Traje de flamenca facts for kids
The traje de flamenca (say "tra-heh de fla-MEN-ka") is a beautiful dress. It is also called the traje de gitana ("Gitana outfit"). Women traditionally wear it at big festivals called Ferias in Andalusia, Spain.
There are two main types of this dress. One is for dancing, and the other is for wearing every day. The everyday dress fits tightly down to the middle of the thigh. Then, it has many layers of ruffles that go down to the ankle. This style can be hard to walk in, and even harder to dance in! So, the dancer's version flares out from higher on the hip. This lets dancers move freely.
Both dresses have many layers of ruffles. These ruffles are on both the skirt and the sleeves. The dress is usually very colorful, often red or black. It can be plain or have patterns. The most famous pattern is polka dots, called traje de lunares (say "loo-NAH-res").
To complete the traditional look, women often wear a shawl called a mantón de Manila over their shoulders. Flamenco dancers also tie their hair in a bun. They decorate it with flowers and sometimes a fancy hair comb.
History of the Flamenco Dress
The flamenco dress first came from the Gitanos. These are the Roma people of Spain. Now, many people think of it as a typical dress from Andalusia. It is also worn by women in Madrid called chulapas.
The dress started in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Women who sold things at fairs wore simple calico dresses with ruffles. They came to the fairs with people who traded livestock. Over time, richer women started to copy these outfits. Since the big Seville Exposition of 1929, the traje de flamenca has been the official dress for the event.
Fashion and Modern Styles
The traje de flamenca has changed a lot over the years. For example, in the 1960s and 1970s, the skirts became shorter. They would reach only to the middle of the calf or even the knee. This was sometimes called the Marisol style. From the 1970s onwards, the ruffles usually went back down to the ankle.
Even famous singers have worn flamenco dresses. Madonna wore a flamenco dress in her 1987 music video for La Isla Bonita. This was her first song with a Latino feel. Madonna said it was a tribute to the beauty of Latin people. After the video came out, the red flamenco dress she wore became very popular.
Today, there are many different designs for traje de flamenca. They come in all sorts of colors, plain or patterned. You can find them with short or long sleeves, and with more or fewer ruffles. This traditional outfit has inspired many fashion designers. Famous Spanish designers like Victorio & Lucchino have their own lines of these dresses. Other international designers like Yves Saint Laurent and John Galliano have also been influenced by it.
New designs for trajes de flamenca are shown every year. This happens at the Salón Internacional de la Moda Flamenca (SIMOF). This big fashion event takes place in Seville at the start of each year. In 2009, 32 designers showed 1,200 different outfits. There were also fashion accessories from 90 companies.
See also
In Spanish: Traje de flamenca para niños
