GUAYABERA





The guayabera (/ɡwaɪ.əˈbɛrə/) is a men's shirt typically distinguished by two vertical rows of closely sewn pleats that run the length of the front and back of the shirt. The shirt is typically worn untucked. Guayaberas are popular in the Caribbean region of Colombia, Mexico, Ecuador, Central America, theCaribbean, Southeast Asia, and throughout Africa. It is also known as a "Wedding Shirt".[1][2]

History

The origin of the garment is something of a mystery, thought to be the result of a mixture of Native American and Spanish styles, developed in the late 18th or early 19th centuries. Various claims for the distinctive style have been made, from Mexico to other Latin American countries to the Philippines.[3][4]
A version of the shirt's origins claims that Mexicans originated it in either the state of Veracruz or the Yucatán Peninsula. One theory holds that it was during the era of trade routes through the Caribbean that the Mexican shirts got to Cuba and were taken to the Philippines by the Spaniards, where the evolution of the intricate embroidery started. Alternatively, others speculate that the shirt, which has documented origins in the Philippines prior to the arrival of the Spanish, made its way to Cuba through Mexico via the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade. The origin of the Guayabera shirt remains a mystery, and a similar prototypical shirt has existed since the 18th century, probably imported from Spain.[3]
Guayabera may come from a Cuban legend that tells of a poor countryside seamstress sewing large patch-pockets onto her husband's shirts for carrying guava (guayabas) from the field.[3][5]Guayabera may also have originated from the word yayabero, the singular nickname for those who lived near the Yayabo River in Cuba.[3][6]
Others claim the origin to be from Baní, Dominican Republic, also for the harvesting of guayaba fruit in the region. This theory explains the movement to Cuba, through Máximo Gómez, which used this type of shirt.[citation needed]

Design


The design of a typical guayabera is distinguished by several details:
  • Either two or four patch pockets and two vertical rows of alforzas (fine, tiny pleats, usually ten, sewed closely together) run along the front and back of the shirt. The pockets are separately detailed with identical alforzas that are aligned with the alforzas on the body of the shirt.[5]
  • The top of each pocket is usually adorned with a matching shirt button, as are the bottoms of the alforza pleats. Vertical rows of adjusting buttons are often seen, one on each side, at the bottom hem. While most versions of the design have no placket covering the buttons, a few newer designs do.
  • The bottom of many shirts has slits on either side, and these include adjusting buttons. The bottom has a straight hem, and is not tucked into the trousers.[7]
Though traditionally worn in white and pastels, guayaberas are now available in many solid colors. Black guayaberas, embroidered with colorful flowers and festooned with French cuffs, have for many decades been extremely popular in Mexico and are considered formalwear in some situations.[8]
Mexican guayaberas often use complicated embroidery in place of or as a supplement to the traditional alforzas. This style originated in Mérida, Mexico.[1]

Appropriate uses[edit]

The guayabera is often worn in formal contexts, such as offices and weddings. In Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, and Puerto Rico, guayaberas are part of the traditional wear for men and may be considered formalwear in some situations.[8] (In 2010, Cuba declared the guayabera to be its "official formal dress garment".[9]) The simpler shirt-jac (short sleeve) has been worn in the past by English-speaking Caribbean politicians and office workers as formal attire due to the heat.[citation needed] In Zimbabwe, the short sleeved version may be worn for special occasions, such as weddings and funerals.[10]

Political significance[edit]

Guayaberas have been worn extensively by a number of Latin American political leaders, including César Chávez, Carlos Prío Socarrás, and Fidel Castro. This is often interpreted as a sign of the wearer's affiliation with populist political positions.[11] U.S. presidents, including Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, have also worn the shirts as a sign of solidarity when visiting the Cuban community in Miami.[12]

Similar shirts[edit]

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Irish Literature: What Makes Irish Writers So Good?

Image
James Joyce by Roger Cummiskey. When we think of Ireland, we think of a country that has a rich cultural heritage. A place which seems to be bursting at the seams with poets, novelists and playwrights, who all seem to have been gifted with an incredible innate sense of storytelling and drama. If you were to check the list of Nobel Prize winners since it’s inception, you’d find that Ireland ranks eighth in terms of how many it has produced over the years. Just what is it that makes the Irish so good at writing and the creative process? The first Irish foray into literature Culturally speaking, Ireland lays claim to the fact that it has one of the oldest forms of vernacular literature in the world, with only Greek or Latin able to match it. The Irish peoples were literate from the very earliest centuries, utilising a simple writing system called “Ogham” which was a way of communicating via inscriptions on little stone tablets. One of the very first proper written Irish wor...
Read more

Bloomsday - Spain 2017

Image
Click here Bloomsday 2017 edit Come and join us on the beach in Fuengirola on: Bloomsday, Friday 16 June 2017 at 08:00 h. We will start by reading Chapter six from Ulysses – Hades, Glasnevin cemetery in  YOUR language. Bring your own copy. Enquiries from +34 666 78 26 42.  And it is  FREE.  All that is required is that you   turn up on time   to participate. It will be a memorable occasion. A fun get together providing the opportunity to become fully or partially immersed in –  sea water. Bloomsday – June 16th  – is an annual celebration among Joyce fans throughout the world, from Fuengirola to Melbourne. It is celebrated in at least sixty countries worldwide. The novel,  Ulysses , by James Joyce recounts the hour-by-hour events of one day in Dublin – June 16, 1904 – as an ordinary Dubliner, Leopold Bloom, wends his way through the urban landscape, the odyssey of a modern-day Ulysses. Where:  The...
Read more

FRD Excursion to Malaga 2015

Image
Photos of the Excursion. Mr Bruce McEntyre - President of the Foundation of the English Cemetery and former British Consul, Malaga - Roger Cummiskey - President of the AIA Art Group. We visited he Sur Newspaper Offices and had a talk by Rachel Hynes, Editor and Liz Parry, Former Editor. We also saw the old printing press currently being taken apart. Following this we viewed a film entered for the Goya Awards entitled After this we were shown around the English Cemetery by Bruce McEntyre, President of the Cemetery Foundation and Liz Parry, Secretary. Mr Bruce McEntyre - President of the Foundation of the English Cemetery and former British Consul, Malaga. Roger Cummiskey - President of the AIA Art Group. Andalusian International Artists.  Translated from Spanish. The English Cemetery We also had a private viewing of the short film "La Cañada de los Ingleses" by Director Victor Matellano. The film was a prizewinning entry for the Goy...
Read more