A Souliote warrior wearing fustanella, by Dupré Louis.

Fustanella (for spelling in various languages, see chart below) is a traditional skirt-like garment worn by men of many nations in the Balkans, similar to the kilt. In modern times, the fustanella is part of Balkan folk dresses. In Greece, a short version of the fustanella is worn by ceremonial military units like the Evzones, while in Albania it was worn used by the Royal Guard in the interbellum era.

Origins[link]

A young man with a chiton. Roman copy of a Greek original of the 4th century BCE.

Some scholars state that the fustanella was derived from a series of classical Greek garments such as the chiton (or tunic) and the chitonium (or short military tunic).^[1][2][3] Although the pleated kilt has been linked to an ancient statue (3rd century BC) located in the area around the Acropolis in Athens, there are no surviving ancient Greek clothings that can confirm this connection.^[3] The Roman toga may have also influenced the evolution of the fustanella based on statues of Roman emperors wearing knee-length pleated kilts (in colder regions, more folds were added to provide greater warmth).^[4] Franz Nopcsa von Felső-Szilvás, one of the founders of Albanology, suggested that the Celtic kilt emerged after the Albanian kilt was introduced to the Celts through the Roman legions in Britain, while folklorist Ioanna Papantoniou considers the Celtic kilt, as viewed by the Roman legions, to have served as a prototype.^[3] Sir Arthur Evans considered the fustanella of the female peasants (worn over and above the Slavonic apron) living near the modern Bosnian-Montenegrin borders as a preserved Illyrian element among the local Slavic-speaking populations.^[5]

In the Byzantine Empire, a pleated kilt known as the podea (Greek: ποδέα) was worn.^[6][7] The wearer of the podea was either associated with a typical hero or an Akritic warrior and can be found in 12th-century finds attributed to Emperor Manuel I Komnenos (r. 1143–1180).^[7] On Byzantine pottery sherds, warriors are shown bearing weapons and wearing the heavy pleated fustanella, including a mace-bearer clad in chain-mail.^[8]

Evolution[link]

Greece[link]

Sgraffito pottery fragments from the 12th century showing Greek warriors wearing the fustanella, from Corinth, Greece.^[9]

Although some scholars have claimed that the fustanella was introduced into Greece by Albanians in the 15th century,^{[3][10][11][12][13]} archaeological evidence shows that the fustanella was already in common use in Greece as early as the 12th century,^[9] predating the arrival of Albanian-speakers on Greek lands by several centuries. The full-pleated Greek fustanella was worn originally as a military outfit and seems to have been reserved for persons of importance.^[9] It was frequently worn in conjunction with bows, swords, or battle-axes and frequently shown covered with a jointed corselet, or with a vest of chain mail.^[9]

During the Ottoman period, the fustanella was worn by the klephts and the armatoloi.^[14] In the early 19th century, the costume's popularity rose among the Greek population.^[15] According to Helen Angelomatis-Tsougarakis, its popularity in the Morea (Peloponnese) was attributed to the influence of the Albanian colony of Hydra and other Albanian settlements in the area.^[15] In the other regions of Greece, its popularity was attributed to the rise of power of Ali Pasha, the semi-independent ruler of the Pashalik of Yanina.^[15] Moreover, its lightweight design and manageability in comparison to the clothing of the Greek upper classes of the era also made it fashionable.^[15] The fustanella worn by the Roumeliotes (Greeks of the mountainous interior) was the version chosen as the national costume of Greece in the early 19th century.^[16] By the late 19th century, the popularity of the fustanella in Greece began to fade when Western-style clothing was introduced.^[3] In modern Greece, the garment is seen a relic of a past era that most members of the younger generations don't identify with.^[3]

The Greek fustanella differs from the Albanian fustanella in that the former garment has a higher number of pleats. For example, the "Bridegroom's coat", worn throughout the districts of Attica and Boeotia, was a type of Greek fustanella unique for its 200 pleats; a bride would purchase it as a wedding gift for her groom (if she could afford the garment).^[17] A fustanella is worn with a yileki (bolero), a mendani (waistcoat) and a fermeli (sleeveles coat). The selachi (leather belt) with gold or silver embroidery, is worn around the waist over the fustanella, in which the armatoles and the klephts placed their arms.^[18]

During the 18th and early 19th centuries, the skirts hung below the knees and the hem of the garment was gathered together with garters while tucked into the boots to create a "bloused" effect. Later, during the Bavarian regency, the skirts were shortened to create a sort of billowy pantaloon that stopped above the knee; this garment was worn with hose, and either bushkins or decorative clogs. This is the costume worn by the modern Greek Evzones, the Presidential Guard.

Albania[link]

A 14th-century document (1335 AD) listing a series of items including a fustanum (a cloth made of cotton) which were confiscated from a sailor at the port of the Drin River in the Skadar Lake region of Albania.^[19] The Albanian version has around sixty pleats, or usually a moderate number.^[20] It is made of heavy home-woven linen cloth.^[20] Historically, the skirt was long enough to cover the whole thigh (knee included), leaving only the lower leg exposed.^[20] It was usually worn by wealthy Albanians who would also expose an ornamented yataghan on the side and a pair of pistols with long-chiseled silver handles in the belt.^[20]

The general custom in Albania was to dip the white kilts in melted sheep-fat for the double purpose of making them waterproof and less visible at a distance.^[21] Usually, this was done by the men-at-arms (called in Albanian trima).^[21] After being removed from the cauldron, the kilts were hung up to dry and then pressed with cold irons so as to create the pleats.^[21] They then had a dull gray appearance but were not dirty by any means.^[21]

The jacket, worn with the fustanella in the Albanian costume, has a free armhole to allow for the passage of the arm, while the sleeves, attached only on the upper part of the shoulders, are thrown back.^[20] The sleeves are not usually worn even though the wearer has the option of putting them on.^[20] There are three types of footwear that complement the fustanella: 1) the kundra, which are black shoes with a metal buckle, 2) the sholla, which are sandals with leather thongs tied around a few inches above the ankle, 3) the opinga, which is a soft leather shoe, with turned-up points, which, when intended for children, are surmounted with a pompon of black or red wool.^[20]

Republic of Macedonia[link]

In the Republic of Macedonia, the fustanella was worn in the regions of Azat, Babune, Gevgelija Municipality, the southern area of the Great Morava, Ovče Pole, Lake Prespa, Skopska Blatija, and Tikvesh. Among the inhabitants of Macedonia it's known as fustan, ajta and toska possibly because the costume was introduced in the country as a cultural borrowing from the Albanians of Toskëria (subregion of southern Albania).^[22]

Status and practicality[link]

While the image of warriors with frilly skirts tucked into their boots may seem impractical to a contemporary audience, modern paratroopers use a similar method to blouse their trousers over their jumpboots. Lace was commonly worn on military uniforms in the West well into the 19th century, and gold braids and other adornments still serve as markers of high rank in formal military uniforms. Fustanella were very labor-intensive and thus costly, which made them a status garment that advertised the wealth and importance of the wearer. Western observers of the Greek War of Independence noted the great pride which the klephts and armatoloi took in their fustanella, and how they competed to outdo each other in the sumptuousness of their costume.

Name[link]

The word derives from Italian fustagno 'fustian' + -ella (diminutive), the fabric from which the earliest kilts were made. This in turn derives from Medieval Latin fūstāneum, perhaps a diminutive form of fustis, "wooden baton". Other authors consider this a calque of Greek xylino (ξύλινο), literally "wooden" i.e. "cotton";^[23] others speculate that it is derived from Fostat, a suburb of Cairo where cloth was manufactured.^[24] The Greek plural is foustanelles (Greek: φουστανέλλες) but as with the (semi-correct) foustanellas, it is rarely employed by native English speakers.

Name in various languages[link]

Native terms for "skirt" and "dress" included for comparison:

Gallery[link]

See also[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Fustanella

• Kilt
• Lava-lava
• Sarong

References[link]

Citations[link]

Sources[link]

External links[link]

• Dictionary.com – Fustanella
• The Fustanella in Greece