FIT Institutional Repository

Title

Kazakh Traditional Dress Through the Nineteenth Century

Contributor Names

Callahan, Dana (Author)

Yanofsky, Anna (Thesis advisor)

Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of New York. Fashion and Textile Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice (Degree granting institution)

Date

2023

Degree Information

M.A. Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of New York, 2023

Department: Fashion and Textile Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice

Advisors: Yanofsky, Anna

Committee members: Davidson, Hilary; Trupin, Deborah; Font, Lourdes; Abrego, Sonya; Matheson, Rebecca

Abstract

This study examines and explores traditional Kazakh dress and fashion during the nineteenth century – a period of significant cultural and social change in Central Asia. Drawing on a range of historical sources, including ethnographic travel accounts, photographs, and museum collections, and considering the historically nomadic culture of the Kazakh nation, the paper examines the various elements of Kazakh dress and its social, cultural, and economic significance. Discussions follow with respect to the use of natural materials such as wool, leather, and fur, as well as the role of dress in signaling social status and identity. Additionally, this paper provides an overview of the impact of external influences, such as Russian colonization, including under the Soviet Union, on Kazakh dress traditions. The paper observes that despite the challenges posed by external factors, traditional Kazakh dress persisted as a symbol of cultural identity and continuity in the face of rapid change. This project is focused specifically on Kazakh attire, separate from the broader category of Central Asian clothing, and aims to provide more clarity on what distinguishes Kazakh dress from its regional neighbors.

As this research project primarily relates to the author’s native country of Kazakhstan, its original contribution and perspective adds to the existing scholarship on this topic, most of which is by Soviet anthropologists and ethnographers and in the Russian language. The paper was written using English, Kazakh, and Russian (including Old Russian) language sources, with some produced in Kazakhstan (including Soviet Kazakhstan). The project aims to deepen knowledge about specifically Kazakh garment traditions for an English-language audience by increasing understanding of this nation’s history, culture and people

Keywords: Central Asia; Kazakh clothing; Kazakhstan; Nineteenth century dress; Soviet Union; Traditional clothing

Subject

Textile research

Asia

History

Ethnology--Study and teaching

Asia, Central

Kazakhs

Clothing

Kazakhstan

Nineteenth century

Clothing and dress

Soviet Union

Ethnic costume

Rights

In Copyright

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Identifier

FIT Repository ID: etd_000948

ISBN: 9798379899455

pqdiss: 30522753

Related Materials

Also available from ProQuest

Type

Text

Thesis

Language

English

Publisher

Ann Arbor : ProQuest Dissertations & Theses