Danish traditional dresses were historically handmade fabrics, usually made from yarn spun from wool or flax. The traditional dress of Denmark is a hallmark of the Danish culture which has not a very long history but the dresses roughly date back to the eighteenth century. Mostly the dresses were woven by the women themselves or by the professional weavers. Although the dresses had slight variations in different regions of Denmark, yet the patterns were based on a limited color schemes derived from the vegetable dyes.

Danish Dancers in their traditional costumes – Image by Björn Láczay – flickr

The Kingdom of Denmark is situated in Scandinavia which is although a small country but the Danish population living in various rural, urban and island areas have developed a mixed culture in the country. This is the main reason that the variations had made their impact and moderated the Danish clothing.

A model posing in the traditional Danish costume – Image : Kristina V Mack

The Danish women normally used to dress up in their best costume on Sunday and the most significant part of their costume was the superb headdress. This headdress was either in the form of a bonnet or a scarf. The headpiece often consisted of a bonnet, a piece of linen underneath and a scarf to hold it in place, either in broad lace or in embroidered tulle. On the island of Zealand, there was a tradition for trailing bonnets embroidered with gold and silver thread. The traditional skirts or petticoats were long, worn by the layer and invariably covered by an apron of fine silk or embroidered mull. The upper part of the body was covered by a fabric jacket or blouse. A close-fitting bodice fastened by hooks or laced at the front was worn in some regions. Skirts, jackets and bodices were edged and decorated with flat or patterned silk tape while light scarves were worn around the neck to cover the shoulders and throat.

Two old Danish women in their traditional dress – Image courtesy – www.travelphotogallery.net

Like the women, men’s clothing was made mainly of flax and wool but their knee-breaches were often of leather. Long home-knitted white woolen stockings reached above the knee. In addition to long shirts, men wore several jerseys and jackets. The well-off displayed buttons made of silver although usually they were of tin or even horn. Men and women both generally wore clogs while men often had long, leather top-boots and both men and women wore leather dress shoes with a buckle in front.

The traditional dress of Denmark is truly a hallmark of the Danish culture which actually represents the diverse cultural characters of the Danish society.

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The traditional dress of Ukraine is a centuries old unique and distinctive emblem of the Ukrainian culture. This dress has developed after the tremendous variation due to its association with the early Slavonic domination, during which many materials were introduced by the cloth merchants. The traditional dress of Ukraine is also full of ornamental designs, fantastic embroidery and remarkable exposition. Even today, the national dress of Ukraine is hand woven and fabulously decorated. The embroidery is an ancient practice which is applied to the traditional dress of Ukraine and it is varied from region to region in the country, embellished with the antiquated motifs and harmonic arrangements full of colors and exotic stitches.

The Ukrainian people wearing the traditional dresses – Image © andrewlewis.lviv

The traditional dress for men in Ukraine was normally made with sheepskin and leather which was also decorated with embroidery and cords, tassels, and other accessories. The men also wore Kontusz, a long robe, usually reaching to below the knees, with a set of decorative buttons down the front. The elite and noble Ukrainian men also used a long garment, which was known as Zupan. Similarly, a traditional pant was also used, known as Sharovary, which was free to hips, often with assembly at the waist, collected at the bottom near the ankles.

Beautiful Ukrainian women in their folk costumes – Image © Oleksiy Naumov ( flickr )

The traditional dress for women in Ukraine contains the ethnic embroidery and usually, it was made of homemade linen which was produced by loom. In the cold winters, Kozhushankas were worn which were prepared with the sheepskin coat. The coats varied in color from region to region. The edges of Kozhushankas were trimmed with black sheepskin or other differently dyed material. The married women used to wear Ochipok, which was a traditional headdress that covered the entire head with a slit in the back and laces that pull it tightly around the head. Similarly, Namitka is a long, thin fabric wrapped around the head and tied in the back.

The Ukrainian women wearing the traditional floral wreath – Image © Wolodymyr Krywonos

The traditional dress of Ukraine for the unmarried girls is never completed without mentioning a circular head floral decoration. This is the Ukrainian flower wreath, which remains a part of the Ukrainian national attire, and is worn on festive occasions and on holy days. The fragrant flowers give the glamorous and refreshing touch to the costume. Nowadays, the folk dancers wear the flower wreath during their performances.

A Ukrainian woman wearing the alluring handmade ornaments – Image by MariyaZ

Another part and parcel of the traditional dress of Ukraine is the artistic and handmade jewelry usually made with glass beads using strong synthetic threads. Bead work is extremely popular in Carpathian Mountains area, but lots of artists make beaded jewelry in the cities of Lviv and Ternopil. Today, the ancient patterns are mixed with the modern stencils and the Ukrainian women love to wear these traditional ornaments on jeans and shirts.

Two pretty Ukrainian girls presenting themselves in the National Dress – Image : terry_usa ( flickr )

The female footwear of the traditional dress of Ukraine was made of red and yellow leather, which was also used for decorating skins. The traditional dress of Ukraine also reflects the impressive history and behaviorism of the Ukrainian nation.

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Syria borders Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Israel and Jordan to the south, and Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Modern day Syria is officially known as the Syrian Arab Republic which was established as the parliamentary republic after the First World War as a French mandate, and represented the largest Arab state to emerge from the formerly Ottoman ruled Arab Levant. Syrians are an overall indigenous Levantine people, closely related to their immediate neighbors, like Lebanese people, Palestinians, and Jordanians. The overwhelming religion of Syria is Islam and the Syrians speak the Arabic language.

The culture of Syria possesses an ancient traditional background full of cultural diversity and history. The enormous culture of Syria is fully reflected through the customs of Syrian people and the demonstrations of traditional dances. The Syrian people wear their traditional dresses on the celebrations, marriage ceremonies and the birth occasions of the new borne babies. The traditional dress of Syria is famous in the Arab region for its conventional crafts, embroidery and fabulous designs. Although, the modern dressing is the fusion of the traditional and western styles and the people of Syria nowadays normally wear westerly attires, yet the traditional gowns, coats and jackets are still popular among the Syrian community.

A native Syrian man wearing his traditional costume - Anthony Pappone's Photo

The Syrian men used to wear the traditional dress including a white shirt made of cotton. They loved to embellish the costume with blue, red and black embroidery round the neck and at the chest. Underneath the shirt men usually wore a pant (shirwal) made of colored or non dyed cotton fabric. They also used the traditional coats made with light fabrics as the outer wear which were wide opened at the front and embroidered on its edges. The men also used another cloak which is known as Abaya which is normally made of various light-weight silk, artificial silk or mixed silk or cotton fabrics. They cover their heads with the scarves made of fine cotton or blue or violet silky fabric with red threads.

Some beautiful Syrian dancers wearing the traditional dresses - Sanja Matonickin's Image

The traditional dress for women in Syria is a garment made with triangular sleeves and it is called as Thob. In the past, the tailors used to apply elegant embroidery round the neck, at the chest and the sides. These dresses were further decorated with amazing patchworks in brilliant colors. The women also wore some other garments made with wool and other delicate fabrics. They also wrapped the dresses with a belt woven from red and black wool or cotton.

The upper garment for the women was a coat stitched with materials in dark colors with wide sleeves and side slits. The women of Syria wrap their heads with silky scarves decorated with splendid embroidery and fringes.

A Syrian Whirling dancer wearing the traditional costume - Moslem Mosbah's Photo

The traditional dress of Syria can be seen commonly on the eve of the celebrations of national importance. Such events particularly take place in Damascus and Aleppo which are culturally very rich cities.

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Jordan is an Arab country and the Jordanian culture is a blend of the Arabian, Islamic and Modern influences. The capital city Amman is a famous and ancient historic city.  The majority people of Jordan belong to Islam and they speak the Arabic language. English and French are also the official languages and the small geography of Jordan still possesses variation in the clothing and traditions due to various life styles of the Jordanians.

The traditional Jordanian dresses worn by the dancers - Image courtesy : mejourneys.com

The rural population mostly consists of Bedouin and Palestinian communities who have nomadic way of life. The Jordanian Arabians depends upon the agricultural farming and cattle breeding while the greater number of the settled urban Jordanians are educated and perform businesses and other official jobs.

A Jordanian man wearing the traditional dress - sarah g-love's Image

The traditional dress of Jordan is also very unique and fantastic as the traditional clothing for men consists of tunic shirts, trousers and an elaborate over garment with a belt or cummerbund. They also cover their head with the typical Arabian Scarf which is like a turban.

A Jordanian man wearing his traditional Arabic Scarf - Edward Wachtman's Image

The traditional dress for women is very decorative and full of superb craftsmanship and embroidery. This dexterity is full of amazing color patterns and fascinating patchworks. Apart from the heavy load of the tiresome household tasks, the Jordanian women love to wear delicate and embellished dresses.

A beautiful Jordanian girl in her Ttaditional dress - Colin McLurgjpg's Image

The most common part of a Jordanian women’s costume is a long rectangular cleavage which is decorated with tremendous embroidery and it is adjusted in the front of the dress.

A wonderful image of a Jordanian urban girl - Kaaa Teee's Image

In the Northern part, one of the traditional dresses of Jordan is Shirsh which is a long outfit with tight sleeves and a decorated neckline and embroidered sides.

An image of the Jordanian city girls wearing the modern costumes and scarves - Mr. Littlehand's Image

Often, the dresses of central and southern Jordanians are of double length with long pointed sleeves.

Traditional Jordanian Costumes ( Image Courtesy: Wikimedia )

The traditional dress of Jordan represents the unique and ancient culture of this small Arabian country. It also reflects the colors of the ancient Bilad el Sham; the greater Syrian Kingdom.

A Jordanian belly dancer dancing in her traditional costume - Sarah Ackerman's Image

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Libya is the third largest country of Africa with an approximate population of 6.5 million. Almost three quarters of the total population is living in the urban areas and Tripoli is the capital of Libya which is also the largest city of the country. A civil war was urged in 2011 as a result of which the undemocratic regime was collapsed with the death of the country’s famous dictator Col. Muammar Gaddafi. Since the independence of Libya as the United Libyan Kingdom, the country observed strict and conservative religious codes of lives. Almost 97 % of the total population of Libya practice Islam and they belong to the Sunni School of thought.

Two Libyan girls in their traditional dresses - Mansour Ali's Image

The ancient Libya was a region of the indigenous Berber and Bedouin people, so their traditional values are the part of the Libyan cultural heritage. Although ,if we deeply study the pre historic Libya, the marks of the Phoenician, Greek and Roman civilizations will be prominent upon the culture of Libya. In the sixteenth century was conquered by the Ottoman Turks and remained under their control for a long time. Libya was occupied by the Italian, British and French forces on its different parts till the mid of the twentieth century.

A girl in a typical Libyan traditional costume - CH Lee's Image

The present Libyan people consider themselves as the part of the Arab world and Arabic is the official language of Libya. Although, Berbers and Tuareg groups still speak their own tribal languages.

The traditional dress of Libya consists of a long and loose gown along with the trouser for the lower body. They also use a cloak to cover their bodies and use the traditional cap on their heads. The Libyan youth is rapidly turning toward the Western clothing and the boys are normally seen in the jeans and shirts in the main cities.

A Libyan woman in her traditional dress - Valonia Hardy's image

The Libyan women also wear the typical long gowns which are also usually used to cover the heads. Modern girls although love to wear the fashionable and bright colored costumes but most women still continue to cover their hair in Hijab.

The women of Libya in the urban parts also use scarves - Alan Shipley's Image

Even the modernly designed costumes are also the blend of the traditional and Western styles. The traditional dress and jewelry is also very common in the rural areas.

A young Libyan girl in her traditional costume - Mansour Ali's Image

The nomadic Berber people of Libya trace their African roots back to 2000 B.C.E. and their traditional dress passed through many amendments caused by the influences of invading cultures. Still many Berbers continue to wear a “haik”, a large cloth wrapped around the body and wrap their heads with the cloth turbans. Similarly the Berber women cover their hair with scarves and their faces with veils called “mandeels”. Under their haiks, many Berbers wear ankle-length tunics or loose trousers called “shalwar”. A Berber women’s dress is very colorful and decorative.

A Tuareg man of Libya wearing his traditional dress on a camer. Image © Eric Lafforgue

Walking on the streets of Libya, you can see the Libyan people moving in different styles of garments. Even to see any man or woman in the traditional dress of Libya is not unusual.

Some Tuareg people of Libya dancing in their traditional ccostumes - Chris G Images

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