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Summary

The social and cultural significance of dress practice and its changes is shaped by the way clothing was delivered and how it has entered people’s lives. Since the early days of the colonial encounter in what today is Zambia, imported textiles and clothing became far more than quotidian wear. Western-styled clothing became a centrepiece of consumption, a focal point of everyday life, which people localised in the process. Labour migration across the region made cities and towns into key spaces for work and consumption, enabling the development of both new clothing practices and the tailor’s craft. Men’s suits and women’s dresses were actively involved in these processes. Migrants spent a good part of their cash earnings on purchasing clothing for relatives and dependents.

African men were eager to wear long trousers and suits and they went to great lengths to obtain them. As a result of new dress sensibilities, the repertoire of tailors expanded to include garments that required more skill and attention to individual client desire in the design of suits and elaborately styled dresses.

Drawing on half-a-century of research in Zambia and regional scholarship, Karen Tranberg Hansen offers a vibrant history of changing dress practices from the late-colonial period to the present day. Exploring how the dressed body serves as the point of contact between personal, local, and global experiences, she argues that dress is just as central to political power as it is to personal style. Questioning the idea that the West led fashion trends elsewhere, Hansen demonstrates how local dress conventions appropriated western dress influences as Zambian and shows how Zambia contributed to global fashions, such as the colourful Chitenge fabric that spread across colonial trading networks. Brought to life with colour illustrations and personal anecdotes, this book spotlights dress not only as an important medium through which Zambian identities are negotiated, but also as a key reflector and driver of history.

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2 - The Migration Nexus

Summary

Dress Cultures in Zambia

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2 results

2 - The Migration Nexus

Summary

Dress Cultures in Zambia