the years, it is more difficult to preserve the customs and cultural traditions of these natives, motivated by the constant modernization of the world and the interaction with it; that is why their clothing has undergone a current metamorphosis and the way they dress has changed, their clothing is their greatest pride and they wear it as such.
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