Weaving the past in a fabric: Old believers’ traditional costume

Abstract

Costume plays an important part in expressing ethnic identity. This article develops an analysis of the Old Believers’ traditional costume in its current usage. To differentiate between various uses for such material items, the article considers their active use, embedded in rituals and ceremonial life, and a passive use, as exhibits in a museum. The ethnic costume is still preserved in the community for religious rituals. Older cuts and materials are used for costumes worn by choir groups in their performances at social and cultural events to represent their identity. The evolution and modernisation of the different costume pieces today are considered through examples drawn from my ethnographic research with Old Believers’ communities in Romania.