Traditional winter clothing. Folk outerwear around the world

Ukraine. There are many different winter garments in Ukraine. Today, such folk outerwear is almost totally replaced by modern clothes. But our ancestors used thick woolen coats, fur coats, sheepskin coats, and similar garments during the cold season. Here are several examples.

Male outerwear from Lemko region of Ukraine (western part of the country), the early 20th century. It is called “chuhania”

Male woolen coat called “serdak” from Hutsul region of Ukraine (western part of the country), the early 20th century

Female long coat called “kozhukh”. It is made from sheepskin and decorated with embroidery

Woolen hooded cloak called “manta”, Carpathian regions of Ukraine. Both men and women wore this garment

Male outerwear called "serdak", Putyliv district, Chernivtsi region of Ukraine, the end of the 19th century – the beginning of the 20th century

Men’s fur coat called "kozhukh", Rakhiv district, Transcarpathian region of Ukraine, the beginning of the 20th century

Vintage Ukrainian woolen coat called “svyta”. Ovruch district, Zhytomyr region of Ukraine. It is a women’s winter outerwear. The bottom part of the coat is wide and pleated. It is traditional for Ukrainian female outer garments to be white-colored. This particular svyta has no decoration though, often, such garments are embellished with embroidery, braiding, applique, etc.

Ukrainian woolen outerwear, the 19th century. The blue garment is called “chumarka”; it is a male coat. The brown garment is called “svyta”; it is a female coat. Please, notice that both pieces have a similar cut – a fitting top and a pleated skirt. Such outer garments were used in winter but they were not the most warm clothing articles – people used fur coats and sheepskin coats when the temperatures got freezing.

Vintage Ukrainian woolen coat. The front is very simple, without any embellishments. And also, you can see that there’s no buttons or any other fasteners – this coat was closed one flap over the other and belted. The back of the garment is embellished with colorful yarn pom-poms and, as you see, is composed from several pieces of woolen cloth.

Here is a similar coat, closed and belted.

Ukrainian traditional outerwear called “serdak”. It is a decorative woolen coat used in Hutsul area (western Ukraine). This festive garment used to be extremely popular among Hutsul people, practically every family had one or several serdak garments. It was the perfect article of clothing for that particular region because it is a mountainous area, rather chilly, windy, and snowy. In modern times though, people gave up serdak for membrane jackets, fleece fabrics, and similar modern inventions. But you can still see these outerwear items in Ukrainian museums, like this one.

Vintage but such a stylish woolen coat with long fur called “hunia”. This garment was traditional for Western Ukraine, and it was rather popular. This particular hunia is short (though, there were also long variants of this outerwear) and light (some hunias were much more thick and warm, while this one looks like it’s demiseasonal). Also, it is tied at the neckline with a cord, with no buttons or other fasteners. It looks charming!

Vintage woolen short jacket for woman. Western Ukraine, the late 19th century. This outer garment is tight-fitting and decorated with 4 fasteners at the front. Cute festive female jacket.

Vintage men’s winter wool coat with a hood. Authentic outerwear from Chernihiv region of Ukraine (northern part of the country). It’s over 100 years old. And it belonged to an ordinary villager once.

Vintage women’s outerwear, Ukraine, the early 20th century. The woolen coat is white and looks pretty elegant. It was a festive outer garment of a villager. Also, there’s a large kerchief worn around the head, neck, and shoulders.

Warm winter coat made from coarse woolen cloth, Ukraine, the beginning of the 20th century. Such simple outerwear was used by working men and women.

British woolen overcoat for sporting activities, like hiking, ice skating, etc, 1885. Looks really graceful. From The Met Museum.

Pretty traditional outerwear. Vintage Latvian eiderdown coat from around 1860. The texture is striking, and the eiderdown makes this coat so warm and cozy.

Outerwear can be beautiful. Vintage British winter coat with intricate decorations from about 1863. It’s made from wool and natural fur. And the cream color is so elegant. Just look at these decorative fasteners!

Vintage British coat from about 1891. So elegant! It is made from wool and trimmed with fur. The tight-fitting silhouette adds sophistication and femininity to this outerwear.

French evening fur mantle from about 1887. It was designed by the House of Worth. This outerwear has an extravagant design, with a long front part and a cape at the back.

French fancy girl’s coat from 1882. It is fashioned from a man's frock coat style. And it sports lovely and extravagant mother-of-pearl buttons. The collar is really cute. From The Met.

American winter coat for young girl, 1880-1889. It mimics an adult fur-trimmed coat. And the buckle is a nice touch.